TRANSPORTATION IN TENNESSEE

CHALLENGE FROM LEAGUE OF AMERICAN BICYCLISTS

The 2011 Bicycle Friendly State rankings were disappointing - many states performed worse than the year before largely as a result of poor spending on bicycling infrastructure and programs. States generally did not spend all of the traditional bike/ped funding programs available to them (such as Transportation Enhancements and Safe Routes to School); spent next to nothing out of their Congestion Mitigation (CMAQ), Surface Transportation, and Highway Safety Improvement Programs (HSIP) and on top of all that, targeted the Enhancements and CMAQ programs for a disproportionate share of the rescissions process.

To correct this situation the League recommends the following actions: 

    - Understand the planning process. .
    - Cultivate internal advocates.
    - Cultivate elected officials.
    - Influence the Plan.
    - Learn the project selection criteria.
    - Collect data.
    - Announce the funding opportunity.
    - Follow up.
Our plan is to educate advocates as recommended by the League starting with understanding the planning and funding process:

1. Tennessee Department of Transportation (TDOT):
     - Organization & Finances (This Page)
2. Federal-Aid Highway Programs Funding Process
3. Transportation Improvement Programming
     - State Transportation Improvement Programs
     - Regional Transportation Improvement Programs
     - TDOT Bicycle and Pedestrian Policy
4. Transportation Enhancements
       REVENUES                          Actual       Estimated   Recommended
DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION       2009-2010      2010-2011      2011-2012 
  - Appropriation                      871,073,600    703,500,000    712,800,000 
  - Federal                            911,896,500    899,718,000    904,031,000
  - Current Services & Other Rev         2,725,900      6,764,000     38,264,000 
  - Bonds                                        0    164,500,000    161,500,000
                                    $1,815,696,000 $1,804,482,000 $1,816,595,000
The Tennessee Department of Transportation (TDOT) is a multimodal statewide agency with responsibilities in aviation, public transit, waterways and railroads. Its mission is to plan, implement, maintain and manage an integrated transportation system for the movement of people and products, with emphasis on quality, safety, efficiency and the environment. TDOT Organization Chart

The Long Range Planning Division is one of four divisions under the Chief of Environment and Planning and has extensive public and local government involvement in project development. The Long Range Planning Division is comprised of four offices: Statewide Planning, Regional Planning, Research and Policy Office, and GIS Mapping & Facilities Data.. The offices most directly involved with Bicycle and Pedestrian activites are the Statewide and Regional Planning.

Funding for TDOT comes from two primary sources: Appropriations from Highway Taxes and User Fees and from the Federal-aid for Highways Program (FAHP).  Source: http://www.tn.gov/finance/bud/documents/11-12BudgetVol1.pdf

TENNESSEE DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

2011-2012 Appropriations (shown in $ Millions) are derived from the Highway Fund ($631), Misc Rev ($21.8), Bonds ($77), Bridge Bonds ($87.5), Reserves ($8), and Transportation Equity Fund ($52).  Contributions to the Highway Fund are detailed below.
2011-2012 revenues are budgeted for use as shown below.  The big expenditure is the $1.28 Billion in Federal-aid related projects.  The Federal Highway Administration requires State Transportation Improvement Planning for the this money.  Click here for details of TDOT's Plan.
Almost 70% of TDOT's budget is tied to Federal-aid Highway Programs. Follow that link to understand how that funding is allocated to the states.
Our objective is understanding Transportation Planning for Tennessee. However, AASHTO and the National Council of State Legislatures undertood a project to document the transportation finance and on the roles of, and relationships between state government entities that are most active in tranportation issues: state legislatures and, under the authority of governors, state departments of transportation (DOTs). Transportation Governance and Finance -- a 50-state Review of State Legislatures and Departments of Transportation”    http://www.transportation-finance.org/pdf/50_State_Review_State_Legislatures_Departments_Transportation.pdf
includes a state by state chart of how they make transportation policy, how they fund it, and how DOTs and legislatures interact.
Note that a portion of the Highway Fund comes from Sales, Receipts, and Beer Tax.  These are categories into which Bicyclists and Pedestrians pay.  Highway funds are not exclusively from taxes on motorists.
Tennessee Department of Transportation --> Federal-Aid Highway Programs Funding --> Transportation Improvement Programs -->
  Transportation Enhancements
The best opportunities to influence funding for bicycle and pedestrian facilities is participating with Regional Transportation Planning offices in the prioritization of available State funds and the establishment of local projects for the use of Transportation Enhancements.

Unfortunately, Transportation Enhancement funding is likely to be lost in the 2011 Budget negotiations.