The Long-Range Transportation Plan spans a 25-year time horizon, beginning in 2019 and continuing through 2045, with a budget of $2,480,130,108. The budget for projects and programs included in the Long-Range Transportation Plan was determined by referencing years 2019-2020 of the existing Transportation Improvement Program (TIP), years 2021-2032 of the 2021 Financial Guidance 12-year expenditure projections published by the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation, and years 2033-2045 projections of future funding at a 3% inflation rate.

Funding stages for the Long-Range Transportation Plan consist of short-range, mid-range and long-range elements. The short-range element is comprised of programming for projects and plans included in the 2019-2022 TIP, with a budget of $534,440,108. Projects and programs included in the Transportation Improvement Program are considered high-priority, having phases of work started/completed during the four-year Program timeframe.

The budget for the mid-range element consists of $815,772,065. It is comprised of projects that were programmed to be started, but not completed, during the 2019-2022 TIP timeframe, as well as projects listed on the State Transportation Commission’s 2019 Twelve Year Program. The Twelve Year Program projects are selected by a 15-member board of elected and appointed officials, chaired by the Secretary of Transportation. The Twelve Year Program project list is determined by anticipated project completion timetables, goals and targets for infrastructure through a policy-driven decision process based upon performance conditions and statewide asset needs.

The long-range element covers years 13 through 25, calculated using a 3% annual inflation rate. The long-range element budget consists of $1,129,917,935 and is comprised of projects programmed, but not completed, during the State Transportation Commission’s Twelve Year Program, as well as candidate projects or plans selected from the FutureLV: Open Call for Plans and Projects list.

The FutureLV: Open Call for Plans and Projects program was a formal process for public outreach to municipalities and potential project sponsors, fulfilling State Long Range Transportation Plan goals of extensive public and stakeholder involvement in project programming. It was open to the public for an opportunity to propose projects or programs that will improve operating efficiency and preservation of transportation assets for all modes within the Lehigh Valley. These plans and projects were submitted by the public during an open call period from December 5, 2018 through January 25, 2019.

Projects from the Open Call for Plans and Projects were then individually analyzed using a standardized methodology for assessment of candidacy by Lehigh Valley Planning Commission staff. Evaluation of regional transportation projects was based upon established federal and regional goals of safety, asset management, equity and environmental justice, freight movement and economic vitality, congestion reduction, and overall cost effectiveness, considering the available budget.

Projects and plans included in the Long-Range Transportation Plan are separated by type and year of expenditure. The short- and mid-range elements of the Long-Range Transportation Plan depict road, rail and trail projects as one category, bridge projects as another category, and transit projects as the final category.  Projects selected for inclusion into the long-range element are listed under the following project categories: bridge projects, traffic management projects, roadway reconstruction/modernization/automation projects, roadway expansion projects, multi-use trail and bicycle facility projects, pedestrian facility projects, safe routes to school projects, and transit projects.

TRANSPORTATION FUNDING INTERACTIVE MAP

LONG-RANGE TRANSPORTATION PLAN FUNDING

UNMET NEEDS

A  substantial number of projects and programs submitted for consideration onto the Long-Range Transportation Plan could not be included on the fiscally constrained programming budget.  Projects that did not make the Long-Range Transportation Plan list are considered unmet needs and account for a funding deficit of $4,031,717,944.

As a fiscally constrained document, the Long-Range Transportation Plan must not exceed the amount of funding reasonably expected through the year 2045. The budget for the Long-Range Transportation Plan includes commitments to the Transportation Improvement Program (TIP), years 2019-2020; the June 2019 release of the State Transportation Commission twelve-year budget, years 2021-2032; and an annual 3% inflation increase in funding for years beyond 2032.

Projects that could not be funded were submitted by project sponsors, including PennDOT, Lehigh and Northampton counties, LANTA, the Lehigh Valley Transportation Study, 43 Lehigh Valley municipalities and various non-profit groups.  Anticipated costs for the unmet needs projects and programs were first submitted as current-year 2019 estimates.  After the projects and programs were identified as unmet needs, their project costs were then recalculated with a Year of Expenditure 3% annual increase.  All projects that are included in the unmet needs list were calculated in this plan at the mid-point between the years 2031-2045.

During the FutureLV: Open Call for Plans and Projects outreach campaign, a number of regionally significant projects and programs were identified for potential Long-Range Transportation Plan budget programming. Unfortunately, these projects essentially comprise the unmet needs list. Projects and programs were selected for the unmet needs list based on project evaluation and scoring methodology. Projects included on the unmet needs list scored lower for their role in the regional transportation system and economy, usage and potential usage, equity and housing performance, infrastructure condition and age, congestion reduction and air quality impacts, deficiencies and safety, multimodal elements and existing connections, consistency with regional plans, public engagement/risk assessment and cost-effectiveness.

The projects and programs submitted during the FutureLV: Open Call for Plans and Projects campaign are included as follows: