The Commission has approved the 2021-2024 regional transportation improvement program (TIP). The 2021-2024 TIP can be accessed from this link. The TIP is a listing of all arterial highway, public transit, and other transportation improvement projects proposed to be carried out by State and local governments over the next four years (2021-2024) in the seven county Southeastern Wisconsin Region. The TIP indicates the transportation system improvement priorities of State and local governments in Southeastern Wisconsin by their programming of projects to be undertaken in each of the next four years. Transit, arterial highway, and other improvement projects proposed to be implemented in the next four years with Federal U.S. Department of Transportation funding should be included in this program.
TIP Amendments
The TIP may be amended from time-to-time. This occurs when projects are substantially modified or funding sources substantially change and, in some cases, when new funding sources arise. Amendments also include significant changes in project timing. Amendments to the TIP may occur monthly and are generally noted on the Commission’s website the first or second week of the month. Proposed amendments are reviewed by the five TIP Committees prior to being approved by the Commission. In addition, projects in the TIP can be administratively modified to correct errors or make relatively small changes to project scope, timing, and funding sources. The Commission and the five TIP Committees are not required to approve administrative modifications to the TIP. SEWRPC posts on the right sidebar of this webpage all TIP amendments and modifications. The TIP online database is also updated upon completion of each amendment and modification.
2021-2024 TIP Development
The TIP was compiled by Commission staff by contacting local engineers, planners, and transit operators within the Region. This was done to assure not only participation in, and understanding of, the program development process, but also to assure that all proposed State and local government transportation projects are considered for inclusion in the TIP. A figure summarizing the TIP development process can be found here.
Commission staff reviewed each project proposed to be listed in the TIP for consistency with the adopted year 2050 fiscally constrained transportation system (FCTS). The Commission staff also compared the total costs of the proposed projects in the TIP to estimates of available Federal, State, and local funding to ensure that available funding sources are adequate to implement the TIP (Appendix D). In addition, the Commission staff conducted an evaluation assessing the impact of the projects programmed in the TIP on minority populations and low-income populations—both positive and negative—and evaluating whether minority populations and low-income populations may be expected to receive a proportionate share of TIP benefits and not receive a disproportionate share of TIP negative impacts (Appendix I). An evaluation was also conducted of the contributions of the projects listed in the TIP toward achieving VISION 2050 performance goals and the established targets for the national performance measures (Appendix E).
A draft of the 2021-2024 TIP was made available for public review and comment from November 4, 2020, through December 3, 2020. A virtual public informational meeting on the 2021-2024 transportation improvement program was held on Wednesday, November 18, 2020. This meeting began with a brief presentation by Commission staff on the draft TIP, followed by an opportunity for participants to ask questions and provide written or oral comment in real time. Presentation slides and a recording are available for participants who were unable to attend. More information on the public involvement process used to develop the TIP can be found in Appendix J of the 2021-2024 TIP document.
The TIP and public comment on the TIP was reviewed by the Commission’s Advisory Committees for Transportation System Planning and Programming for the Kenosha, Milwaukee, Racine, Round Lake Beach-McHenry-Grayslake, Illinois-Wisconsin, and West Bend urbanized areas at a meeting held on December 8, 2020. These committees are comprised of local elected and appointed officials and agency representatives responsible for transportation system improvement, operation, and maintenance within each urbanized area. The TIP and public comment on the TIP were reviewed and approved by the Commission on December 9, 2020. More detail on the TIP review and approval process can be found here.
2021-2024 Transportation Improvement Program
The project-by-project listing of the 2021-2024 TIP is provided in Appendix A of the report and via an online database. The listing includes for each project a brief description; estimated costs; estimated levels of Federal, State, and local funding; and the State or local unit of government sponsor responsible for project implementation.
The 2021-2024 TIP contains 396 projects representing a total potential investment in transportation improvements and services of $2.66 billion over the next four years. Of this total, $1.49 billion, or about 56 percent, is proposed to be provided in Federal aids; $803 million, or about 30 percent, in State funds; and $362 million, or about 14 percent, in local funds. About 31.4 percent of the four year 2021-2024 TIP proposed expenditures, or about $834 million, are programmed in 2021, the first year of the TIP (as shown in the figure below).
Distribution of Expenditures in 2021 of the 2021 Through 2024
Transportation Improvement Program by Project Category
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A significant proportion of financial resources programmed for 2021—about $481.6 million, or 57.7 percent—are to be devoted to the preservation of the existing transportation facilities and services—both highway and transit—in the Region. This allocation of resources does not include routine highway operations and maintenance activities—snowplowing, ice control, grass cutting, and power for traffic control and street lighting.
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The expenditures for highway improvement (projects that include additional travel lanes when a road is being reconstructed) in 2021 are approximately $262.7 million, or 31.5 percent of total expenditures. (It should be noted that much of the cost of a highway improvement project is associated with the reconstruction of the existing highway facility. The cost of additional travel lanes provided may only represent 10 to 20 percent of the total costs of a highway improvement project.) No expenditures are programmed for highway expansion projects (projects that involve the design and construction of a brand-new roadway.)
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About $264.6 million, or 31.7 percent of total financial resources in 2021, is devoted to public transit projects. Public transit ridership represents about two percent of all person trips made on an average weekday in Southeastern Wisconsin. Of the total year 2021 programmed resources for public transit, $206.2 million, or 77.9 percent is for preservation and $58.5 million, or 22.1 percent is for service expansion. While there are no discrete transit improvement projects identified in 2021, one of the programmed transit expansion projects includes transit improvement activities.
Similar programmed funding patterns exist for the full four years of the 2021-2024 TIP.
Listing of Obligated Projects
In an activity related to the TIP, Federal law requires that the MPO post for public access on an annual basis a listing of projects for which the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) and Federal Transit Administration (FTA) has obligated funds in the preceding program year. The obligated project listing for the current and recent TIPs can be found listed in the right sidebar of this webpage.
Stay Informed
Proposed amendments and modifications can be found on the right sidebar of this TIP page under “Proposed Amendments”. If you would like to receive notification of future proposed amendments to the TIP via email, please provide your name and email address below: