Regional Transportation Planning

Metropolitan Planning Organizations (MPOs) plan the surface transportation networks in the urbanized areas. Two MPOs exist in this region: one in the Clarksville-Montgomery County area and one in the Nashville-Davidson County area. The Council is an active participant in the region's MPOs.

RTA Regional Transportation Authority

The Regional Transportation Authority (RTA) is a nine-county regional agency created by state statute in 1988 to plan and develop a regional transit system. The nine member counties of the RTA are: Cheatham, Davidson, Dickson, Maury, Robertson, Rutherford, Sumner, Williamson and Wilson. The county executives, mayors of the county seats and mayors of other cities over 4,000 population are board members of the RTA. The Commissioner of the Tennessee Department of Transportation and six other members appointed by the Governor complete the board's membership.

The RTA operates three regional bus routes between downtown Nashville and Murfreesboro, Hendersonville and Mt. Juliet. The RTA's rideshare program also organizes vanpools and carpools throughout Middle Tennessee.

RTA is the lead agency for developing a regional commuter rail system. GNRC provides staff, administrative, legal, financial management and related support to RTA and the RTA is housed at the GNRC offices. For more information about RTA click here: Regional Transportation

The enactment of the Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act (ISTEA) of 1991 expanded the planning area of the Nashville Area Metro Planning Organization (MPO) to include five counties: Davidson, Sumner, Wilson, Rutherford and Williamson. This includes the twelve cities with a population of 5,000 or more people. Federal planning funds are utilized in providing technical assistance to the local governments within the MPO. Last year Congress passed a new bill called the Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century (TEA 21). This bill will return ninety-one cents for every dollar Tennessee sends in for federal gasoline tax. This is a thirteen-cent increase over what Tennessee was previously receiving. These funds will be used to support existing highway maintenance and transit programs to assist in maintaining and improving the quality of our citizens transportation network through the year 2004.

GNRC staff assisted some of the Region's jurisdictions in the preparation of the Nashville Area MPO's Transportation Improvement Program (TIP). The TIP is a staged, three-year program of transportation improvement projects in the Nashville MPO area that are federally funded. This is a cooperative effort between the MPO and its jurisdictions, the State and local transit operators. This effort links project implementation to the overall regional land use and transportation planning process.

GNRC staff helped in the development of the Unified Planning Work Program (UPWP). The UPWP provides a framework for identifying the transportation planning activities that will be undertaken during the next one to three years. The plan includes requirements and target dates that the MPO must address to comply with regulations of ISTEA and/or TEA21. There are two levels of planning effort, the first being work done on a regional basis. This is required to have a certified transportation planning process. The second level complements the regional work but also refines the larger overall plan effort.

GNRC also provided similar support assistance to the Clarksville-Montgomery County MPO. The Long-Range Transportation Plan (LRP) for Hopkinsville, KY has been developed and adopted. Staff assisted in the first phase of a Rails to Trails project in Montgomery County.

GNRC staff prepared transportation enhancement applications for local jurisdictions for project grant funds under ISTEA. The transportation enhancement activities must relate to the intermodal transportation system in function, proximity or impact. There are ten categories defined by the federal legislation that the activities can relate to. Local projects include the following:

• Provision of facilities for pedestrians & bicycles;
• Acquisition of scenic easements and scenic or historic sites;
• Rehabilitation and operation of historic transportation buildings, structures or facilities including railroads and canals; and
• Preservation of abandoned railway corridors for the conversion and use for pedestrian and or bicycle trails.