2018-2021 Regional Transportation Improvement Program

1 2018 -2021 Regional Transportation Improvement Program Prepared by: Cowlitz-Wahkiakum Council of Governments Longview-Kelso-Rainier Metropolitan Planning Organization Southwest Washington Regional Transportation Planning Organization TABLE OF CONTENTS List of Member Jurisdictions in MPO .. 3 List of Member Jurisdictions in RTPO .. 3 CWCOG Board Resolution .. 5 SWRTPO Board Resolution .. 6 MPO Certification Statement (WSDOT) .. 7 Introduction .. 8 Purpose and Scope of Regional Transportation Improvement Plan .. 10 Regional Transportation Improvement Program Development Process .. 12 Regional Transportation Improvement Program Amendment Process .. 13 Public Involvement .. 14 Congestion Management/Air Quality .. 15 Intermodal/Multimodal Approach .. 15 Regional Transportation Improvement programs Projects .. 15 Funding Sources .. 16 Acronyms .. 17 Regionally Significant & Secured Federal Funded MPO Area Projects .. 35 Regionally Significant & Secured Federal Funded RTPO Area Projects.

2 71 Appendix A - SWRTPO Regional Media Contacts ..193 Appendix B Notice of Availability and Public Comment ..194 Appendix C Public Participation Plan ..195 MAPS 1. Longview-Kelso-Rainier Metropolitan Planning Organization Area .. 9 2. Southwest Washington Regional Transportation Planning Organization Area .. 11 TABLES 1. Regionally Significant and Secured Federal Funding MPO Area Projects Washington 2. MPO Area Projects Prioritization - Washington 3. Regionally Significant and Secured Federal Funding MPO Area Projects Oregon 4. Regionally Significant and Secured Federal Funding RTPO Area Projects Washington 5. Financial Feasibility of Regionally Significant and Secured Federal Funding Projects by Year for MPO & RTPO Washington 2018 2021 Regional Transportation Improvement Program Longview-Kelso-Rainier MPO and Southwest Washington RTPO Page 3 Cowlitz-Wahkiakum Council of Governments Metropolitan & Regional Transportation Planning Organization Member Jurisdictions & Agencies Regional Planning Agencies Cowlitz-Wahkiakum Council of Governments (CWCOG) Grays Harbor Council of Governments (GHCOG) Pacific Council of Governments (PCOG) Lewis County Transportation Strategy Council (LCTSC) State Departments of Transportation Southwest Region, Vancouver, WSDOT Olympic Region, Tumwater, WSDOT South Central Region, Union Gap, WSDOT Region 2, Salem, ODOT Federal Department of Transportation Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) Federal Transit Administration (FTA)

3 Counties Cowlitz County Pacific County Grays Harbor County Wahkiakum County Lewis County Port Districts Port of Centralia Port of Longview Port of Chehalis Port of Peninsula Port of Chinook Port of Willapa Harbor Port of Grays Harbor Port of Woodland Port of Ilwaco Wahkiakum Port District No. 1 Port of Kalama Wahkiakum Port District No. 2 Transit Authorities Cowlitz Transit Authority Grays Harbor Transit Authority Twin Transit Authority Pacific Transit System Tribal Governments Chinook Nation Confederated Tribes of the Chehalis Reservation Cowlitz Indian Tribe Quinault Indian Nation Shoalwater Bay Tribe Cities and Towns Aberdeen Elma Longview Oakville Toledo Castle Rock Hoquiam McCleary Ocean Shores Vader Cathlamet Ilwaco Montesano Pe Ell Westport Centralia Kalama Morton Rainier, OR Winlock Chehalis Kelso Mossyrock Raymond Woodland Cosmopolis Long Beach Napavine South Bend MPO Technical Advisory Committee Members Michael Ray, Transit Director, CC Rider Dave Vorse, Public Works Director, City of Castle Rock Jeff Cameron, Public Works Director, City of Longview Craig Bozarth, City Engineer, City of Longview Manuel Abarca, Traffic Engineer, City of Longview Steve Langdon, Planning Manager, City of Longview Adam Smee, City Administrator.

4 City of Kalama Kelly Rasmussen, Public Works Director, City of Kalama Michael Kardas, Community Development Director, City of Kelso Debra Dudley, City Administrator, City of Rainier, OR Mike Karnofski, Public Works Director, City of Woodland Jody Herz, Engineering Tech, City of Woodland Nick Fazio, Assistant Long Range Planner, Cowlitz County Brad Bastin, County Engineer, Cowlitz County Susan Eugenis, Assistant County Engineer, Cowlitz County Roger Maurer, Project Engineer, Cowlitz County Kim Stube, Transportation Planner, Cowlitz Indian Tribe Colleen Kuhn, Executive Director, Human Services Council Paul Youmans, Pathways 2020 Eric Yakovich, Economic Development Manager, Port of Kalama Lisa Hendriksen, Director of Planning & Environmental Services, Port of Longview 2018 2021 Regional Transportation Improvement Program Longview-Kelso-Rainier MPO and Southwest Washington RTPO Page 4 Lisa Willis, Environmental Manager, Port of Longview Jennifer Keene, Executive Director, Port of Woodland Amy Asher, Transit Manager, River Cities Transit Ben Nolen, Mobility Supervisor, River Cities Transit Chris Paolini, Airport Manager, SW Washington Regional Airport Michael Williams, Planning Manager, WSDOT, SW Region Ken Burgstahler, Transportation Planner, WSDOT SW Region Chad Hancock, Local programs Engineer, WSDOT SW Region Joanna Lowrey, WSDOT Kelso Area Office Kenneth Shonkwiler, Senior Region Planner, ODOT Cowlitz-Wahkiakum Council of Governments Staff Bill Fashing, Executive Director Robert Stevens, Transportation Planner Regional Planning Agencies Staff Vicki Cummings, Executive Director, Grays Harbor COG Zana Dennis, Office Coordinator, Grays Harbor COG Theressa Julius, GIS Coordinator/Planner, Grays Harbor COG Michael Kroll, Transportation Planner.

5 Lewis County Public Works Title VI CWCOG ensures all compliance with Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 by prohibiting discrimination against any person on the basis of race, color, national origin, or sex in the provisions of benefits and services results in from its federally assisted programs and activities. For questions regarding CWCOG s Title VI Program , you may contact the COG s Title VI Coordinator at 360-577-3041. Funding Partners This Regional Transportation Plan has been financed in part through grants from the Federal Highway Administration, Federal Transit Administration, the Washington State Department of Transportation , and the Oregon Department of Transportation . 2018 2021 Regional Transportation Improvement Program Longview-Kelso-Rainier MPO and Southwest Washington RTPO Page 5 2018 2021 Regional Transportation Improvement Program Longview-Kelso-Rainier MPO and Southwest Washington RTPO Page 6 2018 2021 Regional Transportation Improvement Program Longview-Kelso-Rainier MPO and Southwest Washington RTPO Page 7 2018 2021 Regional Transportation Improvement Program Longview-Kelso-Rainier MPO and Southwest Washington RTPO Page 8 INTRODUCTION The Cowlitz-Wahkiakum Council of Governments (CWCOG) was established more than 50 years ago as a voluntary association of general and special purpose governments and agencies in the Lower Columbia region.

6 Our current organizational structure is comprised of 33 entities including counties, cities, school districts, public utility districts, ports, fire districts, an economic development council, a community college, and other non-profit agencies in Cowlitz and Wahkiakum Counties. There are also three affiliate members from Clark County. Metropolitan Planning Organization In 1981, as a result of the 1980 Census reporting that more than 50,000 people were living in the community, the Bureau of the Census designated Longview-Kelso-Rainier an urbanized area (Map 1). Federal funds for metropolitan Transportation planning were then made available and the Governor designated the Cowlitz-Wahkiakum Council of Governments (CWCOG) as the Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) for the Longview-Kelso-Rainier metropolitan area. A Memorandum of Understanding between the Washington and Oregon Departments of Transportation and CWCOG defines the responsibilities for cooperatively carrying out Transportation planning and programming throughout the metropolitan area.

7 The CWCOG fulfills its MPO responsibilities by working with a Technical Advisory Committee (TAC) and the MPO board, which is the CWCOG Board. The TAC is comprised of engineers and planners representing local jurisdictions, ports, transit providers, special purpose districts, and the Washington and Oregon Departments of Transportation . The TAC provides staff level input to the activities being undertaken by the MPO. The MPO Board provides policy direction and guidance for the activities and projects that will require adoption by the Board and/or local jurisdictions. This multi-level forum provides coordination and consensus prior to adoption of work Program products. Special citizen task forces are also intermittently formulated for specific projects. The overall vision is to: Develop an intermodal Transportation network that accommodates, efficiently and safely, the movement of goods and people throughout the Southwest Washington region and beyond.

8 Major products of this process are the Metropolitan Transportation Plan (MTP), the Regional Transportation Improvement Program (RTIP), the Public Participation Plan (PPP), the Coordinated Public Transit - Human Services Transportation Plan (CPT-HSTP), and specific planning and research studies. The work is completed as outlined in the Unified Planning Work Program (UPWP). 2018 2021 Regional Transportation Improvement Program Longview-Kelso-Rainier MPO and Southwest Washington RTPO Page 9 Map 1 Longview-Kelso-Rainier Metropolitan Planning Area (MPA) Map 2018 2021 Regional Transportation Improvement Program Longview-Kelso-Rainier MPO and Southwest Washington RTPO Page 10 Regional Transportation Planning Organization In addition to being the Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO), CWCOG also fulfills the responsibilities for the Southwest Washington Regional Transportation Planning Organization (RTPO) for Cowlitz, Grays Harbor, Lewis, Pacific, and Wahkiakum Counties (Map 2).

9 In 1990, the Washington State legislature enacted the Growth Management Act, authorizing local governments to voluntarily form Regional Transportation planning organizations (RTPOs) to coordinate Transportation among local governments and to develop a Regional Transportation Plan (RTP). By law, the designated MPO is also the lead agency for the RTPO. This augments the MPO Program by expanding into planning for non-MPO cities and rural areas. Each of the five counties in the RTPO has a Technical Advisory Committee and a Policy Board. The five-county region meets as the RTPO Board, at least quarterly, on a schedule that rotates the meeting location among the five counties. PURPOSE AND SCOPE OF THE Regional Transportation Improvement Program CWCOG is required by federal and state regulations to develop a Regional Transportation Improvement Program (RTIP) for its Metropolitan and Regional Transportation Planning Organization in cooperation with local jurisdictions and the Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT).

10 MPOs are required to prepare an RTIP detailing those projects within the Metropolitan Planning Area (MPA) boundary that are regionally significant and/or to be completed using federal Transportation funds. RTPOs are required to certify that the Transportation elements of each local jurisdiction s comprehensive plans are consistent with the RTP and the Washington State Transportation Plan. CWCOG s RTIP is the financial plan that identifies and prioritizes federally funded surface Transportation projects. It includes projects for both the MPO and the RTPO. The MPO portion of the RTIP spans a four-year period and is updated at least every two years. The RTPO portion of the RTIP is a four-year programming document derived from the local agencies annual (six-year) comprehensive Transportation Program . The RTIP: Identifies urban and rural projects from local agencies comprehensive Transportation programs that are ready for implementation in 2018 -2021 for which federal funding has been secured, are WSDOT projects, or are regionally significant, regardless of the funding source; Demonstrates financial constraint; and Demonstrates consistency with RCW , Section 70 of the Washington State Growth Management Act requiring Transportation planning be coordinated and consistent with local comprehensive plans.