[Federal Register Volume 74, Number 149 (Wednesday, August 5, 2009)]
[Notices]
[Pages 39138-39143]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E9-18699]
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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
Federal Highway Administration
Value Pricing Pilot Program Participation, Fiscal Years 2009 and
2010
AGENCY: Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), DOT.
ACTION: Notice; solicitation for participation.
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SUMMARY: This notice invites States, along with their local government
partners and other public authorities, to apply to participate in the
Value Pricing Pilot (VPP) program and presents guidelines for program
applications for fiscal years 2009 and 2010. Unlike with previous
notices, the purpose of this notice is to seek only applications for
statewide, regionwide, or areawide transportation pricing studies and
for transportation pricing implementation projects that do not entail
tolling roadways. This notice seeks applications for fiscal year 2009
funding, and if Congress chooses to extend Safe, Accountable, Flexible,
Efficient Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users (SAFETEA-LU)
VPP program funding, for such funds made available in fiscal year 2010.
DATES: 1. Applications for tolling authority only may be submitted at
any time.
2. Formal grant applications, however, must be submitted no later
than November 3, 2009, to be assured consideration.
3. Applicants may also submit an optional ``sketch'' or draft
proposal by September 21, 2009, which FHWA will review and provide
general feedback on for the applicant to use in its formal grant
application. Sketch or draft proposals received after this date may
still be reviewed by and commented upon by FHWA at its discretion.
4. For applications that had been submitted under the September 16,
2008 (73 FR 53478) solicitation that were not funded (for a list of
projects funded from that solicitation, see: http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/pressroom/fhwa0913.htm), and where such applications would still be
eligible for funding under the criteria provided by this notice,
applicants may submit a letter to the Department by September 4, 2009,
requesting comments on their previous applications.
Application Submission: Applications may be submitted through
http://www.grants.gov.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For questions about or to provide
information to FHWA that responds to this notice, such as to submit a
letter or sketch plan, please contact Ms. Angela Jacobs, FHWA Office of
Operations, at (202) 366-0076, [email protected]. For technical
questions related to the development of pricing projects not involving
tolls, please contact Mr. Allen Greenberg, FHWA Office of Operations,
at (202) 366-2425, [email protected]. For technical questions
related to the development of regional pricing projects, please contact
Mr. Patrick DeCorla-Souza, FHWA Office of Innovative Program Delivery,
at (202) 366-4076, [email protected]. For legal questions,
please contact Mr. Michael Harkins, FHWA Office of the Chief Counsel,
at (202) 366-4928, [email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Electronic Access
An electronic copy of this document may be downloaded from the
Federal Register's home page at: http://www.archives.gov and the
Government Printing Office's database at: http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara.
Background
Section 1012(b) of the Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency
Act (ISTEA) (Pub. L. 102-240; 105 Stat. 1914), as amended by section
1216(a) of the Transportation Equity Act (TEA-21) (Pub. L. 105-178; 112
Stat. 107), and section 1604(a) of the Safe, Accountable, Flexible,
Efficient Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users (SAFETEA-LU)
(Pub. L. 109-59; 119 Stat. 1144), authorizes the Secretary of
Transportation (the Secretary) to create a Value Pricing Pilot (VPP)
program. Congestion pricing encompasses a variety of strategies to
manage congestion on highways, including tolling of highway facilities,
as well as other strategies that do not involve tolls, such as mileage-
based car insurance and parking pricing. The congestion pricing concept
of charging variable fees based upon usage and assessing relatively
higher prices for travel during peak periods is the same as that used
in many other sectors of the economy to respond to peak-use demands.
For example, airlines, hotels, and theaters often charge more at peak
periods than at non-peak periods.
According to the statutory requirements of the VPP program, FHWA
may enter into cooperative agreements with up to 15 State or local
governments or other public authorities (henceforth referred to only as
``States'') to establish, maintain, and monitor VPP programs, each
including an unlimited number of projects. The FHWA invites interested
States to apply to participate in the VPP program for the remainder of
FY 2009 and also for FY 2010, if SAFETEA-LU funding is extended. While
direct submissions by local governments and public authorities are
allowable under SAFETEA-LU, FHWA strongly prefers applications to be
submitted through State departments of transportation, since that would
allow the potential for multiple VPP program projects within a State
counting as only 1 of the 15 allowable partnerships.
To comply with the statutory cap on the number of partnering States
and other public authorities in a manner that maximizes program
participation, FHWA will only consider an ``active'' cooperative
agreement sufficient to hold 1 of the 15 available VPP program slots,
as also noted in the September 16, 2008, notice for VPP program
participation (73 FR 53478). An agreement will be considered ``active''
by FHWA under either of the following two conditions: (1) During the
period of time between when a cooperative funding agreement for a
project or projects has been signed and when the project or projects
has or have been completed, and (2) if VPP program tolling authority
has been granted and is still needed to toll a new or existing highway.
Absent one or both of these conditions being met, an agreement will not
be considered active for the purposes of the VPP program. If progress
in moving forward to use its VPP program funding or tolling authority
is unsatisfactory, FHWA may withdraw its approval for inactive
agreements in favor of other applicants
[[Page 39139]]
seeking to obtain VPP program funding or tolling authority.
A maximum of $12 million is authorized for FY 2009 to be made
available to carry out the VPP program, and Congress may choose to
authorize additional funds for FY 2010. Of the $12 million, $3 million
per fiscal year must be set-aside for VPP projects that do not involve
highway tolls. FHWA previously solicited for FY 2009 applications in a
September 16, 2008, Federal Register notice (73 FR 53478) and on May
14, 2009, announced the awarding of five grants totaling $6,137,000,
thereby leaving less than $6 million to fund additional grants in FY
2009 under this notice. Since none of the five most recent grants are
supporting projects that do not involve highway tolls, at least $3
million of the remaining FY 2009 funds must be used for such projects.
If Congress does provide additional VPP program funds for FY 2010, it
is FHWA's intention to subsequently award these funds based upon
responses to this solicitation, if merited by the applications that are
received.
The Federal share payable under the VPP program is up to 80 percent
of the cost of the project. Funds allocated by the Secretary to a State
under this section shall remain available for obligation by the State
for a period of 3 years after the last day of the fiscal year for which
funds are authorized. If, on September 30 of any year, the amount of
funds made available for the VPP program, but not allocated, exceeds $8
million, the excess amount will, to comply with the statutory
requirements of the VPP program, be apportioned to all States as
Surface Transportation Program funds.
Funds available for the VPP program can be used to support pre-
implementation study activities as well as to pay for pricing-specific
implementation costs of congestion pricing projects. Pursuant to
section 1012(b)(2) of ISTEA, FHWA may not fund pre-implementation or
implementation costs for more than 3 years. Also, section 1012(b)(6) of
ISTEA provides that a State may permit vehicles with fewer than two
occupants to operate in high occupancy vehicle (HOV) lanes if the
vehicles are part of a local VPP program under this section. In
addition to this authority under the VPP program, 23 U.S.C. 166
authorizes States to convert HOV lanes into high occupancy toll (HOT)
lanes in which vehicles without the number of occupants required for
HOV status are permitted to use an HOV lane if such vehicles are
charged a toll. Since the authority to establish and operate an HOT
lane (including HOT lanes on the Interstate System) is no longer
experimental and has been mainstreamed in 23 U.S.C. 166, the provisions
of 23 U.S.C. 166 will generally be used for HOT projects in order to
more effectively allocate VPP funds and program slots.
Pursuant to section 1012(b)(7) of ISTEA, the potential financial
effects of congestion pricing projects on low-income drivers shall be
considered. Where such effects are expected to be both negative and
significant, possible mitigation measures should be identified, such as
providing new or expanded transit service as an integral part of the
congestion pricing project, toll discounts or credits for low-income
motorists who do not have viable transit options, or fare or toll
credits earned by motorists by use of regular lanes which can be used
to pay for tolls on priced lanes. Mitigation measures can be included
as part of the congestion pricing project implementation costs.
Also, section 1012(b)(6) of ISTEA requires the Secretary to monitor
the effect of value pricing programs for a period of at least 10 years
and report to Congress every 2 years on the effects such programs are
having on driver behavior, traffic volume, transit ridership, air
quality, and availability of funds for transportation programs. Project
partners will be expected to assist FHWA by providing data on their
programs for use in these reports throughout the length of the
monitoring and reporting period.
In addition to the VPP program, other authorities are available
that permit States to use tolling to finance highway construction and
reconstruction, promote efficiency in the use of highways, and support
congestion reduction. Expanded flexibility to toll is provided under
the following programs: HOV facilities; Interstate System
Reconstruction and Rehabilitation Pilot; Interstate System Construction
Toll Pilot; Express Lanes Demonstration Program; and Section 129 toll
agreements. For more information on these programs, please refer to the
notice in the January 6, 2006, Federal Register entitled, ``SAFETEA-LU;
Opportunities for State and Other Qualifying Agencies to Gain Authority
to Toll Facilities Constructed Using Federal Funds'' (71 FR 965).
Applicable Terms
``Value pricing'' and ``congestion pricing'' refer to direct and
transparent charges for vehicle use and parking, as well as variable
charges for road use, possibly fluctuating based upon location, time of
day, severity of congestion, vehicle occupancy, or type of facility. By
shifting some trips to off-peak periods, to mass transit or other
higher-occupancy vehicles, to non-motorized modes, or to alternative
routes away from priced facilities, or by encouraging consolidation of
trips, congestion pricing promotes economic efficiency. It also helps
achieve congestion reduction, improved air quality, energy
conservation, transit ridership, and revenue generation goals.
A ``value pricing project'' means any pre-implementation activities
or implementation of congestion pricing concepts or techniques
discussed in the ``Potential Project Types'' section of this notice and
included under a State or local ``value pricing pilot program.'' A
State is considered to have a VPP program if it has one or more
approved congestion pricing projects. While the distinction between
``project'' and ``program'' may appear to be merely a technical one, it
is significant in that, as described in the ``Background'' section of
this notice, the number of total VPP programs is statutorily limited to
15, while there is no limit to the number of VPP projects allowed under
each VPP program.
A ``value pricing program'' means the combination of all congestion
pricing projects within a State or local government or public
authority. Any State or local government or public authority with a
cooperative agreement for a value pricing program is deemed to have a
value pricing program.
``Cooperative agreement'' means the agreement signed between the
FHWA and a public agency to establish and implement congestion pricing
pilot projects.
``Toll agreement'' means the agreement signed between the FHWA and
a State and/or local government or public authority to provide for the
statutorily authorized uses of toll revenues.
Program Objective
The overall objective of the VPP program is to support efforts by
State and local governments or other public authorities to establish
local VPP programs, to provide for the monitoring and evaluation of
congestion pricing projects included in such programs, and to report on
these effects. The effects of interest include impacts on congestion,
travel behavior, traffic volumes, transit ridership, air quality, and
funding for transportation improvements. For the purpose of this
solicitation, the VPP program focuses both on market-based approaches
for congestion relief that do not involve road tolls, such as mileage-
based car insurance and parking pricing,
[[Page 39140]]
and congestion pricing with road tolls, such as pricing all lanes on
limited access highways or all roads within a zone or network.
The FHWA is seeking applications for funding and/or tolling
authority to use congestion pricing to reduce congestion, improve
system performance, and advance the Department's priorities of growing
the economy, enhancing livability, and promoting environmental
sustainability. All proposals should incorporate significant pricing
mechanisms, whether through non-toll pricing strategies or toll pricing
applications, that are designed to substantially advance these
objectives.
With successful examples of facility-specific pricing projects
already in operation in the U.S., this solicitation, in addition to its
focus on non-toll pricing applications, focuses on developing broader
areawide approaches to toll-based pricing. Some metropolitan areas,
such as Los Angeles, San Francisco, Seattle, and Washington, DC, have
begun the process of developing areawide or regionwide congestion
pricing scenarios and modeling their effects on long-term system
performance and financing. An objective of this solicitation is, as
described below, to provide incentive grants to expand the number of
metropolitan areas that are developing areawide or regionwide
approaches to congestion pricing.
Similar to the case with facility-specific tolling applications,
some non-toll pricing applications, such as carsharing, have already
proven their success and do not require VPP program funding for their
success to be sustained. Deployment of other strategies, such as
pricing of parking meters to achieve a certain occupancy level, are
much newer in the U.S., but the advancement of such strategies has
already secured substantial funding under the VPP and other programs
(e.g., in San Francisco), and thus other non-tolling strategies,
discussed below, will instead receive priority consideration under this
solicitation.
Potential Project Types
The FHWA will consider applications for funds that show that a
project will achieve at least one of the following: (1) Perform a
rigorous areawide or regionwide congestion pricing scenario study
around one or more scenarios that are comprehensive and potentially
acceptable to the public; or (2) implement new and innovative non-toll
pricing strategies, as detailed below. For pre-implementation projects,
applicants should demonstrate that there is already sufficient
political support for their implementation, or that the project is
designed to bring about such support.
Congestion pricing charges need to be targeted at a sizable number
of vehicles that are causing congestion, and prices should be set at
levels significant enough to encourage drivers to use alternative
times, routes, modes, or trip patterns, or to telework and avoid
commuting during congested periods.
The FHWA is particularly interested in grant applications for
projects that do not involve highway tolls. As discussed earlier,
SAFETEA-LU sets aside a minimum of $3 million per fiscal year for such
projects. The FHWA in particular seeks tests of non-toll pricing
strategies that will substantially improve livability in an area and
advance environmental sustainability in a major way, either directly
through the benefits the project itself brings, or by demonstrating
especially promising strategies such that their implementation will
likely be replicated broadly.
Strategies that FHWA believes would meet this test include: (1)
Pay-per-mile car insurance, where insurance premiums are converted from
an annual or bi-annual charging scheme to one that is instead based
primarily on miles or minutes of driving (with rates that still reflect
actuarial risks and the coverages that are selected); and (2) highly
innovative parking pricing strategies, provided the level and coverage
of parking charges is sufficient to bring about substantial and
measurable reductions in congestion. For parking pricing, FHWA seeks
applications for: (1) Citywide surcharges for entering or exiting
parking facilities during or near peak travel periods; (2) parking
cash-out, where a city or State passes, and then requests financial
support to implement, an ordinance requiring employers to offer cash to
their employees in lieu of subsidized parking, or provides substantial
incentives for employers to offer such cash-out options; and (3) a city
or State seeking support to implement a law that requires or provides
sizable financial incentives for housing developers to build more
livable communities with reduced car parking, in part by offering
renters or purchasers in multifamily housing developments direct and
substantial financial savings for not using car parking spaces.
Applications are also encouraged that utilize appropriate technologies
and provide sufficient participation incentives to deploy dynamic
ridesharing (flexible, single-trip carpooling) with the necessary
critical mass of users to succeed. To be considered eligible, dynamic
ridesharing applications must be coupled with some transportation
pricing, such as parking pricing, thereby expanding affordable
transportation options while mitigating equity issues associated with
pricing.
The FHWA is also seeking VPP program applications from public
entities to study one or more scenarios for broad-scale areawide or
regionwide tolling and pricing that have a high probability of getting
public support. Applications for areawide or regionwide pricing studies
should cover a significantly-sized geographical area and include
multiple roadway facilities that are priced, including zone-based
pricing, where, as implemented in London and Stockholm, vehicles are
charged a substantial fee to drive in a congested area on weekdays.
Consideration of variable pricing of multiple facilities or corridors,
or of an entire area, will generally be required. Area-wide pricing
applications using technologies that provide travelers (including
drivers and transit riders) with pre-trip and real-time congestion and
pricing information for multiple travel modes and a variety of routes,
and that facilitate dynamic ridesharing, are especially encouraged to
assist travelers in making efficient travel destination, mode and route
choices. Cashless tolling (i.e., no toll booths) is a required element
of these approaches in order to be considered for VPP program funding.
As part of broad, areawide or regionwide pricing scenario studies,
the inclusion of new, innovative congestion pricing approaches is
encouraged. Examples of new ideas that FHWA would like to have further
explored are included in an article on congestion pricing published in
the March/April issue of Public Roads, available at: http://www.tfhrc.gov/pubrds/09mar/04.htm.
Areawide or regionwide transportation pricing studies are
encouraged to include evaluation of benefits, costs, revenues,
environmental impacts, distributional impacts, and financial
feasibility of each alternative package of transportation improvements,
in comparison with the region's currently adopted long-range
transportation plan. Development of alternative packages may involve
stakeholder groups, including (among others) business groups,
environmental groups, and advocates for social equity. An example of
the sort of regional transportation study that has already been
undertaken for which FHWA seeks new applications is the Traffic Choices
Study conducted by the Puget Sound Regional Council for the Seattle
Metropolitan Area, which led to the Transportation 2040 Draft
[[Page 39141]]
Environmental Impact Statement (May 2009), available at: http://psrc.org/projects/trans2040/deis/index.htm.
Projects should be designed to reflect the needs of low-income or
other transportation-disadvantaged groups. Mitigation strategies to
address equity concerns may include bus rapid transit or other
enhancements of transportation alternatives for peak-period travelers,
special reduced toll rates for low-income travelers, limited monetary
credits to all travelers or just to low-income travelers that can be
used to pay for tolls or transit fares (thereby allowing a limited
amount of free travel before having to pay full fees), and credit-based
tolling programs such as toll credits earned by motorists in regular
lanes or by transit users in the corridor which can later be used to
pay tolls on priced lanes or for free transit trips.
Pre-Implementation Studies
Applicants are encouraged to carry out pre-implementation study
activities designed to lead to implementation of an areawide or
regionwide congestion pricing project in the relatively near-term. The
intent of the pre-implementation study phase is to support efforts to
identify and evaluate congestion pricing project alternatives, and to
prepare the necessary groundwork for relatively near-term
implementation.
FHWA will not fund purely academic studies of congestion pricing or
studies that involve major expansions of existing facilities or area-
wide or regionwide planning studies covering many topics besides
pricing and incorporating congestion pricing only as one of a number of
options. Such studies may be funded with regular Federal-aid highway or
transit planning funds. Applications for pre-implementation studies
will be evaluated based on the likelihood that they will lead to
relatively near-term implementation of broad congestion pricing
conforming to the objectives described in the previous section.
Project Costs Eligible for Grant Funding
The FHWA will provide up to the statutorily allowable 80 percent
share of the estimated costs of an approved project. Funds available
for the VPP program can be used to support pre-implementation study
activities and also to pay for implementation costs of congestion
pricing projects. Costs of planning for, setting up, managing,
operating, monitoring, evaluating, and reporting on local congestion
pricing pilot projects are eligible for reimbursement, but neither pre-
implementation study costs nor implementation costs may be reimbursed
for longer than 3 years. The 3-year funding limitation will begin on
the date of the first disbursement of Federal funds for project
activities. Examples of specific pre-implementation and implementation
costs eligible for reimbursement include the following:
1. Pre-Implementation Study Costs--Covered activities include those
undertaken to advance two key priority focus areas: Foundation building
and regional program development.
a. Foundation building activities may be reimbursed, such as public
participation, consensus building, marketing, modeling, and technology
assessments; and
b. Regional program development activities are also eligible for
reimbursement, including project and financial planning, project
design, creating project specifications, and activities required to
meet Federal or State environmental or other planning requirements.
2. Implementation Costs--Allowable costs for reimbursement under
this priority focus area include those for setting up, managing,
operating, evaluating, and reporting on a congestion pricing project,
including:
a. Necessary salaries and expenses, or other administrative and
operational costs, such as installation of equipment for operation of a
pilot project, costs of monitoring and evaluating project operations,
and costs of continuing public relations activities during the period
of implementation;
b. ``[M]itigation measures to deal with any potential adverse
financial effects on low-income drivers[,]'' per section 1012(b)(7) of
ISTEA as amended, including costs of providing transportation
alternatives, such as new or expanded transit or ridesharing services
provided as an integral part of the congestion pricing project. Funds
are not available to replace existing sources of support for these
services.
Project implementation costs can be supported until such time that
sufficient revenues are being generated by the project to fund such
activities without Federal support, but in no case for longer than 3
years. Each implementation project included in a value pricing pilot
program will be considered separately for this purpose.
Funds may not be used to pay for activities conducted prior to
approval for VPP program participation. Complementary actions, such as
lane construction, the implementation of traffic control systems, or
transit projects, can be funded through other highway and transit
programs under SAFETEA-LU and from new revenues raised as a result of a
pilot. VPP program applicants are encouraged to explore opportunities
for combining VPP program funds with other funds. Federal funds may
not, however, be used to match VPP program funds unless there is
specific statutory authority to do so.
Eligible Uses of Revenues
Section 1012(b)(2) of ISTEA provides that revenues generated by any
congestion pricing pilot project must be applied first to pay for pilot
project operating costs. Any project revenues in excess of pilot
project operating costs may, according to section 1012(b)(3) of ISTEA,
be used for any projects eligible under Title 23, United States Code. A
project's operating costs include, but are not limited to, any costs
necessary for a project's execution; mitigation measures to deal with
adverse financial effects on low-income drivers; the proper maintenance
of the facility; any construction (including reconstruction,
rehabilitation, restoration, or resurfacing) of the facility; any debt
service incurred in implementing the project; and a reasonable return
on investment by any private entity financing the project. States are
encouraged to consider using excess revenue for projects designed to
provide benefits to those traveling in the corridor where the project
is being implemented.
For VPP toll projects, FHWA and the public authority (including the
State transportation department) having jurisdiction over a facility
must enter into a cooperative agreement concerning the use of toll
revenue to be generated under a congestion pricing project. The
cooperative agreement will provide that the public authority use the
revenues in accordance with the applicable statutory requirements. The
execution of a cooperative agreement is necessary to the establishment
of a project under the VPP program, and will facilitate oversight of a
State's compliance with revenue use requirements of the VPP program.
Who Is Eligible To Apply?
Qualified applicants for either tolling authority or grants (or
both) include State or local governments or public authorities, such as
toll agencies. Although project agreements must be with the
aforementioned public entities, and preferably with State departments
of transportation in order to preserve participation slots, a VPP
program partnership may also include private tolling authorities, for-
profit companies, and non-profit organizations.
[[Page 39142]]
The Value Pricing Pilot Program Applications
Formal applications shall be submitted through Grants.gov at http://www.grants.gov by close of business November 3, 2009.
No particular format is required for tolling authority applications
or grant applications, although specific information is requested.
Applications should include the following background information: (a)
The name, title, e-mail address, and phone number of the person who
will act as the point of contact on behalf of the requesting agency,
authority, or authorities; (b) A description of the agency, authority,
or authorities requesting funding and/or tolling authority; (c) A
statement as to whether only funding, both funding and tolling
authority, or only tolling authority via the VPP program is being
sought to support either pre-implementation or implementation
activities as permitted; and (d) A description of the public agency or
agencies that will be responsible for operating, maintaining, and
enforcing the tolling program, if applicable.
The core of the application should include the following:
1. A description of the congestion problem being addressed (current
and projected);
2. A description of the proposed pricing program and its goals;
3. An identification of the facilities that will be covered,
including whether any of the subject facilities is an Interstate
facility, whether any HOV lanes currently exist on any of the
facilities, and whether any construction-related activities would be
needed to implement the project and, if so, whether this is new
construction, expansion, rehabilitation, reconstruction, or other;
4. Where applicable, a plan for implementing or modifying tolls,
and a related timetable. Where known, the range of anticipated tolls
and the strategies to vary toll rates (i.e., the formulas for variable
pricing), the technology to be used, enforcement programs, and
operating details;
5. Anticipated effects of the pricing program on reducing
congestion, altering travel behavior, and encouraging the use of other
transportation modes;
6. Preliminary estimates of the social and economic effects of the
pricing program, including potential equity impacts, and a plan or
methodology for further refining such estimates;
7. The role of alternative transportation modes in the project;
8. A description of the tasks to be carried out as part of each
phase of the project;
9. A detailed project timeline broken down by tasks and phases;
10. An itemized budget broken down by task and funding year (i.e.,
Year 1, Year 2, etc.), which is only required for grant applications;
11. Plans for monitoring and evaluating implementation projects,
including plans for data collection and analysis, before and after
assessment, and long-term monitoring and documenting of project
effects;
12. A detailed finance and revenue plan, including (for
implementation projects) a budget for capital and operating costs; a
description of all funding sources, planned expenditures, and proposed
uses of revenues; and a plan for projects to become financially self-
sustaining (without Federal support) within 3 years of implementation,
all of which is only required for grant applications;
13. A discussion of previous public involvement, including public
meetings, in the development of the proposed pricing program; any
expressions or declarations of support from State or local government
officials or the public; future plans for involving key affected
parties, coalition building, and media relations, and more broadly for
ensuring adequate public involvement prior to implementation;
14. Plans for meeting all Federal, State and local legal and
administrative requirements for project implementation, including
relevant Federal-aid planning and environmental requirements;
15. A description of how, if at all, any private entities are
involved in the project either in spending grant funds or in cost
sharing or debt retirement associated with revenues; and
16. If tolling authority is sought, an explanation about how
electronic toll collection project components will, if applicable, be
compatible with other electronic toll collection systems in the region.
If some of these items are not available or fully developed at the
time a formal application for grant funding is submitted, applications
will still be considered for funding support if they meet the interests
of FHWA, as described earlier in the section entitled ``Potential
Project Types,'' and if there is a strong indication that these items
will be completed within a short time.
VPP Program Process
A. Requests for Funding
To ensure that all projects receive fair and equal consideration
for the limited available funds, FHWA requires formal grant
applications to be submitted to http://www.grants.gov by close of
business November 3, 2009, to be assured consideration for FY 2009
funds and, if made available, FY 2010 funds, as well. Applicants may
also submit an optional ``sketch'' or draft proposal, in a format
selected by the applicant, to [email protected] by September 21,
2009, which FHWA will review and provide feedback on for the applicant
to use in its formal grant application. Sketch or draft proposals
received after this date may still be reviewed by and formally
commented upon by FHWA at its discretion. For applications that had
been submitted under the September 16, 2008 (73 FR 53478) solicitation
that were not funded (for a list of projects funded from that
solicitation, see: http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/pressroom/fhwa0913.htm), and
where such applications would still be eligible for funding under the
criteria provided by this notice, applicants may submit a letter to
[email protected] at FHWA September 4, 2009, requesting comments on
their previous applications.
B. Projects for Which No Funds Are Requested
Although most projects under the VPP program involve program funds,
some projects do not, and instead only seek tolling authority under the
program. In such cases, and especially where a State is not already
part of the VPP program, FHWA recommends that the public authority
investigate the other opportunities to gain authority to toll that are
listed in the notice in the January 6, 2006, Federal Register, entitled
``SAFETEA-LU; Opportunities for State and Other Qualifying Agencies to
Gain Authority to Toll Facilities Constructed Using Federal Funds'' (71
FR 965).
Proposal Evaluation Criteria
All proposals will be evaluated based on:
(1) The degree to which they reduce congestion, improve system
performance, and support economic growth, enhance livability through
support of alternatives to driving, and promote environmental
sustainability by reducing fuel consumption and greenhouse gas
emissions;
(2) The degree to which they encourage drivers to use alternative
times, routes, modes, or trip patterns, or to telework and avoid
commuting during congested periods;
(3) The degree to which new, innovative congestion pricing
approaches are included; and
[[Page 39143]]
(4) The degree to which proposals are designed to reflect the needs
of low-income or other transportation-disadvantaged groups.
In addition, area-wide and region-wide pricing proposals will be
evaluated based on:
(5) The degree to which proposals include evaluation of benefits,
costs, revenues, environmental impacts, distributional impacts, and
financial feasibility of each alternative package of transportation
improvements, in comparison with the region's currently adopted long-
range transportation plan;
(6) The degree to which further development of alternative packages
will involve stakeholder groups, including (among others) business
groups, environmental groups, and advocates for social equity;
(7) The degree to which they are likely to lead to relatively near-
term implementation;
(8) The scale of the congestion pricing strategy, i.e., the extent
of the geographic area, or the number of roadway facilities or
corridors that are to be priced;
(9) The degree to which the proposed pricing scenarios are
comprehensive involving synergistic combinations of multimodal
investment strategies, Intelligent Transportation System technologies
and travel demand management strategies; and
(10) The degree to which proposed pricing scenarios have a
probability of getting public support.
Further, non-toll pricing proposals will be evaluated based on the
degree to which they demonstrate especially promising strategies such
that their implementation will likely then be replicated broadly.
Post-Selection Process
If approved, a formal cooperative agreement will be prepared
between the FHWA and the State. The cooperative agreement will include
a refined scope of work developed from the original funding application
and subsequent discussions with FHWA. Federal statutes will govern the
cooperative agreement. Regulations cited in the agreement, and 49 CFR
Part 18, Uniform Administrative Requirements for Grants and Cooperative
Agreements to State and Local Governments, will also apply. Each
congestion pricing project must have a separate cooperative agreement.
Although, in the past, the FHWA has allowed some States to have a
master cooperative agreement that is subsequently amended for each
approved project, in the future the FHWA will execute a separate
agreement for each project. For congestion pricing projects that
involve only toll authority and that do not involve requests for
Federal funds, a cooperative agreement must still be executed.
Where the implementation of tolling is part of the VPP project,
Federal tolling authority is required. To secure such authority for a
VPP project, a cooperative agreement will be executed, regardless of
whether VPP program funding is being provided. The cooperative
agreement must include all of the information normally required as part
of a tolling agreement (stipulating the terms of the tolling, providing
details on the dispensation of revenues, etc.). A separate tolling
agreement will not be required. As discussed previously, revenues must
generally first be used to cover the project's operating costs,
including debt service, provide reasonable return on private party
investments, and be used for the costs necessary to properly operate
and maintain the facility. Any remaining revenues may then be used for
other Title 23, United States Code eligible purposes.
Where tolling authority is secured through a VPP program
cooperative agreement, such an agreement, like tolling agreements
providing the authority to toll under other Federal provisions and
programs, will be signed by the Executive Director of FHWA. If tolling
authority is not required, the cooperative agreement will be signed by
the FHWA Division Administrator of the State Division Office. All
cooperative agreements will be administered jointly by FHWA's Office of
Operations and FHWA's State Division Office.
Other Requirements
Prior to FHWA approval of pricing project implementation,
congestion pricing programs must be shown to be consistent with Federal
metropolitan and statewide planning requirements (23 U.S.C. 134 and
135; and, if applicable, 49 U.S.C. 5303 and 5304).
Implementation projects involving tolls outside metropolitan areas
must be included in the approved statewide transportation improvement
program and be selected in accordance with the requirements set forth
in section 1204(f)(3) of TEA-21.
Implementation projects involving tolls in metropolitan areas must
be: (a) Included in, or consistent with, the approved metropolitan
transportation plan (if the area is in nonattainment for a
transportation-related pollutant, the metropolitan plan must be in
conformance with the State air quality implementation plan); (b)
included in the approved metropolitan and statewide transportation
improvement programs (if the metropolitan area is in a nonattainment
area for a transportation related pollutant, the metropolitan
transportation improvement program must be in conformance with the
State air quality implementation plan); (c) selected in accordance with
the requirements in section 1203(h)(5) or (i)(2) of TEA-21; and (d)
consistent with any existing congestion management system in
Transportation Management Areas, developed pursuant to 23 U.S.C.
134(i)(3).
(Authority: 23 U.S.C. 315; sec. 1216(a), Public Law 105-178, 112
Stat. 107; Public Law 109-59; 117 Stat. 1144)
Issued on: July 30, 2009.
V[iacute]ctor M. Mendez,
Federal Highway Administrator.
[FR Doc. E9-18699 Filed 8-4-09; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-22-P