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Title VI Report Available

As the recipient of Federal Transit Administration (FTA) funding, the TPO is required to prepare a Title VI Report every three years. Knoxville-Knox County Planning (Planning) provides staff and is the contracting agency for the TPO. For this report, both entities (Planning and TPO) are referenced and are considered one-in-the-same. While the TPO is required to follow Title VI regulations with all sources of federal transportation funding, this report specifically covers FTA funding. The TPO Executive Board will vote to approve the Title VI Report at their meeting at 9:00 a.m. on Wednesday, November 25, 2020. If you have any comments or questions please contact Doug Burton at 865-215-3824 or doug.burton@knoxtpo.org. Any official comment should be submitted by Tuesday, November 24th by 2:00 p.m. 2020 Title VI Report
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Public Review and Comment Period: Draft Human Services Transportation Coordination Plan

The purpose of the Human Services Transportation Coordination Plan is to identify the transportation needs of individuals with disabilities, seniors, and people with low incomes and provide a list of prioritized strategies to meet those needs.

The TPO receives funding from Federal Transit Administration Section 5310, a program designed to improve mobility for seniors, individuals with disabilities, and persons of low-income, which is required to be in the plan. The TPO Executive Board makes the final decision on which projects are selected, and staff are tasked with ensuring that those projects are in keeping with the strategies found within the plan.

The TPO is updating this plan for the first time since 2013 to ensure that identified needs, gaps in current services, strategies for meeting those gaps, and projects within the plan are still up-to-date. A survey was recently distributed to staff, boards, committees, contacts, and clients of local human-service agencies and non-profits to gather opinions and preferences. A report showing a summary of responses is available in the Appendix of the draft

Draft Plan Executive Summary

The Plan draws from previous planning efforts as well as feedback received through the survey and key interviews. It is now available for review by stakeholders and interested individuals and will be voted on by the TPO Technical Committee and Executive Board in October. Once approved, it will be incorporated into Mobility Plan 2045, the region’s long-range transportation plan, which will be available in 2021.

The draft HSTCP is available for public comment through Friday, November 6, 2020.  The HSTCP will be on the November 25, 2020 TPO Executive Board agenda as an action item for approval.  To make comments on the HSTCP or to request any special accommodations please contact Doug Burton at Knoxville Regional TPO – 400 Main Street, Suite 403 Knoxville, TN 37902 – 865-215-3824 – doug.burton@knoxtpo.org.

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Input Needed on Mobility Plan 2045 Project List

The TPO needs your input on the proposed list of projects for Mobility Plan 2045! This long-range transportation plan is updated every four years and guides transportation investments in the region. It allows federal money to be received for transportation projects and ensures that we’re making the best long-term decisions for our residents, employers, and visitors. Local jurisdictions recently submitted applications for potential projects to be included in the plan, and staff is now asking to hear your thoughts on them. Projects will be selected by considering both technical analysis and public input.  Once the final list is determined in the spring of 2021, these projects will start to move through the development process. They sometimes take as long as 20 years to complete, so hearing input from community members early in the process is vital to their success. A short survey and interactive map showing all candidate projects is now available. Please answer the initial questions to help us ensure everyone is involved in shaping the future of the Knoxville region. Anyone who answers the questions and provides an email address or telephone number will be eligible to win one of four $50 grocery store gift cards. After completing the survey, you will be directed to our online mapping application where you can provide your input on specific projects. You can also view the list of projects in this spreadsheet, which provides additional project details and allows you to filter by county, jurisdiction, and project type. The survey and map will be open for comments through October 11. For more information on Mobility Plan 2045, please visit https://knoxmobility.org. Additionally, if you need assistance in using the application or if there is a project you feel is needed but is not shown on the map, please email the project team at mobility@knoxplanning.org.
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TPO Welcomes AmeriCorps Member

Chelsea Foster was born in Indianapolis, IN, and remained there until moving to a small town in the northern part of the state to attend Goshen College. She majored in history at the small liberal arts school and also became familiar with environmentalism and sustainability. By the time she was writing her thesis on displacement caused by highway construction, Chelsea realized that many of these practices and subjects, like composting, active transportation, and environmental justice, had become passions. Chelsea’s growing interest in environmental and racial justice and the importance of those concepts in cities introduced her to urban planning. When exploring options for next steps after graduation, she learned of TPO’s AmeriCorps opening. Though she didn’t have a move to Tennessee on her radar, she knew the position was a perfect fit and was excited to be offered the spot. In her position as an AmeriCorps Member, Chelsea will manage bicycle and pedestrian counts and present information to area high school driver’s education classes and other interested groups. She will likely lean more on virtual platforms than ever before and have to find alternative ways to reach students during the pandemic. Chelsea is also looking forward to learning more about planning, getting a better understanding of the work involved in planning processes, finding opportunities for community engagement, and working with other government agencies and partnering organizations. When she isn’t in her TPO or home office, you’ll likely find Chelsea spending time outside. She loves hiking, soccer, and yoga and is excited to explore natural resources in the area. Her creative side leads her to also spend time reading, drawing, and taking photographs. We’re excited to show her what our region has to offer, and looking forward to the contributions she makes in her time with us. Welcome, Chelsea!
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Input Needed for Statewide Active Transportation Plan

TDOT is developing a Statewide Active Transportation Plan this year that covers walking, bicycling, and traveling by personal mobility devices such as wheelchairs and scooters.
To participate in their Virtual Open House, visit their website to watch a brief video presentation, take a short survey online, and make comments on an interactive map between now and October 7th.
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Mobility Plan 2045 Call for Projects








 

The TPO is soliciting projects for Mobility Plan 2045. We’ve notified jurisdictions within our planning area that we are accepting applications for projects to be included in the plan. All applications must be submitted by jurisdictions no later than Friday, September 4. While individuals can’t submit an application, we encourage you to reach out to your local leaders now if there is a project you think should be included. Contact us at mobility@knoxplanning.org for more information.

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Traffic Crash Trends During Covid-19

Transportation staff have been tracking trends in traffic crashes and fatalities during the Covid-19 related shutdown and have continued analyzing the data as businesses and work sites gradually re-open. To no one’s surprise, there was a big drop-off in reported crashes across the region in late March and April. Unfortunately, there wasn’t a similar decline in traffic fatalities. As a result, the share of crashes resulting in one or more deaths has increased since mid-March. We’ve seen a similar trend statewide in Tennessee: traffic crashes are down from previous years, but fatalities are not. There are two additional statewide trends of note: traffic fatalities among people walking and teen drivers are up this year. In our region, the number of traffic crashes and fatalities involving people walking or bicycling have declined from previous years. More details can be found in this presentation.
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Survey: Transportation Needs for Seniors, People with Disabilities, & People of Low-Income.

The survey below takes less than 10 minutes, and your input would be appreciated.  Please feel free to forward the survey to anyone you think would be interested in taking it. Take the Survey: English Spanish The Knoxville Regional Transportation Planning Organization (TPO) is updating our Human Services Transportation Coordination Plan (HSTCP). The HSTCP is required for the Knoxville urbanized area and focuses on human service transportation or transportation services provided by public transit providers, human service agencies, and nonprofits that serve seniors, people with disabilities, and people of low-income. The Knoxville urbanized area consists of all of Knox, and portions of Anderson, Blount, Loudon, and Sevier Counties – including the major cities within. The main effort of the HSTCP is to identify where gaps in services exist and identify strategies to help fill those gaps. The HSTCP is used to shape transportation policy and can impact how federal and state funds are distributed in the region. If you would like to stay involved with the HSTCP update or any future public input opportunities, please share your email at the end of the survey. This is a very important survey for the Knoxville region and we greatly appreciate your participation