CAPITAL INVESTMENT
PROJECT PIPELINE
DRAFT
TO ACCESS THE CURRENT 2045 HATS RTP, CLICK HERE.
The HATS project development process begins with the identification of specific transportation needs through the Transportation Need Form, which is available online to anyone – regional stakeholder, municipal official, or general public – anytime. Once received, Transportation Need Forms go through several layers of review, starting with HATS staff review for general consistency with RTP vision and goals. Additional coordination with other regional stakeholders is conducted, and a final meeting with the appropriate municipal officials is held where a Transportation Need Summary is finalized. Once the Transportation Need Summary is completed, it is added to the Project Pipeline.
QUICK LINKS
The Project Pipeline is the HATS 2050 RTP process of evaluating and prioritizing transportation needs in the region. The purpose of the Project Pipeline is to quantify need according to the Focus Areas below and identify areas where those needs are greatest, individually and collectively. The Project Pipeline scores are determined using a 100 point scale, which is updated during plan development, and used to establish which transportation needs rank as High, Medium, and Low regional priorities. Those ranking as High regional priorities will be the focus of plan implementation and potential project selection.
A summary of the HATS 2050 RTP Project Pipeline point structure is provided below. A detailed breakdown of the scoring criteria is available here.
FOCUS AREAS
SAFETY —
Points awarded for outcomes of the Regional Safety Action Plan, including High Injury Network and Vulnerable Road User segments, locations of fatal/suspected serious injury crashes, bicycle or pedestrian crashes, and road departure or heavy commercial vehicle crashes. To view the Safety Focus Area Chapter, click here.
CONGESTION —
Points are awarded based on Travel Time Index (TTI), with fewer points awarded to the segments based on Average Annual Daily Traffic (AADT). To view the Congestion Focus Area Chapter, click here.
ASSET MANAGEMENT —
Maximum points are awarded to posted/closed bridges, with fewer points awarded to poor and fair condition bridges and roadway segments. Additional points are awarded for bridges and segments with deteriorating condition ratings (good to fair or fair to poor) since 2020. To view the Asset Management Focus Area Chapter, click here.
MOBILITY & ACCESSIBILITY —
Points are awarded in areas with the high percentages of elderly and/or disabled residents, locations within ¼ mile of key community facilities (fire stations, police, medical facilities, etc.), major employers, commercial facilities, and transit stops, and corridors with poor sidewalk connectivity. To view the Mobility & Accessibility Focus Area Chapter, click here.
FREIGHT —
Maximum points are awarded to needs identified along the National Highway Freight Network and high priority freight corridor candidates. Points are also awarded to medium and low priority freight corridor candidates, as well as needs within a half mile of an intermodal facility or major freight generator. To view the Freight Focus Area Chapter, click here.
TRANSIT —
Points are awarded to needs identified along or ¼ mile of a SRTA bus stop or Amtrak train station. To view the Transit Focus Area Chapter, click here.
ACTIVE TRANSPORTATION —
Points awarded for outcomes of the HATS Regional Active Transportation Plan, with needs identified along Short-Term Priorities and along or within ¼ mile of the “Regional Backbone” receiving maximum, or near maximum points. Points are also awarded to needs along major Plain Sect travel routes and in areas of medium or high bicycle and pedestrian demand.
To view the Active Transportation Focus Area Chapter, click here.
SUSTAINABILITY & RESILIENCY —
Points awarded to locations and corridors identified as High Risk in PennDOT Extreme Weather Vulnerability Study, with less points awarded to needs located within areas of high risk in the FEMA National Risk Index. To view the Sustainability & Resiliency Focus Area Chapter, click here.
LAND USE —
Points are awarded to needs located within areas targeted for development in County Comprehensive Plan Future Land Use Plans. To view the Land Use Focus Area Chapter, click here.
DEMOGRAPHIC IMPACT —
Points awarded based on concentration of populations of low-income or racial minorities determined by census block-group. To view the Environmental Justice Analysis, click here.
RESULTS
The prioritized Transportation Needs of HATS 2050 RTP Project Pipeline, as well as the Focus Area scoring criteria, can be viewed in the interactive mapping application.
These Project Pipeline results are used in the fiscal constraint analysis, identifying the specific transportation needs/projects that are able to provide the greatest transportation benefit based on the amount of funding available. As previously noted, 16 needs can be accommodated within the projected $92 million available in the mid-range timeframe (through 2036), while 19 needs can be accommodated within the projected $118 million available in the long-range timeframe (through 2050). The remaining transportation needs on the Project Pipeline, along with needs and projects identified on regional transportation studies and planning documents, are listed as illustrative.
Several Transportation Needs on the Project Pipeline were included on the illustrative list because their high-cost estimate would severely reduce the number of other Transportation Needs that could be met under the timeframe of the RTP and thus would reduce the region’s ability to meet the vision and goals of this RTP. It would be appropriate to pursue discretionary funding opportunities for these Transportation Needs to maintain flexibility in and fiscal constraint of the RTP and Project Pipeline.
Additionally, the RTP development and outreach process identified several Transportation Needs whose scope and cost estimate were not defined well enough to be included on the Project Pipeline. Those Transportation Needs are mentioned here for full disclosure and to express support in moving them forward should public/political support or funding availability change and make improvements more feasible. These Transportation Needs include the following:
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Route 147 Improvements
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Northern Dauphin County Bridge over Susquehanna River
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US 22/322 from Mountain Road through and including US 11/15 interchange
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I-81 & SR 233 Interchange Improvements
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Former Cumberland Valley Railroad (Carlise to Harrisburg) Passenger Rail
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BRT Technologies/ Transit Signal Prioritization
To view the full, fiscally constrained Project Pipeline in the HATS 2050 RTP, click here.