MPOs - Metro'$ power grab (Part 2)

MPOs are the pass-through entities for federal transportation dollars as established by and amended by congress.

Wikipedia:  The United States Congress passed the Federal-Aid Highway Act of 1962, which required the formation of an MPO for any urbanized area (UZA) with a population greater than 50,000. Federal funding for transportation projects and programs are channeled through this planning process. Congress created MPOs in order to ensure that existing and future expenditures of governmental funds for transportation projects and programs are based on a continuing, cooperative, and comprehensive (“3‑C”) planning process. Statewide and metropolitan transportation planning processes are governed by federal law (23 

A 2005 survey of MPOs nationally commissioned in preparation of "Special Report 288" of the Transportation Research Board of the National Academies found that "forecast by negotiation" was a common method of projecting future population and employment growth for use in travel forecasting, suggesting rent-seeking behavior on the part of MPO committees influencing the technical staff.^[2]

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Negotiated Forecast:  where each functional area makes its own independent forecasts, but representatives from each functional area get together each forecasting period to reach final negotiated forecasts.  Practical Guide to Business Forecasting, ed. by Chaman L. Jain & Jack Malehorn

Rent-seeking behavior:   When a company, organization or individual uses their resources to obtain an economic gain from others.  An example of rent seeking is when a company lobbies the government for loan subsidies, grants, or tariff protection which redistributes resources from the taxpayers to the special interest group.

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Metro's goals, and its sole propose, is as a Metropolitan Planning Organization.  It does not exist in order to own and operate a zoo, or purchase and operate parks, or have a plant nursery and gardening program.  These have been additions to Metro's mission creep aided by voter bond measures and public mandates to increase Metro's power and reach.  In other words, we are now wrestling with the monster we created.

A look at Metro's Regional Transportation Plan, High Capacity Transit System Plan, Active Transportatipn Program, Regional Freight Plan, Mobility Corridors Plan... will show how Metro's plans look just like a lake Oswego's transportation plans.  (This is the same oth every locality.)

Local transportation system plans: Bringing the Regional Transportation Plan to life

PLANNING AND CONSERVATION  ›  REGIONAL PLANNING AND POLICY  ›  MPO FOR THE PORTLAND REGION  ›  LOCAL TRANSPORTATION SYSTEM PLANS

Leaders from across the region adopted the 2035 Regional Transportation Plan in 2010, setting the direction for creating an innovative, sustainable transportation system. Learn how local transportation system plans will help bring about that vision.

• All jurisdictions do not have representation on advisory committees! So many voices are left out.
• The Lake Oswego Transportation Advisory Board will not see the Transportation System Plan until it is 100% done and presented to the public - so no citizen input has been involved in its construction.  Correction:  the TAB comments on TAP issues at meetings, but has not had input on actual written codes.
• The Lake Oswego TSP (Transportation System Plan) follows the Metro 2035 RTP 
• The Lake Oswego Transportation System Plan (Technical) Advisory Committee includes representatives from ODOT, Metro, Clackamas County, Trimet, consultants and city staff (Erica Rooney, Asst. City Engineer; Amanda Owings, Transportation Engineer and others)

Most people might think the Lake Oswego Transportation System Plan that becomes part of our Comprehensive Plan (which is a legal land use document) is created by and for the citizens of Lake Oswego.  It is a cooperative document that melds current LO geographic conditions with Metro regional transportation plans.  Under this system, it is impossible to say that our Comp Plan is a citizen-led plan and that it is there to serve the ideals and vision of the community.  It's a chicken and egg problem - trying to figure out whose plans came first and how much Lake Oswego residents got to say about any of it.

To see the TSPAC in action, attend their last meeting on Wed., Jan. 8 at 7:00 pm, city hall. It is instructive also to listen to the audio recording of their last meeting on December 11 to see how this group functions.  Given that the TAB did not meet 4 out of 12 months in 2013, their participation in city affairs has been at a low level despite the apparent lack of information from staff about the TSP.   Correction:  the TSPAC meeting was cancelled for Jan. 8 and will not meet again until the Feb. TAB meeting.

More on Metro'$ transportation plans for us in Part 3.