What is the RVMPO?
The Federal Transportation Act requires each urbanized area of 50,000 or more to set up a Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO), to assure a continuing, comprehensive, and cooperative transportation planning process. Additionally, Oregon administrative rules define an MPO as "the organization designated by the Governor to coordinate transportation planning in an urbanized area of the state." This includes developing the area's long-range transportation plan, the Rogue Valley Regional Transportation Plan (RTP), which addresses the region's projects, programs and policies for at least a 20-year period. It also includes maintaining the Transportation Improvement Program (TIP), which is a short-range document listing transportation projects to be built.
With an estimated population of 128,780, the Rogue Valley MPO covers the urbanized area of Jackson County, including the cities of Ashland, Central Point, Eagle Point, Jacksonville, Medford, Phoenix, Talent, the unincorporated area of White City and surrounding Jackson County. Rogue Valley Council of Governments (RVCOG) serves as the MPO for the Rogue Valley area. The MPO Policy Committee, the organization's decision-making board, consists of elected officials from the member cities and Jackson County, plus the Rogue Valley Transportation District (RVTD), Jackson County and the Oregon Department of Transportation (ODOT).
What does the RVMPO do?
The MPO carries out three major work activities to meet specific federal requirements. These are:
- The development and maintenance of the Rogue Valley Regional Transportation Plan (RV RTP) through a "continuing, comprehensive, and cooperative (3C)" planning process. See the 2005 updates.
- The biennial development of a 4-year program for highway and transit improvements. This program is known as the Transportation Improvement Program.
- The annual adoption of a comprehensive one-year planning program: the Unified Planning Work Program (UPWP), which describes and coordinates the individual transportation planning activities of all agencies in the area.
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