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3-C

Continuing, Cooperative, and Comprehensive: By Federal regulation the APO must follow a 3-C planning process.

ADT

Average Daily Traffic: The total number of vehicles that cross a specific point along a roadway over a number of days divided by the number of days. For example, a automated traffic counter might record the following daily traffic over three days: 10,000 on day 1; 12,000 on day 2; 8,000 on day 3. The ADT is calculated thus: 10,000+12,000+8,000=30,000/3 days=10,000 vehicles (on average) per day.

ALOP

Annual Listing of Obligated Projects: A status report on transportation projects for which funding was obligated in previous years.

APO

Saint Cloud Area Planning Organization: The organization designated by agreement between the Governor, local unit of government, and relevant agencies as being responsible for carrying out the terms of 23 USC Sec. 134. The APO is the Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) for the Saint Cloud urban area.

ATAC

Active Transportation Advisory Committee: A sub-committee of the Technical Advisory Committee (TAC) which focuses on the identifying and addressing the needs of active transportation modes such as bicycling and walking.

ATP

Area Transportation Partnership: These committees of local governments, relevant agencies, and MnDOT staff were created by MnDOT to enhance regional intergovernmental planning and increase cooperative development of the four-year State Transportation Improvement Program (STIP).

CPG

Consolidated Planning Grant: A combination of planning grant funds from the Federal Highway Administration and the Federal Transit Administration.

CSAH

County State Aid Highway: A roadway that is operated and maintained by a county but for which the county receives state aid funding. Generally, the state views these roadways as key facilities for statewide or regional mobility.

FHWA

Federal Highway Administration: The Federal administration responsible for monitoring and facilitating the construction and maintenance of the National Highway System. The APO is a recipient of an annual planning grant from FHWA.

FTA

Federal Transit Administration: The Federal administration responsible for monitoring and facilitating the operations and capital improvement of public transit providers. The APO is a recipient of an annual planning grant from FTA.

GIS

Geographic Information Systems: A framework for gathering, managing, and analyzing spatially-related data. For example, GIS can be used to map crash reports in order to determine which roadway intersections are experiencing the highest crash rates.

IIJA

The Infrastructure Investment & Jobs Act (public law 117-58) signed into law on Nov. 15, 2021. Part of the law establishes federal funding authorizations for surface transportation for the years 2022-2026.

MnDOT

Minnesota Department of Transportation: The State department with which the APO coordinates on transportation issues and which has oversight responsibilities for ensuring the APO complies with applicable Federal and State requirements.

MPA

Metropolitan Planning Area: The geographic area in which the APO carries out its planning activities. The MPA must include at least the US Census-defined urban area, but may also include any additional urban or urbanizing areas and/or commuter travel-sheds as deemed appropriate by the member jurisdictions of the APO.

MPCA

Minnesota Pollution Control Agency: The State agency responsible for monitoring environmental quality and enforcing environmental regulations in Minnesota.

MPO

Metropolitan Planning Organization: An organization designated by agreement between the Governor of a state, units of local governments of an urban area, and relevant agencies as being responsible for carrying out the terms of 23 USC Sec. 134. Any urban area of more than 50,000 people must have an MPO. As of 2015, there were 408 MPOs in the United States. The Saint Cloud APO is the MPO for the Saint Cloud metropolitan area.

MTP

Metropolitan Transportation Plan: The regional transportation plan with at least a 20 year planning horizon, developed cooperatively between the units of government and relevant agencies which are members of the APO.

RFP

Request for Proposals: This is a document used to procure consultant services. The RFP outlines the goals and objectives of a project or study and provides a not-to-exceed budget. Interested consultants then respond by writing and submitting a proposal to provide the required services.

SEP

Stakeholder Engagement Plan: The document that identifies when and how the APO will engage the public during the planning process. In Federal regulations, this document is called the "Public Participation Plan." The APO's SEP also includes our Title VI and Limited English Proficiency Plan.

SRTS

Safe Routes to School: A national initiative that works to make it safe, convenient, and fun for students to walk and bike to and from school.

STBGP

Surface Transportation Block Grant Program: Flexible funding from the Federal Government that may be used by states and localities for projects to preserve and improve the conditions and performance on any Federal-aid highway, bridge or tunnel project on any public road, pedestrian or bicycle infrastructure, and transit capital purchases, including intercity bus terminals.

TA

Transportation Alternatives: Funding from the Federal Government that may be used by state and localities for projects including, but not limited to, the creation of facilities for pedestrians and bicycles, environmental mitigation or habitat protection related to highway construction or operations, as well as infrastructure and non-infrastructure related to Safe Routes to School (SRTS) activities.

TAC

Technical Advisory Committee: The TAC is a committee of planners and engineers representing the local member governments and relevant agencies which is responsible for providing technical advice and guidance to the Policy Board and APO staff.

TAZ

Traffic Analysis Zone: A geographic area used in the Travel Demand Model (TDM). TAZs are assigned socio-economic attributes such as population, number of households, square feet of commercial space, and other data relevant to trip production or attraction.

TH

Trunk Highway: A major roadway connecting two or more cities that is operated and maintained by the State Department of Transportation and is the recommended or preferred route for long-distance and freight trips. In Minnesota, Trunk Highways are numbered, such as TH-15 or TH-23 and they may also be designated as MN-15 or MN-23.

TDM

Travel Demand Model: A computer model used to forecast traffic and traffic congestion under a variety of land use and roadway network conditions.

TPMR

Transportation Performance Monitoring Report: An annual report on how the transportation networks are functioning relative to the APO's adopted performance measures. The TPMR is a product of the APO's Transportation System Performance Monitoring (TSPM) program.

TIP

Transportation Improvement Program: The document that programs Federal funding for surface transportation projects within the MPA.

TSPM

Transportation System Performance Monitoring: An APO program in which staff collect and analyze transportation performance data in order to discover problem areas and help prioritize the programming of transportation improvement projects. The Transportation Performance Monitoring Report (TPMR) is a product of the TSPM.

UPWP

Unified Planning Work Program: A Federally required statement of work identifying the planning priorities and activities to be carried out by the APO staff. The UPWP includes the APO's annual budget and it identifies any special studies and consultant contracts for the fiscal year.

STATUS UPDATE FOR THE NEXT TIP   //  Grant Opportunities

Grant Opportunities

Federal and State Transportation Grant Opportunities Available to APO Jurisdictions

 

Highway Safety Improvement Program

Solicitation Status: OPEN
Solicitation Deadline: Nov. 27, 2024

Application Information

FY 2026-2029 Guidebook.
FY 2026-2029 Application.

More information can be found HERE.

The Highway Safety Improvement Program (HSIP) is a core Federal-aid program with the purpose of achieving a significant reduction in fatalities and serious injuries on all public roads. The Minnesota HSIP program is structured to:

  1. Encourage widespread deployment of safety countermeasures.
  2. Engage local and state agencies.
  3. Emphasize effective treatments.

The Minnesota Department of Transportation’s (MnDOT’s) Office of Traffic Engineering (OTE) is conducting the HSIP solicitation for years 2026 through 2029. Funding targeted for the Central Minnesota Area Transportation Partnership (ATP-3), which includes the Saint Cloud APO, is as follows:

  • FY 2026: $673,000.
  • FY 2027: $1,988,000.
  • FY 2028: $3,255,500.
  • FY 2029: $4,700,000.

All HSIP projects require a minimum 10% local match with some projects – such as low-cost, multi-county and districtwide safety projects – being eligible to be funded at 100% of the eligible construction costs. The maximum funding award per project is $750,000.

For projects occurring in the APO’s planning area, the APO’s Policy Board MUST provide a letter of support for the project. This letter MUST accompany any application submitted within the APO’s planning area.

The following is a list of APO-specific deadlines related to HSIP. These will help ensure projects will be able to be submitted prior to the Nov. 27 deadline.

Reactive Projects

(for those safety projects in response to a known crash problem that typically are at one location)

Date Task to be Completed
Oct. 21, 2024 Application (as complete as possible) must be submitted to APO Senior Transportation Planner Vicki Johnson (ikeogu@stcloudapo.org) by no later than noon.
Oct. 31, 2024 The APO’s Technical Advisory Committee (TAC) will meet to discuss and recommend a prioritization ranking for reactive projects.
Nov. 14, 2024 The APO’s Policy Board will meet to discuss and approve a prioritization ranking for reactive projects. A letter of support will be developed/signed by the APO’s Policy Board Chair.
Nov. 15, 2024 APO staff will provide a letter of support to prospective applicants. This letter of support will also be sent to MnDOT OTE staff.

Proactive Projects

(for those safety projects designed to prevent crashes that are typically deployed systemwide)

Date Task to be Completed
Oct. 21, 2024 Concept should be identified and submitted to APO Senior Transportation Planner Vicki Johnson (ikeogu@stcloudapo.org) by no later than noon.
Oct. 31, 2024 The APO’s Technical Advisory Committee (TAC) will meet to discuss the proposed proactive projects.
Nov. 4, 2024 Application (as complete as possible) must be submitted to APO Senior Transportation Planner Vicki Johnson (ikeogu@stcloudapo.org) by no later than noon.
Nov. 14, 2024 The APO’s Policy Board will meet to discuss and approve proactive projects to continue with the HSIP application process. A letter of support will be developed/signed by the APO’s Policy Board Chair.
Nov. 15, 2024 APO staff will provide a letter of support to prospective applicants. This letter of support will also be sent to MnDOT OTE staff.

Additional application assistance will be provided through MnDOT’s Office of Traffic Engineering. Feedback on draft applications will be available through the end of October 2024.

Surface Transportation Block Grant Program

Solicitation Status: CLOSED

Transportation Alternatives

Solicitation Status: CLOSED

Carbon Reduction Program

Solicitation Status: CLOSED

Promoting Resilient Operations for Transformative, Efficient, and Cost-Saving Transportation Formula Program

Solicitation Status: CLOSED

Active Transportation Infrastructure Grants

Letter of Intent Status: OPEN
Letter of Intent Deadline: Oct. 18, 2024

Solicitation Status: CLOSED

Letter of Intent Information

LOI Guide
LOI Application

More information can be found HERE.

The Active Transportation (AT) Infrastructure Grant program is designed to:

  1. Connect communities and key destinations within them.
  2. Boost public health by creating safer environments for people to walk, bike, or roll to their destinations.
  3. Mitigate safety hazards related to interacting with vehicular traffic.

Funding for this program is appropriated by the Minnesota State Legislature. There is up to $12.502 million available during the 2024 AT solicitation statewide – excluding the seven-county Twin Cities metro. Prospective applicants can request between $50,000 and $1 million in funding. This program does not require any local match and can only be used for capital construction costs. Entities eligible to apply for this program include:

  • Greater Minnesota counties.
  • Greater Minnesota State Aid (populations over 5,000) and Non-State Aid cities.
  • Greater Minnesota Townships.
  • Greater Minnesota 501(c)(3) Registered Non-Profits.
  • Greater Minnesota Federally Recognized Indian Tribes

Eligible projects must:

  1. Improve safety and ability of people to walk, bike, or roll throughout their community.
  2. Have a full resolution from applicant governing board supporting the project and application (does not apply to Tribal projects).
  3. Have a full resolution from sponsor supporting project and establishing sponsorship relationship (if required).
  4. Have a letter of support from the District Engineer if impacts to trunk highway right-of-way are proposed.
  5. Have an effective service life of at least 10 years.
  6. Be ready for construction in calendar year 2025 or 2026.
  7. Not have received an earmark for the same project.

Projects will be separated into three “selection pools” in which they will be competing. An equitable distribution among the three pools and MnDOT Districts will be taken into consideration.

  • Greater Minnesota Counties and State Aid Cities.
  • Greater Minnesota Non-State Aid Cities and Townships.
  • Greater Minnesota Federally Recognized Indian Tribes.

The full AT application will be available on or around Nov. 4, 2024.

Safe Routes to School Infrastructure Grants

Letter of Intent Status: OPEN
Letter of Intent Deadline: Oct. 18, 2024

Solicitation Status: CLOSED

Letter of Intent Information

LOI Guide
LOI Application

More information can be found HERE.

The Safe Routes to Schools (SRTS) Infrastructure Grant program is designed to:

  1. Create safer environments for students to walk, bike, and roll to school.
  2. Provide infrastructure improvements that are comfortable to use.
  3. Mitigate safety hazards related to interacting with vehicular traffic.

Funding for this program is appropriated by the Minnesota State Legislature. There is up to $8.5 million available during the 2024 AT solicitation statewide. Prospective applicants can request between $50,000 and $1 million in funding. This program does not require any local match and can only be used for capital construction costs. Entities eligible to apply for this program include:

  • Counties.
  • State Aid (populations over 5,000) and Non-State Aid cities.
  • Townships.
  • Schools and School Districts.
  • Federally Recognized Indian Tribes.

Eligible projects must:

  1. Improve safety and ability of people to walk, bike, or roll throughout their community.
  2. Have a full resolution from applicant governing board supporting the project and application (does not apply to Tribal projects).
  3. Have a full resolution from sponsor supporting project and establishing sponsorship relationship (if required).
  4. Have a letter of support from the District Engineer if impacts to trunk highway right-of-way are proposed.
  5. Have an effective service life of at least 10 years.
  6. Be ready for construction in calendar year 2025 or 2026.
  7. Not have received an earmark for the same project.

Projects will be separated into five “selection pools” in which they will be competing. An equitable distribution among the five pools and MnDOT Districts will be taken into consideration.

  • Minnesota Cities of the First Class (Minneapolis, Saint Paul, Rochester, Duluth).
  • MnDOT Metro District Communities (excluding Minneapolis and Saint Paul).
  • Greater Minnesota Counties and State Aid Cities (excluding Rochester and Duluth).
  • Greater Minnesota Non-State Aid Cities and Townships.
  • Federally Recognized Indian Tribes.

The full SRTS Infrastructure application will be available on or around Nov. 4, 2024.