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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.

DOCUMENTS & RESOURCES

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MINNESOTA STATEWIDE PLANS

URBAN BELT LINE PLANS

SAFE ROUTES TO SCHOOL PLANS

Summary

This page contains brief descriptions of studies and other resources that are still relevant to the regional transportation goals and objectives. Older and/or obsolete documents may be found on the ARCHIVES page. Click on the title of the document to see the document or (for plans completed by other entities) see the webpage for that plan.

Corridor Studies

A corridor study is a planning project that works to define the relationships between a roadway and its adjacent land uses. In addition, these projects are also used to understand both existing and future conditions of the roadway being studied. The studies found on this page were facilitated and/or funded by the Saint Cloud APO.
Corridor/Study Area
Year Completed
Stearns County CSAH 1 (River Avenue N)
The pavement in the study area is in bad condition and the roadway needs to be rebuilt. In addition, major utilities underneath the road also need to be replaced. This study asked the question: Should we rebuild the roadway as it currently is, or should there be changes/improvements made? The locally preferred alternative would rebuild the roadways as a three-lane cross-section with a multi-purpose trail on the side closest to the Mississippi River
2023
Stearns CSAH 75 between I-94 and 36th Street S
This study was developed to better understand the existing and future traffic operations along County State-Aid Highway (CSAH) 75 corridor between I-94 north to 36th Street S. The main questions in the study include: 1) Where should the corridor accommodate future full access points, knowing that 40th Street S will be connected someday as an east/west corridor between Trunk Highway (TH) 15 and CSAH 75, and 2) What other corridor improvements may be necessary along the corridor to provide acceptable traffic operations?
2018
Stearns CSAH 75 Pedestrian Crossing Study
The purpose of this study was to understand existing conditions and to evaluate the feasibility of various ways to improve safe pedestrian and bicyclist crossing of CSAH 75 between CSAH 2 and 20th Avenue SE in Saint Joseph.
2017
Stearns CSAH 133 Alignment
The study examined possible alignments for Stearns County Road 133 between Sixth Street and Second Street in Sartell.
2022
LeSauk Drive
The purpose of this study was to document existing and forecast conditions and evaluate the feasibility of alternatives to improve traffic flow, safety, and operations along LeSauk Drive/Dehler Drive and Stearns County State-Aid Highway (CSAH) 1.
2015
Townline Road
This study evaluated various alternatives for pavement maintenance and rehabilitation of Townline Road from Stearns County State-Aid Highway (CSAH) 4 in the City of Sartell to Stearns CSAH 5 in the City of Saint Stephen. Pavement inspections were performed and the resulting pavement ratings were utilized in considering various improvement options along the corridor. Cost estimates were also prepared for the recommended improvements and potential funding options were explored.
2015
Benton CSAH 1 (Mayhew Lake Road)
This corridor plan identifies a future vision for Mayhew Lake Road from 35th Street N to MN 23. Due to file size limits, the document linked above does not include the appendices for the plan, but you may request them by contacting the APO.
2022
Opportunity Drive
This planning study examined current and future transportation needs for Opportunity Drive and the I-94 industrial park.
2022
15th Street N
Part of the City of Sartell's future transportation network includes the extension of 15th Street N between Pinecone Road and 30th Avenue N (Townline Road/75th Avenue). This study was a proactive measure to better understand the feasibility of the extension.
2016
MN 15
This study examines the current operational issues on MN 15 between Second Street S and 12th Street N in Saint Cloud and identifies three technically feasible solutions.
2020
US 10 Pedestrian Crossing
As part of an effort to increase the amount of community involvement in the design phase of state highway construction, MnDOT asked the APO to assist in identifying issues and starting conversations at the local level about current and potential future bicycle and pedestrian movements in and around the future US 10/MN 23 interchange reconstruction project.
2016
US-10 Corridor Study: Clear Lake to St. Cloud
MnDOT undertook a corridor study of US-10 from Clear Lake to St. Cloud to investigate how it might improve mobility and operations along the corridor while also improving safety.
2023

Pavement Condition Reports

Pavement data collection is good practice as it can assist agencies and jurisdictions in prioritizing costly infrastructure preservation treatments. This information can also assist in the development and implementation of a pavement preservation program.
Report
Year Completed
Pavement Data Collection and Management Study
The APO conducted a pavement management study to help meet performance-based planning requirements regarding pavement condition. The study created a baseline for tracking pavement conditions and helped inform investment decisions to maintain the system in a state of good repair.
2015
Pavement Condition Report
This report documents and maps the pavement condition for major roadways across the region.
2019
Shared Use Path Pavement Condition Survey
This report documents the pavement roughness for the region's shared-use paths and maps the pavement condition by jurisdiction.
2020

Travel Demand Modeling Related Studies

The APO utilizes a Travel Demand Model (TDM) to help project transportation demands within the planning area. The TDM is a tool used to understand trip generation and attraction information to distribute travel on a roadway network (trip assignment). The following documents are related to the development and refinement of the APO's TDM.
Study
Year Completed
Regional 2045 Population Forecasts
This memorandum provided an overview of current growth and population, a breakdown of the population forecast methodology, descriptions of forecasts results, and a brief discussion of important considerations and next steps.
2017
Travel Demand Model Improvements
This document is a combination of eight different technical memos summarizing changes and improvements made to the APO's regional travel demand model.
2020
Regional Household Travel Survey
This comprehensive survey of 866 households in the region was designed to uncover important insights about trip-making behavior to help inform the APO's transportation planning process.
2021
Travel Demand Model Calibration Report
This memorandum describes the process used to recalibrate and validate the APO's travel demand model (TDM) to base year 2020.
2022

Multimodal Related Plans & Studies

Multimodal transportation includes walking, biking, transit, rail, cars, and trucks. Multimodal transportation is the movement of people and goods on roadways, including but not limited to, motorists, transit-riders, freight-carriers, bicyclists and pedestrians -- including those with disabilities.
Study
Year Completed
Regional Active Transportation Plan
The Regional Active Transportation Plan is intended to be a deep dive into the specific barriers and opportunities that face this particular form of transportation. The goal of the plan is to identify specific projects or policies that will help improve the active transportation environment throughout the region and facilitate convenient and safe active transportation trips for all needs and purposes.
2022
Bicycle (On-Road) Facilities Report
This report assists regional cities and counties in identifying, planning, and implementing their own on-the-road bicycle connections within their respective communities. It is meant for informational and advisory purposes and is currently not tied to any future projects, improvements, or funding.
2016
Benton County ADA Transition Plan
Benton County conducted a self-evaluation of its facilities within public rights of way and developed this transition plan detailing how the county will ensure that all of those facilities are accessible to all individuals.
2019
Stearns County ADA Transition Plan
Stearns County conducted a self-evaluation of its facilities within public rights of way and developed this transition plan detailing how the county will ensure that all of those facilities are accessible to all individuals.
2017
Regional Transportation Coordinating Council Operational Implementation Plan
This effort attempted to define the form and function of a Regional Transportation Coordination Council (RTCC) to improve coordination between various transit service providers and to improve mobility for everyone.
2019

Miscellaneous Plans & Reports

The following is a list of other plans, studies, and reports developed either by APO staff or by consultants under the direction of the APO.
Study, Plan, or Report
Year Completed
Regional Freight Framework
This review includes an assessment of freight activity in the Metropolitan Planning Area (MPA), a summary of the existing freight networks, and a proposed network of local roads to be designed as key links in the regional freight network.
2018
Regional Multimodal Transportation Operations Supplemental Data and Analysis
This report summarizes an investigation of performance measures for the APO in advance of the update of the 2045 Metropolitan Transportation Plan (MTP).
2018
Return on Investment Performance Measure Report
This report investigates the potential to define a return-on-investment (ROI) performance measure for surface transportation projects within the MPA.
2019
City of Saint Cloud Downtown Streetscape & Urban Design Plan Update
This plan establishes a consistent design and character for public design elements in order to support continued downtown vibrancy and economic vitality.
2016