Current through Register Vol. 35, No. 18, September 24, 2024
A.
Transportation plans adopted after January 1, 1997, in serious, severe, or
extreme ozone nonattainment areas and in serious carbon monoxide nonattainment
areas. If the metropolitan planning area contains an urbanized area population
greater than two hundred thousand (200,000), the transportation plan must
specifically describe the transportation system envisioned for certain future
years which shall be called horizon years.
(1)
The agency or organization developing the transportation plan, after
consultation in accordance with 20.2.99.116 NMAC through 20.2.99.124 NMAC, may
choose any years to be horizon years, subject to the following restrictions:
(a) horizon years may be no more than ten
(10) years apart.
(b) the first
horizon year may be no more than ten (10) years from the base year used to
validate the transportation demand planning model.
(c) the attainment year is must be a horizon
year if it is in the timeframe of the transportation plan and conformity
determination.
(d) the last year of
the transportation plan's forecast period shall be a horizon year,
and
(e) if the timeframe of the
conformity determination has been shortened under Subsection D of this section
(20.2.99.125 NMAC), the last year of the timeframe of the conformity
determination must be a horizon year.
(2) For these horizon years:
(a) the transportation plan shall quantify
and document the demographic and employment factors influencing expected
transportation demand, including land use forecasts, in accordance with
implementation plan provisions and 20.2.99.116 NMAC through 20.2.99.124
NMAC;
(b) the highway and transit
system shall be described in terms of the regionally significant additions or
modifications to the existing transportation network which the transportation
plan envisions to be operational in the horizon years; additions and
modifications to the highway network shall be sufficiently identified to
indicate intersections with existing regionally significant facilities, and to
determine their effect on route options between transportation analysis zones;
each added or modified highway segment shall also be sufficiently identified in
terms of its design concept and design scope to allow modeling of travel times
under various traffic volumes, consistent with the modeling methods for
area-wide transportation analysis in use by the MPO; transit facilities,
equipment, and services envisioned for the future shall be identified in terms
of design concept, design scope, and operating policies sufficiently to allow
modeling of their transit ridership; the description of additions and
modifications to the transportation network shall also be sufficiently specific
to show that there is a reasonable relationship between expected land use and
the envisioned transportation system; and
(c) other future transportation policies,
requirements, services, and activities, including intermodal activities, shall
be described.
B. Two-year grace period for transportation
plan requirements in certain ozone and CO areas. The requirements of Subsection
A of 20.2.99.125 NMAC applies to such areas or portions of such areas that have
previously not been required to meet these requirements for any existing NAAQS
two years from the following:
(1) the
effective date of EPA's reclassification of an ozone or CO nonattainment area
that has greater than 200,000 to serious or above;
(2) the official notice by the census bureau
that determines the urbanized area population of a serious or above ozone or CO
nonattainment area to be greater that 200,000; or
(3) the effective date of EPA's action that
classifies a newly designated ozone or CO nonattainment area that has an
urbanized area population greater than 200,000 as serious or above.
C. Transportation plans for other
areas. Transportation plans for other areas must meet the requirements of
Subsection A of 20.2.99.125 NMAC at least to the extent it has been the
previous practice of the MPO to prepare plans which meet those requirements.
Otherwise, transportation plans must describe the transportation system
envisioned for the future specifically enough to allow determination of
conformity according to the criteria and procedures of 20.2.99.128 NMAC through
20.2.99.138 NMAC.
D. Timeframe of
conformity determination.
(1) Unless an
election is made under this subsection (Subsection D of 20.2.99.125 NMAC), the
timeframe of the conformity determination shall be through the last year of the
transportation plan's forecast period.
(2) For areas that do not have an adequate or
approved CAA section 175A(b) maintenance plans, the MPO may elect to shorten
the timeframe of the transportation plan and TIP conformity determination,
after consultation with state and local air quality agencies, solicitation of
public comments, and consideration of such comments.
(a) The shortened timeframe of the conformity
determination shall extend at least to the latest of the following years:
(i) the tenth year of the transportation
plan:
(ii) the latest year for
which an adequate or approved motor vehicle emissions budget(s) is established
in the submitted or applicable implementation plan; or
(iii) the year after the completion date of a
regionally significant project if the project is included in the TIP or project
requires approval before the subsequent conformity
determination.
(b) The
conformity determination must be accompanied by a regional emissions analysis
(for informational purposes only) for the last year of the transportation plan
and for any year shown to exceed motor vehicle emissions budgets in a prior
regional emissions analysis, if such a year extends beyond the timeframe of the
conformity determination.
(3) For areas that have an adequate or
approved CAA section 175A(b) maintenance plan, the MPO may elect to shorten the
timeframe of the conformity determination to extend through the last year of
such maintenance plan after consultation with state and local air quality
agencies, solicitation of comments, and consideration of such
comments.
(4) Any election made by
an MPO under Paragraphs (2) and (3) of Subsection D of 20.2.99.125 NMAC shall
continue in effect until the MPO elects otherwise, after consultation with
state and local air quality agencies, solicitation of public comments, and
consideration of such comments.
E. Savings. The requirements of this section
(20.2.99.125 NMAC) supplement other requirements of applicable law or
regulation governing the format or content of transportation plans.
