InterCounty Connector: Wayfinding Devices and Signage
As part of the environmental stewardship efforts for the InterCounty Connector (ICC), the Maryland Transportation Authority (MdTA) and the Maryland State Highway Administration (MD SHA) propose to provide wayfinding devices and signage throughout the ICC study area to identify and direct interest to historic sites, heritage areas, and scenic and rustic roads. Within one year of construction of the ICC, MdTA and MD SHA, in consultation with the MCHA Management Entity and the ATHA Management Entity, will develop text and signs for wayfinding devices to assist motorists in identifying heritage tourism opportunities in the two Certified Heritage Areas. MdTA and MD SHA will provide copies of the text and plans/drawings of the signs to the MD SHPO for a review and approval. If the MD SHPO does not provide comments on the text and signs within 30 calendar days of receipt, MdTA and MD SHA may assume acceptance of the materials. MdTA and MD SHA shall ensure that the signs are manufactured and installed within one year of the completion of the Undertaking in its entirety.

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InterCounty Connector: Rehabilitation of the Woodlawn Bank Barn (MIHP No. M: 28-14)
As part of the environmental stewardship efforts for the InterCounty Connector (ICC), the Maryland Transportation Authority (MdTA) and the Maryland State Highway Administration (MD SHA) propose to assist the Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission – Montgomery County with the rehabilitation of the Bank Barn located within the Woodlawn Manor property (MIHP No. M: 28-14) as a visitor center that will serve as a trailhead for the Rural Legacy Trail and a gateway to historic Sandy Spring. MdTA and MD SHA will ensure that the design of the project is compatible with the historic and architectural qualities of the Woodlawn Manor and Barn property and that all plans and specifications for the rehabilitation conform to the Secretary of Interior’s Standards for the Treatment of Historic Properties (36 CFR Part 68). MdTA and MD SHA will provide copies of the plans and specifications to the MD SHPO for review and approval. If the MD SHPO does not provide comments on the plans and specifications within 30 calendar days of receipt, MdTA and MD SHA may assume acceptance of the materials. MdTA and MD SHA will ensure that any required archeological identification, evaluation, or treatments are accomplished in accordance with the relevant procedures specified in Stipulation IV and the performance standards in Stipulation VI.

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Programmatic Agreement for NEPA Categorical Exclusions

Programmatic Agreement  between the Federal Highway Administration  and the MassHighway for Approval of Categorical Exclusions under the National Environmental Policy Act

The recently revised Programmatic Agreement (PA) between the Federal Highway Administration and MassHighway for Approval of Categorical Exclusions (CE) under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) represents the culmination of a cooperative effort by FHWA’s environmental, planning, and engineering staff together with MassHighway to streamline the approval process of CE’s under NEPA.  This PA is consistent with the FHWA Vital Few Environmental Goal of Streamlining and Stewardship and will serve to expedite project approvals while protecting the environment and ensure that construction advertising goals are met. 

The new PA has significantly expanded the types of projects and associated level of impacts that can be reviewed and approved in-house at MassHighway without FHWA review and concurrence.  Under an earlier 1991 PA, approximately 50-60% of projects that qualified for CE’s were approved in-house, whereas under the new PA, approximately 95% of CE’s are approved in-house.  This has resulted in a significant time savings of both MassHighway and FHWA staff.

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Public Involvement Pilot Program
The Mississippi Department of Transportation (MDOT) is working on ways to improve its public involvement process as it relates to environmental studies for transportation projects.  While the standard procedure is to provide opportunities for the general public to participate in various public meetings and/or public hearings, MDOT has taken some extra steps to increase participation early and throughout the decision-making process.  One way to accomplish this objective was to start a pilot program in which MDOT representatives visit local schools and educate the students on the environmental process.  This provides an opportunity for the children to become better equipped for the future as motorists and environmental stewards.  It is also hoped that the students will involve and inform their families, thus increasing overall public involvement.

As part of the pilot program, two elementary school classes (one third grade class and one fifth grade class) in the vicinity of a proposed bypass in Columbus, Mississippi were visited three times.  On the first visit, the children were introduced to the project and given examples of traffic scenarios and the best ways to improve them. After the first visit, the students were invited to join MDOT at the first public meeting for the project. As a result of the students’ participation, the meeting registered over 250 participants, which was well over the average attendance for MDOT public meetings.  On the second visit, students and their parents were invited to an archeological dig.  Add in dig.jpg.  The third visit gave the students the opportunity to write essays about the American Bald Eagle.

The support and efforts provided by the students, teachers, and parents drew an overwhelming amount of media attention.  It is believed that this significantly increased the attendance at the first public meeting.  Based on the success of this effort, MDOT anticipates using the pilot program as a model for future projects.  It is hoped that this will lead to a major increase in public involvement.

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Categorical Exclusion Agreement Yields Success for ODOT
Streamlining environmental processes has become a way of doing business at the Ohio Department of Transportation (ODOT) in the last ten years.  As Ohio’s transportation budget increased to over one billion dollars annually, ODOT  has found new and better ways of improving processes to ensure timely delivery of its program.  ODOT has worked successfully with Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) to secure an aggressive programmatic agreement for categorical exclusions (CE). The innovations of this programmatic agreement have evolved over the years and are different from many other states.  

ODOT’s programmatic agreement “pushes the envelope”  allowing a variety of projects to be processed as low-level simple CEs rather than requiring preparation of complex environmental assessments or environmental impact statements. This increased flexibility is based on ODOT’s past experiences and uses an impact based approach for analyzing environmental resources rather than processing “typical” projects under a standard document format - as it had been done in the past.

ODOT’s CE agreement provides a simple method of meeting the requirements of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and preparing high-quality documents.  ODOT and FHWA’s Ohio Division have worked cooperatively to ensure that this programmatic agreement balances the need to advance transportation projects without compromising environmental resources.  The agreement allows for ODOT’s projects to be processed efficiently as either exempt projects, requiring no documentation, or as categorical exclusions using one of four levels. Typically, CE Level 1 and 2 projects involve culvert and bridge replacements, general highway improvements and construction of realignments or minor new highways. Projects with higher level impacts are elevated to a CE Levels 3 or 4, based on context and intensity of the impacts.  Many other types of projects can be processed as categorical exclusions and are defined in the programmatic agreement.   A threshold limit has been established for impacts, right-of-way acquisitions, and relocations at each CE level to ensure statewide consistency throughout the twelve district offices.

In the late 1990s, ODOT decentralized many of its services to the district offices - including environmental actions.  Prior to decentralization, each environmental document required approval from ODOT’s central office, slowing projects and incurring increased costs.  As the 21^st Century approached, ODOT took the initiative to break-through existing paradigms and create a CE programmatic agreement that would expand its authority for documenting and approving projects- even at the district level.  Today with a $1.3 billion program, 99 percent of ODOT’s projects are exempt from NEPA or processed and approved as categorical exclusions.  Only projects with known significant impacts get processed as environmental impact statements.

Steamlining the CE process has empowered each of the twelve district offices to implement and maintain the conditions of the CE programmatic agreement as it applies to each project and the overall program.  Districts are evaluated every other year by FHWA and ODOT staff on their compliance in carrying-out requirements of NEPA and the programmatic agreement.  These evaluations have shown that ODOT districts are performing well and in compliance with the programmatic agreement. To ensure that the agreement remains viable for the future, ODOT is proactive in training internal staff, consultants and local government officials on the details of the CE agreement and document preparation.

ODOT has experienced great improvements in processing environmental documents for transportation projects over the last several years.  While the department has experienced some challenges in implementing change, the benefits have proven to be well worth the effort for improving Ohio’s transportation system.  ODOT remains committed to implementing streamlining improvements to its environmental program in the future.

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