The following are definitions for some of the common terms used when discussing eligibility throughout most of the Category 6 funding programs.

Development Authority

(DA)

– Authorizes the development of projects consistent with the fiscal resources. (See the Transportation Programming and Scheduling Manual for more information).

Deficiency Classification

– A federal criterion that classifies a bridge as poor.

Good

– Bridge condition is determined by the lowest rating of National Bridge Inventory (NBI) condition ratings for Item 58 (Deck), Item 59 (Superstructure), Item 60 (Substructure), or Item 62 (Culvert). If the lowest rating is greater than or equal to 7, the bridge is classified as Good.

Fair

– Bridge condition determined by the lowest rating of the National Bridge Inventory (NBI) condition ratings for Item 58 (Deck), Item 59 (Superstructure), Item 60 (Substructure), or Item 62 (Culvert) are rated either 5 or 6.

Poor

– Bridge condition determined by the lowest rating of the National Bridge Inventory (NBI) condition ratings for Item 58 (Deck), Item 59 (Superstructure), Item 60 (Substructure), or Item 62 (Culvert) are rated less than or equal to 4.

Bridge Health Index (BHI)

– Useful metric for assessing the structural health of a bridge. The index is calculated based on the condition of a bridge’s structural elements and their relative importance to the structure. A value of 100 indicates the bridge is in perfect condition, and a value of 0 indicates the bridge is completely deteriorated (all elements are in Condition State 4). For the purposes of bridge management, the most important use of a BHI is to measure and/or predict a bridge’s level of deterioration at a given point in time. This metric can be used alongside alternative project costs to compare the long-term cost-benefit ratio of those alternatives.

TxDOT Five-Year Rule

–any bridge closed for five or more consecutive years with no corrective action taken is not eligible for Category 6 funding and should be removed from the National Bridge Inventory.

TxDOT Ten-Year Rule

– a bridge must be in the National Bridge Inventory and inspected for a minimum of 10 years to be eligible for Category 6 funding.

Toll Bridges or Bridges on Toll Roads

– If they meet all other eligibility requirements, existing bridges on toll highways may be eligible for Category 6 funding under certain conditions. These conditions include the following:

Each Category 6 funding program has specific eligibility criteria for prioritizing and selecting projects, which will be discussed in detail (See Chapter 2, Sections 3-6). In general, the majority of the eligibility criteria are captured within the Bridge Inspection Database; therefore, a bridge must be in the Bridge Inspection Database to be considered for funding with the exception of Railroad Grade Separation (RGS) funded projects. These projects consist of highway-railroad atgrade crossings and railroad underpasses. Railroad underpasses are in the Bridge Inspection Database for documented vertical clearances over public roadways.

The Bridge Division (BRG) conducts annual program calls for each of the funding programs. The annual calls consist of validating the current fiscal year’s projects plus revisiting the programming of the four future plan development years. The projects programmed within the first two years are included in the department's 12-month and 24-month letting schedules. The following three years are considered to be in the plan development stage. All projects are authorized for construction letting for their respective years, and all project letting dates are subject to change based on changing conditions, including the funding of emergency projects, fiscal funding constraints, and overall project development concerns/needs.

The Bridge Division coordinates with the Financial Management Division and the Transportation Planning and Programming Division to ensure the Category 6 approved projects are placed into their respective work programs; fiscal funding levels are met; project work type and descriptions are aligned with the appropriate funding program; and project UTP priorities and rankings are consistent across the entire category of funds.

Development Authority for Category 6 (6DA) allows eligible Category 6 projects, that are not on the current UTP Category 6 program’s five-year plan, to be authorized for plan development. These projects must be approved by the Bridge Division to be added to 6DA. Once they are ready to let (RTL), 6DA projects can be used to fill funding gaps within the current fiscal year.