5.5.2 Project Programming

Once a specific project has been identified, more detailed environmental review and studies are needed to help guide the design of the project. During this phase of project development, a project’s scope is developed to document the specific project goals, objectives, deliverables, costs, outcomes, and deadlines.
The use of a Project Scoping Meeting (see
Section 3.3.1
) is critical to establish the baseline project scope. District environmental staff should be included in the Project Scoping Meeting.
Many environmental resource disciplines should be addressed during project scoping to help guide the design of the project. Those that most frequently impact project scoping decisions include:
  • Air quality;
  • Archeological sites and cemeteries;
  • Protected species and critical habitat;
  • Chapter 26, Parks and Wildlife Code;
  • Community impacts assessment;
  • Hazardous materials;
  • Historic resources including historic bridges;
  • Section 4(f);
  • Section 6(f);
  • Traffic noise;
  • Water resources; and
  • Public involvement.
Resource-specific templates, flowcharts, and guidance for these impacts can be found on the TxDOT.gov Environmental Toolkits webpage.
5.5.2.1 “Purpose and Need” Statement
The “Purpose and Need” statement is the foundation for NEPA alternatives analyses and evaluations done under other laws and is applicable to EA and EIS projects.
If a project is being considered and/or is ultimately determined to be a CE, the term “Purpose and Need”
should not be used in any capacity
 through project development so as to not potentially adversely affect the CE determination; more appropriate terminology in supporting engineering documentation for CE projects would be “intent of the project” or something similar. Additionally, for EIS and EA projects where engineering documentation requires “Purpose and Need” to be reiterated or discussed, there should be no departure from the “Purpose and Need” language that is documented in the EIS or EA.
During project scoping, the identification of a project’s goals and objectives should help shape the “Purpose and Need” statement. The “Purpose and Need” statement includes a clear statement of the objectives that the proposed project is intended to achieve. It explains both “purpose” for the project and considerations justifying “need” for the project.
The evaluation of need is based on current and future conditions, not on an assumption that prior decisions from previous studies (if applicable) are still valid. The statement provides facts and/or data to support problems or unsatisfactory conditions identified in the need sentence.
The TxDOT PM or transportation engineer should coordinate with environmental staff during the PDCC to develop an initial “Purpose and Need” statement.
The statement should be continuously referred to during project development to ensure that it remains applicable to the project design.
The “Purpose and Need” statement should heavily draw on the reason the project has been programmed or identified in planning. Considerations in the development of the “Purpose and Need” statement include:
  • Supporting legislation – is there a legislative mandate for the project?
  • Safety – is the project necessary to correct an existing or potential safety hazard?
  • Maintenance and operational deficiencies – does the project correct existing deficiencies such as substandard geometrics, load limits, roadway cross-section, or high maintenance costs?
  • Transportation demand exceeding capacity – what is the LOS of the existing and proposed facility?
  • Is the project in conformance with adopted state and urban transportation plan(s)?
  • Transportation system linkage – are modes of transportation linked?
  • Sustainable environmental, economic, and social transportation planning -- what projected economic development trends or land use changes show the need to improve access and movement of people and goods (not just vehicles)?
  • Access for other transportation modes, including those that promote physically active communities;
  • How will the facility interface with and serve to complement air, rail, port and freight facilities, mass transit, etc.? Is the project part of the national highway freight network?
  • Are there data gaps to assess the transportation needs in the project area? How will the gaps be managed?
  • For nonattainment or maintenance areas - ensure the project is part of the current conforming MTP and TIP; and
  • Include results of preliminary planning studies.
5.5.2.2 Compliance with Environmental Requirements
As discussed in
Chapter 3
, projects in certain areas of the State must be developed in compliance as determined by federal and state laws and policies. These include:
  • State Implementation Plan (SIP)
     – nonattainment or maintenance areas (see
    Section 3.4.5.1
    ); and
  • Congestion Management Process (CMP)
    – metropolitan areas with populations > 200,000 (see
    Section 3.4.5.2
    ).