by David Chapman
Staff Writer
It’s been an off-and-on topic throughout its history, but the North Florida Transportation Planning Organization (TPO) has been ramping up its efforts for the last year on just how to tackle the idea of a regional transportation authority.
During Thursday’s monthly meeting of the North Florida TPO, a new wrinkle was revealed.
Within the past three months, the organization formed a regional transportation authority task force, chaired by North Florida TPO Chair Doug Conkey, consisting of 21 members that would look at what a potential governing body of such an authority would look like.
With Gov. Charlie Crist recently signing House Bill 1213 in Jacksonville, though, there’s another study underway — by a different agency.
Under Section 20 of the legislation, the Florida Department of Transportation is being charged with conducting a study that will include the framework and “existing power and duties of the authority, as well as the additional powers and duties necessary for the agency to plan, design, finance, construct, operate, and maintain transportation facilities” as well as address agency revenue sources among other things.
“The study has to be done in a short period of time,” said FDOT Dist. 2 Secretary Charles Baldwin, in his agency report during the meeting. “We’ve got to get this going.”
A report to the Florida Legislature with the study’s findings must be submitted by Feb. 1, 2010.
While the North Florida TPO’s study on such a regional transportation authority included five counties, the FDOT’s has been obligated to include seven: Baker, Clay, Duval, Flagler, Nassau, Putnam and St. Johns counties.
The first meeting is June 29 at the FDOT Urban Office, with an agenda being processed in the near future.
How the upcoming FDOT study can or will benefit from the ongoing efforts of the North Florida TPO as well as the future of the North Florida TPO’s efforts on such a topic were both discussed during the meeting.
“How can the committee (North Florida TPO task force) work with the process?” asked Conkey. “I just want to make sure we do it right.”
The potential overlap might end up being beneficial in the end, said Baldwin. He suggested that aside from becoming a part of the study, that members continue with their own discussion and at some point in the future — perhaps December — the two organizations meet to compare and generate the best ideas for such an organization.
For Conkey and the organization’s task force, that’ll mean speeding up their process.
“The goal will be to expedite our efforts because of the importance of teamwork,” said Conkey. “It’s important to find the most effective way and make this successful.”
Baldwin said such an encompassing study will take time and effort from political leaders and their constituents in order to make it a success with the clock ticking.
“I think a study like this should be done,” said Baldwin. “I just wish we had more time.”
In other news and notes from Thursday’s North Florida TPO meeting:
• A resolution supporting a high speed rail and designation of a high speed rail corridor between Jacksonville and Orlando was shelved and will be discussed further during the organization’s workshop next month. Chair and City Council member Art Graham and others wanted to hear more on the subject before passing such a resolution, as the issue wasn’t imminent. Such a project would be “a long ways out,” said North Florida TPO Executive Director Denise Bunnewith, but such a resolution would put it in the long-term forecast. “Long term, we don’t want to be left out of the picture,” she said.
• Four projects were approved to be amended in the organization’s Transportation Improvement Program for fiscal year 2008-09 through fiscal year 2012-13: the Jacksonville Mayport Ferry Dock Ramp Rehabilitation; J. Turner Butler Boulevard at I-95 interchange modification; Normandy Boulevard at Cassat Avenue for pedestrian safety improvements; and I-10/I-95 Marietta Interchange, for a new interchange.
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