Central Dakota MPO previews 25-year transportation plan; Broadway corridor prioritized

The Central Dakota MPO presented an overview of its draft Metropolitan Transportation Plan (MTP) to the Minot City Council on Oct. 20, outlining a 25-year, fiscally constrained program of projects for the MPO planning area that includes Minot, Burlington and Surrey in Ward County. The planning team said the draft balances technical analysis of safety, pavement condition and operations with extensive public engagement.

John Van Dyke, Executive Director of the MPO, introduced the presentation and said the plan will guide federal transportation funding decisions affecting the Minot area through 2050. Joel Mann, a transportation planner with Bolton & Menk, said the draft includes more than 90 candidate projects with a total cost of roughly $500 million; projected federal and transit revenues available to the region over the same period total approximately $220 million for highway funding and $74 million for transit-related assistance, requiring the list to be scaled to a fiscally constrained set.

The presentation emphasized safety, preservation of existing assets and projects that advance economic development and community connectivity. Mann highlighted the Broadway corridor as a long-standing local priority and said work on engineering and environmental documentation would be required before construction could begin; the earliest major construction opportunities were described as likely in the middle of the next decade. The plan recommends smaller operational changes in some four-lane corridors where volumes do not justify existing cross-sections and considers alternative parallel alignments to accommodate bicycle and pedestrian facilities where Broadway itself lacks space.

Public involvement: The MPO said it conducted a three-phase engagement process and that the public comment period on the draft remains open through Oct. 27. The MPO and consultants requested a letter of support from member jurisdictions and noted that the MPO's policy board will hold a public hearing at 4:30 p.m. on Oct. 23 to receive additional comment.

Funding and local match: The presentation included a funding forecast and a note that federal grants typically require a local match (commonly about 20% of a project's total cost). Mann said the region would need to provide roughly $79 million in local match over the 25-year forecast period to leverage the committed federal funds.

Next steps and schedule: If public comments and technical-advisory feedback are addressed, MPO staff expect the policy board and member jurisdictions to move to adopt the plan in November'December. The MPO and consultants asked member jurisdictions, including Minot, to consider providing letters of support for the draft plan as it moves through the adoption process.

Ending note: The draft MTP sets priorities but keeps an illustrative (aspirational) list of additional projects that would remain eligible for competitive or discretionary funds; the plan will be updated at least every five years per federal requirements.