Surprise kicks off transportation master plan; consultants outline 18–20 month public process

Surprise city staff and consultant Michael Baker International presented the formal kickoff of a Transportation Master Plan to the City Council on May 20, describing an 18–20 month process to evaluate existing conditions, build a multimodal vision and prioritize roadway, bicycle, pedestrian and freight improvements.

Kevin Coogler of Michael Baker described a three-phase process—identify, vision and analyze—supported by a robust public-engagement program that includes stakeholder focus groups, technical traffic operations workshops, pop-up events at community gatherings and multiple in-person and virtual open houses. The plan will use horizon years 2030, 2040 and 2050 and will coordinate with the Maricopa Association of Governments travel-demand model for technical forecasts.

Consultants said the study will produce short-, mid- and long-term recommendations, an action plan for project prioritization and guidance for integrating transportation investments into Surprise’s CIP. The plan will include a safety action plan, active-transportation network recommendations, freight and truck-route analysis and evaluation metrics developed with community input.

Council members emphasized the importance of in-person meetings and clear opportunities for residents to comment; Mayor Sarter asked that virtual options be complemented by in-person availability at City Hall for those who prefer to attend on-site. Vice Mayor Hastings raised transit as an issue for technical analysis and policy direction, and Coogler said the study will provide technical findings to inform any future policy decisions on transit.

Staff said the project team will return to the council at key milestones and will post materials on a public project website. The council received the presentation as an informational briefing; there was no council vote on the item.