MPO approves TIP and MTP amendments and adds "support vehicles" to El Metro transit description
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Summary
The MPO approved amendments to the 2025–2028 TIP and the 2025–2050 Metropolitan Transportation Plan and approved adding "support vehicles" to a federal transit project description to allow use of funds for paratransit vans and maintenance/support units.
The Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) policy committee on April 16 approved two resolutions to amend the 2025–2028 Transportation Improvement Program (TIP) and the 2025–2050 Metropolitan Transportation Plan (MTP), and approved a change to El Metro’s federal transit project description to include “support vehicles,” officials said.
Graciela Biones, NPO staff, presented the TIP amendment, which revises project CSJ 001806185 (a new direct connector between IH-35 and US-59) to change its project limits. The current limits read "from 0.5 miles east of IH 35 to 0.5 miles north of US 59;" the proposed limits were described in the meeting as revised to "from 0.87 miles south of the IH-35/US-59 intersection to 0.205 miles north of the IH-35/US-59 intersection." Biones said the MPO’s public participation plan required a 10-day public review and that the amendment is a TxDOT-proposed change to be incorporated into the Statewide Transportation Improvement Program (STIP).
In a related item, the committee approved a matching revision to the MTP so the long-range plan reflects the same project limits changes in the TIP. Biones explained that federal law requires metropolitan planning organizations to maintain a 20-year planning horizon and to update the MTP every five years.
El Metro’s transit director, RJ Gottsa, described the requested wording change to the federal transit funding line (referred to in the meeting as "53 39 monies"). The existing project description listed funds for "replacing heavy duty buses and paratransit vans and bus facility improvements." The amendment adds "support vehicles," a term transit staff said covers non-passenger vehicles used to support operations. "We will probably use for ADA, paratransit vans," Gottsa said, adding that support vehicles also include units used by maintenance and utility crews to respond to road calls, maintain bus shelters, and shuttle drivers during shift changes.
The committee moved and seconded both resolutions. There were no speakers who registered opposition during the open comment checks reported on the record, and the chair announced the motions passed. Specific mover/second names and a roll-call tally were not specified in the transcript.
Why it matters: TIP amendments change which projects are eligible for federal and state construction funding in the near term; matching the MTP keeps the long-range plan aligned with those funded limits. The added transit language broadens the types of vehicles eligible for the identified federal funding line, clarifying that money can be used for passenger-facing paratransit vans as well as operational support units.
Votes and next steps: The MPO approved Resolution MPO 2025-04 (TIP amendment) and Resolution MPO 2025-05 (MTP revision). Staff will forward the amended TIP for inclusion in the STIP as required by TxDOT and federal procedures. El Metro’s expanded project description will be reflected in the updated TIP and MTP documents.
