APC begins Metropolitan Transportation Plan update, seeks housing and employment input for 2055 projections

Tippecanoe County Area Plan Commission staff reported progress on the Metropolitan Transportation Plan (MTP) update and outlined next steps for technical work and public engagement.

Staff said the MTP is a federally required document updated every five years and that the commission has activated a transportation study committee, a subcommittee of the Area Plan Commission, to set goals and objectives. Staff described public engagement already completed, which included an online survey to prioritize drafted goals and in-person outreach at the Lafayette and West Lafayette farmers markets to collect input across modes — automobiles, walking, bicycling and transit.

As next steps, staff said housing projections for the target year 2055 are nearly complete and they will start employment projections. Staff plan to contact local engineers and jurisdictional staff to collect local knowledge and technical input on employment forecasts and other assumptions. Staff warned that outreach may be delayed until early next year because of holiday scheduling.

The MTP update will include mapped public comments and demographic projections intended to inform plan recommendations. Staff asked jurisdictional partners to be prepared to respond to requests for data or convene short technical meetings in the coming months as the plan moves toward draft release and subsequent public review.

No formal action was taken; staff provided the update for commission information and future agenda items on the MTP timeline.