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CCRPC staff recommends up to 10 regionally driven VPSP2 projects; members press equity and rural representation
Summary
CCRPC staff asked the TAC to select up to 10 regionally driven projects scoring 80 or higher for submittal to VTrans; members questioned one-per-town guidance and urged consideration of rural projects and bridge coordination while staff said cost will be factored later.
CCRPC staff presented a proposed list of regionally driven projects for the VPSP2 prioritization process and recommended the Transportation Advisory Committee submit up to 10 projects that score 80 or higher to VTrans for inclusion in the State Transportation Capital Program.
Christine Forde, a CCRPC transportation planner, told the TAC that "staff is recommending the TAC select 10 projects, no more than 1 per town, that score 80 or higher to submit to VTrans." She described the criteria as a starting point and noted the prioritization exercise occurs every two years.
Members pushed back on the one-per-town approach and on perceived concentration of inner‑core projects. Dennis Lutz questioned whether the list excludes rural communities and asked about additional projects not on the current list. Christine Forde and Charlie Baker (CCRPC Executive Director) said the current list focuses on short- and medium-term, asset-driven VTrans projects and that bridge projects will be scored in a later round. Several members suggested flexibility — for example allowing two projects for Burlington or South Burlington — to reflect city needs and CCRPC Board MPO voting differences based on population.
Nicole Losch raised coordination issues tying Colchester/Riverside to a planned Winooski River bridge replacement; Amy Bell of VTrans cautioned that bridges will be scored next year, which could affect whether adjacent projects are prioritized this cycle. Members asked staff to provide total scores for each of the scoring criteria so towns can review and comment; Christine Forde agreed to share that information. Charlie Baker reiterated that cost will be a factor in assessing feasibility but that this exercise is prioritization of need.
The TAC discussed potential coordination with the Circ Alternatives phase‑3 projects and asked staff to work with VTrans to identify where projects such as the Susie Wilson corridor fall within the process. CCRPC staff said they are developing a transportation equity screening process to present at the May TAC meeting to address concerns about underserved populations raised during public comment.
Next steps: staff will share detailed scoring breakdowns for the proposed list, accept town comments, and present an equity screening tool at the May meeting; no final project submittal to VTrans was recorded during this meeting.
