Committee authorizes UPWP amendment to cover benefit‑cost analysis for Loop 88 grant application

The committee approved an amendment to the UPWP to formally include a benefit‑cost analysis (BCA) line after staff used a consultant to complete a BCA required for an ENRIX grant application. Mr. Lucero explained the BCA compared 30‑year costs and benefits for Loop 88-related elements and reported the study’s earlier results showed an undiscounted return of about $8.7 back per $1 spent and a discounted return of roughly $2.4 per $1—exceeding the federal threshold that typically disfavors ratios below $2.

"For every dollar spent on that project to build that section, we will receive $8.7 back," Lucero summarized when presenting the earlier Loop 88 analysis, and he added that after federal discounting the BCA produced about $2.4 of benefits per federal dollar. Staff estimated the MPO’s final invoice for the consultant BCA would fall between $20,000 and $50,000 and said they had budget room to true up the cost; the committee voted to approve the BCA funding amendment.

Why it matters: a documented BCA can be decisive in national discretionary grant evaluations; staff said this BCA allowed the MPO to advance to the question phase in a competitive national application and to respond to follow‑up requests from reviewers.

What’s next: staff will finalize the invoice, return with the actual cost if it exceeds estimates, and continue grant application follow‑up with TxDOT partners.