[CTPP] More on TIGER and TAZ-UP

Today, we mailed a few more states, in particular, TN, KY, MD, AK, IL, WV. What are we still missing: IN, MI, NC, OH, SC, VA, and WI. If your MPO area includes multiple states, we are waiting to have all the TIGER files for your area before we mail your package. I apologize for the inconvenience. Also, I am missing 5 TIGER files for miscellaneous states, so you may be among this list. We hope to complete all the mailouts by the end of next week (May 7), that is, if we receive the TIGER CDs from the Census Bureau. Other information: One MPO has already submitted their TAZs for 2000 to the Census Bureau. Most of it looked excellent. The MPO renumbered their entire area, and created many new TAZs. However, there were 2 small polygons which did not get correctly assigned NEW TAZ numbers. They still had their OLD TAZ number, and since the numbers were not overlapping, the contiguity check did not identify them as a problem. We recommend that before sending in your file, to please visually scan the entire county area to see if there are any small polygons (they would be a different color), that have not been reassigned as you may want. Finally, we will be sending out shortly a list of each COUNTY in each STATE. We will be asking which MPO or STATE, or combination will be the responsible party for each county. You should be talking to neighboring MPOs and with your State DOT to coordinate any counties for which there may be some question about who will take responsibility. There can only be ONE TAZ definition for a particular piece of geography. Funding for the CTPP itself. As you know, AASHTO passed a resolution to support CTPP as a pooled fund project last fall. AASHTO will be sending the letters of commitment to the State DOTs very shortly. I understand they will want them signed in about one month's time. The cost is approximately 1.1 cents per person, for year 2000 population. Thus, for example, an area with a population of 4 million, the cost is about $44,000. The total package cost for the entire U.S. is a little over $3 million. FHWA has agreed to waive the local match (for SPR and PL funds) for this project--this means for the CTPP package itself, as produced by the Census Bureau, and NOT for all MPO and State Workplan tasks for such related work such as the TAZ-UP and LREF. In addition, we expect that FTA will also waive the local match for SPR funds. ------ I'll be out of the office from May 4-6, 1999. Yours truly, Elaine Murakami phone 202-366-6971