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Area Mayors Talk about Autonomous Vehicles

Mayors from around the region met this week to talk about one of the hottest topics in transportation technology – autonomous vehicles (AV).

The East Tennessee Mayors Caucus, a group of mayors from 16 area counties, convened on February 5 at the Knoxville headquarters of Local Motors, a manufacturer on the front lines of AV development.

The Mayors Caucus encourages collaboration among elected leaders in our region. They tackle common problems and work toward shared goals of growing our regional prosperity and improving our quality of life. At this session, the mayors wanted to hear more about connected and autonomous vehicles, and how that technology may shape the region’s economy, transportation network, and development patterns.

Brad Rutherford, Vice President of Sales for Local Motors, welcomed the mayors to their Knoxville Microfactory, which specializes in materials science and research and is heavily focused on 3D printing. Olli, the world’s first 3D-printed self-driving shuttle, is produced at the Knoxville facility.

Kelley Segars, Principal Planner with the Knoxville Regional Transportation Planning Organization, gave an overview of connected and autonomous vehicles and how cities can prepare, and guide, the coming changes. Jeff Branham, Chief Traffic Engineer for the City of Knoxville, followed Kelley with a discussion on the many projects and programs the City is running related to technology and intelligent transportation, including testing of Olli downtown.

Manager of Industrial Partnerships and Economic Development at ORNL, Jesse Smith, then talked about TennSMART, a public-private consortium working to advance the development and deployment of intelligent mobility innovations in Tennessee. The group focuses on connected and automated vehicles, heavy duty trucking and freight efficiency, cybersecurity, electric vehicles, and multimodal commuting.

After hearing about the region’s tech advances, the mayors discussed some of the resultant challenges and opportunities facing their communities, including cybersecurity, insurance, and permitting.

Brad Rutherford capped off the Caucus with a tour of Local Motors’ state of the art facility, showcasing some of their printed cars and parts. (If you want to learn more about Olli and the other innovative things happening at Local Motors, visit LocalMotors.com)

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Call for Projects: Transportation Alternatives Program (TAP) and Surface Transportation Block Grant (STBG) Federal Funds

Purpose

To allow jurisdictions to apply for new projects that have been identified since the original FY 2017-2020 TIP Call for Projects and before the next major TIP update beginning in 2019 to develop the FY 2020-2023 TIP.

Funding Availability

  • TPO STBG Funds – There are approximately $2.3 million of un-programmed FY 2018 federal STBG funds available for this Call for Projects. STBG funds are eligible for most project-types, but if used on a roadway project then it must be classified as "Collector" or higher on the state's functional classification system. Most projects require a 20% local match.
  • TPO TAP Funds –  Approximately $340,000 of FY 2019 and $760,000 of FY 2020 federal TAP Funds are available for this Call for Projects. The FY 2019 funds will become available on October 1, 2018. Again, projects typically require a 20% local match. More information about the TAP program and eligible project types can be found here: https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/environment/transportation_alternatives/guidance/guidance_2016.cfm

Application Process

A fillable application form is included below that is a slightly modified version of the Mobility Plan 2040 Project Application Form. Some of the options have been removed such as selecting major roadway construction projects and future horizon years since the goal of this process is to fund smaller-scale and quicker to implement projects given the relatively low amount of available funding. Projects submitted for STBG funds should ideally be of the type eligible for programmatic categorical exclusions under NEPA and would not require any type of right-of-way actions. Applications are due to TPO staff by Friday, February 23rd.

Evaluation Criteria

Projects will be scored and ranked using the criteria based on the goals and factors developed for the Mobility Plan 2040 process as shown on the project application form. Other important criteria that TPO staff will be evaluating in making project selection recommendations will involve an assessment of project completion schedules favoring those that are most likely to be obligated the quickest. This assessment will be based on ease of project implementation, past performance of the sponsoring agency in the TDOT project development process and amount/status of other projects already under development by the sponsoring agency.

Timeline

  • Begin Call for Projects – Monday, January 29, 2018
  • End Call for Projects (Application Due Date) – Friday, February 23, 2018
  • TPO Staff Scoring and Project Selection Recommendations Completed – March 6, 2018
  • Technical Committee Review and Recommendations – March 13, 2018
  • Executive Board Project Amendment Adoption – March 28, 2018

An overview of this Call for Projects will be presented at the February 13th Technical Committee meeting. If you have any questions please contact myself or other TPO staff. 

Download the Application

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Complete Streets Consortium Series: Final Workshop in Knoxville, TN

This month, the Complete Streets team gathered in Knoxville for the third and final workshop of the Tennessee Consortium Series. This workshop covered many topics including federal funding options, key implementation steps, collaboration with private developers, and transit. Mayor Madeline Rogero welcomed the groups from Chattanooga and Nashville to Knoxville and commended all three teams for the work they’re doing to advance Complete Streets.
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Air Quality ‘Looking’ Much Better In The Knoxville Region

Your eyes aren’t deceiving you – the Smoky Mountains can be seen more clearly and more often thanks to recent air quality improvements.

July 2004

July 2016

A picture is worth a thousand words. Images from the Look Rock Observation Tower compare conditions in the months of July 2004 and 2016. Daily ozone levels peak during summer months, causing hazy and smoggy conditions. Thanks to successful efforts to reduce airborne pollutants, improved clarity of the atmosphere between these periods is striking and shows dramatic effect on visibility on an every-day basis.  Source: National Park Service

Major improvements to air quality over the last several years mean that the East Tennessee region is now meeting all Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) standards. And that’s very important for the health of both our residents and our economy.

Over the last several decades, the Knoxville region has been out of compliance with EPA standards for two pollutants – ozone and particulate matter – and was officially designated a ‘non-attainment area.’ That designation carried a heavy cost: it meant the air was sometimes unhealthy to breathe and it kicked in federal restrictions on some types of new business recruitment, detrimental to the regional economy.

Most air pollution is from man-made sources, especially transportation (vehicle tailpipe and fuel evaporation emissions) and industry (manufacturing and power generation involving combustion). Investments by power generators, such as TVA, and technological improvements to vehicle fleets have resulted in pollutant reduction.

Results of our efforts to comply with Clean Air Act standards can be seen in some pretty impressive stats: in 1999, we exceeded ozone limits (70 parts per billion) on more than 120 days. In 2017, that number dropped to just one day.

This chart shows the number of days each year since 1997 that monitoring equipment in the Knoxville region recorded pollution that exceeded the federal eight-hour ozone standard. Source:  Air Data. EPA

While EPA attainment status is critically important in ensuring clean air to breathe, increased visibility has another big benefit to many people. Our region relies on its natural beauty and views, both of and from the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, for our own enjoyment as well as for the major economic impact as a driver of tourism.

Average visibility distances from the Smokies have been gauged since 1990. Tremendous and sustained improvement has been measured since 2007 — on a typical day, Mount LeConte is now visible from many parts of the region.

 

Dramatic increases in visibility, particularly in the last 10 years, mean that the Smoky Mountains are again visible from downtown Knoxville, 35 miles away.  Source: Interagency Monitoring of Protected Environments

Others have taken notice of our improved air quality, evidenced by a recent article published by the American Lung Association. They spotlight the success of Knoxville in cleaning up its air and offer details about the process that made such significant progress possible.

Realtime Visibility and Pollutant Conditions from Look Rock

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Knoxville Regional Transportation Planning Organization Celebrates 40 Years

The Knoxville Regional TPO is celebrating its 40th anniversary as the region’s metropolitan planning organization.

The TPO was established in May 1977 through the appointment of an Executive Board by the Governor of Tennessee. The urbanized area initially included just the City of Knoxville and a portion of Knox County.

40 years ago…

Gas prices: $0.62/gallon

Avg cost of new house: $49,300

Avg income: $15,000

Jimmy Carter

Elected as the 39th president

Personal Computer

The world's first personal computer, the Commodore PET, was demonstrated at the winter Consumer Electronics Show in Chicago. PET stood for “Personal Electronic Transactor” and was the world’s first PC to be sold to consumers. It came with a monitor, keyboard, and a cassette tape drive and was originally priced at $495.00.

Apple Computer

incorporated by Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak. The Apple II computers went on sale. Unlike the original Apple I which was just a circuit board with no case, the Apple II included a case, keyboard, and nearly everything except a screen to have a working personal computer The Apple II sold for base price of $1298 (up to $2638 dependent on installed memory).

Atari 2600

First released in September. The Atari 2600 was the first major at home video game console to become popular. It launched for $199 with 2 joysticks and the game cartridge for the game “Combat.” (The success of the system was mediocre at first but it became more popular in 1980 with the release of the game “Space Invaders.”)

The first MRI Scanner

Tested in Brooklyn

Voyager I and Voyager II

Launched unmanned to explore the outer solar system

Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope

The first Star Wars film premiered on May 25th.

"Roots"

The TV Mini Series aired on ABC.

Elvis Presley

The “King of Rock and Roll” was found dead of an apparent heart attack at the age of 42. Presley died suddenly at Graceland.

James Earl Ray

James Earl Ray escaped from Brushy Mountain State Prison in Petros, Tennessee. He was recaptured on June 13.

Born This Year

Orlando Bloom

Kerry Washington

Sarah Michelle Gellar

Where were the TPO staff 40 years ago?

Doug Burton

Mike Conger

Dori Caron

Kelley Segars

Jeff Welch

Ellen Zavisca

1977 Transportation

The Knoxville TPO, in its 1977 form, was working on several issues that don’t seem very different from our current work.

  • Transit Marketing Project – $40,000 study to develop marketing efforts for the Knoxville Transit Corporation to increase ridership.
  • 1995 Thoroughfare System Plan – a 20-year plan for major highway improvements in Knox County
  • Downtown Land Use and Parking Survey – a complete inventory of downtown Knoxville land use and parking lots, used to develop a parking plan
  • Bikeway Demonstration Grant – applied for and received $89,000 of federal funds to demonstrate new techniques in bikeway safety
  • Knox County Bikeways Plan – approved by the Executive Board in June 1977
  • Knox County Airport Plan – adopted by the Executive Board in June 1977
  • Transit Passenger Shelter Study – identified potential locations for bus shelters
  • Cedar Bluff Road Traffic Improvements – identified improvements in the Cedar Bluff School area
  • CBD Shuttle Bus Project – assisted Knoxville Transit Corporation in marketing a shuttle service between the Coliseum Parking garage and downtown

How the Knoxville TPO Evolved

The 1980 Census substantially enlarged the boundaries of the urbanized area and in 1982, the TPO expanded to include more of Knox County, the Town of Farragut, the Cities of Alcoa and Maryville, and surrounding areas of Blount County. In 2000, the urbanized area again increased to include additional areas of Knox and Blount Counties as well as Lenoir City and surrounding areas of Loudon County and a portion of Sevier County in the Seymour area.

Metropolitan Planning Organizations

A metropolitan planning organization (MPO) is a federally mandated and federally funded transportation policy-making organization in the United States made up of representatives from local government and governmental transportation authorities. They were created to ensure regional cooperation in transportation planning. MPOs were introduced by the Federal-Aid Highway Act of 1962, which required the formation of an MPO for any urbanized area with a population greater than 50,000. Federal funding for transportation projects and programs are channeled through this planning process.

Origin of MPOs

President John F Kennedy

Special Message to the Congress on Housing and Community Development (excerpts)

March 9, 1961

An equal challenge is the tremendous urban growth that lies ahead. Within 15 years our population will rise to 235 million and by the year 2000 to 300 million people. Most of this increase will occur in and around urban areas. We must begin now to lay the foundations for livable, efficient and attractive communities of the future…Land adjoining urban centers has been engulfed by urban development at the astounding rate of about one million acres a year. But the result has been haphazard and inefficient suburban expansion….

The city and its suburbs are interdependent parts a single community, bound together by the web of transportation and other public facilities and by common economic interests. Bold programs in individual jurisdictions are no longer enough. Increasingly, community development must be a cooperative venture toward the common goals of the metropolitan region as a whole.

This requires the establishment of an effective and comprehensive planning process in each metropolitan area embracing all major activities, both public and private, which shape the community. Such a process must be democratic–for only when the citizens of a community have participated in selecting the goals which will shape their environment can they be expected to support the actions necessary to accomplish these goals. I recommend therefore the enactment of an extended and improved program of Federal aid to urban and metropolitan planning…

Nothing is more dramatically apparent than the inadequacy of transportation in our larger urban areas. The solution cannot be found only in the construction of additional urban highways–vital as that job is. Other means for mass transportation which use less space and equipment must be improved and expanded. Perhaps even more important, planning for transportation and land use must go hand in hand as two inseparable aspects of the same process.

But to solve the problems of urban transportation will test our ingenuity and put a heavy drain on our resources. While the responsibility for working out these solutions rests primarily with local government and private enterprise, the Federal government must provide leadership and technical assistance.

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Featuring Award-Winning Developer Jeff Randolph

Jeff Randolph, the most recent guest brought in by Active Knox for their ongoing speaker series, is president of The Randolph Group (TRG).

TRG is a land development company based in Greenville, SC that specializes in residential, urban infill and mixed-used communities. While in Knoxville he spoke to several groups, including an event at the Knoxville Chamber of Commerce with elected and appointed officials, a public event, the Recode Knoxville Stakeholder Advisory Committee Meeting, and a lunch event with realtors and developers.

Randolph spoke about the importance of the group’s community development values, which include promoting vibrant neighborhoods, imaginative places, a sustainable impact, and community connections. He also stressed that Knoxville should grow organically and make decisions that are right for the city without trying to mimic another place. More details about each event are available:

  • Lunch at the Knoxville Chamber of Commerce on Tuesday, November 14, with elected and appointed officials from around the region. There were 8 elected officials in attendance, and 14 planning commissioners. There were 35 total, including eight elected officials, 14 planning commissioners, and staff members.  The conversation featured questions about whether the type of development Randolph was discussing was feasible for East Tennessee’s topography. He discussed how land planning can be done with the features of the land, by clustering housing on flatter portions of a site.
  • The public event Tuesday night at Bearden High School featured a panel to respond to Randolph’s presentation. Panelists were realtor Joe Fox and developer Tim Hill and was moderated by Mary English from UTK’s Baker Center. Twenty-six community members were in attendance. Conversation after the presentation focused on the barriers to mixed-use developments in the Knoxville region. There was some discussion about Knoxville’s out-of-date zoning codes and the Recode Knoxville update in response.
  • On Wednesday, November 15, the Recode Knoxville Stakeholder Advisory Committee met for a regular meeting featuring Jeff as a guest speaker. It was also open to the public and had 36 community members in attendance. Randolph again spoke about mixed-use developments, but spent more time focused on the zoning code update. A full summary and recording of the event is available on the Recode Knoxville website.
  • Wednesday afternoon, there was a lunch and small group discussion with developers and realtors. The conversation was facilitated by Kristy Altman from Leadership Knoxville. In the conversation following his presentation, Randolph mentioned that he sells lots faster when there are a variety of housing types within a development (townhomes, duplexes, detached homes). There were comments from local developers about the challenge of finding banks that will invest in developers that aren’t typical for this region. Another challenge mentioned was finding builders willing to try something new.