Unified Planning Work Program (UPWP)

The Unified Planning Work Program (UPWP) identifies transportation plans and programs that will be conducted within the MPO boundaries. The UPWP is required under the SAFETEA-LU (Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient, Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users). The UPWP is the document that outlines planning activities that help provide a continuing, cooperative and comprehensive transportation planning process within this area.

The process of planning, maintaining and improving the area’s surface transportation system is a demanding, ongoing and complex operation. It requires the collaboration and coordination of the state and local government agencies, transportation providers, local businesses and the residents of this region to make this process a success. The MPO Policy Board works cooperatively with the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) to provide the best transportation plans possible while maintaining a financially constrained budget. To guide the process the UPWP identifies the following five tasks:

• Task I - Describes the administrative support, policy development activities and management tools used to support the transportation planning processes.
• Task II - Describes the planning activities that generate or collect critical transportation data. Transportation planning requires the development of detailed databases and maps that describe the primary aspects of the transportation system. These include the condition and use of system facilities or services, the purposes for which the system is used, the system’s relationship to existing and future land uses and the system’s impact on the social, environmental and economic well-being of our region.
• Task III - Supports short-range planning activities. These include updates to the Transportation Improvement Program, amendments to the UPWP, coordination between public transportation providers, transit route analysis and other activities related to immediate implementation.
• Task IV - Addresses the planning activities for long-range transportation needs. This includes those needed to update the Metropolitan Transportation Plan (MTP) and incorporates all modes of transportation.
• Task V - Involves special one-time planning activities and major corridor analyses. This task serves as the means for examining the role of alternative transportation modes, strategies and safety for the region.

This document is normally a one-year planning document; however starting with the 2006-2007 fiscal years the Texas Department of Transportation – Transportation Planning and Programming Division – is allowing the MPOs to choose either a one-year or two-year planning budget. The UPWP is approved by the San Angelo Metropolitan Planning Organization Policy Board, submitted to TxDOT for approval and amended as needed based on priorities and budget constraints.

For More Information...

Click below for past, present, and future UPWP documents.