1.A Plan, implement, and prioritize projects that connect to, improve, or complete segments of the Regional Bicycle Transportation Network. Update network alignments in coordination with regional partners and in response to local or corridor planning efforts.

1.B Plan, implement, and prioritize bikeway connections between the Regional Bicycle Transportation Network and transit facilities. Prioritize local bikeway projects that connect the local network to an existing or planned regional transitway. Consider network alignments along, near, and parallel to transit corridors when planning transit routes and facilities.

1.C Include a bicycle system element in local comprehensive plans. Local agencies should identify their local bicycle network in addition to the Regional Bicycle Transportation Network corridors and alignments within their city or county. Coordinate networks across jurisdictional boundaries.

1.D Explore options to connect Regional Bicycle Transportation Network corridors and alignments to rural communities.

1.E Invest in and implement All Ages and Abilities bicycle networks to complete the regional and local bicycle systems so all people have improved cycling opportunity, safety, and mobility. Evaluate existing tools that identify potential bicycle demand (e.g., MnDOT’s Suitability for the Pedestrian and Cycling Environment) for use in funding prioritization or develop a new tool that is tailored to the region.

2.A Identify, prioritize, and improve locations where network gaps or physical barriers (like rivers, freeways, and rail corridors) may impede non-motorized travel.

2.B Determine the needs of bicycles and pedestrians on freeway construction and reconstruction projects. Consider opportunities for new bicycle and pedestrian bridges or underpasses where demand and / or connections to non-motorized facilities are needed.

2.C Identify gaps or barriers in bicycle and pedestrian systems in local, regional, and state plans, include locally identified barriers in local plans. Update regional bicycle barriers and crossing locations as new ones are identified.

3.A Include a pedestrian element as part of local comprehensive plans. Within the plan, identify local pedestrian priority networks or areas, pedestrian travel barriers, and strategies that will be used to improve pedestrian travel. Prioritize projects that include sidewalks, crossings, or other appropriate pedestrian facilities as part of the larger project.

3.B Prioritize sidewalk projects that close gaps, remove barriers, and/or improve pedestrian safety. Evaluate existing tools that identify potential pedestrian demand (e.g., MnDOT’s Priority Areas for Walking) for use in funding prioritization or develop a new tool that is tailored to the region, if needed.

3.C Provide education on best practices and safety countermeasures for pedestrian crossings in all contexts.

3.D Complete the Regional Sidewalk Phase 1 Study. Implement findings, as necessary.

4.A Designate transit market areas and maintain transit service design and performance guidelines to inform general transit system design. Local communities should identify transit facilities and improvement needs associated with their land use plans.

4.B Use new service delivery models to fill gaps in fixed-route transit service, including microtransit.

4.C Complete ongoing route performance analysis and service performance monitoring to inform service changes that can adapt to changing land use, demographics, travel trends, or other influences on transit service performance.

4.D Update service improvement plans regularly to identify opportunities for transit service expansion and major restructuring. Recommended to be updated every five years but local conditions may dictate different needs. Service improvement planning should include substantial engagement with transit riders and potential transit riders.

4.E Create a microtransit policy framework to establish an understanding of the opportunities to deliver local microtransit services in a consistent manner across regional providers and service models.

5.A Identify corridors for potential transitway investment and conduct corridors studies to determine appropriate investment, including transitway mode, alignment, and stations.

5.B Coordinate local supporting elements for transitway projects including required resolutions, land use planning commitments, improvements to local connecting infrastructure and timing of connected or related projects. See Land Use discussion in Imagine 2050 for local requirements.

5.C Create a project funding plan and commitments for capital, operating, and maintenance costs for the life of the plan. Obtain necessary grants and agreements for project funding.

5.D Build, operate, and maintain transitways. Work with partners to identify needed improvements, as necessary.

5.E Update the network of arterial rapid transit corridors. Identity, evaluate, and prioritize future lines for investment.

6.A Provide and maintain accurate information on transit services. Improve the accuracy of real-time transit information for riders.

6.B Coordinate and connect fares across transit agencies for all service types to provide easier use of multiple services. Regional transportation service providers should coordinate the use of technology solutions to allow for easier booking of transit passenger trips between various modes and providers. (e.g., connecting fare payment platforms across transit agencies).

6.C Provide fare products that balance attracting new riders, retaining existing riders, providing equitable service to disadvantaged communities, and sustainable funding.

6.D Improve service coordination between regional transit providers. Establish guidelines for services being provided across transit provider service areas. Maintain guidelines on connections between fixed-route services and other service types like microtransit, dial-a-ride, and vanpool.

6.E Coordinate roadway and transit projects to ensure all users’ needs are considered and projects are not more disruptive than necessary for transit users.

7.A Provide incentives for trip reductions by single-occupancy vehicle travel. Work directly with employers to establish travel demand management programs, performance targets, and technical support, as needed. Create and implement a framework for other incentive and pricing strategies.

7.B Create a regional travel demand management program structure and technical working group to improve transparency and awareness of the regional travel demand management program.

7.C Implement development-based trip reduction programs and ordinances. Use regional funding to prioritize developments that address travel demand management. Provide technical support to cities and developers on travel demand management ordinance development and implementation.

7.D Prioritize investments in travel demand management that improve highway reliability. Use travel demand management strategies to spread highway travel demand across less congested hours of the day.

7.E Prioritize transportation projects that include travel demand management elements or serve communities with travel demand management ordinances, strategies, and programs.

7.F Conduct outreach and promotion activities for alternatives to driving alone that increase awareness about options and promote new travel demand management programs. Provide support for people trying new travel modes with trip training and guides.

7.G Continue to explore and support shared mobility options across different modes and platforms to allow for more flexible and affordable travel and reduce the need for vehicles in a household. Prioritize investments in shared mobility that support regional goals and objectives. Explore providing regional shared e-bike and e-scooter services to provide first- and last-mile options for users to connect to their origins and destinations.

7.H Create methodologies and guidance to integrate travel demand management activities into highway planning and project development processes.

7.I Create frameworks for travel demand management incentives, pricing, and development review programs to support implementation of actions.

8.A Improve planning, booking, and paying for transportation services across modes and platforms. Require transportation services that receive public funds to share their data in easily understandable, accessible, and coordinated formats.

8.B Improve wayfinding at key locations where multiple transportation modes come together like transit centers / stations, activity generators, important trails, large parking facilities, mobility hubs, and any others.

8.C Implement mobility hubs that facilitate connections between multiple modes to increase first- and last-mile services in high-activity locations using the Mobility Hub Planning Guide.

8.D Incorporate amenities at bus stops, transit stations, park-and-rides, transit centers, and mobility hubs as described in Transit Service Design and Performance Guidelines.

8.E Consider curb management plans in the transportation section of comprehensive plans, where appropriate. Identify opportunities to address and balance multimodal needs (including those of urban freight delivery, shared mobility options, and electric vehicle charging infrastructure).

8.F Plan for and provide year-round maintenance on all transportation infrastructure. Provide technical assistance to support local maintenance efforts.

8.G Identify and prioritize pedestrian barrier connections, focusing on locations that do not meet ADA requirements.

9.A Use a Complete Streets approach to transportation planning and project development. Prioritize roadway projects that include transit, bicycle, and/or pedestrian improvements for funding.

9.B Include All Ages and Abilities multimodal improvements for traveling along and across roadways. Consider the safety and mobility of all users in the project area.

9.C Implement speed management and traffic calming measures on roadways that have excessive lane capacity or in areas where there is high demand for non-motorized travel.

9.D Create a regional Complete Streets typology that is context sensitive and supplements functional classification. Provide local assistance and workshops to aid in the implementation of Complete Streets policies and processes.

9.E Identify regional priorities for MnDOT’s new main streets/urban pavement funding program.

10.A Update the Freight Bottleneck Report every other year to identify impacts of highway congestion on freight movements, including congestion at MnDOT identified truck freight bottlenecks, and identify cost-effective mitigation.

10.B Improve real-time safety information on major freight corridors to inform drivers of routing disruptions.

10.C Plan for and improve first- and last-mile highway connections between major freight terminals and important freight nodes that may generate significant freight traffic, and the Met Council designated Regional Truck Freight Corridors.

10.D Prioritize freight reliability and safety in transportation investments. Incorporate findings from MnDOT’s Metro District Freight Plan when completed.

10.E Develop a framework for a Complete Streets planning process that considers the safe movement and delivery of freight and goods in addition to other goals.

10.F Facilitate discussions between the trucking industry and local and state transportation partners to identify regional truck parking issues, conflicts, and solution opportunities.

10.G Partner with private industry and universities in pilot studies and projects that promote and facilitate last-mile distribution through parcel consolidation (in other words, urban / suburban center parcel distribution microhubs), zero-emission vehicles (for example, cargo e-bikes), and emerging technologies (in other words, air and land-based drones).

10.H Encourage major urban freight delivery providers to provide summary data related to delivery vehicle miles traveled and develop aggregated data metrics for tracking progress in meeting regional and state goals.

10.I Explore methods to account for the influences of online shopping on regional freight and household shopping trips in planned updates to the Council’s freight and activity-based travel forecasts.

10.J Perform an update to the Twin Cities Metropolitan Regional Freight Study.

11.A Use the Congestion Management Process Handbook during project planning and development to evaluate lower cost mobility solutions that can provide options and more reliable travel. Provide technical assistance and training on congestion management process analysis processes. Incorporate requirements or scoring measures in funding processes that prioritize use of the congestion management process handbook for roadway expansion projects.

11.B Prioritize transit, carpool, biking, and walking options on or parallel to congested corridors. Roadway authorities should work with implementers of transit during planning and project development to identify opportunities.

11.C Implement a managed lane system to provide reliable travel for transit, carpool travel, and those willing to pay.

11.D Consider using MnDOT highway mobility funding on roadway improvements that also support bus rapid transit, transit advantages, and managed lane improvements on corridors that have transit travel time reliability issues.

11.E Provide an interconnected network of transit advantages on roadways between regional destinations. Identify opportunities to implement transit advantages on roadways and prioritize them based on travel time benefits and number of affected users.

11.F Research congestion pricing options, including travel demand management incentives and general pricing, and their impact on travel patterns.

11.G Identify and prioritize investments for dedicated transit lanes and transit advantages.

12.A Follow the mobility solution hierarchy when identifying investments to address highway delay and reliability issues:

• Travel demand management and increased transit,
• Traffic management systems,
• Spot mobility,
• Interchanges,
• Managed lanes,
• Targeted regional capacity.

12.B Target corridor-level regional highway system mobility investments only where there is poor reliability caused by excessive delay. Excessive delay is defined by a travel time index greater than 1.25 for more than 2 hours. Projects should follow the mobility hierarchy to identify investment opportunities. Target regionally significant intersection to interchange conversion projects based on high priorities in the Intersection Mobility and Safety Study.

12.C Identify planning opportunities to complete or update corridor studies on high priority locations identified in the Intersection Mobility and Safety Study.

12.D Use regional prioritization studies and plans, like the Statewide Freight Bottlenecks, Regional Truck Freight Corridors, Congestion Management Safety Plan, and Intersection Mobility and Safety in project selection criteria in competitive funding programs.

12.E Identify, prioritize, and fund corridors for traffic technologies that would most effectively mitigate impacts from recurring and non-recurring congestion.

12.F Update the Congestion Management Safety Plan to identify congestion- and safety-related problem locations and potential solutions on state highways.

12.G Update the Managed Lane System Study to establish a managed lane system vision and a prioritized list of corridors.

13.A Identify areas prone to weather and climate related issues to mitigate climate and weather-related impacts. Preserve or expand tree cover within transportation rights-of-way. Use tools like the localized flooding map, extreme heat map, and the Growing Shade tool to understand areas of need.

13.B Design public transportation facilities to maintain user comfort as climate impacts increase (for example, shade, cooling, shelters). When retrofitting facilities, prioritize those in historically disadvantaged communities.

13.C Explore plans, programs, and policies that will reduce overall impervious surface, like concrete or asphalt in parking lots, to limit the impacts of extreme heat, urban heat island effects, and stormwater runoff.

13.D Prioritize and invest in elevation and stormwater systems that reduce the frequency and duration of flooding of transportation assets due to major storm events. Determine an acceptable level of interruption due to flood events.

13.E Evaluate pavement materials and techniques to support resilience and minimize impacts from more frequent freeze-thaw cycles and flooding events.

13.F Develop and provide drainage manual guidance and technical assistance to transportation partners, including green stormwater infrastructure.

13.G Prioritize projects that include sustainable and resilient designs or harden infrastructure against extreme weather events.

13.H Identify resilience needs and activities for the most common system issues, share best practices, convene partners, and provide technical assistance.

13.I Complete and maintain a resilience improvement plan and associated mapping applications. Consider ways to customize to the metro area’s needs.

14.A Coordinate regional transportation technology systems (signals, message boards, cameras, or others) across jurisdictions in response to non-recurring events to ensure system resiliency.

14.B Convene technical experts and share information to expand regional understanding of transportation technology needs and opportunities.

14.C Coordinate planned transportation infrastructure construction impacts to minimize the overall disruption to people and businesses.

14.D Analyze the regional roadway network to identify where system redundancy is needed or where a missing connection would improve the overall system (interchanges, over/underpasses, river crossings, frontage roads, grid connections, or other similar elements).