RPO Models: Vermont

In 1992, the Vermont Agency on Transportation launched a new rural planning initiative that was specifically designed to move the state transportation planning process to the local and regional levels. This involved creating expanded opportunities for citizen input as well as a forum for local officials to affect state planning and investment decisions.

The state transportation agency partnered and contracted with the state’s 11 regional planning commissions (RPCs) to implement the new program, since these regional groups already had years of economic development planning experience and established credibility with local officials and the public.

The RPC process was also set up to help the agency comply with both the 1991 ISTEA law and a state law (Act 250) enacted in the late 1980s that requires state agencies to conduct extensive public outreach on infrastructure projects with land use implications. In 2007, the state legislature passed a bill codifying the RPCs' role of performing rural transportation planning work in order to ensure that local consultation requirements were met.

As part of the annual work program, the RPCs operate transportation advisory committees composed of community officials, public transportation providers, interest groups and individual citizens. They prepare long-range transportation plans that identify the goals and objectives for all forms of transportation for up to a 20-year horizon. They identify and prioritize projects for implementation as part of the STIP, plus they conduct studies on specific transportation problems and issues as needed.

As part of the planning process, the RPCs work together on projects that cross jurisdictional boundaries, such as ski country, regional rail and snowmobile issues. They are helping the state work with local communities to develop multi-modal projects and solutions, with the goal of establishing more intermodal connections in the future. The RPCs facilitate improved dialogue between the state and local communities, which may be one of their most valuable contributions.

For more information, see:

2007 Vermont Transportation Bill, Section on the Role of Regional Planning Commissions (PDF)

Vermont Association of Planning and Development Agencies Web site

Regional Planning Commissions Take Lead on Rural Planning

Southern Windsor County RPC Work Program (PDF)

Two Rivers-Ottauquechee Regional Commission 2007 Transportation Work Program (PDF)

Two Rivers-Ottauquechee Regional Commission Web site

Vermont Agency of Transportation Evaluation and Review: Citizen Participation and Local Official Consultation in the Transportation Planning Initiative, Richard Watts, October 2003



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