The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet is cranking up its weed control program to keep a dozen unwanted and noxious weeds from encroaching on the bluegrass state’s transportation infrastructure.

[Above photo by KYTC]

Weeds are more than a gardening nuisance; they can obscure sightlines, compromise drainage, wipe out native plantings, and kill off roadside turf, leading to roadbed erosion and serious maintenance issues.

“Some weeds are highly destructive and difficult to control,” said Naitore Djigbenou, executive director of the KYTC Office of Public Affairs.

“Weeds clog storm-water drainage systems and can compromise pavement and structures which can lead to potholes and structures failures,” Djigbenou noted, which is why KYTC uses Integrated Roadside Vegetation Management or IRVM to “suppress and control noxious and invasive weeds on state-maintained highways.”

Weed control is accomplished through mowing, turf-grass establishment, insect biological control, and the use of herbicides approved by the Environmental Protection Agency that are applied by licensed applicators.

“If left untreated, some weeds can grow several feet tall and impact driver visibility,” KYTC Secretary Jim Gray pointed out in a recent news release. “Actively treating the weeds on state-maintained property enhances safety, prevents damage to ditches and drains and minimizes the presence of plants that attract deer near highways,”

The agency also reaches out to private landowners, he said, encouraging them to request that highway crews treat some noxious weeds on adjacent state-owned right-of-way.

Kentucky law dictates which 12 plants are considered “noxious weeds” that should be eradicated. They are Amur Honeysuckle, Canada Thistle, Common Teasel, Cutleaf Teasel, Japanese Knotweed, Johnsongrass, Kudzu, Marestail, Multiflora Rose, Nodding Thistle, Poison Hemlock, and Spotted Knapweed.

Noxious weeds often invade and destroy the roadside turf grass, leaving those areas vulnerable to erosion, KYTC added. They can also smother native plants through rapid reproduction and long-term persistence. Twenty years ago, the Federal Highway Administration published a compendium of resources aimed at removing invasive species of plants that might take root along roadways nationwide. They can cause “significant changes” to local ecosystems, upsetting ecological balances and causing economic harm to the country’s agricultural and recreational sectors.

WVDOT Issues Funds for Alternative Transportation Projects

The West Virginia Department of Transportation recently issued $9.7 million worth of Transportation Alternatives and Recreational Trails Program grants to fund 38 projects in 22 counties across the state.

[Above photo by WVDOT]

“We’ve learned that investing in our cities, towns, and beautiful parks is one of the best ways to attract tourists and improve the daily lives of our residents,” explained Governor Jim Justice (R) in a statement.

“This program provides millions of dollars to make some of the best places in West Virginia more accessible, which will also enhance visitation throughout the state,” he added. “The positive economic ripple effects will be off the charts, and I couldn’t be prouder to approve these well-deserved initiatives.”
Administered by WVDOT, grants via the West Virginia Transportation Alternatives and Recreational Trails Program – which receives funding from the Federal Highway Administration – helps towns and cities build and improve sidewalks, lighting, walking paths, rail trails, and more.

According to the FHWA, its Recreational Trails Program or RTP provides funds to the states to develop and maintain recreational trails and trail-related facilities for both non-motorized and motorized recreational trail uses.

The agency said that federal transportation funding seeks to boost “recreational activity” such as hiking, bicycling, in-line skating, equestrian use, cross-country skiing, snowmobiling, off-road motorcycling, all-terrain vehicle riding, four-wheel driving, or using other off-road motorized vehicles.

The $1.2 trillion Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, enacted in November 2021, reauthorized RTP funding from federal fiscal year 2022 through 2026 as a set-aside from the Transportation Alternatives Set-Aside under the Surface Transportation Block Grant, with the amount set aside equal to the state’s FY 2009 RTP apportionment.

Environmental News Highlights – March 29, 2023

A roundup of headlines curated for state transportation environmental professionals

FEDERAL ACTION

AASHTO President Millar: Resilience Key to Transportation

– AASHTO Journal

USDOT Issues $94M via New SMART Grants Program

– AASHTO Journal

Electric bike tax credit bill reintroduced, providing up to $1,500 off new e-bikes in US

– Electrek

“Reconnecting Communities” Funding Announced for New York State

– Roads & Bridges

US Fish and Wildlife Service Announces $20 Million in Grants to Support Boating Infrastructure, Local Communities and Outdoor Recreation

– US Fish & Wildlife Service (media release)

EPA Announces Final “Good Neighbor” Plan to Cut Harmful Smog, Protecting Health of Millions from Power Plant, Industrial Air Pollution

– EPA (media release)

INFRASTRUCTURE RESILIENCE AND SUSTAINABILITY

Rural States Are Moving Ahead With EV Charging Infrastructure

– Government Technology

Louisiana Governor Unveils Online Dashboard for Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL) Projects

– Louisiana Governor’s Office

What Wisconsin Has Gotten Out Of Biden’s Infrastructure Law (So Far) –

UpNorthNews

The Planet Can Do Better Than the Electric Car

– Slate

PHMSA Announces State and Local Funding to Improve Hazardous Materials and Pipeline Safety Nationwide

– PHMSA (media release)

AIR QUALITY

8th Circuit delivers climate blow to Big Oil

– E&E News

Florida EV owners may get their own version of a gas tax

– WFSU Radio

Seattle Requests Federal Help in Planning “Low-Emission Neighborhoods”

– The Urbanist

Decarbonizing Transportation Via Natural Gas-Derived Ammonia Set to Disrupt Maritime Sector

– Natural Gas Intelligence

Solar project to reduce campus greenhouse gas emissions by 600 to 700 tons annually

– University of Notre Dame (media release)

ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE

Viewing Urban Geography and History Through an Environmental Justice Lens

– Columbia University

NATURAL RESOURCES

MoDOT, KDOT address abundance of trash seen along highways

– KCTV-TV

CULTURAL RESOURCES

NCDOT Wins Federal Grant to Expand Traveler Information

– North Carolina DOT (media release)

There Is Much More Work to Do to Shift Cities Away from Cars

– Government Technology (commentary)

What Makes a City Great?

– New York Times (opinion)

HEALTH AND HUMAN ENVIRONMENT/ACTIVE TRANSPORTATION

The East Coast Greenway – Connecting Maine To Florida For Walkers, Bikers

– Cranford Radio (podcast)

Utah to start planning statewide trail network after initial $90M investment

– St. George News

New legislation could clear up confusion surrounding e-bikes in Alaska

– Alaska Beacon

America’s top 10 bicycle-friendly cities

– American City & County

Investment Could Up Walkability in Bangor, Maine

– Bangor Daily News

Children’s Hospital Of Philadelphia, New Jersey Division Of Highway Traffic Safety To Create Innovative Center To Promote Traffic Safety Across State

– Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (media release)

TRB RESOURCES/ANNOUNCEMENTS

A Safe, Healthy Workforce Keeps Our Transportation Moving

– TRB

Transportation Planning as a Tool for Migrant Integration

– Association For Commuter Transportation (webinar)

FEDERAL REGISTER NOTICES

FY 2023 Emergency Relief Grants for Public Transportation Systems Affected by Major Declared Disasters in Calendar Years 2017, 2020, 2021, and 2022 –

FTA (Notice of availability of emergency relief funding)

Air Plan Approval; Wisconsin; Emissions Reporting and Infrastructure SIP Requirements

– EPA (Proposed rule)

Request for Nominations to EPA’s National and Governmental Advisory Committees

– EPA (Notice)

Notification of a Public Meeting of the Chartered Clean Air Scientific Advisory Committee (CASAC) and CASAC Ozone Review Panel

– EPA (Notice)

Hunting and Wildlife Conservation Council; Request for Nominations

– Fish and Wildlife Service (Request for nominations)

Land Between the Lakes Advisory Board

– Forest Service (Notice of meeting)

Black Hills National Forest Advisory Board

– USDA (Notice of meeting)

Notice of Competitive Offer for Solar Energy Development on Public Lands in Saguache County, CO

– Bureau of Land Management (Notice)

Oregon DOT Website Tracks GHG Emission Reductions

The Oregon Department of Transportation recently unveiled a website that tracks how the state’s public agencies are collectively reducing greenhouse gas or GHG emissions across Oregon.

[Above photo by the Oregon DOT]

The Oregon Transportation Emission website pulls together regulations, programs, funding, goals, and partnerships into one place, then rates progress across six transportation categories toward the state’s goal of reducing GHG emissions from the transportation sector to 80 percent below 1990 levels by 2050. Currently, Oregon is on track to reduce GHG emission to 60 percent below 1990 levels by 2050, according to Oregon DOT.

Overall in Oregon, emissions from transportation represent 35 percent of total statewide GHG emissions, according to the latest state data.

“Our objectives are to support reductions in how far and how often people drive, and for each mile driven to be clean,” noted Amanda Pietz, administrator for the agency’s policy, data, and analysis division, in a statement. “Overall, we’re doing well to reach our 2050 goals, and we have plans to improve in some areas to get us all the way there.”

The website was created by Oregon DOT in partnership with the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality, the Oregon Department of Energy, and the Oregon Department of Land Conservation and Development. It is based on the Statewide Transportation Strategy: a 2050 Vision for Greenhouse Gas Emissions Reduction, and progress is tracked against many of the strategy’s goals.

The Oregon DOT noted that recent state regulations governing GHG emissions from cars, trucks, and sport utility vehicles or SUVs — alongside a shift to electric vehicles or EVs — should yield the “biggest reduction” in such emissions in the coming decades.

Meanwhile, areas with the “most room for improvement” where GHGs are concerned are reducing vehicle miles traveled — how far and how often people drive — as well as reducing GHG emissions from larger trucks and transit vehicles. The Oregon DOT said “progress can be made” in those areas via investing in active modes like walking, rolling and biking; improving transit services; pricing the transportation system; and enacting land use policies to support shorter trips.

States and localities are engaged in similar emission reduction activities across the country as outlined in a knowledge session held during the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials 2023 Washington Briefing, held February 28 through March 3 in Washington, D.C.

Concurrently, at the federal level, the U.S. Departments of Energy, Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Environmental Protection Agency signed a memorandum of understanding or MOU in September 2022 to reduce GHG emissions associated with the transportation sector while concurrently ensuring “resilient and accessible mobility options” for all Americans.

Colorado DOT Issues Grants for Local Mobility Projects

The Colorado Department of Transportation recently issued $617,400 in grants to support 12 local mobility programs across the state – helping cities and towns reduce traffic congestion while offering residents travel choices beyond driving in a car alone.

[Above photo by the Colorado DOT]

Those grants, issued by the Colorado DOT’s Office of Innovative Mobility, seek to help various local communities strengthen their “transportation demand management” efforts. Increasingly being adopted by cities and states, transportation demand management aims to provide travelers with more travel choices than simply single-occupant vehicle driving – choices that can include mode, route and time of travel and work location.

The agency said in a statement that common transportation demand management strategies focus on promoting transit usage; offering micro-mobility options, such as bikes and scooters; improving pedestrian infrastructure; crafting smart growth policies; deploying intelligent transportation systems; building managed roadway lanes; and encouraging telework and “e-work” options.

Colorado DOT said those approaches are used most often in large urban areas, but many smaller communities can benefit from them as well. Examples of the programs the agency is supporting this latest round of local mobility grants include:

$50,000 to the City of Denver to scale up its shared micro-mobility program, which now provides a bike- and scooter-share system.
$38,400 to the City of Durango to help it improve its transportation demand management software and launch the city’s first-ever e-bike rebate program.
$50,000 to the City of Fort Collins for a pilot project to subsidize carpool and vanpool programs for first- and last-mile travel, along with a separate $50,000 grant to help develop a web-based or app-based portal to allow paratransit clients to schedule their own trips and receive real-time information on vehicles.
$50,000 to Summit County and various partners to fund a micro-transit feasibility study to provide first- and last-mile service to transit-dependent and disadvantaged communities. This study builds on years of work between partners to target the most successful options for the least served communities.

State departments of transportation across the country regularly support a variety of local mobility projects via grants and other funding options.

Indeed, a panel of state DOT and local government executives convened during the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials 2022 Spring Meeting in New Orleans to detail how collaboration between federal, local, and tribal agencies – among other stakeholders – is critical to addressing a variety of mobility challenges nationwide.

To aid in those efforts, the National Renewable Energy Laboratory – a division of the U.S. Department of Energy – introduced a new online tool in October 2022 to help transportation planners design more efficient and environmentally friendly mobility systems for both urban and rural areas.

Environmental News Highlights – March 22, 2023

A roundup of headlines curated for state transportation environmental professionals

Weathering Lake Tahoe’s Storms – Tahoe Daily Tribune (opinion)

CULTURAL RESOURCES

Car-Free Living Takes Off in Car-Centric Cities – Hyperdrive

The ‘Green Amendment’ is well-intended – but that’s not enough – Nevada Independent (opinion)

HEALTH AND HUMAN ENVIRONMENT/ACTIVE TRANSPORTATION

Oklahoma DOT Putting Active Transportation Plan Together – AASHTO Journal

Plazas, two-way bike lane on tap as NYC public space push begins – WPIX-TV

Chicago City Council approves using cameras to catch drivers who block bike and bus lanes downtown – WBBM-TV

ATX Walk Bike Roll plan presented to boards and commissions – Austin Monitor

TxDOT launches safety campaign after increase in pedestrian, bicycle crashes – KVEO-TV

TRB RESOURCES/ANNOUNCEMENTS

TRB Webinar: The Jury is Still Out – The Latest on Recycled Plastic Waste in Asphalt – TRB

Getting Safely to the Other Side: Decision Support for Wildlife Crossing Programs – TR News (link to PDF)

Rutgers CAIT Partners with NJ TRANSIT and International Association on North American Regional Training Center – Rutgers University

Door to Door: Microtransit in the Twin Cities – Move Minneapolis (link to webinar registration)

FEDERAL REGISTER NOTICES

Notice of Final Federal Agency Actions on Proposed Rail Transportation Projects – FRA (Notice)

Approval of John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK) Noise Compatibility Program – FAA (Notice)

Roundtable on Environmental Justice and Equity in Infrastructure Permitting; Second Supplemental Notice of Roundtable – Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (Notice)

Nez Perce-Clearwater National Forests; Idaho; Clearwater National Forest Travel Planning – Forest Service (Notice of intent to prepare a supplemental environmental impact statement)

California State Nonroad Engine Pollution Control Standards; Ocean- Going Vessels At-Berth and Commercial Harbor Craft; Requests for Authorization; Opportunity for Public Hearing and Comment – EPA (Notice)

Release of Draft Policy Assessment for the Reconsideration of the Ozone National Ambient Air Quality Standards – EPA (Notice of availability)

White House Environmental Justice Advisory Council; Notice of Charter Renewal – EPA (Notice)

Request for Nominations to the Good Neighbor Environmental Board – EPA (Notice)

Lands Chief, National Trails Land Resources Program Office; Delegation of Authority – National Park Service (Notice)

Notice To Reopen the Advisory Council for Climate Adaptation Science Call for Nominations – U.S. Geological Survey (Notice)

Notice of Availability of the Record of Decision for the Whitewater River Groundwater Replenishment Facility, Riverside County, CA – Bureau of Land Management (Notice)

Intent To Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement for the Tampa Harbor Navigation Improvement Study, Hillsborough County, Florida – U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Notice)

Regulated Navigation Area; Tampa Bay, Tampa, FL – Coast Guard (Notice of proposed rulemaking)

Oklahoma DOT Crafting First-Ever Active Transportation Plan

The Oklahoma Department of Transportation is working on its first-ever active transportation plan – a policy toolkit that can be used internally and by Oklahoma counties and towns as engineers and designers look to develop more people-friendly infrastructure.

[Above image by the Oklahoma DOT]

The plan will address walking, biking, “wheelchairs and mobility scooters, pedal and electric scooters, electric bikes, skateboards, and other similar wheeled vehicles,” according to a website developed by the agency that details the plan’s contents.

The finished product will be more of a policy guide than a rule book, said Shelby Templin, an Oklahoma DOT certified planner who is heading up the plan’s development.

“We’re hoping this will guide our engineers and designers, in-house, as well as provide a starting-off point for smaller communities that may not have the resources,” she said. “It also will give the multi-modal group more of a leg to stand on for project development.”

The agency said its Active Transportation Plan is expected to be completed this summer and opened to a 30-day public comment period. In the fall, Oklahoma DOT expects to submit the plan to the Oklahoma Transportation Commission for approval.

Right now, an Oklahoma DOT consultant is analyzing about 1,000 citizen surveys and results from 10 online workshops, alongside the development of “scenario planning” sessions by the agency – sessions that examine situations involving active transportation in order to determine which infrastructure tools work best.

The rise in pedestrian deaths across the country is also giving some added urgency to developing the plan, Templin pointed out. “We basically create intersections or hot spots where, theoretically, we’d be having an issue with crashes or a high number of pedestrians,” she explained.

The department also is researching and reviewing best practices from other states that already have Active Transportation Plans, as Oklahoma DOT is one of a handful of state departments of transportation that do not have such a plan, Templin said.

[Editor’s note: The Washington State Department of Transportation unveiled a formal Active Transportation Plan in December 2021 – which won the 2022 America’s Transportation Awards contest’s “People’s Choice Award” – with the Kansas Department of Transportation developing one in December 2020 and the Ohio Department of Transportation launching one in July 2019.]

The Active Transportation Plan development process, which kicked off in the fall of 2022, might not have happened except for an assumption Oklahoma DOT made about what would be in the $1.2 trillion Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act or IIJA enacted in November 2021.

“We thought that all states would have to have an Active Transportation Plan, so the conversation here was already starting,” Templin said. When the IIJA did not include an Active Transportation Plan mandate, “we were already planning for it, so we decided to do it now because we didn’t want to have our hand forced into it.”

The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic the transportation habits of state residents became another “deciding factor” in the development of an active mobility strategy, she noted. The pandemic “shifted people’s minds to realize that not everyone has to drive a car,” said Templin. “There are other options.”

Like every state, Oklahoma has its own transportation issues that don’t fit neatly in a one-size-fits-all template, so those situations must be incorporated into the plan.

“I think in Oklahoma, it’s pretty common to live a longer distance from where people work,” Templin said. “So, it’s not always going to be about commuting – you look for more realistic opportunities. I live 35 miles from work, so I’ll never walk or bike to work, but I live a half-mile from a 7-11.”

Sacramento Kings, Caltrans Work on Local Waterway Cleanup

The Sacramento Kings basketball team, the California Department of Transportation, and more than 35 volunteers recently joined forces to collect and remove litter from Robert T. Matsui Park along the Sacramento River.

[Above photo by Caltrans]

In a statement, Caltrans Director Tony Tavares explained that this cleanup event highlighted how trash and debris pollute Sacramento waterways, including through storm water flows. The event collected and removed more than 500 pounds of trash from the park, which included things such as broken glass, cigarettes, plastic bottles, and cans, he said.

“Sacramento is known as the River City, and residents and tourists love to visit and enjoy our rivers,” Tavares pointed out. “But these fragile waterways and public spaces need to be protected, so everyone needs to work together to keep our waters clean and litter-free.”

Caltrans noted that recent storms put a spotlight on the threat of storm water pollution in the Sacramento region and statewide as well. The agency said storm water can pick up a variety of pollutants, including trash, litter, and bacteria, flushing it down storm drains that flow to local lakes, rivers and streams.

State departments of transportation across the country are engaged in a variety of efforts to not only remove litter from waterways but manage storm water flows as well.

For example, in September 2022, the Tennessee Department of Transportation began expanding upon its traditional role in the Mississippi River Delta Region from building and maintaining roads to include fighting litter, supporting tourism, and promoting economic development.

The agency is doing so through the Tennessee Delta Alliance or TDA, a partnership between Tennessee DOT and the University of Memphis.

That alliance also established a regional, water-based Keep America Beautiful affiliate along Tennessee’s portion of the Great River Road National Scenic Byway.

Additionally, in March 2022, Tennessee DOT teamed up with Keep the Tennessee River Beautiful and other partners to establish a network of 17 “Seabin” automated litter and debris removal devices across the Tennessee River watershed. In related move, in April 2021, the agency provided the Tennessee Aquarium grants to establish two new exhibits illustrating how microplastics and other roadside trash can negatively affect the health of the ocean as well as rivers, lakes, and streams.