Texas Streets Coalition (TXSC) first came together loosely to learn from one another’s strategies and successes. We are advocates working against freeway expansions, and for better integration with the communities those “improvement projects” are proposed to expand into. Advocates across cities identified common issues with projects and processes. As individual organizations continue to work locally challenging TxDOT, Metropolitan Planning Organizations, local governments, and others to make improvements aligned with the safety, health, and justice of those in the proposed improvement path, we have identified priorities to address the root of some issues in planning and budgeting.    

 

State-level

88th TEXAS LEGISLATURE, 2023

• HJR 77/SJR 37: State Highway Fund, Transportation Funding; led by Air Alliance Houston
• Local Street Design Authority; led by Farm&City
• HB 1969: Transparent Identification for TxDOT Field Staff and Contractors; led by STOP TxDOT I45
• HB 5156: Equal Representation at Metropolitan Planning Organizations (MPOs); led by Farm&City
• HB 2224: Safe Neighborhood Streets; led by Farm&City

TEXAS DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION (TxDOT)

• Use accurate data to inform planning and budget decisions.
• Prioritize safe access for Texans, over congestion. 
• Align projects with local urban planning and growth plans.
• Protect people’s health and economy in freeway-adjacent communities, including environmental concerns.

Throughout:

• • Texas Transportation Commission’s Unified Transportation Program, 10 yr budget 
  • TxDOT Statewide Resiliency Plan
  • National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) — challenge the 2024 renewal of TxDOT’s 2019 MOU with USDOT, which allows TxDOT to self-certify their environmental studies and Findings Of No Significant Impact (FONSI).

TXSC Public Comments

• Connecting Texas 2050; TxDOT Statewide Long-Range Transportation Plan. Submitted May 31, 2023. 

GROW THE TRANSPORTATION REFORM MOVEMENT ACROSS TEXAS AND DISCIPLINES. 

Local-level

TxDOT

• Advocate for community health, safety, and justice throughout the process, project by project.
• Work with MPO, county, and city governments.
• Change how state money is spent, increasing funding for multimodal access.

TXSC Public Comments

• Austin I35 Central, Draft Environmental Impact Statement. Submitted March 7, 2023. 

METROPOLITAN PLANNING ORGANIZATIONS (MPOs)

• Gain proportional representation, based on population. 
• Improve regional transportation planning processes.

COUNTY AND CITY

• Make TxDOT and other transportation projects part of the local political discussion, in election years.