Memorandum

City of Lawrence

Municipal Services & Operations

TO:	Tom Markus, City Manager
FROM:	David Cronin, City Engineer
CC:	Brandon McGuire, Assistant to the City Manager Chuck Soules, Public Works Director Jonathan Marburger, Project Engineer
DATE:	October 19, 2018
RE:	Testimony to the 2018 Joint Legislative Transportation Vision Task Force

Background

The mission of the Joint Legislative Transportation Vision Task Force is as follows:

• Evaluate the progress of the 2010 transportation works for Kansas program to date;

• Evaluate the current system condition of the state transportation system, including roads and bridges;

• Evaluate current uses of the state highway fund dollars, including fund transfers for other purposes outside of infrastructure improvements;

• Identify additional necessary transportation projects, especially projects with a direct effect on the economic health of the state of Kansas and its residents;

• Make recommendations regarding the needs of the transportation system over the next ten years and beyond;

• Make recommendations on the future structure of the state highway fund as it relates to maintaining the state infrastructure system; and

• Make and submit reports to the legislature concerning all such work and recommendations of the task force. All such reports shall be submitted to the Legislature on or before January 31, 2019.

Additionally, the co-chairpersons will schedule and organize meetings whose purpose is to solicit local input on existing uncompleted projects and future projects in each highway and metropolitan district. The meetings will be open meetings and such meetings shall be held at least eight times, including at least one meeting in each department of transportation district and the Wichita and Kansas City metropolitan areas.

Staff Action

Staff has met with County officials to coordinate testimony to the Task Force. We have also reached out to the local Chamber of Commerce to make them aware of the process and encourage them to provide testimony as appropriate. City and County testimony is anticipated to focus on:

• Support for state spending on transportation programs and projects.
• Support for project selection based on safety, operations, and economic impacts.
• Summary of how State programs have impacted the local system (Dave Cronin and Keith Browning).
• Summary of how the South Lawrence Trafficway has impacted the local economy and how finishing the west leg should be a priority given the increased traffic from the recently completed west leg (Jonathan Marburger).
• Summary of economic impacts directly related to transportation investments (Matthew Herbert).

Testimony will be given November 8, 2018, in Olathe. Written testimony prior to the meeting will be submitted to Kansas Legislative Research by November 2, 2018.