TRANSPORTATION IMPROVEMENT PROGRAM (TIP)
The Transportation Improvement Program (TIP) identifies the transportation projects that GCLMPO and NCDOT plan to undertake over the next ten years. The TIP is established through NCDOT’s Board of Transportation to allocate funds to highway, aviation, public transportation, bicycle and pedestrian, and other modes of transportation. All projects receiving federal funding must be in the TIP. The TIP is the region’s way of allocating its transportation resources among the various capital and operating needs of the area, based on a clear set of short-term transportation priorities.
NCDOT maintains a “Current STIP” that is updated monthly based upon TIP amendments that are approved by the Board of Transportation. Federal law requires the State Transportation Improvement Program to be updated at least every four years. NCDOT generally updates it every two years. Background
Passed in 2013, the Strategic Transportation Investments law allows the N.C. Department of Transportation to use its funding more efficiently and effectively to enhance the state’s infrastructure, while supporting economic growth, job creation and a higher quality of life. This process encourages thinking from a statewide and regional perspective while also providing flexibility to address local needs.
STI also establishes the Strategic Mobility Formula, which allocates available revenues based on data-driven scoring and local input. It is used to develop NCDOT’s State Transportation Improvement Program, which identifies the transportation projects that will receive funding during a specified 10-year period.
The process by which the NCDOT STIP is developed is known as NCDOT Prioritization.
The TIP/STIP:
- Is updated at least every two years;
- Is fiscally constrained, based on available funding and not just a “wish list” of projects;
- Conforms with the State Implementation Plan (SIP) for air quality (Gaston and Lincoln counties are classified as nonattainment for ozone);
- Is approved by the MPO and the governor; and
- Is incorporated directly into North Carolina’s State Transportation Improvement Program (STIP), a 10-year State and Federal-mandated plan that identifies the construction funding for and scheduling of transportation projects throughout the state.
STIP Updates
Work is currently underway to update the STIP for 2026-2035.
The current cycle to update the STIP for the years 2026-2035 is called Prioritization P7.0 or P7.0. The process begins when NCDOT divisions and local planning organizations gather public feedback on potential projects, which then are submitted for evaluation and scoring. This process includes all modes of transportation: highway, bicycle and pedestrian, aviation, public transportation (transit), and rail.
GCLMPO Staff and NCDOT have held preliminary meetings with the local governments to discuss local transportation priorities in order to test score projects to determine which potential highway projects may be submitted by the GCLMPO and/or NCDOT Division 12.
NEXT STEPS:
- MPO and NCDOT staff will continue to work with the TCC and Board Members once test scoring of highway projects is completed.
- The recommended P7.0 list of projects will be presented for endorsement by the TCC and approval by the MPO Board in July or September.
- GCLMPO staff will submit candidate projects by the September 30, 2023 deadline.
- Local Input Point Assignments will begin in May 2024.
- The Draft 2026-2035 STIP will be released in February 2025.
- The 2026-2035 TIP will be adopted by the GCLMPO in September 2025.
Current STIP
On June 6, 2023, the 2024-2033 STIP was approved by the NCDOT Board of Transportation.