HF 1705

1st Committee Engrossment - 86th Legislature (2009 - 2010) Posted on 03/19/2013 07:28pm

1.1A bill for an act

1.2relating to transportation; requiring inclusion of bicycle and pedestrian
1.3accommodations as part of trunk highway bridge improvement program;
1.4amending Minnesota Statutes 2008, section 165.14, subdivisions 4, 5.
1.5BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:

1.6    Section 1. Minnesota Statutes 2008, section 165.14, subdivision 4, is amended to read:
1.7    Subd. 4. Prioritization of bridge projects. (a) The commissioner shall classify all
1.8bridges in the program into tier 1, 2, or 3 bridges, where tier 1 is the highest tier. Unless
1.9the commissioner identifies a reason for proceeding otherwise, before commencing bridge
1.10projects in a lower tier, all bridge projects within a higher tier must to the extent feasible
1.11be selected and funded in the approved state transportation improvement program, at
1.12any stage in the project development process, solicited for bids, in contract negotiation,
1.13under construction, or completed.
1.14    (b) The classification of each tier is as follows:
1.15    (1) tier 1 consists of any bridge in the program that (i) has an average daily traffic
1.16count that is above 1,000 and has a sufficiency rating that is at or below 50, or (ii) is
1.17identified by the commissioner as a priority project;
1.18    (2) tier 2 consists of any bridge that is not a tier 1 bridge, and (i) is classified as
1.19fracture-critical, or (ii) has a sufficiency rating that is at or below 80; and
1.20    (3) tier 3 consists of any other bridge in the program that is not a tier 1 or tier 2 bridge.
1.21    (c) By June 30, 2018, all tier 1 and tier 2 bridges originally included in the program
1.22must be under contract for repair or replacement with a new bridge that contains a
1.23load-path-redundant design, except that a specific bridge may remain in continued service
1.24if the reasons are documented in the report required under subdivision 5.
2.1    (d) All bridge projects funded under this section in fiscal year 2010 or later must
2.2include bicycle and pedestrian accommodations if both sides of the bridge are located in a
2.3city or the bridge links a pedestrian way, shared-use path, trail, or scenic bikeway.
2.4Bicycle and pedestrian accommodations would not be required if:
2.5(1) a comprehensive assessment demonstrates that there is an absence of need for
2.6bicycle and pedestrian accommodations for the life of the bridge; or
2.7(2) there is a reasonable alternative bicycle and pedestrian crossing within
2.8one-quarter mile of the bridge project.
2.9    (e) All bicycle and pedestrian accommodations should enable a connection to
2.10any existing bicycle and pedestrian infrastructure in close proximity to the bridge. All
2.11pedestrian facilities must meet or exceed federal accessibility requirements as outlined in
2.12Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act, codified in United States Code, title 42,
2.13chapter 126, subchapter II, and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, codified in
2.14United States Code, title 29, section 794.
2.15(f) The commissioner shall establish criteria for determining the priority of bridge
2.16projects within each tier, and must include safety considerations as a criterion.

2.17    Sec. 2. Minnesota Statutes 2008, section 165.14, subdivision 5, is amended to read:
2.18    Subd. 5. Statewide transportation planning report. In conjunction with each
2.19update to the Minnesota statewide transportation plan, or at least every six years, the
2.20commissioner shall submit a report to the chairs and ranking minority members of the
2.21house of representatives and senate committees with jurisdiction over transportation
2.22finance. The report must include:
2.23    (1) an explanation of the criteria and decision-making processes used to prioritize
2.24bridge projects;
2.25    (2) a historical and projected analysis of the extent to which all trunk highway
2.26bridges meet bridge performance targets and comply with the accessibility requirements
2.27of Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act;
2.28    (3) a summary of bridge projects (i) completed in the previous six years or since the
2.29last update to the Minnesota statewide transportation plan, and (ii) currently in progress
2.30under the program;
2.31    (4) a summary of bridge projects scheduled in the next four fiscal years and included
2.32in the state transportation improvement program;
2.33    (5) a projection of annual needs over the next 20 years;
2.34    (6) a calculation of funding necessary to meet the completion date under subdivision
2.354, paragraph (c), compared to the total amount of bridge-related funding available; and
3.1    (7) for any tier 1 fracture-critical bridge that is repaired but not replaced, an
3.2explanation of the reasons for repair instead of replacement.