SF 1484

1st Engrossment - 86th Legislature (2009 - 2010) Posted on 02/09/2010 02:21am

A bill for an act
relating to transportation; requiring inclusion of bicycle and pedestrian
accommodations as part of trunk highway bridge improvement program;
amending Minnesota Statutes 2008, section 165.14, subdivisions 3, 4, 5.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:

Section 1.

Minnesota Statutes 2008, section 165.14, subdivision 3, is amended to read:

Subd. 3.

Program requirements.

(a) The commissioner shall develop an inventory
of bridges included in the program. The inventory must include all bridges on the trunk
highway system in Minnesota that are classified as fracture-critical or structurally deficient,
or constitute a priority project, as identified by the commissioner. In determining whether
a bridge is a priority project, the commissioner may consider national bridge inventory
(NBI) condition codes, bridge classification as functionally obsolete, the year in which
the bridge was built, the history of bridge maintenance and inspection report findings, the
average daily traffic count, engineering judgments with respect to the safety or condition
of the bridge, new text begin safety concerns for pedestrians, bicyclists, motorists, or other roadway users,
whether existing pedestrian facilities meet the accessibility requirements of the Americans
with Disabilities Act, new text end and any other factors specifically identified by the commissioner.

(b) For each bridge included in the inventory, the commissioner must provide the
following information: a summary of the bridge, including but not limited to, county
and department district, route number, feature crossed, the year in which the bridge was
built, average daily traffic count, load rating, bridge length and deck area, and main span
type; the condition ratings for the deck, superstructure, and substructure; identification of
whether the bridge is structurally deficient, functionally obsolete, or fracture-critical; the
sufficiency rating; new text begin pedestrian, bicyclist, and motorist crash reports for the previous ten
years; current accommodations for pedestrians, bicyclists, and transit users; identification
of whether existing pedestrian facilities are compliant with the accessibility requirements
of Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act; new text end a brief description of the work planned
for the bridge, including work type needed; an estimate of total costs related to the bridge,
which may include general and planning cost estimates; and, the year or range of years in
which the work is planned.

Sec. 2.

Minnesota Statutes 2008, section 165.14, subdivision 4, is amended to read:

Subd. 4.

Prioritization of bridge projects.

(a) The commissioner shall classify all
bridges in the program into tier 1, 2, or 3 bridges, where tier 1 is the highest tier. Unless
the commissioner identifies a reason for proceeding otherwise, before commencing bridge
projects in a lower tier, all bridge projects within a higher tier must to the extent feasible
be selected and funded in the approved state transportation improvement program, at
any stage in the project development process, solicited for bids, in contract negotiation,
under construction, or completed.

(b) The classification of each tier is as follows:

(1) tier 1 consists of any bridge in the program that (i) has an average daily traffic
count that is above 1,000 and has a sufficiency rating that is at or below 50, or (ii) is
identified by the commissioner as a priority project;

(2) tier 2 consists of any bridge that is not a tier 1 bridge, and (i) is classified as
fracture-critical, or (ii) has a sufficiency rating that is at or below 80; and

(3) tier 3 consists of any other bridge in the program that is not a tier 1 or tier 2 bridge.

(c) By June 30, 2018, all tier 1 and tier 2 bridges originally included in the program
must be under contract for repair or replacement with a new bridge that contains a
load-path-redundant design, except that a specific bridge may remain in continued service
if the reasons are documented in the report required under subdivision 5.

(d) new text begin All bridge projects funded under this section in fiscal year 2010 or later must
include bicycle and pedestrian accommodations if both sides of the bridge are located in a
city or the bridge links a pedestrian way, shared-use path, trail, or scenic bikeway.
new text end

new text begin Bicycle and pedestrian accommodations would not be required if:
new text end

new text begin (1) a comprehensive assessment demonstrates that there is an absence of need for
bicycle and pedestrian accommodations for the life of the bridge; or
new text end

new text begin (2) there is a reasonable alternative bicycle and pedestrian crossing within
one-quarter mile of the bridge project.
new text end

new text begin All bicycle and pedestrian accommodations should provide for the connection to any
existing bicycle and pedestrian infrastructure in close proximity to the bridge. All
pedestrian facilities must meet or exceed federal accessibility requirements as outlined in
Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act, codified in United States Code, title 42,
chapter 126, subchapter II, and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, codified in
United States Code, title 29, section 794.
new text end

new text begin (e) new text end The commissioner shall establish criteria for determining the priority of bridge
projects within each tier, and must include safety considerations as a criterion.

Sec. 3.

Minnesota Statutes 2008, section 165.14, subdivision 5, is amended to read:

Subd. 5.

Statewide transportation planning report.

In conjunction with each
update to the Minnesota statewide transportation plan, or at least every six years, the
commissioner shall submit a report to the chairs and ranking minority members of the
house of representatives and senate committees with jurisdiction over transportation
finance. The report must include:

(1) an explanation of the criteria and decision-making processes used to prioritize
bridge projects;

(2) a historical and projected analysis of the extent to which all trunk highway
bridges meet bridge performance targets new text begin , including safety targets for pedestrian, bicyclist,
and motorist safety and compliance with the accessibility requirements of Title II of the
Americans with Disabilities Act new text end ;

(3) a summary of bridge projects (i) completed in the previous six years or since the
last update to the Minnesota statewide transportation plan, and (ii) currently in progress
under the program;

(4) a summary of bridge projects scheduled in the next four fiscal years and included
in the state transportation improvement program;

(5) a projection of annual needs over the next 20 years;

(6) a calculation new text begin of new text end funding necessary to meet the completion date under subdivision
4, paragraph (c), compared to the total amount of bridge-related funding available; and

(7) for any tier 1 fracture-critical bridge that is repaired but not replaced, an
explanation of the reasons for repair instead of replacement.