ALTOONA, Pa. – Southern Alleghenies Rural Planning Organization (RPO), in cooperation with the Bedford, Fulton, Huntingdon, and Somerset County Planning Commissions, is accepting proposals from sponsors to list their projects in the 2022 Southern Alleghenies Bicycle and Pedestrian Plan’s Candidate Project Listing. Proposals for projects to be placed on the Candidate Project Listing will be accepted from March 1, 2022, through March 31, 2022. Proposals must be for projects located at least partially within one of the RPO counties of Bedford, Fulton, Huntingdon, or Somerset.

The Southern Alleghenies RPO will act as a clearing house for bicycle and pedestrian projects of significant quality and value to the region. The projects chosen for the Candidate Project Listing will be based on how the project supports the goals and objectives of the 2022 Bicycle and Pedestrian Plan. Projects in this listing have been appropriately vetted by the RPO and their status will be determined to be one of the following developmental categories:

Initial – Projects in this phase are generally very conceptual at this point. They don’t have any of the major components indicating serious planning and readiness, but they do have a demonstrated need.

Early Developmental – Projects in this phase have a clearly demonstrated need and multiple components showing there has been some planning for the project. These projects may be just beginning to formulate the financial plan. Typically, these projects will not be ready for a grant application or construction (assuming funding is available) within six months.

Advanced Developmental – Projects in this phase are well developed and show a clear and documented need. These projects show significant progress or completion of all components under the Planning & Readiness criteria. Significant planning is evident, and the project sponsors are nearing readiness for grant

This selective process will be a resource for federal, state, and local agencies (i.e. PennDOT, DCNR, DCED) looking to fund well developed and quality projects.  In the RPO’s role as a clearing house for bicycle and pedestrian projects, the aforementioned agencies and partners can be assured a project has been vetted and listed in any of the three categories for development based on demonstrated level of planning, readiness, and need.

Proposals can be submitted via the webform here: https://bike-ped-plan-candidate-project-listing-sapdcgis.hub.arcgis.com/.  The RPO’s 2022 Bicycle and Pedestrian Plan is here: https://www.sapdc.org/bicycle-and-pedestrian-plan/.

For more information, please contact Brandon Peters, SAP&DC Transportation Program Manager, at 814-949-6543 or bpeters@sapdc.org.