Heading in the right direction.

Transportation planning should reflect the community’s vision for its future. Connections 2040 is the Long Range Transportation Plan (LRTP) for the Duluth, Minnesota, and Superior, Wisconsin, area. It takes a “big picture” look at the entire multimodal system for 25 years, and presents goals, strategies and policy guidance to get us there.

In addition to setting forth the broad vision for the area-wide transportation network, it estimates the funding the region can reasonably expect to receive. The LRTP is updated every five years and may be amended as a result of changes in projected federal, state and local funding and/or substantive planning and policy shifts resulting from area plans, studies, priorities and initiatives.

(Note, this is the 2014 version of the MIC’s LRTP – see current update here)

 

Final plan approved by the MIC Policy Board

The updated LRTP is scheduled for review and final approvals at the 10/14 TAC and 10/15 MIC meetings

Public comment period closed

All input received has been incorporated into the final document.

Public Open House

Public Open House

Public Open House

Public Comments Now Open

The draft Long Range Transportation Plan is open for public comment through Sept. 30th. Please contact Andy McDonald at (218) 529-7511.

Interactive Map: 2015 – 2040 Planned Transportation Projects

Find out the impacts of planned projects on the people who live here and on the environment.

Take the Survey: What Are Your Transportation Priorities?

The funds to build and maintain our transportation system come largely from public sources (such as gas taxes, property taxes, fares and fees) and your input is essential to understanding our community’s priorities to target these limited financial resources toward meeting our transportation goals.

In this survey, we are asking you to prioritize the nine goals we have developed for the plan and also to weigh in on your top transportation priorities. It should take about 10 minutes to complete. Your answers will be completely anonymous and survey results will be incorporated into our final plan.

(Note, this is a previous version of the MIC’s LRTP – see current update here)

Connections 2040 is the 2014 update of the Long Range Transportation Plan (LRTP) for the Duluth, Minnesota, and Superior, Wisconsin, urbanized area. It presents a long-range (2015-2040) strategy to guide the effective investment of public funds for multi-modal transportation infrastructure throughout the Duluth-Superior area. The LRTP is updated every five years in accordance with federal and state requirements, and reflects local planning initiatives and incorporates public input.

Connections 2040 also provides the foundation for the annual development of the Duluth and Superior Transportation Improvement Programs (TIPs), short-range capital improvement programs that implement some of the identified highway, transit and bikeway projects, as well as for the MIC’s annual work program activities.

Topics that Connections 2040 addresses:

  • Transportation priorities, goals and objectives for the Duluth-Superior metro area
  • Census-based adjustments to population, employment and travel data
  • Update of the MIC area urban boundary and functional classification changes
  • Update the travel-demand model to identify current and future deficiencies in the road network
  • Safety, efficiency and connectivity of the multimodal transportation network
  • Technology acquisition and partnership strategy in support of performance-based planning
  • Proposed system improvements
  • Fiscally constrained projects
  • Financial analysis
  • Process for developing the 2040 LRTP

Connections 2040 - Long Range Transportation Plan for the Duluth-Superior Urbanized Area

MIC-Long-Range-Transportation-Plan-Connections-2040.pdf

This is the complete plan – see individual chapters, below.

Executive Summary & Table of Contents

LRTP-2040-Executive-Summary-Table-of-Contents.pdf

Chapter 1: Goals & Objectives

Chapter1-2040-FINAL-ALL_PAGES.pdf

Establishes the transportation goals and objectives for Duluth-Superior for the next 25 years.

Chapter 2: Planning & Policy Framework

Chapter2-2040-FINAL.pdf

Outlines the federal and state transportation policies, plans and regulations that guided the development of this plan.

Chapter 3: Trends & Projections

Chapter3-2040_FINAL.pdf

Describes the trends in area land use, demographics, economics, employment and travel demand patterns.

Chapter 4: System Performance – Movement of People and Freight

Chapter4_2040-FINAL.pdf

Assesses the degree to which this area’s transportation facilities provide access, ensure mobility, and operate safely and efficiently to move people and freight via by both motorized and nonmotorized (active) modes.

Chapter 5: Projects & Funding

Chapter5-Projects-Funding-FINAL.pdf

Lists short-, mid- and long-term transportation projects planned to be implemented by the major jurisdictions within the MIC planning area as well as projected funding sources, which together form the financial analysis for the plan.

Chapter 6: Public Participation

Chapter6-2040-FINAL.pdf

Details the process that was used to engage the public and a wide range of stakeholder groups during the development of this plan.

Appendix A: Duluth-Superior Area Travel Demand Model

App-A_ModelUpdate.pdf