Each State has a different process for making transportation decisions. In some, the legislature annually approves the transportation capital investment program. Others have independent or quasi-independent commissions, boards, or authorities that are responsible for transportation decisions. In all cases, elected officials at the local, regional, or State level need good information to guide their decisions, and the ISTEA planning process is designed to provide this. This guide discusses how good transportation planning can be conducted by States and presents a new framework for transportation decision making as envisioned in ISTEA.

TRB’s National Cooperative Highway Research Program (NCHRP) Synthesis 419: Transportation Improvement Program Revision Process compiles and documents the different ways that metropolitan planning organizations (MPOs) approach revising a Transportation Improvement Program (TIP) once it has been adopted.