Travel and Transportation Management Planning Schedules and Travel and Transportation Management 5-Year Strategy
UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
BUREAU OF LAND MANAGEMENT
WASHINGTON, D.C. 20240
October 19, 2016
In Reply Refer To:
8342 (250) P
EMS TRANSMISSION 11/01/2016
Instruction Memorandum No. 2017-006
Expires: 9/30/2020
To: All State Directors
Attn: Travel and Transportation State Leads
From: Assistant Director, Resources and Planning
Subject: Travel and Transportation Management Planning Schedules and Travel and Transportation Management 5-Year Strategy DD: 12/02/2016
Program Area: Recreation and Visitor Services, Travel and Transportation Management
Purpose: This Instruction Memorandum (IM) requests state directors to update travel and transportation management (TTM) planning schedules, and provide updates to the Travel and Transportation Management 5-Year Strategy document.
Policy/Action: State TTM planning schedules are to be updated by each BLM state using a new process which utilizes a state specific Google Sheet (spreadsheet) accessed from within the newly developed Recreation and Visitor Services Division (WO-250) Travel and Transportation Management (TTMT) SharePoint Site. Please see Attachment 1, State TTM Planning Schedule Overview/ TTM Planning Schedule: Accessing, Sharing and Granting Permissions within Google Sheets for an overview of the updating process. For those states affected by Washington Office IM 2016-040, Travel and Transportation Management Planning Schedules, Project Plans to Implement Greater Sage-Grouse Resource Management Plan Amendment or Revision Decisions, please ensure past updates are considered when updating TTM project priorities in response to this IM. All TTM Planning Schedule data will be directly related with the forthcoming Travel Management Areas and Plans (TMAP) data standard.
Complete the following action items:
- State directors should update their state’s TTM Planning Schedules using the revised planning schedule spreadsheet (click on Hyperlink 1 to access WO-250 TTMT SharePoint Site: State Travel ad Transportation Planning Schedules) to reflect each state’s 5-year TTM priority projects. The TTM projects that will be completed after Fiscal Year (FY) 2021 should be tentatively identified on the TTM planning schedule with an anticipated completion year or ‘TBD’ and with a priority of -1 (default).
- States should prioritize TTM projects to be completed within the next 5 years as part of their 5-year state TTM work plan strategy. Those TTM projects should be identified in their individual State TTM Planning Schedule spreadsheet consistent with this prioritization.
- State directors should review the most recent Travel and Transportation Management (TTM) 5-Year Strategy, see Attachment 2. Submit updates to the TTM Strategy document by using the attached Travel and Transportation Management 5-Year Strategy -Comment Sheet, see Attachment 3 paying particular attention to sections of the document that reference each BLM State's TTM status, planning timelines and key issues. Note that the end year of the revised TTM 5-Year Strategy document will be FY 2021. States should provide information on the number travel management plans to be completed based on this revised end year.
- State directors should insure that all data entered in the TTM spreadsheet is consistent with all FY 2017 project submissions, in Attachment 4, see instructions entered in the Budget Project Submissions SharePoint Site.
Timeframe: Updates to state TTM planning schedules and updates to the Travel and Transportation Management 5-Year Strategy document are to be completed by December 2, 2016. Comments/updates are to be sent to Dennis Byrd via e-mail at: dbyrd@blm.gov.
Budget Impact: This planned workload was included as part of the FY 2016 base Recreation (L1220) budget.
Background: The BLM has historically used a fragmented approach to travel and transportation planning and management. Specifically, the BLM has established off-highway vehicle (OHV) area designations through land use plans, and managed its transportation infrastructure under the engineering program. In 2011 and 2012 respectively, a TTM manual section (MS-1626) and handbook (H-8342) were issued to provide detailed guidance related to TTM planning.
In 2009, the Government Accountability Office issued Report GAO-09-509, ”Federal Lands: Enhanced Planning Could Assist Agencies in Managing Increased Use of Off-Highway Vehicles“, which addressed OHV management on U.S. Forest Service, National Park Service, and BLM public lands. The report noted that the BLM lacked specific guidance on travel management plan preparation, implementation timelines, and performance measures. In 2010, the BLM States were first required to develop a TTM strategy and planning schedule to establish specific timeframes within which travel management plans are to be developed. This IM follows up by requiring that states and field offices maintain an updated TTM strategy and planning schedules.
Manual/ Handbook Sections Affected: This IM affects guidance contained in BLM Manual Section 1626 and Handbook 8342.
Coordination: This guidance was coordinated among the Washington Office, Recreation and Visitor Services Division (WO-250), and the BLM State Office Travel and Transportation Management leads.
Contact: If you have any questions regarding this policy, please contact Dennis Byrd, Outdoor Recreation Planner, by email at dbyrd@blm.gov or by telephone at 202-912-7252, or Andy Tenney, Division Chief, Recreation and Visitor Services, by email at atenney@blm.gov or by telephone at 202-912-7094.
Signed by: Authenticated by:
Stephanie Connolly Robert M. Williams
Acting, Assistant Director Division of IT Policy and Planning,WO-870
Resources and Planning
4 Attachments:
1- State TTM Planning Schedule Overview/ TTM Planning Schedule: Accessing, Sharing and Granting Permissions within Google Sheets (10 pp)
2- 2014 Travel and Transportation Management 5-Year Strategy Document Project Plans PDF (27 pp)
3- FY 2016 Travel and Transportation Management 5-Year Strategy Document – Comment Sheet (1 p)
4- Instructions for Developing and Submitting Travel and Transportation Management Project Plans to Budget Proposal Submission SharePoint (2 pp)
1 Hyperlink:
WO-250 TTMT SharePoint Site: State Travel and Transportation Planning Schedules