ODESSA – An online presentation has been posted to TxDOT.gov to discuss the Fiscal Year 2021-2024 Rural Transportation Improvement Program (Rural TIP). To view the presentation, go to TxDOT.gov and search keywords “Virtual Public Meeting – Rural TIP Odessa District 2021-2024,” open the search result and click on VIDEO.

The presentation will include both audio and visual components. The presentation discusses the Rural TIP process and what projects are being planned over the next four years in the rural sections of the Odessa District. The presentation will include contact information for questions as well as information on how to comment on the Odessa District’s Rural TIP plan. The presentation will remain online throughout the comment period which ends at 5 p.m. Thursday, June 11, 2020.

Formal written comments on the Rural TIP are encouraged and can be sent to:

Texas Department of Transportation Odessa District

Attention: Gabriel Ramirez, P.E.

3901 E. Highway 80

Odessa, Texas, 79761

All comments must be received (or postmarked) by 5 p.m. on Thursday, June 11, 2020, to be part of the official record.

The Rural TIP is TxDOT’s four-year plan for projects in rural areas. In the Odessa District, the Rural TIP for the next four years includes projects in all 12 district counties outside the Permian Basin Metropolitan Planning Organization boundaries, which includes the cities of Odessa and Midland and surrounding urban areas. The 12-county Odessa District includes Andrews, Crane, Ector, Loving, Martin, Midland, Pecos, Reeves, Terrell, Upton, Ward and Winkler counties. The Rural TIP includes all regionally significant projects to be funded in the Odessa District during the next four years, including those eligible for federal funding.

The Rural TIP is both a mechanism used by TxDOT and the Federal Highway Administration to fund projects for the next four years, and the first step on the road to producing a Statewide Transportation Improvement Program (STIP).

The online virtual meeting is being held pursuant to Title 43, Texas Administrative Code, Section 16.102, which provides for public comments about the program. The presentation is being presented virtually in the interest of safety due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

If you have any general questions or concerns regarding the Rural TIP, please contact Gabriel Ramirez, P.E., Advance Planning Engineer, at (432) 498-4645.