About the Corpus Christi MPO

It is important that the MPO membership is made up of locally elected officials of the cities and counties within the urbanized area. Other appointed officials include the Chairperson of the Regional Transportation Authority (RTA) Board, the Chairperson of the Port of Corpus Christi Authority (PCCA) Board, and the District Engineer of the Texas Department of Transportation.
OOThe United States Department of Transportation (USDOT) relies on the MPO to ensure that highway and transit projects that use federal funds are products of a credible planning process and meet local priorities. USDOT will not approve federal funding for urban highway and transit projects unless they are on the MPO's program. Thus, the MPO's role is to develop and maintain the necessary transportation plan for the area to assure that federal funds support these locally developed plans. The Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act of 1991 (ISTEA) has greatly strengthened this responsibility by placing the MPO in a primary role for the programming of transportation projects to be carried out in any given year. The MPO has also been given the responsibility to involve the public in this process through expanded citizen participation efforts.
OOSince the MPO is made up of those agencies responsible for carrying out transportation programs in the region, the process puts all units into partnership with one another to carry out the programs. Any agency can, however, carry out its own transportation projects with its own funds independent of the MPO.

Members of the MPO

The decision-making body of the MPO is a seven-member Transportation Policy Committee comprising of:

• Mayor, Corpus Christi
• Mayor, Portland
• County Judge, Nueces County
• County Judge, San Patricio County
• Chairman, Port of Corpus Christi Authority Board
• Chairman, Corpus Christi Regional Transportation Authority Board
• District Engineer, Texas Department of Transportation

Technical support to this committee is provided by the Technical Advisory Committee consisting of one member each from the above listed political jurisdictions or agencies. Staff support to both of these committees is provided by the full-time MPO staff. Staff from the United States Department of Transportation and the Texas Department of Transportation also provides technical assistance and guidance.