About Us: Certification Review

The Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning (CMAP) is the federally designated metropolitan planning organization (MPO) for northeastern Illinois. As the MPO, CMAP is responsible for allocating federal transportation funds and managing the transportation planning and programming process.

The MPO Policy Committee of CMAP is the MPO designated by the governor and northeastern Illinois officials as being responsible — together with the state and public transportation operators — for carrying out transportation planning activities for the metropolitan planning area.

Transportation planning processes that address major issues in the region are documented in the Unified Work Program, Transportation Improvement Program, long-range plan, public meeting minutes, staff publications, and reports from all participating agencies.

At least every four years, the MPO and the state are required to certify that the planning process meets federal requirements. The MPO Policy Committee certifies that the transportation planning process is conducted in accordance with all applicable requirements.

Based on this review and ongoing oversight by the Federal Highway Administration and the Federal Transit Administration, the transportation planning process carried out in the Chicago, Illinois, transportation management area is certified as meeting the requirements as described in Title 23, Code of Federal Regulations.

MPO organization and structure

Structure

Metropolitan planning area boundary

CMAP’s metropolitan planning area includes the counties of Cook, DuPage, Kane, Kendall, Lake, McHenry, and Will, as well as Aux Sable Township in Grundy County and Sandwich and Somonauk townships in DeKalb County.

View the metropolitan planning area boundary map, boundary endorsement, and governor’s boundary approval.

Agreements

CMAP has created and maintains cooperative agreements with other MPOs and agencies that operate in the urbanized area. Those agreements are:

• CMAP and IDOT federal performance measures intergovernmental agreement
• CMAP, IDOT, RTA, and service boards agreement
• CMAP, NIRPC, IDOT, and INDOT cooperative agreement
• CMAP, SEWRPC, IDOT, and WisDOT cooperative agreement
• Transportation/air quality planning agreement for Goose Lake Township
• CMAP and IEPA Agreement for coordination of air quality related transportation planning
• 5307/5340 designated and direct recipients
• 5310 designated recipients
• IL/IN urbanized area split of 5307/5340
• IL/WI urbanized area split of 5307/5340

Unified Work Program

The Unified Work Program (UWP) contains the planning projects CMAP and other agencies undertake each year to enhance transportation in northeastern Illinois and fulfill federal planning regulations. The UWP document includes transportation planning activities to be carried out in the region, detailing each project’s description, products, costs, and sources of funding. The UWP Committee develops a program of transportation planning projects for recommendation to the MPO Policy Committee and the CMAP Board.

Transportation Improvement Program

CMAP is responsible for managing the Transportation Improvement Program (TIP) for northeastern Illinois. The TIP is the region’s agenda of multimodal surface transportation projects. It includes all federally funded projects and regionally significant, non-federally funded projects selected for implementation in the next five years.

The FFY 2023-2028 TIP provides an overview of the transportation programming process, the relationship between the TIP and ON TO 2050, financial resources, project selection processes, air quality conformity, and procedures for amending the TIP. View the current project list on the eTIP website and find further information on the TIP, including amendments, reports, and more on the TIP programmer resources page.

TIP projects may be funded through a variety of federal, state, local, and other fund sources, including these federal programs directly managed by CMAP: Carbon Reduction Program, Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality Improvement Program, Surface Transportation Program, and Transportation Alternatives Program.

Project selection

CMAP hosts a call for regional transportation projects every two years. In the interim years, CMAP programs local Surface Transportation Program projects in collaboration with the Chicago Department of Transportation and the region’s eleven subregional Councils of Mayors.

The CMAQ, CRP, & TAP Project Selection Committee provides overall guidance for the development of the Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality Improvement Program, Carbon Reduction Program, and the locally programmed Transportation Alternatives Program, and recommends projects to the MPO Policy Committee for funding. The STP Project Selection Committee does the same for the Surface Transportation Program shared fund.

CMAP maintains a list of projects for which federal funds were obligated within the federal fiscal year.

Transportation planning

The State of Illinois created CMAP in 2005 to address development and transportation challenges in northeastern Illinois through a continuous, cooperative, and comprehensive planning process.

Long-range transportation plan

As part of the transportation planning process, MPOs create long-range transportation plans. ON TO 2050 is the latest plan to fulfill this purpose.

Travel demand model documentation

CMAP is the primary agency responsible for developing and maintaining of travel forecasting methods for northeastern Illinois. Travel demand model documentation shows the status of CMAP’s regional travel demand model.

Socioeconomic forecast

Socioeconomic forecasts are a required element in a metropolitan planning organization’s long-range transportation plan, with a horizon year that is at least 20 years out from the plan’s adoption date. They provide an understanding of forecasted population and employment trends to help shape plan recommendations, and they serve as an input to CMAP travel models for air quality conformity analyses, as well as for small-area traffic projections.

Regionally significant projects benefits report

Federal law requires MPOs to develop a list of major transportation projects every four years. The list identifies regionally significant projects that are to be implemented between now and 2050 (the horizon year for ON TO 2050). This group of regionally significant projects warrant additional discussion through the regional planning process. They also must be fiscally constrained, meaning sufficient revenues must be reasonably available in the future to implement them.

Performance measures and indicators

CMAP tracks progress and sets targets for the following transportation performance measures: highway safety, highway assets, system performance, transit safety, and transit assets. Find more information about the links between federal and regional performance management in the system performance report.

ON TO 2050 includes indicators, which serve as benchmarks for monitoring the progress of plan implementation. The ON TO 2050 update indicators appendix documents all the indicators and targets used in the plan update.

Financial plan for transportation

Metropolitan planning organizations must demonstrate fiscal constraint by determining that sufficient funding resources will be available to invest in the transportation system, as recommended in the long-range plan. CMAP assesses the anticipated expenditures and revenue sources necessary to carry out the operation, maintenance, and expansion of the region’s surface transportation system over the planning period (2023-50).

The financial plan for transportation provides detail on the methodology used in forecast. The ON TO 2050 update summary also contains the recommendations of the financial plan.

ON TO 2050 public comment

Public comment is a crucial component of the planning process, ensuring that the values and priorities of the people who live and work in the region are included. CMAP leveraged a variety of engagement and communications strategies and tactics to engage diverse stakeholders for feedback and guidance on the ON TO 2050 update. The public comment summary outlines the public comment process, themes, and responses.

Integrating freight in the transportation planning process

ON TO 2050 calls for our region to maintain its status as North America’s freight hub, meaning we must adapt to the changes while protecting quality of life and limiting public costs. CMAP completed a freight snapshot and developed the Regional strategic freight direction, which provides direction for CMAP and key partners in its freight planning work. Read more about CMAP’s freight work.

Air quality conformity

The transportation conformity provisions of the Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990 require CMAP to determine if northeastern Illinois’ transportation plan, program, and projects conform to applicable state implementation plans for the eight-hour ozone National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS), and that emissions will not negatively impact the region’s ability to meet the NAAQS.

The air quality conformity analysis makes the determination that the region’s transportation plan and program satisfy all applicable criteria and procedures in the conformity regulations. To conduct this analysis, CMAP consults with regional agencies through the Tier II Consultation process and the work of CMAP’s committees and working groups as described in the region’s public participation plan. Learn more about CMAP’s air quality conformity analysis and process.

Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality Mid-Point Performance Plan

The CMAQ Mid-Point Performance Plan summarizes the performance measure targets associated with the program and assesses progress for two-year targets. The performance measures are peak hour excessive delay, non-single-occupant-vehicle travel, and on-road mobile source emissions.

Congestion management process

The congestion management process is the term used nationally to describe an ongoing, systematic method of managing congestion that provides information about both system performance and potential alternatives for solving congestion-related problems.

CMAP’s use and continual development of a regional congestion management process document will help advance quality of life and mobility goals described in ON TO 2050.

Transportation systems management and operations

The Northeastern Illinois Regional ITS Architecture website is a roadmap for intelligent transportation systems (ITS) integration in northeastern Illinois over the next 15 years. View the ITS architecture summary report and ITS maintenance plan.

CMAP brings transportation professionals together through the Transportation Technology and Operations Coalition to discuss intelligent transportation infrastructure and funding opportunities, among other topics.

Public involvement 

CMAP is always looking for ways to engage with residents and partners to help communities prosper.

Public participation plan

CMAP’s public participation plan guides the agency’s proactive engagement of the residents and constituencies in northeastern Illinois and establishes core values for how we integrate meaningful public engagement into our planning initiatives.

Title VI and non-discrimination policy

CMAP complies with Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to ensure that no person shall be excluded from participation in, denied the benefits of, or subjected to discrimination under any program or activity provided by CMAP because of race, color, or national origin.

Read also CMAP’s equal opportunity employment statement and policies on non-discrimination, public participation, comments, and whistleblower protections, as well as our privacy statement and terms and conditions.

Americans with Disabilities Act notice

In accordance with the requirements of Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA), CMAP will not discriminate against qualified individuals with disabilities on the basis of disability in its services, programs, or activities. Read CMAP’s full ADA notice.