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CMAP convenes regional partners and peer MPOs to outline shared principles for the next federal transportation reauthorization

Transportation reauthorization is the process by which Congress renews the long-term federal law that funds and guides the nation’s surface transportation system. The current bill — the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) — expires in September 2026, creating urgency for a new package that ensures stable, predictable funding. For metropolitan planning organizations (MPOs) like the Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning (CMAP), reauthorization is critical because it sets the rules and resources that shape regional plans, prioritize projects, and support collaboration across all levels of government.

One Regional Voice 2025

A diverse coalition of regional transportation implementers, civic and advocacy organizations, and labor partners worked with CMAP to develop One Regional Voice 2025, which reflects the shared principles of northeastern Illinois’ transportation implementers and stakeholders for the federal surface transportation reauthorization. These organizations are united in support of a transportation system that works better for everyone, embodies the Safe System Approach, fosters a robust regional economy, and enhances quality of life for residents across northeastern Illinois.

Outlined below are key policy focus areas, with the document providing the region’s shared principles for each:

• Robust, durable revenues 
• Enhanced safety 
• Efficient public transportation and passenger rail 
• Maintained bridges 
• Performance-based programming 
• Multimodal freight 
• Technological innovation 
• Resilient transportation systems 

Major metropolitan areas

Additionally, CMAP convened peer metropolitan planning organizations representing some of the nation’s largest regions to identify common reauthorization principles. This group is united in support of a robust transportation reauthorization agenda, including funding levels and policies that empower regions to meet the nation’s evolving transportation needs.

Outlined below are key policy focus areas, with the document providing the group’s shared principles for each:  

• Prioritize safety 
• Preserve core highway and transit programs 
• Balance formula and competitive programs  
• Target investment to the nation’s economic engines 
• Support efforts to streamline project delivery