Five Years of Experience with the ConnectOregon Multimodal Funding Program

The Oregon legislature in 2005 authorized $100 million in state lottery bond revenues to be used for investments in aviation, marine, rail, and transit improvements. The revenues were to be placed in a newly established multimodal transportation fund, which was part of what became known as the ConnectOregon program. The legislature provided another $100 million for ConnectOregon in 2007 and a third round of $100 million in 2009. For the $200 million available through the first two phases of ConnectOregon, public and private sector applicants submitted 181 requests for funding. Of these, the Oregon Transportation Commission selected 73 for funding. By February 28, 2010, 36 projects had been completed, and most of the others were under construction or in design. This paper is intended to help inform other states considering a collaborative approach to multimodal transportation funding programs. The paper (a) provides an overview of ConnectOregon legislation and administration; (b) summarizes procedures for submitting, reviewing, evaluating, and prioritizing ConnectOregon applications and for making final funding recommendations; (c) compares applications submitted and funded by region and mode; and (d) discusses participant feedback and lessons learned.