2006 Code of Virginia § 33.1-12 - General powers and duties of Board, etc.; definitions

33.1-12. General powers and duties of Board, etc.; definitions.

The Commonwealth Transportation Board shall be vested with the followingpowers and shall have the following duties:

(1) Location of routes. To locate and establish the routes to be followed bythe roads comprising systems of state highways between the points designatedin the establishment of such systems.

(2) Construction and maintenance contracts and activities related topassenger and freight rail and public transportation.

(a) To let all contracts to be administered by the Virginia Department ofTransportation or the Department of Rail and Public Transportation for theconstruction, maintenance, and improvement of the roads comprising systems ofstate highways and for all activities related to passenger and freight railand public transportation in excess of $2 million. The CommonwealthTransportation Commissioner shall have authority to let all VirginiaDepartment of Transportation-administered contracts for highway construction,maintenance, and improvements up to $2 million in value. The Director of theDepartment of Rail and Public Transportation shall have the authority to letcontracts for passenger and freight rail and public transportationimprovements up to $2 million in value. The Commonwealth TransportationCommissioner is authorized to enter into agreements with localities,authorities, and transportation districts to administer projects and to allowthose localities, authorities, and transportation districts to let contractsfor highway construction, maintenance, and improvements within theirjurisdictions. The Director of the Department of Rail and PublicTransportation is authorized to enter into agreements with localities,authorities, and transportation districts to administer projects and to allowthose localities, authorities, and transportation districts to let contractsfor passenger and freight rail and public transportation activities withintheir jurisdictions. The Commonwealth Transportation Commissioner and theDirector of the Department of Rail and Public Transportation shall report ontheir respective transportation contracting activities at least quarterly tothe Board.

(b) The Commonwealth Transportation Board may award contracts for theconstruction of transportation projects on a design-build basis. Thesecontracts may be awarded after a written determination is made by theCommonwealth Transportation Commissioner or the Director of the Department ofRail and Public Transportation, pursuant to objective criteria previouslyadopted by the Board regarding the use of design-build, that delivery of theprojects must be expedited and that it is not in the public interest tocomply with the design and construction contracting procedures normallyfollowed. Such objective criteria will include requirements forprequalification of contractors and competitive bidding processes. Thesecontracts shall be of such size and scope to encourage maximum competitionand participation by agency prequalified and otherwise qualified contractors.Such determination shall be retained for public inspection in the officialrecords of the Department of Transportation or the Department of Rail andPublic Transportation, as the case may be, and shall include a description ofthe nature and scope of the project and the reasons for the Commissioner's orDirector's determination that awarding a design-build contract will bestserve the public interest. The provisions of this section shall supersedecontrary provisions of subsection D of 2.2-4303 and 2.2-4306.

(c) For transportation construction projects valued in excess of $100million, the Commonwealth Transportation Board shall require that a financialplan be prepared. This plan shall include, but not be limited to, thefollowing: (i) a complete cost estimate for all major project elements; (ii)an implementation plan with the project schedule and cost-to-completeinformation presented for each year; (iii) identified revenues by fundingsource available each year to meet project costs; and (iv) a detailedcash-flow analysis for each year of the proposed project.

(3) Traffic regulations. To make rules and regulations, from time to time,not in conflict with the laws of the Commonwealth, for the protection of andcovering traffic on and the use of systems of state highways and to add to,amend or repeal the same.

(4) Naming highways, bridges, and interchanges. To give suitable names tostate highways, bridges, and interchanges and change the names of anyhighways, bridges, or interchanges forming a part of the systems of statehighways, except such highways, bridges, or interchanges as have been or mayhereafter be named by the General Assembly; provided that the name of livingpersons shall not be used for such purposes. The Department of Transportationshall place and maintain appropriate signs indicating the names of highways,bridges, and interchanges named by the Board or by the General Assembly. Thecosts of producing, placing, and maintaining these signs shall be paid by thecounties, cities, and towns in which they are located. No name shall be givento any state highway, bridge or interchange by the CommonwealthTransportation Board unless and until the Commonwealth Transportation Boardshall have received from the local governing body of the locality withinwhich a portion of the facility to be named is located a resolution of thatgoverning body requesting such naming.

(5) Compliance with federal acts. To comply fully with the provisions of thepresent or future federal aid acts. The Board may enter into all contracts oragreements with the United States government and may do all other thingsnecessary to carry out fully the cooperation contemplated and provided for bypresent or future acts of Congress in the area of transportation.

(6) Information and statistics. To gather and tabulate information andstatistics relating to transportation and disseminate the same throughout theCommonwealth. In addition, the Commissioner shall provide a report to theGovernor, the General Assembly, the Commonwealth Transportation Board, andthe public concerning the current status of all highway construction projectsin the Commonwealth. This report shall be posted at least four times eachfiscal year, but may be updated more often as circumstances allow. The reportshall contain, at a minimum, the following information for every project inthe Six-Year Improvement Program: (i) project description; (ii) total costestimate; (iii) funds expended to date; (iv) project timeline and completiondate; (v) statement of whether project is ahead of, on, or behind schedule;and (vi) the name of the prime contractor. Use of one or more Internetwebsites may be used to satisfy this requirement. Project specificinformation posted on the Internet shall be updated daily as information isavailable.

(7) Policies and operation of Departments. To review and approve policies andtransportation objectives of the Department of Transportation and theDepartment of Rail and Public Transportation, to assist in establishing suchpolicies and objectives, to oversee the execution thereof, and to reportthereon to the Commonwealth Transportation Commissioner and the Director ofthe Department of Rail and Public Transportation, respectively.

(8) Cooperation with other agencies and local governments.

(a) To cooperate with the federal government, the American Association ofState Highway and Transportation Officials and any other organization in thenumbering, signing and marking of highways, in the taking of measures for thepromotion of highway safety, in research activities, in the preparation ofstandard specifications, in the testing of highway materials and otherwisewith respect to transportation projects.

(b) To offer technical assistance and coordinate state resources to work withlocal governments, upon their request, in developing sound transportationcomponents for their local comprehensive plans.

(9) Transportation.

(a) To monitor and, where necessary, approve actions taken by the Departmentof Rail and Public Transportation pursuant to Chapter 10.1 ( 33.1-391.1 etseq.) of this title in order to ensure the efficient and economicaldevelopment of public transportation, the enhancement of rail transportation,and the coordination of such rail and public transportation plans withhighway programs.

(b) To coordinate the planning for financing of transportation needs,including needs for highways, railways, seaports, airports, and publictransportation and to set aside funds as provided in 33.1-23.03:1. Toallocate funds for these needs pursuant to 33.1-23.1 and 58.1-638, theBoard shall adopt a Six-Year Improvement Program of anticipated projects andprograms by July 1 of each year. This program shall be based on the mostrecent official Transportation Trust Fund revenue forecast and shall beconsistent with a debt management policy adopted by the Board in consultationwith the Debt Capacity Advisory Committee and the Department of the Treasury.

(c) To recommend to the General Assembly for their consideration at the nextsession of the General Assembly, objective criteria to be used by the Boardin selecting those transportation projects to be advanced from thefeasibility to the construction stage. If such criteria are enacted into law,such objectives shall apply to the interstate, primary, and urban systems ofhighways.

(d) To enter into contracts with local districts, commissions, agencies, orother entities created for transportation purposes.

(10) Contracts with other states. To enter into all contracts with otherstates necessary for the proper coordination of the location, construction,maintenance, improvement, and operation of transportation systems, includingthe systems of state highways with the highways of such other states and,where necessary, to seek the approval of such contracts by the Congress ofthe United States.

(11) Use of funds. To administer, distribute, and allocate funds in theTransportation Trust Fund as provided by law. The Commonwealth TransportationBoard shall ensure that the total funds allocated to any highway constructionproject are equal to total expenditures within 12 months following completionof the project. However, this requirement shall not apply to debt serviceapportionments pursuant to 33.1-23.3 or 33.1-23.4.

(12) Financial and investment advisors. With the advice of the Secretary ofFinance and the State Treasurer, to engage a financial advisor and investmentadvisor who may be anyone within or without the government of theCommonwealth, to assist in planning and making decisions concerning theinvestment of funds and the use of bonds for transportation purposes. Thework of these advisors shall be coordinated with the Secretary of Finance andthe State Treasurer.

(13) The powers of the Virginia Aviation Board set out in Chapter 1 ( 5.1-1et seq.) of Title 5.1 and the Virginia Port Authority set out in Chapter 10( 62.1-128 et seq.) of Title 62.1 are in no way diminished by the provisionsof this title.

(14) To enter into payment agreements with the Treasury Board related topayments on bonds issued by the Commonwealth Transportation Board.

(15) Outdoor theaters. By regulation:

(a) To prevent the erection of moving picture screens of outdoor theaters insuch a manner as to be ordinarily visible from any highway;

(b) To require that a sufficient space is left between any highway and theentrance to any outdoor theater to prevent congestion on the highway; and

(c) To require that outdoor theater entrances and exits are adequatelylighted and marked.

The term "public transportation" or "mass transit" as used in this titlemeans passenger transportation by rubber-tired, rail, or other surfaceconveyance which provides shared ride services open to the general public ona regular and continuing basis. The term does not include school buses;charter or sight-seeing service; vehicular ferry service that serves as alink in the highway network; or human service agency or otherclient-restricted transportation.

(16) Establishment of highway user fees for the systems of state highways.When the traffic-carrying capacity of any system of state highways or aportion thereof is increased by construction or improvement, the CommonwealthTransportation Board may enter into agreements with localities, authorities,and transportation districts to establish highway user fees for such systemof state highways or portion thereof that the localities, authorities, andtransportation districts maintain.

(Code 1950, 33-12; 1956, c. 92; 1964, c. 265; 1970, c. 322; 1974, c. 462;1977, c. 150; 1978, c. 650; 1986, Sp. Sess., c. 13; 1988, cc. 844, 903; 1989,c. 727; 1992, c. 167; 1995, c. 94; 2001, c. 349; 2003, cc. 281, 533, 560;2004, c. 110; 2005, cc. 839, 919; 2006, cc. 197, 417, 833, 924.)