87R11615 MP-F
 
  By: Morales Shaw H.B. No. 4515
 
 
 
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
 
AN ACT
  relating to design considerations of transportation projects by the
  Texas Department of Transportation.
         BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
         SECTION 1.  Section 201.615, Transportation Code, is amended
  by amending Subsection (a) and adding Subsection (d) to read as
  follows:
         (a)  The department shall consider the following factors
  when developing transportation projects that involve the
  construction, reconstruction, rehabilitation, or resurfacing of a
  highway, other than a maintenance resurfacing project:
               (1)  the extent to which the project promotes safety;
               (2)  the durability of the project;
               (3)  the economy of maintenance of the project;
               (4)  the impact of the project on:
                     (A)  the natural and artificial environment;
                     (B)  the scenic and aesthetic character of the
  area in which the project is located;
                     (C)  preservation efforts; and
                     (D)  each affected local community and its
  economy;
               (5)  the access for other modes of transportation,
  including those that promote physically active communities; [and]
               (6)  except as provided by Subsection (c), the
  aesthetic character of the project, including input from each
  affected local community;
               (7)  except as provided by Subsection (d), an
  alternative design for the project that has been approved by a vote
  of the governing body of a municipality that represents an affected
  local community; and
               (8)  the negative impacts to an affected local
  community from previous transportation projects.
         (d)  Subsection (a)(7) does not apply to a transportation
  project if the department finds that an alternative design for a
  transportation project approved by the governing body of a
  municipality is frivolous, unreasonable, or intended to delay a
  transportation project.
         SECTION 2.  This Act takes effect September 1, 2021.