Oregon DOT does not have a formal CSS program. However, we have been incorporating many CSS principals into the development of major transportation projects for quite a while. Here are a couple of things we typically do on bigger projects:
- Public involvement: We generally have a citizens' advisory committee that helps the project team identify and work through issues including purpose and need, range of alternatives to be evaluated in the NEPA document, evaluation criteria and preferred alternatives. We hold meetings with the general public at key milestones to gather their input. We include local representatives on a policy level team. Other activities include workshops, newsletters, press releases, and focused meetings with neighborhoods, business groups, and low income or minority groups. As needed, we provide translators at public meeting.
- Agency involvement: We work through our Collaborative Environmental and Transportation Agreement on Streamlining group to get input on resource issues. That agreement includes the agencies concurring on purpose and need, range of alternatives evaluated in the NEPA document, criteria that will be used to evaluate alternatives, and the preferred alternative.
We are currently looking for effective ways to foster direct contact between the resource agencies and public so we do not serve as a conduit between the two.
Contact: James B. Cox Jr.
Interim Manager, Environmental Project Management Unit
ODOT Environmental Services
1158 Chemeketa Street NE
Salem, OR 97301
Phone (503) 986-3013
Fax (503) 986-3524
jim.b.cox@odot.state.or.us
