Community Engagement
Our public involvement processes, your rights as a citizen, and how you can get involved.
Public Participation Plan
Public involvement is one of the cornerstones of transportation planning. At the Alamo Area Metropolitan Planning Organization (AAMPO), our goal is to inform, involve, and engage with people in a two-way conversation about transportation needs, challenges, and most importantly – solutions.
The Public Participation Plan is a comprehensive document developed by AAMPO staff as a guide for engaging the public. This document includes goals, procedures, and tools for use during the development of the short- and long-range plan, as well as strategies for public and stakeholder communication throughout the continuous transportation planning process.
Federal transportation law states that an MPO will...
provide citizens, affected public agencies, representatives of public transportation employees, freight shippers, providers of freight transportation services, private providers of transportation, representatives of users of public transportation, representatives of users of pedestrian walkways and bicycle transportation facilities, representatives of the disabled, and other interested parties with a reasonable opportunity to comment on the transportation plan.
The MPO's public participation process must also adhere to the provisions of Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Americans With Disabilities Act.
Public Participation PlanPlan de Participación Pública
Read About...
The Alamo Area MPO appreciates and values your participation in the transportation planning process. AAMPO’s core values for the public participation process are:
- People should have a say in transportation decisions that affect their lives.
- The process should strive to reflect the interests and meet the process needs of participants.
- The process will actively seek out and facilitate the participation of all those potentially affected.
- The process will provide individuals with various options in how they wish to participate.
- The process will provide useful information to permit for meaningful public participation.
AAMPO's Public Participation performance standards include:
- Early, proactive, and continuous public participation efforts.
- Reasonable public access to understandable technical data and other information.
- Collaborative input on alternatives, evaluation criteria, and mitigation needs.
- Open public meetings where matters related to transportation policies, programs, and projects are being considered.
- Open access during the decision-making process.
- Commitment to seeking out and considering the needs of traditionally underserved populations.
You can help us improve our community’s quality of life by getting involved in any of the following ways:
- Organize your neighborhood and request a Walkable Community Workshop or Safe Routes to School Workshop.
- Participate in AAMPO activities such as Bike Month events.
- Attend AAMPO public meetings.
- Attend AAMPO Committee Meetings.
- Request to be placed on AAMPO’s contact list for electronic or hardcopy news and notices.
- Participate in AAMPO transportation studies or surveys.
- Write, call, e-mail, or visit us to get more information or express your opinions, desires, or concerns.
- For Facebook members, become a friend of AAMPO (click here).
Title VI and Environmental Justice
As a recipient of federal funding, AAMPO continues to take strides to inform and engage underserved communities. The Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 protects people from discrimination based on race, color, or national origin in programs receiving federal financial assistance.
In 1994, President Clinton signed Executive Order No. 12898: Federal Action to Address Environmental Justice (EJ) in Minority Populations and Low-Income Populations. This Executive Order expands on Title VI legislation and promotes nondiscrimination in federal programs that substantially affect human health and the environment. Additionally, this order provides minority and low-income communities access to public information and opportunity for public participation in related matters. Title VI serves as the legal foundation for what is referred to as environmental justice (EJ). AAMPO adheres to both Title VI and EJ principles.
AAMPO Title VI and Related Statutes Nondiscrimination Statement:
The Alamo Area Metropolitan Planning Organization (AAMPO), as a recipient of Federal funding and under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act and related statutes, ensures that no person shall on the grounds of race, religion, color, national origin, sex, age or disability be excluded from participation in, denied benefits of, or otherwise discriminated against by any AAMPO program or activity.
Limited English Proficiency (LEP)
In August 2000, Executive Order 13166 “Improving Access to Services for Persons with Limited English Proficiency” was issued directing federal agencies to:
- Publish guidance on how their recipients can provide access to LEP persons
- Improve the language accessibility of their own programs
- Break down the language barriers by implementing standards of language assistance across federal agencies and amongst all recipients of federal financial assistance
- The Executive Order covers all federal and federally assisted programs and activities.
Who must comply?
All programs and actives of entities that receive assistance from the U.S Department of Transportation (USDOT) must comply with Executive Order 13166. Therefore, AAMPO is required to take reasonable steps to ensure that Limited English Proficient (LEP) persons have meaningful access to programs, services and/or information provided and address the needs of the growing populations of individuals for whom English is not their primary language.
Who is a LEP person?
Persons who do not speak English as their primary language and have a limited ability to read, speak, write or understand English may be considered Limited English Proficient (LEP). These individuals may be entitled to language assistance with respect to a particular type of service, benefit, or encounter.
Texas Public Information Act
Texas Government Code, Chapter 552, gives you the right to access government records and an officer for public information, and the officer’s agent, may not ask why they are being requested. All government information is presumed to be available to the public. Certain exceptions may apply to the disclosure of the information.
Governmental bodies shall promptly release requested information that is not confidential by law, either constitutional, statutory, or by judicial decision, or information for which an exception to disclosure has not been sought.
Rights & Responsibilities of the Public Information Act
Learn about your rights as a requestor of public information, the responsibilities of governmental bodies, and the procedures to obtain information by clicking on the link below.
Public Information ActLey de Información Pública
To request information from AAMPO, please submit your request by one of the following methods:
- By Mail/In-Person:
-
825 South Saint Mary's Street
San Antonio, TX 78205 - By E-mail:
- aampo@alamoareampo.org
- By Phone:
- (210) 227-8651
- By Fax:
- (210) 227-9321
For additional information, please visit the Texas Open Government website.
What is Equity in Transportation?
AAMPO's Equity Tools
(Powered by ArcGIS Online)
Equity in transportation seeks fairness in mobility and accessibility to meet the needs of all community members. A central goal of transportation is to facilitate social and economic opportunities by providing equitable levels of access to affordable and reliable transportation options. Equitable access is based on the needs of the populations being served, particularly populations that are traditionally underserved.
Under Executive Order 13985 - Advancing Racial Equity and Support for Underserved Communities (2021), the term “equity” is defined as the consistent and systematic fair, just, and impartial treatment of all individuals, including individuals who belong to underserved communities that have been denied such treatment, such as Black, Latino, and Indigenous and Native American persons, Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders and other persons of color; members of religious minorities; lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ+) persons; persons with disabilities; persons who live in rural areas; and persons otherwise adversely affected by persistent poverty or inequality.
It is important to note that transportation equity does not mean equal. An equitable transportation plan considers the circumstances impacting a community’s mobility and connectivity needs, and this information is used to determine the measures needed to develop an equitable transportation network. To create an equitable transportation network, all components of Title VI, environmental justice (EJ), and nondiscrimination must be considered. AAMPO evaluates the potential impacts to underserved communities during the project selection process.
Justice40 Initiative
The Justice40 Initiative was created to confront and address decades of underinvestment in disadvantaged communities by bringing resources to communities most impacted by climate change, pollution, and environmental hazards.