Metropolitan Planning Organizations Boundaries

Polygon features that represent the political boundaries of Metropolitan Planning Organizations (MPO) that exist in Maryland and for which the Maryland Department of Transportation (MDOT) is a member. In several instances, these MPO boundaries extend beyond Maryland’s borders into neighboring states as well as the District of Columbia. MPO Boundaries’ data includes information on each boundary's name, geographic location, and the total size / extent of each area. MPO Boundaries data was intended to be used for planning purposes within governments at the National and State level. Maryland's MPO Boundaries data is a sub-set of the U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) Office of the Assistant Secretary for Research and Technology's Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS) National Transportation Atlas Database (NTAD).  

A metropolitan planning organization (MPO) is a federally-mandated and federally-funded transportation policy-making organization that is made up of representatives from local governments and governmental transportation authorities. Federal law requires the formation of an MPO for any urbanized area (UZA) with a population greater than 50,000. Federal funding for transportation projects and programs are channeled through this planning process. Congress created MPOs to ensure that existing and future expenditures of federal funds for transportation projects and programs are based on a continuing, cooperative, and comprehensive (“3‑C”) planning process. MPOs are charged with developing a 20-year long-range transportation plan (LRTP) and a short-term (usually 2-6 years) program called the transportation improvement program (TIP) for each of their respective regions. 

The seven MPOs of which Maryland jurisdictions and agencies are members are listed below. The Maryland member jurisdictions are listed under each MPO (note that some MPOs cover multi-State regions). The Maryland Department of Transportation is a member of each of the MPOs listed. Maryland's MPOs are as follows: National Capital Region Transportation Planning Board (TPB), Baltimore Regional Transportation Board (BRTB), Cumberland Area Metropolitan Planning Organization (CAMPO), Hagerstown/Eastern Panhandle Metropolitan Planning Organization (HEPMPO), Wilmington Area Planning Council (WILMAPCO), Salisbury/Wicomico Metropolitan Planning Organization (S/WMPO), and Calvert-St. Mary’s Metropolitan Planning Organization (C-SMMPO).  

Maryland's MPO Boundaries data is owned and maintained by the Transportation Secretary's Office (TSO) of the Maryland Department of Transportation (MDOT). Being a subset of the USDOT's NTAD, an annual update of Maryland's MPO Boundaries data is performed by TSO in close coordination with each MPO, the Maryland Department of Transportation State Highway Administration (MDOT SHA) and the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA). MPO Boundaries data is a strategic resource for the USDOT, FHWA, MDOT, as well as many other National, State, and local government agencies. Maryland's MPO Boundaries data is updated on an annual basis. 

For additional MPO information, contact MDOT's Office of Planning and Capital Programming (MDOTGIS@mdot.state.md.us) 

For additional data information, contact the MDOT SHA Geospatial Technologies Team (GIS@sha.state.md.us)

Organization: State of Maryland