It is very important to note that project evaluation is an on-going process. FTA evaluation and rating occurs annually in support of budget recommendations presented in the Annual Report on New Starts and when projects request FTA approval to enter into preliminary engineering or final design. Consequently, as proposed New Starts projects proceed through the project development process, information concerning costs, benefits, and impacts is refined and the ratings updated to reflect new information. TEA-21 requires FTA to rate candidate New Starts projects which have completed at least alternatives analysis as either Highly Recommended , Recommended , or Not Recommended . These ratings are intended to reflect conditions at the time of FTA's evaluation.
Project evaluation is an on-going process.
It is based on an analysis of the Section 5309 New Starts Criteria and documentation submitted to FTA by local agencies. As New Starts projects proceed through project development, the estimates of costs, benefits, and impacts are refined. FTA's ratings and recommendations will be updated annually to reflect new information, changing conditions, and refined financing plans. However, a rating of recommended or highly recommended does not translate directly into a funding recommendation or commitment in any given year. Rather, FTA must also consider the amount of New Starts funding available on an annual basis and the phase of project development of candidate New Starts projects.