The good news is that you, as a taxpayer, have a say in public policy on transportation.  The bad news is that it’s sometimes hard to know how and where you can make your views known.

Our NH Department of Transportation is aware of that, and is constantly trying to improve its outreach.

One example is the recent Complete Streets page that NHDOT recently posted on the department website.

Another is the email sent to organizations, including Transport NH, asking for comments on their consultation process.  As Bill Watson, head of the Bureau of Planning and Community Assistance, put it in the email:

Within the purview of transportation, there are many benefits to open and transparent conversation about transportation needs, revenues, priorities  and related topics.  These conversations can be at a very high policy level, or at a specific project level down to the impact of a particular piece of property, neighborhood, etc.  And it is critical that as the transportation planning process moves from conceptual discussion to project design to construction and implementation, that open an transparent conversation, consultation and cooperation happens with federal, state, regional, and local officials, and the public.

NHDOT is asking for public comment through May 20th, 2016, on their Non-Metropolitan Public Consultation Process.  The formal notice can be found here, and the process itself is available here.

Again, Bill Watson at NHDOT says it best:

It is important that we reach as many people as possible so that we make sure that people have an opportunity to identify how they would like to be involved in conversations surrounding transportation.

So go have a look.  It’s a great opportunity to see how the policy pieces work together to create the transportation system we rely on every day.