The seven county Central Florida Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) Alliance has accepted the invitation placed before it by myregion.org of becoming the regional transportation organization to plan and advocate current and future regional transportation across all five modes of transportation, including road, rail, water, air and space for Brevard, Lake, Orange, Osceola, Seminole, Polk and Volusia Counties.

The Alliance also formed a committee of its members to work with the East Central Florida Regional Planning Council and the Central Florida Regional Planning Council to develop a mechanism for the integration of transportation and land use issues. Establishing such a regional transportation organization and integrating transportation and growth issues are two of the ten “regional resolves” of the myregion.org initiative. These key resolves will allow the region to prepare for growth in a smart and sustainable fashion, which is one of the six priorities of myregion.org for the seven-county area.
Since its inception in January 2001, the Central Florida MPO Alliance has been a forum for addressing transportation challenges on a regional basis in the same seven-county area. An outgrowth of the Orlando-Volusia MPO Alliance, which was instrumental in accelerating construction funding for the St. Johns River Bridge, the body is comprised of three Board members each from the Brevard MPO, the new Lake/Sumter MPO, METROPLAN ORLANDO, the Polk County Transportation Planning Organization (TPO) and the Volusia County MPO.

Currently chaired by Lake County Commissioner Robert Pool, the Alliance has collaborated on a yearly slate of Legislative priorities, joined forces to maintain needed state transportation funding and developed a seven-county long range transportation plan, among other initiatives. Volusia County Council Member Pat Northey serves as Vice-Chair and Polk County Commissioner Roy Tyler is Secretary-Treasurer. The seven-county region comprises over three million people.

myregion.org is the wide-ranging effort of public, private and civic leaders who have worked together over the last three years to build a regional agenda in the seven counties that comprise Central Florida. With this framework of information in place, implementation of the recommended strategies to ensure the region’s success in the world marketplace has begun.

”The Central Florida MPO Alliance serves as a model of regional collaboration,” stated Malcolm McLouth, Executive Director of the Canaveral Port Authority and Co-Chair of the myregion.org Smart Quality Growth task force in extending this challenging offer to the Alliance. “This organization, working with the Regional Planning Councils, can provide the leadership necessary to integrate regional solutions for land use and transportation.” For a list of members and more information on the Central Florida MPO Alliance, visit http://www.metroplanorlando.com/cfmpoa/index.htm.

For more information on myregion.org, visit www.myregion.org.