Estimated Time Required to Complete the NEPA Process

Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) projects for which FHWA signed a Record of Decision (ROD) in each of the following fiscal years (FY) (October 1-September 30) - FY99, FY00, FY01, FY02, FY03, FY04, FY05, FY06, FY07, FY08, FY09 and FY10 were used to provide the following baseline information. The time reported is the time period from the signing of the Notice of Intent (NOI) to the signing of the ROD.

For the 29 projects in FY99, the median amount of time from the NOI to the ROD is 79 months.

For the 35 projects in FY00, the median amount of time from the NOI to the ROD is 60 months.

For the 31 projects in FY01, the median amount of time from the NOI to the ROD is 54 months.

For the 43 projects in FY02, the median amount of time from the NOI to the ROD is 72 months.

For the 41 projects in FY03, the median amount of time from the NOI to the ROD is 66 months.

For the 35 projects in FY04, the median amount of time from the NOI to the ROD is 55 months.

For the 40 projects in FY05, the median amount of time from the NOI to the ROD is 60 months.

For the 37 projects in FY06, the median amount of time from the NOI to the ROD is 60 months.

For the 30 projects in FY07, the median amount of time from the NOI to the ROD is 71 months.

For the 34 projects in FY08, the median amount of time from the NOI to the ROD is 60 months.

For the 33 projects in FY09, the median amount of time from the NOI to the ROD is 84 months.

For the 31 projects in FY10, the median amount of time from the NOI to the ROD is 71 months.

For the 23 projects in FY11, the median amount of time from the NOI to the ROD is 79 months.

After the 2011 reporting year on our website, FHWA updated its approach to tracking median times so that the calculations better represent the effects of the expediting project delivery provisions established by SAFETEA-LU and MAP-21.

• Specifically, the calculations only consider projects with Notices of Intent issued after SAFETEA-LU enactment (October 1, 2005 and forward). This change in direction was due to improved data collection procedures implemented after SAFETEA-LU was enacted.
• The median EIS completion timeframe is calculated by using the approval times of projects initiated after October 1, 2005 and completed by the time the calculation is made.

Additionally, calculation assumptions are modified with the implementation of the NEPA Assignment program (23 US Code § 326). FHWA projects assigned to the State Departments of Transportation after execution of the NEPA Assignment Program MOU are not included in the calculation.

The table below contains median EIS completion times for post SAFETEA-LU projects completed by Fiscal Year.