Transportation - Consolidated Transportation Program - Prioritization (Transportation Investment Priorities Act of 2025)

SB 198, the Transportation Investment Priorities Act of 2025, requires Maryland's Department of Transportation (MDOT) to create and use a standardized scoring system to evaluate major surface transportation projects. This system must assess projects based on predefined criteria like capacity, cost, and alignment with state goals, with scores made public before projects are included in the state's transportation plan. The law directly affects MDOT, local governments, transit agencies, and other entities requesting projects by mandating they submit projects for this new scoring process. It also updates the Maryland Transportation Commission's structure and requires new asset management practices, including a "state of good repair" program for highways and transit systems. The bill changes existing transportation planning rules to prioritize projects using this objective scoring method rather than previous criteria.