Meeting Notices & News

The Midland Area Transportation Study is a Metropolitan Planning Organization, or MPO. An MPO is a multi-agency committee, with staff, responsible for planning federally funded transportation projects within a "Metropolitan Planning Area." In the case of MATS, this area includes all of Midland County, the City of Auburn and Williams Charter Township in Bay County, and Tittabawassee Township in Saginaw County. Transportation planning must be a continuous, cooperative, and comprehensive process (the 3C’s) designed to involve all users of the system, such as businesses, community groups, environmental organizations, the traveling public, freight operators, and the general public, through a proactive public participation process. Below you can read much more about who we are, what we do, and explore many of our work products, documents, and data.  

A Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) such as MATS is a regional organization responsible for transportation planning in urban areas. Its primary function is to ensure the coordinated and efficient use of federal and state transportation funds, and to create a regional transportation plan (Towards 2045) that addresses the transportation needs of the metropolitan area. The MPO develops long-range transportation plans and programs, allocates transportation funding, and provides technical assistance to local jurisdictions within the metropolitan area. It also works to ensure that transportation plans are consistent with federal and state environmental and land use policies. The MPO serves as a forum for local elected officials and transportation agencies to collaborate on transportation planning and decision-making in the metropolitan area. Through the designation of the Midland Urbanized Area, and the creation of a Metropolitan Planning Organization in MATS, participating governments in the region have satisfied Federal requirements and taken a significant step towards greater resources and a regional view of transportation improvements.