Late in 1964 a study of transportation in the Abilene urban area was begun with respect to existing facilities, existing deficiencies, and future needs. This study was initiated as a result of the passage by Congress of the Federal-Aid Highway Act of 1962, which provided for a "continuing, comprehensive transportation planning process carried on cooperatively by States and local communities" for each urban area of more than fifty thousand population. Completion of the initial phase of study covering ten (10) basic study elements resulted in the publication of a two volume report: Abilene Urban Transportation Plan, Origin-Destination Survey, Volume 1, 1965 published in 1966; and the Abilene Urban Transportation Plan: 1965-1985 Transportation Plan, Volume 2, published in 1968.
To provide for continuity of the comprehensive, cooperative planning process for the purpose of keeping Abilene's transportation plan up to date, an agreement between the City of Abilene and the State of Texas was executed on January 23, 1969. This was superseded on March 30, 1973 by a revised agreement that included Taylor County as a party. This revised agreement provided the guidelines for the organization and functioning of the continuing phase of the Abilene Urban Transportation Study. It also assigned the primary responsibility for each of the basic study elements to the city, state or county.
The 1973 agreement established a group structure to provide overall transportation policy guidance for the planning activities. Initially, the group structure contained two committees, a Policy Advisory Committee consisting of area legislators and elected officials of local governments, and a Steering Committee consisting of other elected officials and key transportation planning staff personnel. The group structure evolved in response to changes in legislation and contractual agreements, becoming a single Abilene Urban Transportation Planning Committee with both voting and non-voting members. The group adopted the name Abilene MPO Transportation Policy Board in 1993 and continues to act as the forum for cooperative transportation planning and decision-making and the provider of overall transportation policy guidance to the MPO.
In December 1991, the Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act of 1991 (ISTEA) was signed into law. ISTEA reemphasized the role of cooperative decision making in the development, review, and approval of transportation plans and programs and introduced requirements that the Metropolitan Transportation Plan and the Transportation Improvement Programs reflect realistic expectations of available funding for projects. In 1998, the Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century (TEA-21) continued the planning provisions of ISTEA with some revisions and increased the availability of federal funding for surface transportation.
In 2005, the Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act - A Legacy for Users (SAFETEA-LU) was passed. SAFETEA-LU continued the general planning provisions of ISTEA and TEA-21 with some changes and additions. SAFETEA-LU expired on September 30, 2009 but Congress passed several time and funding extensions including the Surface Transportation Extension Act of 2012, Part II that extended the time until September 30, 2012.
The new transportation funding legislation that is known as Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century (MAP-21) was signed into law on July 6, 2012. MAP-21 is to transform the way we build, maintain, and manage our Nation’s highways. The law is based on the principles of creating jobs, simplifying programs, supporting safety, promoting innovation, strengthening systems, and establishing a performance based federal program. MAP-21 takes effect on October 1, 2012.