• May 1st, 2026
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Southwestern Pennsylvania Commission is seeking feedback on updates to the 10-county region's Long Range Transportation Plan & Comprehensive Economic Development Strategy—which directs billions of dollars of federal investment—until May 10.

Southwestern Pennsylvania Commission (SPC) is updating the Built to Thrive: Long Range Transportation Plan and Comprehensive Economic Development Strategy which sets a course for the vision, goals, and strategy for transportation and economic development in the ten-county region, and the commission is seeking your input on the significant changes that have the potential to shape the future of the southwestern Pennsylvania region.

Please take a moment to share what you think about the major "change factors" that could impact southwestern Pennsylvania by participating in their survey here. Your responses will help develop the next regional plan. Survey responses are open until May 10, 2026.

Provide your input to SPC here.

SPC defines "Change Factors" as the significant trends or disruptions that are occurring now, or are foreseen to occur, with the potential to have positive or negative impacts on southwestern Pennsylvania now and in the future. The commission has identified factors that may have effects on transportation and development in five broad categories:

• Socioeconomics
• Land Use/Development
• Funding
• Transportation
• Technology

Questions that SPC is seeking your input for includes ranking the urgency of four factors each across the five broad categories noted above, and then asks: When you think about the future of southwestern Pennsylvania in 2055, are there additional "Change Factors" that SPC should consider? And what specific strategies do you recommend SPC consider when addressing the broad "Change Factors" already identified?

Below is a summary of just a few of the factors that the Long-Range Plan feedback survey addresses:

• Population/job trends
• How a declining regional population continues to impact workforce availability, economic development, and tax base; and how Southwestern Pennsylvania could potentially face a shortage of skilled workers due the combined effects of an aging population and reportedly 50% of the region's 40,000 annual college graduates not staying in the region
• Access to public transit
• Specifically citing how a well-connected, reliable network of public transportation services supports connections to employment centers, travel times, air quality, and access to affordable transportation options
• Advancement of micromobility options
• e.g., Bicycles, e-bikes, scooters, skateboards, adaptive vehicles which have the potential to lower emissions and provide more affordable mobility options
• Aging infrastructure
• Which—from energy, communications, water, and sewer systems to transportation infrastructure—could, if neglected, affect safety for the traveling public, freight-related commerce, accessibility to employment centers, travel times, and the region's ability to attract/retain people and businesses
• Autonomous vehicles
• Understanding how self-driving vehicle technology could influence safety, infrastructure investments, traffic, land use, and the regional workforce
• Changing land use patterns
• And the impacts that changing demographics and fragmented use policies may have on development patterns and service provisioning in existing communities across the region
• Environmental resiliency
• Specifically how changes in our regional climate could result in increased precipitation, landslides, flooding, and concerns about water quality
• Data centers, energy, digital infrastructure, and artificial intelligence
• Critical planning for digital connectivity to promote economic competitiveness, support the workforce, strengthen public and healthcare services, and advance regional equity; and understanding the impacts of data centers, electric vehicles, broadband, and artificial intelligence on the capacity/stability of the power grid, as well as how AI may enhance efficiency, affect jobs, and transform local culture
• Private sector involvement and local investment
• Rethinking the role of private sector involvement in funding and financing public infrastructure; and exploring how additional local government could help to fill transportation service gaps or support increasing local infrastructure needs
• State competition for tax base
• Citing how policies in neighboring states considered to be "more developer-friendly" may be negatively impacting southwestern PA's tax base and ability to attract new industry

Source: Southwestern Pennsylvania Commission