Senate committee substitute makes the following changes to the 5th edition.

Part 1, Strategic Transportation Investments

Amends GS 136-189.10, providing that the definition for Statewide strategic mobility projects includes extensions of highway toll projects in existence on, or for which funds have been obligated by July 1, 2013. Amends the definition for Regional impact projects, providing that it includes highway toll routes, freight capacity, and safety improvements to rail corridors spanning two or more counties which are not included under Statewide strategic mobility projects and removes specified rail lines spanning two or more counties, and public transportation services spanning two or more counties that serve more than one city. Amends the definition for Division Needs Projects, providing that it includes freight capacity and safety improvements to rail corridors not included in the above definitions, as well as specified aspects of public transportation service improvements facilities, and equipment, federally-funded bicycle/pedestrian improvements, and federally-funded municipal road projects; removes mutlimodal terminals and stations serving passenger tourist systems.

Amends GS 136-189.11, Transportation Investment Strategy Formula, providing that toll collections from the State-maintained ferry system, collected under GS 136-82, are not subject to GS 136-189.11. Enacts new GS 136-189.11(b1), providing that Federal Surface Transportation Program-Direct Attributable funds expended on eligible projects in the Regional Impact Project category are excluded from the Regional Impact Project category. Amends the criteria used for the selection of Regional Impact Projects and Division Need Projects, deleting economic competitiveness from the lists of eligible criteria and adding accessibility and connectivity to employment centers, tourist destinations, and military installations for consideration.

Amends the criteria for selecting Division Need Projects to add accessibility and connecting to employment centers, tourist destinations or military installations. Amends the alternate criteria used in the selection of Division Need Projects, providing that only those Federal Surface Transportation Program-Direct Attributable funds expended on eligible projects in the Division Need Projects category can be considered. Also adds federal funds for municipal road projects to the list of alternate criteria. Establishes that bicycle and pedestrian improvement projects will not receive financial support from the DOT, except for federal funds administered by the DOT. Sets out the limitations on applicability for the subsection. Makes a clarifying change to the criteria for nonhighway projects, providing that criteria used for the selection of projects (was, for the selection of Statewide Strategic Mobility Projects only) must be based on at least four quantitative criteria.

Amends GS 136-189.11(f), Incentives for Local Funding and Highway Tolling, providing that for a project for which funds have been committed on or before July 1, 2015, the amount made available for other eligible highway projects will not exceed $200 million of the capital construction funding attributable to the highway toll revenues committed in the Investment Grade Traffic and Revenue Study. Further provides that any amount available for other eligible highway projects will not exceed $100 million of the capital construction funding attributable to the highway toll revenues committed in the Investment Grade Traffic and Revenue Study, in regards to a project for which funds are committed after July 1, 2015.

Amends GS 136-189.11(g), regarding reporting requirements, deleting the requirement to include distinctions between the DOT division scoring and methodologies and those of the other specified entities. Makes a clarifying change.

Part 2, Secondary Roads Changes

Amends GS 20-85(a1), deleting language regarding the crediting of funds raised by the fees for transactions of this section. Enacts new GS 20-85(a2), which provides that from the fees collected under subsection (a)(1) through (a)(9), $400,000 will be annually credited to the Reserve for Visitor Centers in the Highway Fund. Makes a conforming change.

Amends GS 136-44.2, Budget and appropriations, to make clarifying changes.

Makes a technical change to GS 136-44.2D.

Amends Section 2.6(d) of the act to make the appropriation an allocation.

Amends the title of GS 136-44.8, effective July 1, 2014, to be Submission of unpaved secondary road paving programs to the Boards of County Commissioners, (was, Submission of secondary roads unpaved roads paving program to the Boards of County Commissioners).

Part 3, State Aid to Municipalities/Powell Bill Changes

Amends GS 136-41.3, Use of funds; records and annual statement; excess accumulation of funds; contracts for maintenance, etc., of streets, establishing that the funds provided under GS 136-41.2 may be used by the specified cities and towns for the varied purposes including constructing or maintaining bikeways, greenways, or sidewalks (previously, provided that the funds must be used for bikeways found in the rights of way of public streets and highways or sidewalks along public streets and highways).  Makes organizational changes, providing introductory titles for each subsection.

Amends GS 136-41.1, Municipal use of allocated funds; election, providing that municipalities that qualify for an allocation of funds pursuant to GS 136-41.1 now have the following options:

(1) Accept all or a portion of funds (previously, only provided for accepting all of the funds) allocated to the municipality, under that section, for the repair, maintenance, construction, reconstruction, widening, or improving of the municipality's streets. 

(2) Use some or all of its allocation to match federal funds administered by the Department for bicycle and pedestrian improvement projects within the municipality's limits, or within the area of any metropolitan planning organization or rural transportation planning organization (new). 

(3) Elect to have some or all of the allocation reprogrammed for any Transportation Improvement Project currently on the approved project list within the municipality's limits or within the area of any metropolitan planning organization or rural transportation planning organization (was, rural planning organization).

Makes conforming changes.

Amends GS 136-41.1(b), establishing that the restriction set out in this subsection on the allocation amount that may be reprogrammed does not apply to any bicycle or pedestrian projects.

Provides a new Section 3.5 of the act, which requires the DOT to collect lane mile data from each municipality eligible to receive funds under this section no later than December 1, 2013. The DOT must also report to the Joint Legislative Transportation Oversight Committee no later than March 1, 2014, providing at least three options to shift the distribution formula to include lane mile data. Sets out other required components of the report.  Requires the Joint Legislative Transportation Oversight Committee and the Fiscal Research Division to include in its recommendations to the 2014 Session of the 2013 General Assembly a new distribution formula, if the Committee finds that a new formula is beneficial and practical.

Part 5, Turnpike Authority Changes

Amends GS 136-18, Powers of Department of Transportation, making organizational changes to subsection (e). Amends the definition of corridor, for the purpose of this subdivision, to include improvements necessary for the financing of subsequent improvements, additions, or extensions to the Turnpike Project. Amends subsection (f), providing that agreements entered into under this subdivision must be limited to no more than 50 years from the date of the beginning of the operations on the toll facility (previously, did not state when the 50 year time period began). Makes a clarifying change. Deletes subsection (g), as provided for in a previous edition which allowed DOT to contract with counsel or financial advisors.

Part 7, Effective Date

Deletes all of the provisions from the effective date provision in the previous edition. Establishes that except as provided herein, this act becomes effective July 1, 2013. Provides that the act is only effective if the General Assembly appropriates funds in the Current Operations and Capital Improvements Appropriations Act of 2013 to implement this act.