GET TO KNOW THE STRATEGIC TRANSPORTATION PROJECT PRIORITIZATION PROCESS (AKA: SPOT 8.0)
Strategic Prioritization Office of Transportation (SPOT)
The Strategic Prioritization Process is a data-driven, transparent method for prioritizing transportation projects and is used to develop the State Transportation Improvement Program/ Metropolitan Transportation Improvement Program (STIP/MTIP), which identify the projects that will be funded during a 10-year period. Prioritization scores all roadway, public transportation, bicycle & pedestrian, rail, ferry, and aviation projects based upon approved criteria.
The Prioritization Process (aka SPOT) is the process that determines the majority of capital improvement projects funded through NCDOT and NCDOT’s allotment of federal funds. The process is governed by the Strategic Transportation Investments (STI) Law of 2012 that provides the framework for a more data-driven and transparent process that also utilizes local input from NCDOT Divisions, MPOs, and RPOs. In relation to other aspects of transportation planning, the prioritization process serves as the bridge to determine what long-range needs are funded in the TIP/STIP for implementation.
P 8.0 refers to the eighth iteration of the prioritization process in North Carolina and will be the process that determines what new projects are funded in the 2028- 2037 TIP/STIP.
What’s Changed Between P 7.0 and P 8.0?
There are a few modifications to the scoring methodology and number of submittals for MPOs, RPOs, and NCDOT. The process is is still similar to P 7.0, with a few modifications.
- Number of submittals has been reduced from 26 to 18 for each mode
- Employment Points of Interest for Bike/Pedestrian threshold changed from 50 employees to 5 employees
- Modernization scoring methodology changing significantly
- Modernization scoring criteria is now the default for Road Diets instead of mobility criteria
- Changes to ferry scoring
SPOT 8.0 Schedule
*Schedule subject to change*
| DATE | EVENT |
| August 2025 | Local Government Discussion on Potential Submittals |
| September 2025 | Draft Submittal List (Board Action Required) |
| September – October 2025 | Public Comment on Draft Submittal List |
| October 2025 | Final Submittal List (Board Action Required) |
| October 2025 – April 2026 | Data Review |
| May 2026 | Local Input Point Methodology Adoption (Board Action Required) |
| May 2026 | Statewide Mobility Projects Programmed |
| June – August 2026 | Draft Local Input Assignment for Regional Impact Projects |
| June – August 2026 | Public Comment on Draft Local Input Point Assignment for Regional Impact Projects |
| August 2026 | Final Local Input Point Assignment for Regional Impact Projects |
| September 2026 | Regional Impact Projects Programmed |
| October 2026 | Draft Local Input Point Assignment for Division Needs Projects |
| October – December 2026 | Public Comment on Draft Local Input Point Assignment for Division Needs Projects |
| December 2026 | Final Local Input Point Assignment for Division Needs Projects |
| January – February 2027 | Division Needs Projects Programmed |
| Winter/Spring 2027 | Draft 2028-2037 STIP Released at NC Board of Transportation Meeting |
| Summer 2027 | Final 2028-2037 TIP/STIP adopted by the MPO Board and NC Board of Transportation |
Click Here for a Printable Schedule
SPOT 8.0 Project Submittals
Check back in Fall 2025 for a county by county list of project submittals and carryover projects
For more information on NCDOT’s SPOT Process click here
For more information regarding the development of the 2026 – 2035 STIP click here