Commissioner Webb has served on the RTC since 2011, the same year he was elected to his first term representing Precinct 4. Commissioner Webb will steer the RTC through the 88th Texas Legislature, which begins in January. He is only the second government official from Collin County to chair the RTC since its inception in 1974. Longtime County Commissioner Jack Hatchell presided over the council in 2004-2005.

The RTC includes local elected or appointed officials from the Dallas-Fort Worth area and representatives from the area’s transportation providers. As the transportation policymaking body for the 12-county Dallas-Fort Worth area, the RTC oversees transportation planning for the fourth-largest metropolitan area in the country, which has a current population of approximately 8 million people.

The RTC guides the development of roadway, rail and bicycle-pedestrian plans and programs; allocates transportation funds; and recommends projects to the Texas Transportation Commission for other programs. The policymaking body also ensures transportation services are coordinated throughout the region and the metropolitan area complies with federal air quality standards.

One of the RTC’s key functions is the development of the Metropolitan Transportation Plan, a blueprint for the transportation system over a period of 20-25 years. An update to the current plan, Mobility 2045, was approved by the RTC last week and awaits federal air-quality standards approval before final adoption.

The RTC is part of the North Central Texas Council of Governments and serves as the Metropolitan Planning Organization for regional transportation planning in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, which includes Collin, Dallas, Denton, Ellis, Hood, Hunt, Johnson, Kaufman, Parker, Rockwall, Tarrant and Wise counties.