Fairbanks Metropolitan Area Transportation System (FMATS) Information

The Fairbanks Metropolitan Area Transportation System (FMATS) is an ongoing cooperative planning effort between the State of Alaska, the Fairbanks North Star Borough (FNSB) , and the Cities of Fairbanks and North Pole.

The formation of an official Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) for the Fairbanks Area is now complete. By regulations FMATS was required to become fully operational by October 2005. This came about in May 2002 when the Department of Commerce Bureau of the Census released the Federal Register of Qualifying Urban Areas for Census 2000 that identified Fairbanks as a newly urbanized area. The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) and the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) require establishment of an MPO in designated urbanized areas. The Code of Federal Regulations (23 CFR) and the U.S. Codes (Title 23) require FMATS to meet regulations to continue receiving Federal funding.