Category: Metropolitan Planning

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California Policy Complete Streets GHG Reduction Livable Communities Local Government Metropolitan Planning Public Transit Safe Routes to School SB 375 Sustainability

Strategic Growth Council Awards $16M in Planning Grants : Looks to Future Cap and Trade Funding

FINAL ROUND OF PROP 84 SUSTAINABLE COMMUNITIES PLANNING GRANTS AWARDED – WHAT’S NEXT?

Today the California Strategic Growth Council awarded over $16 million in its third and final round of Proposition 84 Sustainable Communities Planning Grants.  This successful program has sparked innovation in sustainability planning across California’s communities by incentivizing the integration of transportation, land use, and resource conservation.

The City of Davis, in partnership with Yolo County and UC Davis, received $591,108 for their “Downtown/University Gateway District Plan” proposal — which will bring together a vision for energy, water, and transportation conservation in a critical infill site located between the three jurisdictions.  Reviewed by a panel including a dozen state agency departments, the innovative plan was the highest ranking application in the state.  Policy in Motion is so grateful to have had the opportunity to help craft this proposal with the City, County, and University and is dedicated to ensuring California continues to fund the implementation of projects like this across the state.

Today was a significant milestone for the Strategic Growth Council — having now awarded over $66 million to 126 cities, counties, and regions in California under the Prop 84 funding program.  With the total grant requests vastly exceeding the available funding, it is clear that California communities are eager to plan and build a more sustainable future.

Since the passage of SB 375 in 2008 local governments have been actively seeking funding sources to make the implementation of regional Sustainable Communities Strategies not just a goal, but a reality.

We have a transformative opportunity under California’s cap and trade program to help communities do this — but we need to ensure that we create a program that focuses on three things:

  • INTEGRATION – the combination of different transportation demand management and multi modal infrastructure is essential for not only maximizing greenhouse gas emissions, but also for cost effective investments in our communities. A Sustainable Communities Implementation Program that focuses on real projects and programs in communities would allow for innovative and integrated transportation solutions — for some communities that might be electric car sharing, others may need a central transit station, a bike trail that links across town, or a landscaped street to encourage walking. We need to empower local governments to figure out the best combinations of these investments and incentivize combined approaches because transportation is a “system” not a “silo.”
  • LAND USE – local land use planning is the most critical and most overlooked component in reducing transportation GHG emissions.  We need to take this window of opportunity to leverage sustainable changes in local land use plans, codes, and ordinances, by offering local governments much needed transportation funding that requires outdated land use plans to get a makeover. We have a critical opportunity to think about how transportation systems link and leverage land use. This is what “integration” is all about.
  • PEOPLE – we must keep in mind the cap and trade program impacts will essentially look like a new gas tax to consumers of all incomes and should keep a nexus with putting funding back into local transportation systems that serve all people — whether they be motorists, transit riders, bicyclists, or pedestrians (all of whom use some aspect of our roads). Current proposals for allocating cap and trade do not highlight the importance of this and need to include more funding for active transportation and roadway preservation. And we also must remember sustainable communities are ultimately about creating “people-oriented development” and places where families, seniors, and students all want to live, work, learn, shop, and play.  At the end of the day we want to create communities where people want to walk their dogs under tree lined streets, bike with their kids to a school nearby, take transit to work (and get there on time), and drive through roundabouts without potholes.

Cap and trade revenues will grow into billions of dollars per year in the next few years, so this source of revenue could provide the missing piece in achieving sustainable communities throughout California if done right.

But now is the time.

A performance-based approach to reducing GHG emissions is at the heart of cap and trade – it is a market mechanism geared toward innovation beyond what can be achieved purely through regulatory measures.  We have a real opportunity to use a unique funding source to re-create communities across the state.

We can do this through new sources of funding that are allocated at a regional level where the technical and policy expertise is greatest, and through competitive grants for local communities that are based on maximizing GHG reduction through combinations of transportation investments and land use changes needed to implement SB 375.

Lauren Michele, Principal/Founder, Policy in Motion.

Lauren earned a Master’s of Science degree from the UC Davis Institute of Transportation Studies after working as a transportation planning professional at Fehr & Peers, a climate change policy analyst at the Center for Clean Air Policy in Washington D.C., and an air quality program assistant at the Sacramento Metropolitan Air Quality Management District.  At the UC Davis Urban Land Use and Transportation Center (ULTRANS) she focused on the links between California’s Senate Bill 375 and developing federal climate/energy legislation and the transportation reauthorization.  Her academic work includes teaching undergraduate courses in Transportation Policy at UC Davis and experiential learning while living and researching multi-modal transportation planning in Europe.

Lauren currently serves as Policy Director for the Transportation Coalition for Livable Communities — an organization which includes the California Alliance for Jobs, California Transit Association, National Resources Defense Council, League of California Cities, State Association of Counties, and the Metropolitan Planning Organizations and Councils of Governments throughout the state. The Coalition promotes the investment of cap and trade revenue to address both the greenhouse gas reduction goals of AB 32 and critical transportation system maintenance and operation needs that build on the framework of SB 375 and other GHG reduction strategies.

Her firm, Policy in Motion, specializes in sustainable transportation policy.  Policy in Motion offers planning practitioners, policy makers, and public agencies an understanding of how to integrate sustainability policy into transportation infrastructure and land use decisions.  Lauren Michele’s 2011 book, “Policy in Motion: Transportation Planning in California after AB 32” explores the State’s evolving policies for sustainable living through transportation planning, and identifies how outdated regulatory frameworks must be aligned with supporting paradigm shifts if California is to move forward in a truly unified vision for “People-Oriented Development” and transportation.  Lauren’s 2012 film documentary, “Policy in Motion: Growing Beautiful Communities” continues to explore how an integrated approach to transportation planning and funding based on “People-Oriented Development” (POD) can improve community quality of life while meeting California’s environmental and economic goals. Policy in Motion’s book and film are available for purchase on-line at Barnes & Noble, Amazon, and www.policyinmotion.com.

 

Categories
California Policy Complete Streets GHG Reduction Livable Communities Local Government Metropolitan Planning Modeling/Tools NewsFlash Public Health Public Transit Safe Routes to School SB 375 State Policy Sustainability Transportation Funding

Transportation Coalition for Livable Communities Cap and Trade Investment Proposal for CARB Workshops

Today the California Air Resources Board will be kicking off its first of three workshops on the development of the AB 32 Cap and Trade Investment Plan. On February 25th in Sacramento the Transportation Coalition for Livable Communities – which includes local/regional governments and transit/transportation agencies statewide – will be laying out a vision for how revenues generated from the state’s program could re-shape California’s urban and rural landscape through integrated land use and transportation investments that build on regional SB 375 and GHG reducing plans with competitive grants for local entities. This opportunity to fund beautiful communities would invest billions of dollars in both the critical transportation investments needed in existing communities, while leveraging local land use and policy changes needed to transform how transportation planning and implementation functions in California. This approach of combined land use strategies co-implemented with livable community infrastructure in the hearts of communities will yield significant long-term greenhouse gas reductions as well as numerous community benefits, such as improved public health, open space and habitat preservation, safe routes to school, and needed support for disadvantaged communities.

WE NEED YOUR SUPPORT:
-Show up for public support at the workshops tonight in Fresno from 5-8pm, Feb 25th in Sacramento from 3-6pm, or Feb 27th in LA from 4-7pm (location details below)
-Write a support letter with your organization’s logo. Click here to download a template letter to start, and email it to info@transfunding.org
-Submit your written support to CARB easily on their on-line form linked here

The Coalition’s program concept would allocate funds equitably to regional governments under statewide criteria to administer competitive grants to local entities – proposing combinations of investments, including transit service and operating costs, road and bridge maintenance, retrofits for complete streets and urban greening, and clean technology and other community infrastructure – all integrated with land use modifications to support regional plans.

The Transportation Coalition for Livable Communities has developed a series of principles included in a program concept proposal to CARB. You can download the program concept letter here. If you support this program concept please let CARB know that these core concepts should be considered for inclusion in their Investment Plan:

  1. Regional allocation of funds to ensure that every region of the state receives a fair share
  2. Favoring integration of land use strategies and transportation investments to achieve the highest GHG emission reductions.  Studies consistently show that combining transportation investments with complementary land use changes significantly increase the GHG emission reduction and co-benefits.
  3. Use a competitive process at the regional level, under criteria developed by the state, to prioritize local project proposals that co-implement transportation investments with land use changes that most cost effectively meet the goals of the program and further stimulate innovation and flexibility at the local and regional level.
  4. Improved modeling and verification systems for GHG evaluation to ensure effective results.

Members of the Transportation Coalition for Livable Communities

California Transit Association • League of California Cities  • California State Association of Counties • Self-Help Counties Coalition • California Association of Councils of Governments • Sacramento Area Council of Governments • Southern California Association of Governments • Metropolitan Transportation Commission • San Joaquin Valley Regional Policy Council • Transportation California • California Alliance for Jobs • Sacramento Metropolitan Air Quality Management District

Date Location
5 pm – 8 pm:  

Tuesday, February 19, 2013

Mariposa Mall Building – Room 1036 

2550 Mariposa Mall; Fresno

 
3 pm – 6 pm: 

Monday, February 25, 2013

 California Environmental Protection Agency,
Byron Sher Auditorium, 2nd floor
1001 I Street; Sacramento
This meeting will also be webcast.
http://www.calepa.ca.gov/broadcast/ 

 
4 pm – 7 pm: 

Wednesday, February 27, 2013

 Ronald Reagan Building – Auditorium
300 South Spring Street
Los Angeles

Materials (for all workshops):

 

 

Categories
California Policy Complete Streets Federal Policy GHG Reduction High-Speed Rail Livable Communities Metropolitan Planning Public Health Public Transit Safe Routes to School SB 375 State Policy Sustainability Transportation Funding

Transportation Funding: Past, Present, Future

Funding Beautiful Communities

The nature of transportation funding is a cycle of birth and death. Despite clear state policy goals to address the transportation sector’s 38% contribution to California’s greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions inventory, funding for needed sustainable community investments to implement such goals has seen levels of uncertainty that make progress equally uncertain. From years of local public transit cuts and underfunded local road maintenance needs to recent slashes for complete streets and Safe Routes to School in the federal transportation bill – hope still prevails with billions approved by the State for high speed rail, possibilities for redevelopment reincarnation, and the promise of new cap and trade revenue from fuels. California not only has opportunities like leveraging its investments in high speed rail with cap and trade funding for sustainable communities, but will need to act on them given the dismal federal transportation reauthorization vision for integrated transportation and land use systems.

But it’s not all dismal!

On August 10th Growing Beautiful Communities will depict how an integrated approach to transportation planning and funding can improve community quality of life while meeting California’s environmental and economic goals.

Uncertainty can breed creativity. I made a documentary on that premise. California can make history. The State can leverage the lack of federal vision to do something really innovative for transportation funding in California – the same way the lack of federal GHG reduction leadership led to state climate action plans across the country starting here.

California has the potential to capitalize on its $8 billion investment in high speed rail and do everything the federal transportation bill is missing for transformative transportation — we can achieve a vision for sustainable communities and reduced greenhouse gas emissions through the creation of an integrated transportation funding program which:

  • Draws on a new source of transportation revenues, offering multi-year financial stability to communities and regions implementing projects
  • Creates flexibility to use funds for needed transit operations and maintenance investments
  • Provides funding for road and bridge repair to improve transportation efficiency
  • Expands active transportation, complete streets and transportation enhancement infrastructure
  • Incentivizes transportation innovation from regional and local governments
  • Measures meaningful performance to tie transportation investments to GHG emission reduction, as well as other benefits like health, energy, water, cost-effectiveness, and agricultural resources.
  • Integrates intercity, rural, and local transit, roads, and active transportation infrastructure with regional land use planning and local project implementation
  • Invests in existing communities by offsetting the high cost of infill development
  • Promotes inter- and intra-jurisdictional collaboration between institutions like local/regional planning departments and school and medical campuses

We can learn from the past, capitalize on the present, and make the future a reality through innovative transportation funding.

Categories
California Policy Education/Webinars GHG Reduction High-Speed Rail Metropolitan Planning NewsFlash SB 375 Transportation Funding

Caltrans Report Released Today with California Interregional Blueprint Summit :: Joined by BT&H, HSR, CTC, CARB, MPO Leaders

With today’s release of the California Interregional Blueprint Draft Interim Report (CIB), hundreds of participants from across the state gathered to hear two of Governor Brown’s most recent appointees as well as other regional and state transportation leaders – echoing the need for innovative funding and strategies to support integrated transportation solutions.

Caltrans Director Malcolm Dougherty welcomed Acting Secretary Brian Kelly from the Business, Housing and Transportation Agency who opened the event tying the CIB to Senate Bill 375 and how Senate Bill 391 is now bringing the “regional revolution up to the state” by focusing the future on investing in a multimodal transportation system to create better communities while working toward the goals of AB 32.

The first panel discussed new tools, partnerships and integrated approaches to transportation – ranging from new investments in active transportation and transit to freight and system efficiency all working together to create an integrated transportation system. Directors from SANDAG and SCAG were asked to respond to how the state can support regional SB 375 efforts. Reinforcing the positive relationship that has been built between the state and the MPOs, the Directors noted several areas for additional support including:

  • Implementing and funding Sustainable Community Strategies
  • Streamlining project delivery
  • Creating sustainable forms of funding sources
  • Exploring public-private partnerships
  • Funding for the existing transportation system for maintenance and operations
  • Integrating school planning into transportation
  • Supporting high-speed rail with local roads, transit and land use
  • Providing a coordinated voice across state agencies
  • Standardizing simple performance measures statewide for local and regional investments

The second panel was led by Bimla Rhinehart, Executive Director of the California Transportation Commission, with a focus on the next steps for the State given the billions of dollars needed to bring the existing transportation system up to preservation alone. Brian Annis, Deputy Secretary for Business, Housing and Transportation Agency, noted that we can leverage investments in both high-speed rail and other strategies like supporting local transportation by integrating our whole system. Reinforcing the theme of integrated approaches, Tim Schott, Executive Director for the California Association of Port Authorities, recommended a blended funding system for a blended transportation system. Considering key performance measures like location efficiency/land use, social equity, health, and safety for not just motorists but bicyclists and pedestrians was also encouraged. Finally, Dan Richard, Chair of the California High Speed Rail Commission, reinforce the need to integrate high-speed rail into local and regional infrastructure while also explaining the importance of engaging the public and media in “ribbon cutting” for important maintenance and operational improvements on our existing system.

Overall the theme was we must integrate our transportation system to maximize not only greenhouse gas emissions but other important performance measures – and we must think with innovation and leadership to find and leverage new integrated funding sources.

_________________________________________

Senate Bill (SB) 391 ushered in a new era for statewide transportation planning in California. Among its many provisions, SB 391 directs Caltrans to prepare a new California Transportation Plan (CTP) by the end of 2015. This 2015 CTP will demonstrate how major metropolitan areas, rural areas, and state agencies can coordinate planning efforts to achieve critical statewide goals such as supporting greenhouse gas (GHG) reduction targets established pursuant to Assembly Bill (AB) 32 and SB 375.

The California Interregional Blueprint (CIB) is a strategic framework that links statewide transportation goals with regional transportation and land use goals to produce a unified transportation strategy. This CIB Interim Report lays the groundwork for the 2015 CTP by summarizing regional efforts with respect to transportation-related GHG reduction, and the potential influence of these regional efforts on the statewide transportation system.

 

Categories
California Policy Education/Webinars GHG Reduction High-Speed Rail Metropolitan Planning NewsFlash SB 375 State Policy

California Interregional Blueprint Summit May 23 to Host Governor Appointees and Directors: BT&H Acting Secretary Brian Kelly; HSR Chair Dan Richard; Directors of Caltrans, SCAG, SANDAG, CARB

Come see two of Governor Brown’s most recent appointees speak at the California Interregional Blueprint (CIB) Summit: Brian Kelly, Acting Secretary, Business, Housing and Transportation Agency, and Malcolm Dougherty, Director, Caltans.  If you have not registered for the Summit yet, please do so today!  Join us in-person in Sacramento, or on the Web, and help shape California’s future transportation system.

California Interregional Blueprint (CIB) Summit May 23, 2012 8:00 AM – 10:30 AM* CalPERS Auditorium, 400 P Street, Sacramento, CA

Seating is limited so register today at: http://bit.ly/CIBSummit

Caltrans is sponsoring the CIB Summit to share critical information about the long-term future of California’s transportation system and receive valuable feedback from you.  Take this opportunity to speak with representatives from State agencies, metropolitan planning organizations, regional transportation planning agencies, and the private sector.

Business Transportation and Housing Agency Acting Secretary Brian Kelly will share Governor Brown’s perspective as the Summit’s keyone speaker.

Leaders from key regional and State agencies scheduled to participate in panel discussions are:

  • Gary Gallegos, Executive Director, San Diego Association of Governments
  • Hasan Ikhrata, Executive Director, Southern California Association of Governments
  • James Goldstene, Executive Officer, California Air Resources Board
  • Sharon Scherzinger, Executive Director, El Dorado County Transportation Commission
  • Malcolm Dougherty, Director, Caltrans
  • Dan Richard, Chair, California High Speed Rail Commission
  • Tim Schott, Executive Director, California Association of Port Authorities

Complete details on the Summit and the California Interregional Blueprint process are available on the Caltrans Web Site:

http://www.dot.ca.gov/hq/tpp/californiainterregionalblueprint/summit.html

After registering, you’ll receive a confirmation email with directions to the workshop.  If you have questions, email Caroline Leary, Cambridge Systematics, at cleary@camsys.com or call her at 510-873-8700 (voice) or

711 (TTY). If you need physical accommodations or other assistance, please contact Caroline as soon as possible, but no later than two working days before the Summit.

Categories
California Policy Livable Communities Metropolitan Planning NewsFlash Sustainability Transportation Funding

SACOG: On Target for GHG Reduction with Adopted 2035 Sustainable Communities Strategies

LOCAL LEADERS APPROVE $35 BILLION REGIONAL PLAN

Metropolitan Transportation Plan/Sustainable Communities Strategy for 2035

Click here to view the MTP/SCS

The Sacramento Area Council of Governments unanimously approved the Metropolitan Transportation Plan/Sustainable Communities Strategy for 2035 (MTP/SCS) last week, after more than two years of extensive public input and collaborative technical work with local governments. The MTP/SCS guides how the region spends local, state and federal transportation funds.

“As our region adds nearly 900,000 people by 2035, we need strategic improvements for our existing roads and transit system. Our region has coalesced behind a plan that reduces the time most people will spend in congestion, fixes our roads, and increases access to transit,” said SACOG Board Chair and Rocklin Councilmember Peter Hill.

The MTP/SCS focuses on improving the safety and maintenance of streets and freeways, invests in new options for people to walk, bike or use transit, and connects the transportation planning with land use planning to ensure public dollars are used efficiently.

“This plan expands the options people have for transportation in our communities, whether it’s bike lanes or sidewalks for kids to get to school, new streetcars or light rail to get to work, or safer and better maintained roads to drive on,” said SACOG Transportation Committee and Sacramento City Councilmember Chair Steve Cohn.

“The MTP/SCS builds on the region’s Blueprint, which envisions more housing and transportation choices for our region by 2050,” said SACOG CEO Mike McKeever. “The MTP/SCS provides the infrastructure needed to support the Blueprint influenced land uses in local jurisdictions across the six-county region.” Among the key highlights from the plan:

  • Future congestion per person in the region decreases by 7 percent through 2035 (compared to a projected increase of nearly 60 percent in the MTP adopted a decade ago, in 2002)
  • Over 40 percent increase in transit services per person in 2035 as today.
  • Meets Air Resources Board target for reducing greenhouse gas emissions from passenger vehicles by 16%
  • Between 1988 and 2005, for every 1,000 new residents, 333 acres of farmland were urbanized. Between 2008 and 2035, for every 1,000 new residents, only 42 acres of farmland will be urbanized.
  • Streamlined environmental review processing at lower costs for a wide variety of projects consistent with the plan.

“This MTP/SCS accelerates opportunities for saving money and accelerating economic development for business in our region,” said SACOG 2011 Board Chair Susan Peters.

The 31-member SACOG Board of Directors is made up of city councilmembers, mayors, and county supervisors from each of the 22 cities and six counties in the region. SACOG is responsible for developing the MTP/SCS every four years in coordination with the cities, counties, transit agencies, air quality management districts, Caltrans, and other public agencies. The plan is required to conform to air quality goals for the region, contain a plan to reduce greenhouse gases from passenger vehicles, demonstrate that all proposed projects can be reasonably funded, undergo extensive public review, and complete a programmatic Environmental Impact Report.

SACOG coordinates transportation planning, funding and project delivery for Sacramento, El Dorado, Placer, Yolo, Sutter and Yuba counties and the cities within them. SACOG also engages elected officials in land use and other regional issues.

Click here to view the MTP/SCS

 

Categories
California Policy Education/Webinars GHG Reduction Livable Communities Mentorship Metropolitan Planning Sustainability

Film Trailer Released for “Policy in Motion: Growing Beautiful Communities” :: August 2012

“People-oriented development” – POD – is about creating communities with access to affordable living near quality jobs, food, schools and health services. We can use the process of POD to foster sustainable communities while at the same time meeting California’s greenhouse gas reduction goals under AB 32 and SB 375. Check out the trailer for Policy in Motion: Growing Beautiful Communities and stay tuned for the August 2012 release of the film!

**Special thanks to filmmaker Jeremy Gray, Senior at the Met Sacramento High School**


Categories
California Policy Education/Webinars GHG Reduction Metropolitan Planning SB 375

UC Davis Institute of Transportation Studies to Host Former Graduate Student Lauren Michele for Winter Seminar



 

 

 

 

Time: February 10,2012 , 1:30 pm – 3:00 pm

Location: 1065 Kemper Hall, UC Davis

Speaker:  Ms. Lauren Michele, Principal/Founder of Policy in Motion

Title: Policy in Motion: Transportation Planning in California after AB 32

Follow these steps to view a seminar remotely live:

  • On Friday at 1:30 p.m., log into this web site
  • The login window will appear. Select Enter as a Guest.
  • Enter your name and Enter Room.
  • Wait a few moments to be accepted into the meeting room. Your name will appear as a guest as long as you are logged into the seminar.

 

Abstract: While state and federal actions have been taken to set new requirements for vehicle efficiency and fuels, tackling travel behavior policies that reduce vehicle-miles-traveled and improve transportation network management is needed if California is to reduce its transportation sector’s 38 percent contribution to greenhouse gas emissions. California’s unique democracy and global economy is unparallel to any other union. The State is setting new policy directions for sustainable living through transportation planning, but outdated regulatory frameworks must be aligned with supporting paradigm shifts if California is to move forward in a truly unified vision for people-oriented development and transportation. In a time where both state and federal efforts are pointing toward sustainable planning, Lauren Michele covers five key topics that are necessary for policymakers and practitioners to understand in order to implement sustainable transportation solutions at all levels of government:

  • The Four Circles of GHG Reduction Strategies from Travel Behavior:
    categorizes the existing literature on GHG reduction ranges from land use and transportation strategies into four major themes
  • Planning Theory and Frameworks in California: analyzes how environmental review frameworks, funding structures, and the land use/ transportation planning process work at the local, regional, state, and federal levels
  • Implementing SACOG’s Blueprint and Metropolitan Transportation Plan: reveals what aspects of California government need policy reform in order to successfully implement SB 375’s ”Sustainable Communities Strategies” through an analysis of SACOG’s Blueprint process, successes, and challenges
  • Recommendations for New Policy Frameworks in California: contains suggestions for statute changes, agency actions, and framework reforms that support AB 32, SB 375, AB 857, and SB 391 objectives
  • Creating a Federal Framework for Integrated Planning: provides recommended language for evolving federal climate/energy bills and the transportation reauthorization to support GHG reduction through the planning process

Biographical Sketch: Since the passage of California’s Global Warming Solutions Act in 2006 (AB 32), Lauren Michele – Principal/Owner/Author of Policy in Motion, has worked with government agencies and varied stakeholders from the local to federal level on crafting and implementing transportation plans and regulatory frameworks which work toward community sustainability and people-oriented development. A graduate of ITS-Davis and analyst with the Institute’s Urban Land Use and Transportation Center, Ms. Michele’s background extends from working as a local transportation planner in California’s capital city to a federal climate policy analyst in Washington D.C. Her research and strategic analyses have been shared with the Federal Highway Administration; State of California Department of Transportation, Air Resources Board, Energy Commission, Strategic Growth Council, Governor’s Office of Planning and Research, Assembly and Senate; as well as regional and local transportation planning agencies developing integrated land use and transportation sustainability plans pursuant to Senate Bill 375 (Steinberg, 2008). Her recent book, ‘Policy in Motion: Transportation Planning in California after AB 32 was released on August 10th of 2011, including a foreword by Dr. Daniel Sperling. ”This book examines California’s transportation planning initiatives since AB 32, with a nuanced eye toward the State’s particular rules, laws, politics, and institutions. Lauren Michele provides insights and lessons for policymakers and practitioners-in California and elsewhere-as they strive to create more sustainable communities and transportation systems.”– Dr. Daniel Sperling; Director/Professor, Institute of Transportation Studies, UC Davis.

 

 

Categories
California Policy Livable Communities Metropolitan Planning Modeling/Tools NewsFlash SB 375 Sustainability

Policy in Motion and Fehr & Peers Submit Joint Comment Letter on Strategic Growth Council’s Strategic Plan

January 3, 2012

Chairman Ken Alex

Strategic Growth Council

1400 Tenth Street

Sacramento, CA  95814

 

Re:  Comments on the Strategic Growth Council’s Strategic Plan

Dear Chairman Alex and Members of the Council:

Policy in Motion and Fehr and Peers would like to recognize and appreciate the efforts of the strategic planning process undertaken by the Strategic Growth Council.  The draft Strategic Plan reflects a statewide shift toward planning and crafting policies which support sustainable communities in California.  As firms whose mission is to improve and grow efficient, prosperous and beautiful communities, the Principals of Policy in Motion and Fehr & Peers offer encouragement that the draft Plan support the Council’s priorities as stated in SB 732 (2008) and AB 857 (2001).

“Quality of Life” has become a key principle at federal, state, regional and local levels of government; however, efforts to define and measure “livability” are still highly variable and the need for performance based planning frameworks in conjunction with developing consistent quantification tools and modeling to capture policy impacts across the economic, environmental and equitable aspects of sustainability planning is greatly needed.  Additionally, the possible MAP-21 federal redesignation of Metropolitan Planning Organization size from 50,000 to 200,000 would greatly increase the need for resources and guidance on performance based and cost-effective infrastructure planning among California’s smaller MPOs – given the redesignation would impact 10 of California’s 18 MPOs which would no longer be subject to SB 375 (2008).  These regions would include four of the eight San Joaquin Valley MPOs, and the regions of Santa Barbara, San Luis Obispo, Monterey, Shasta, Butte and Tahoe.

In light of the limited staff resources and diversity of important issues facing the Council, Policy in Motion and Fehr & Peers would like to recommend focus the draft Strategic Plan on initiatives which are cross-cutting and supportive in sustainability objectives by leveraging recent State investments with staff and technical resources across agencies and stakeholder groups.  Please consider the following comments pertaining to the development of the Five-Year Infrastructure Plan and coordinated investment strategies:

Strategy 1.4: Promote incorporation of SB 732’s objectives into the state’s Five-Year Infrastructure Plan.

“A work group created by the Executive Director and Key Staff will. . . make recommendations on how planning priorities and sustainability objectives can be more fully integrated into the development of the Five-Year Infrastructure Plan administered by the Department of Finance. Council Members will provide leadership to encourage their agencies’ cooperation, and may request an assessment of how infrastructure investments within their agencies and departments support state planning priorities.”

  • The Council and member agency involvement in developing the Five-Year Infrastructure Plan should include a transportation element oriented toward the implementation of the short term elements of the California Transportation Plan and coordinated across member agencies to integrate water, energy, public health, and other related infrastructure.
  • In facilitating the process for the Five-Year Infrastructure Plan and long range planning objectives under SB375, the Council should provide guidance, support and capacity building for MPOs and RTPAs on tools and resources, including the California Statewide Integrated Model (CalSIM) and other consistent tools for use across regions in Regional Transportation Plan development and evaluation.

Thank you for the opportunity to comment.  We look forward to working with you as the Council works toward adoption of a final Strategic Plan.

 

Sincerely,

 

Lauren Michele

Principal/Owner

Policy in Motion

 

Gerard Walters

Principal, Chief Technical Officer

FEHR & PEERS

 

Jerry Walters is Fehr & Peers Chief Technical Officer and leader of the firm’s Cool Connections initiative on transportation strategies for sustainable climate, energy and health.  He has over thirty years experience in transportation planning and engineering, and has participated on committees responsible for defining best practices for integrated land use, transportation and climate change methods for the California Transportation Commission, Air Resources Board, Department of Housing and Community Development, Caltrans, and the American Public Transit Association.  He has also directed development of project evaluation methods and metrics for the US EPA and the Institute of Transportation Engineers.  Mr. Walters is a co-author of the 2008 book Growing Cooler – the Evidence on Urban Development and Climate Change published by the ULI. He also led development of smart growth travel analysis methods for Sacramento Regional Blueprint study, San Joaquin Valley Growth Response study, and smart growth planning for the San Diego and San Luis Obispo regions, and sustainable development plan throughout the US.

Lauren Michele is the Principal and Founder of Policy in Motion, a Woman/ Disadvantaged Business Enterprise highlighting how transportation policy impacts community sustainability and “people-oriented development” — access to affordable living near quality jobs, food, schools and health services through livability planning.  Ms. Michele’s combined knowledge as a practicing transportation planning consultant, climate policy analyst, and University of California researcher has given her a foundation to build a business and author a book connecting federal and state legislative priorities with local and regional implementation.  She has worked on issues from local transportation planning to federal climate policy. Her recent book, “Policy in Motion: Transportation Planning in California after AB 32” was released August 10, 2011.

“People-oriented development is a concept that goes beyond traditional planning concepts of promoting high density development near transit stations; rather, POD focuses on what makes people happy and how to offer existing neighborhoods job growth, community schools, places of gathering, quality travel, resource management, and housing diversity.  In a state that drives 800 million miles a day and spends ten percent of household income on cars, planning for PODs today will blossom beautiful communities tomorrow.”

– Policy in Motion: Transportation Planning in California after AB 32

 

 

 

Categories
California Policy Complete Streets GHG Reduction Metropolitan Planning SB 375 State Policy

San Diego and SB 375: Lessons from California’s First Sustainable Communities Strategy

On October 28th 2011, the San Diego Association of Governments (SANDAG) approved the first sustainable communities strategy (SCS) under Senate Bill 375.  A new report (pdf), San Diego and SB 375: Lessons from California’s First Sustainable Communities Strategy, co-authored by Eliot Rose, Autumn Bernstein, and Stuart Cohen raises several key issues for consideration in regional planning and current limitations of transportation funding structures.

SB 375 in itself is not a silver bullet for the creation of sustainable communities across California; however, as Regional Transportation Plans (RTPs) are being updated with Sustainable Communities Strategies (SCSs), long standing issues with federal and state regulatory barriers and local implementation challenges will become increasingly apparent.  Policy in Motion would like to emphasize the need to question the definition of “SB 375 Success” in terms of how the process in itself is laying the foundation for the State’s next evolution of legislation and reforms to funding structures, environmental review, and land use/transportation planning.  As in any process, success is a moving and growing target toward a greater vision, and continual progress along that journey is a necessary component requiring evaluation – meaning that no matter what a plan outlines today there needs to be a mechanism in place to monitor the impacts from the land use and transportation strategies laid out those plans, and some form of consistency in monitoring outcomes to ensure performance measurement objectives are being evaluated. State leadership providing clear guidance, expectations, resources, and communication will be integral for MPO success in the SB 375 journey.

For more information on the greater vision and challenge in fostering “people-oriented development” and sustainable communities, check out Lauren Michele’s recent book on Policy in Motion: Transportation Planning in California after AB 32