Freeway planning in California is shifting gears. If the past was adding lanes to reduce congestion, the future is about creating multimodal mobility corridors. At least that is the thinking as the Contra Costa Transportation Authority (CCTA) seeks to improve mobility in their I-680 Corridor, which includes closing a key gap in the region’s express …
Who should be accountable when it appears a Sustainable Community Strategy (SCS) will not achieve the target set by the California Air Resources Board (CARB)? Most believe the answer is obvious: It should be the Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) that adopted the SCS. But we think differently. Our answer is: “it depends.” Here’s why. Although MPOs …
There are probably 285 things we could say about the AB 285 report. Some positive, others critical. But that would be a really boring read, so here are our initial five thoughts: Quick Background: What Is an AB 285 Report? The AB 285 Report (technically, the Transporation Assessment Report) is a review of the CTP …
We are guessing not many of you read the latest version of the Mobile Source Strategy. We read it because it begins to show how the California Air Resources Board (ARB) will approach reducing vehicle miles traveled (VMT) in the Scoping Plan and how ARB may set greenhouse gas (GHG) emission targets under Senate Bill …
One hundred years ago, Southern California had the largest electric streetcar system in the world. Red and yellow streetcars connected Southern California, including Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino, and Los Angeles counties. Over the years, however, competition from automobiles and freeways led to their decline. By the 1950s, nearly all the streetcars were gone. Now, the …
Over the past two years, the Sacramento Area Council of Governments (SACOG) has been pilot testing a powerful new data platform in a partnership with Caltrans and the California Air Resources Board. They call it the Big Data for Transportation Planning pilot project. What it lacks in a catchy name, its gains in providing a …
June 3 Update: The Legislative Budget Package recommends a $250 million augmentation for this program above the $500 million in the Governor’s May Revise. As we note below, there is more than enough eligible projects, and MPOs have a history of funding and programming projects in a timely way. The constitutional deadline for the Legislature to pass …
The draft California Transportation Plan (CTP2050) creates a resilient vision for the state’s transportation network. One that is modally diverse, equitable, less reliant on the automobile, and better for the climate. What’s not to like? California needs such a vision to forge new low carbon programs that improve safety, transit, health, equity, and the economy. But …
One of the highlights of the joint meeting of the California Air Resources Board and the California Transportation Commission was the joint presentation by the eight valley metropolitan planning organizations (MPOs). Their presentations highlight several programs throughout the region that were bearing fruit in terms of community building and reducing emissions. The directors were expertly …
