Transportation Planning
TRANSDEF Comments on SCS
05/15/13
TRANSDEF filed comments
on the Bay Area’s Draft Sustainable Communities
Strategy today. By a fascinating coincidence, U.S.
PIRG released its study today, called
A New
Direction,
which is directly relevant to how to approach a
regional transportation plan. This study points out
the transportation planning consequences of the
emerging pattern of millennials driving less. These
documents are available here.
RTP Submission by TAM
10/27/11
TRANSDEF’s Comments to the
Transportation Authority of Marin
Regional Transportation Plan Discussion, 10-27-11
You have the authority to set a
very new direction for transportation in this county.
But you would never know it by reading the staff
report. Judging by the report, this agenda item
appears to be just another routine item.
The whole point of this agenda item last month had
been to ask you what weight to give to each of the
RTP candidate priority criteria. But that focus has
been buried. It isn't at all clear what you are
expected to do with this item. If you had been
properly briefed by staff, you would recognize this
item as the ultimate transportation policy setting
discussion.
In my view, this is yet another in a long history of
presentations shaped to maintain the status quo.
TAM's predecessor agency had an ugly practice of
keeping decision makers in the dark, so as to have
staff positions
rubber-stamped.
Joint Policy Committee Blinks
05/20/11
The Joint Policy
Committee (JPC) is comprised of the four regional
agencies: the Metropolitan Transportation Commission
(MTC), the Bay Area Air Quality Management District
BAAQMD, the Bay Conservation and Development
Commission (BCDC) and the Association of Bay Area
Governments (ABAG). With SB 849, it was tasked by the
Legislature in 2004 to:
“coordinate the development and drafting of major planning documents prepared by ABAG, MTC, and the Bay Area Air Quality Management District, including reviewing and commenting on major interim work products and the final draft comments prior to action by ABAG, MTC, and the Bay Area Air Quality Management District.”
In its last three meetings, the JPC has walked away from the responsibility to coordinate the development of the Regional Transportation Plan (RTP), with its associated Sustainable Communities Strategy (SCS), and has decided to focus instead on regional resilience and economic development. While these two subject areas certainly need the attention of the JPC, it appears that this new focus is the result of MTC not wanting the JPC involved in the RTP. Whereas the JPC was created to foster interagency cooperation, this recent move seems to be a classic turf fight--a curious one in which no one is willing to talk about it.
Given this silence and denial, TRANSDEF’s President David Schonbrunn stepped in and spoke about MTC’s decision on committed projects (See Massive Counter-Attack, next blog entry), calling upon the JPC to assert the interests of the region, which were abandoned by MTC, which would rather play politics with transportation dollars. He was gaveled down at precisely 3 minutes by JPC Chair Tom Bates, cutting off the last paragraph of his prepared remarks. See Read More for the complete comments. Read More...
“coordinate the development and drafting of major planning documents prepared by ABAG, MTC, and the Bay Area Air Quality Management District, including reviewing and commenting on major interim work products and the final draft comments prior to action by ABAG, MTC, and the Bay Area Air Quality Management District.”
In its last three meetings, the JPC has walked away from the responsibility to coordinate the development of the Regional Transportation Plan (RTP), with its associated Sustainable Communities Strategy (SCS), and has decided to focus instead on regional resilience and economic development. While these two subject areas certainly need the attention of the JPC, it appears that this new focus is the result of MTC not wanting the JPC involved in the RTP. Whereas the JPC was created to foster interagency cooperation, this recent move seems to be a classic turf fight--a curious one in which no one is willing to talk about it.
Given this silence and denial, TRANSDEF’s President David Schonbrunn stepped in and spoke about MTC’s decision on committed projects (See Massive Counter-Attack, next blog entry), calling upon the JPC to assert the interests of the region, which were abandoned by MTC, which would rather play politics with transportation dollars. He was gaveled down at precisely 3 minutes by JPC Chair Tom Bates, cutting off the last paragraph of his prepared remarks. See Read More for the complete comments. Read More...
Massive Counter-Attack Ends Brief Spring at MTC
04/27/11
In a blow to the very
heart of the transportation planning process, the
Metropolitan Transportation Commission voted today to
preserve the longstanding dominance of local politics
in the allocation of funds for transportation
projects in the Bay Area. The shortage of funds due
to the economic crisis had led MTC staff to propose a
revision to the Commission’s Committed Projects
Policy, so as to enable the MTC’s Regional
Transportation Plan to be more effective. The policy
essentially cemented in past project approvals, so
that those decisions would never be reconsidered.
Because MTC’s RTP process has been to staple together
the wish lists of the various counties of the region,
this has meant that project selection was primarily
occurring at the local or county level.
The problem with this is that local solutions do not work when aggregated together at the regional scale. Local transportation plans assume that their residents will travel largely by automobile. However, when these residents leave their respective counties, it has not been possible to furnish adequate regional infrastructure. The extremely high cost of widening existing highways, along with the lack of physical space to do so without even more expensive condemnation of existing residences and businesses, has resulted in massive congestion throughout the region. Read More...
The problem with this is that local solutions do not work when aggregated together at the regional scale. Local transportation plans assume that their residents will travel largely by automobile. However, when these residents leave their respective counties, it has not been possible to furnish adequate regional infrastructure. The extremely high cost of widening existing highways, along with the lack of physical space to do so without even more expensive condemnation of existing residences and businesses, has resulted in massive congestion throughout the region. Read More...
Clean Air Plan Adopted
09/15/10
The Bay Area Air
Quality Management District (BAAQMD) adopted its 2010
Clean Air Plan for the Bay Area. The plan is the
first in the nation to offer a comprehensive approach
to reducing all significant air pollutants, instead
of treating them separately, as has been standard
practice. TRANSDEF applauds the District for its
excellent and innovative work.
Upon noticing that the Clean Air Plan would result in excessive particulate matter in the air, TRANSDEF’s President David Schonbrunn spoke to the Board of Directors and suggested that a mitigation be adopted to reduce the source of growing particulate pollution: motor vehicles. Read More...
Upon noticing that the Clean Air Plan would result in excessive particulate matter in the air, TRANSDEF’s President David Schonbrunn spoke to the Board of Directors and suggested that a mitigation be adopted to reduce the source of growing particulate pollution: motor vehicles. Read More...
MTC Shows its True Colors-OAC
09/08/10
MTC’s Programming and
Allocations Committee met to once again take the heat
in deciding whether to provide additional funding for
the BART Oakland Airport Connector (OAC), a truly
execrable project. This project, which had died after
the Federal Transit Administration pulled the plug on
$70 million in stimulus funding, showed itself to
have many lives, and many functionaries willing to
bend institutional rules to raise it from the dead.
MTC violated its own rules in bypassing a required
vote by its Commissioners, and was caught at it.
Large numbers of presumably unemployed carpenters showed up to flex their political muscles, with a banner eerily calling out CIA. Only this time, CIA meant Carpenters in Action. They were calling for jobs, and clearly weren’t much concerned that the project was enormously bloated in cost, and already eliminated any benefits for the impoverished community it was to pass through. The carpenters seemed unaware that most of the jobs resulting from the project would be elsewhere, where the people mover system will be built. The use of precast concrete is going to reduce the construction jobs dramatically.
After many impassioned speeches calling for MTC to preserve the Bay Area’s underfunded transit system and not waste money on the OAC, the committee voted to approve the funding. While there was a significant group of Commissioners who saw the problems with approving the money, they were in the minority.
MTC, through this and many previous votes, demonstrated more clearly than ever before that the agency truly does not give a crap about outcomes. The fact that the OAC would waste a half-billion dollars was not a consideration. MTC has always been about cutting political deals. The OAC represented someone’s deal, and MTC’s unspoken rules prohibit going back on a deal, no matter how loathsome a project has become.
Large numbers of presumably unemployed carpenters showed up to flex their political muscles, with a banner eerily calling out CIA. Only this time, CIA meant Carpenters in Action. They were calling for jobs, and clearly weren’t much concerned that the project was enormously bloated in cost, and already eliminated any benefits for the impoverished community it was to pass through. The carpenters seemed unaware that most of the jobs resulting from the project would be elsewhere, where the people mover system will be built. The use of precast concrete is going to reduce the construction jobs dramatically.
After many impassioned speeches calling for MTC to preserve the Bay Area’s underfunded transit system and not waste money on the OAC, the committee voted to approve the funding. While there was a significant group of Commissioners who saw the problems with approving the money, they were in the minority.
MTC, through this and many previous votes, demonstrated more clearly than ever before that the agency truly does not give a crap about outcomes. The fact that the OAC would waste a half-billion dollars was not a consideration. MTC has always been about cutting political deals. The OAC represented someone’s deal, and MTC’s unspoken rules prohibit going back on a deal, no matter how loathsome a project has become.
RTP Guidelines Revisions Adopted
04/29/10
The California
Transportation Commission adopted revisions to the statewide Regional
Transportation Plan Guidelines in response to all
the changes resulting from SB 375. That law
requires RTPs to contain a sustainable communities
strategy, which attempts to reduce greenhouse gas
emissions to meet a target set by the State Air
Resources Board. TRANSDEF participated actively in
the revision process and is very pleased with the
results.
Finally, Someone's Writing about Highway Widening
11/24/09
MTC continues to make
ludicrous claims that their proposed HOT lanes
network will result in decreased GHG emissions,
despite the new lanes’ encouragement of a significant
increase in driving in the Bay Area. Given MTC’s
intention to go forward with this massively
counterproductive project, it is heartening that the
Sightline Institute has produced an important study
on the expected long-term increase in GHG emissions
that will result from highway widening. Finally,
someone in transportation is making sense! See
our Smart Growth
Resources page.
RTP Guidelines Revision Process
11/18/09
The California
Transportation Commission is conducting a thorough
process to revise the statewide Regional
Transportation Plan Guidelines, in response to all
the changes resulting from SB 375. That law requires
RTPs to contain a sustainable communities strategy,
which attempts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to
meet a target set by the State Air Resources Board.
Check out the CTC webpage.
Jeff Tumlin Leads the Way!
07/28/09
Jeff Tumlin of
Nelson-Nygaard gave a rousing presentation at the
Joint Policy Committee. He made it clear that
managing parking is a key strategy for reducing GHG
emissions. Check out his report and
Powerpoint.
Caltrans Introduces Smart Mobility
06/22/09
Caltrans offered a
workshop last week in Sacramento on their new Smart
Mobility Framework. This is a program that
Caltrans has developed in association with EPA.
It takes Smart Growth principles and integrates
them into transportation in a manner that
environmental activists will find both familiar and
heartening. Read
More...
Comments Filed on Sonoma Transportation Plan
06/22/09
TRANSDEF filed comments on the Draft
EIR for the Sonoma County Transportation
Authority’s Comprehensive Transportation Plan.
Find them next to the New! logo. Read
More...
MTC adopts irresponsible regional plan
05/02/09
Summary only available
when permalinks are enabled. Read
More...
TRANSDEF on the radio
03/04/09
TRANSDEF's President David Schonbrunn appeared on
Stanford University Radio's Raising Sand Radio
program. The one-hour show
provides a good overview for Bay Area and
California transportation issues, from an
activist's point of view.
The Regional Transportation Plan is nearing adoption
03/04/09
On March 13th, MTC will have a meeting of its
Planning Committee to go over final details of its
draft Regional Transportation Plan, for approval on
March 25th. Read
More...