Coalition Update

Bay Area Transportation and Land Use Coalition: Summer 2001 (#13)

Coalition Mobilizes to Shape 25-Year Transportation Plan

For the past several months, the Coalition has been working hard to help shape the Bay Area’s 2001 Regional Transportation Plan (RTP). The RTP, which is being developed by the Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC), will determine how $81 billion (in 2001 dollars) will be spent on transportation over the next 25 years. Most of the money will be used to complete or maintain old projects, so about $7 billion is actually "up for grabs."

The influence of the Coalition and its members and allies throughout the Bay Area has been profound. They attended workshops and public meetings, sometimes in overwhelming numbers, to voice support for the Coalition’s RTP platform (available in the RTP section of this website). Elected officials and their staffs are listening, and some of the platform goals have moved forward significantly.

The Coalition has thus far succeeded in preserving MTC’s commitment to fully fund the capital needs of Bay Area transit agencies, although some MTC staff have urged that this policy be reconsidered. The Coalition championed this commitment in 1998, to provide vital funds to keep buses and trains running. This policy is resulting in an additional $1.2 billion in the 2001 RTP to maintain public transit. Numerous letters from individuals and organizations expressing support for 100% funding, combined with the Coalition’s ability to explain the importance of maintaining our existing transit systems to MTC Commissioners and other elected officials no doubt has had an important influence in keeping this commitment intact.

Another Coalition goal was to substantially increase funding for the Transportation for Livable Communities and Housing Incentives Program (TLC/HIP), above the $9 million per year level that it received in the last RTP. Although the funding was not increased quite as much as recommended by the Coalition, it was expanded significantly, to $27 million per year. This expansion of TLC/HIP will provide important incentives for transit-oriented development and local projects that improve livability and housing affordability in the Bay Area.

The Coalition’s presence was particularly important at the Contra Costa Transportation Authority (CCTA), where staff had suggested moving TLC/HIP money to a general road and maintenance fund. The Coalition helped mobilize hundreds of environmental, social justice, and labor supporters to write letters and attend public meetings demanding support for smart growth, public transit and affordable housing. Attending the Contra Costa meeting were many low-income and Spanish-speaking residents who had not previously been involved. As a result, the CCTA Board voted not to cut TLC/HIP funding and to commit to provide Spanish interpretation at future meetings.

Several counties are including significant funding for new Bus Rapid Transit projects, to dramatically improve bus service along major routes in urban areas. MTC is also developing a regional express bus program, which they have confirmed is the quickest and most cost-effective way to ease highway congestion.

Coalition advocacy has also increased funding for bicycle and pedestrian programs in some counties.

In the coming months, the Coalition anticipates several RTP-related campaigns:

  1. Hayward Bypass (Route 238). The Coalition will continue to work to convince local officials to cut this project--a road expansion that would destroy the homes of 1,000 people! Alternatives are being studied, and the Coalition will promote infill housing on the land that would be made available and the use of improved transit to reduce congestion in the area.
  2. Highway 4 upgrade to full freeway. The Western Contra Costa County Transportation Advisory Committee (WCCTAC) will soon vote whether to remove this project from their RTP "Track 1" list. Several WCCTAC members and the Coalition seek to shift this money to higher priority projects for the area, including pedestrian safety and fixing potholes.
  3. Free bus passes for low-income students. The Coalition is working with local community groups and elected officials to create a three-year pilot program in the AC Transit service area that could later be expanded throughout the region. (See related article "Providing Equal Access to Schools.")

What’s next? The draft RTP will be released in August 2001. MTC will hold hearings and accept written comments for a couple of months after the release. (Dates and times are still to be announced).

For more information, check the RTP section of the Coalition’s website at www.transcoalition.org/rtp or contact Rebecca Kaplan at rtp@transcoalition.org or (510) 740-3103. You can also visit MTC’s website at www.mtc.ca.gov /projects/rtp/rtpindex.htm.

Smart Growth Strategy Goes Public in September

Tentative Smart Growth Workshops
 Solano - September 8
Sonoma - September 22
Marin & San Mateo - September 29
Napa & Alameda - October 6
Santa Clara & San Francisco - October 13
The regional Smart Growth Strategy led by the Association of Bay Area Governments and MTC is gearing up for the first round of public workshops in September and October. This process, which the Coalition originally advocated for in 1998, aims to achieve support among public officials, civic leaders and stakeholder organizations for a preferred land use pattern that will inform how the Bay Area could grow over the next 20 years. The workshops this fall, and a second round in spring 2002, are the first step to achieving that support.

The Bay Area faces a challenge in defining a land use pattern for such a geographically and politically diverse region. Historically, even projecting the region’s growth is controversial, as was most recently evident in the widespread clamor by cities over their "fair share" housing distribution numbers. The process will necessarily be unwieldy and complex, and yet without it, our biennial regional transportation planning process threatens to continue supplying road infrastructure to low-density development patterns. Thus, the Coalition is helping to shape the presentation of maps, growth assumptions, and development options for the public workshops while also defining our desired outcomes. Stay tuned as the Coalition offers trainings and workshops to let member groups know more about this process and how they can be involved.

The tentative dates for workshops in each county are listed to the right. Information about the Regional Smart Growth Strategy can be found at www.abag.ca.gov/planning/smartgrowth/. For information on the Coalition’s involvement, contact Rachel Peterson at Urban Ecology, r_peterson@urbanecology.org or (510) 251-6335.

State Initiative Pending

The Planning and Conservation League (PCL) is proposing an initiative for the state ballot that would provide nearly $3 billion annually for transportation projects across the state. If passed, the initiative, known as the Traffic Congestion Relief Act, would provide an unprecedented benefit to transit and sustainable development and could fund many of the projects the Coalition has been advocating. Among other things, the initiative would provide transit capital, funds for transit oriented development and transit operations and millions for bicycle and pedestrian improvements. For revenue, the initiative would draw funding from growth in the state’s general fund in an amount equal to the sales tax on new cars.

While the potential impact of the initiative is massive, there was concern at the Coalition’s June 13 meeting about its revenue source. Given the Coalition’s strong commitment to social justice, its work in solidarity with the labor movement, and its commitment to instituting user fees for those that use transportation, there was strong sentiment to find a funding mechanism that would allow growth in the general fund to go to other vital services such as education and health care. In response, Coalition staff generated a proposal for an alternative revenue mechanism that would leave future revenue growth in the general fund available for these important programs.

Specifically, Coalition staff suggested that the initiative reinstate the Vehicle License Fee (VLF) to its 1998 levels, and include in the VLF calculation a reward (fee reduction) for fuel-efficient vehicles. The additional money generated by reinstating the full VLF would be nearly identical to the amount of general funds covered by the PCL proposal--approximately $3 billion per year. The VLF would provide a stable revenue source that would not have to be suspended in deficit years while having the side-effect of providing incentives for fuel efficiency.

In cooperation with PCL, the Coalition will conduct a poll that is intended to evaluate the level of support among voters for the VLF-based revenue system as opposed to an initiative that would draw revenue from the State’s general fund. The poll will be conducted this summer so that the language of the initiative can be finalized in time to appear on the November 2002 ballot.

For the most up-to-date list of the funding categories that PCL has outlined for the initiative, please visit www.pcl.org/transportation/categories.html.

Coalition Urges Careful Preparation of Transit Policy

Citing an unnecessarily hurried timeline, the Coalition is calling on MTC for a delay in the adoption of the Regional Transit Expansion Policy (RTEP). The RTEP is the successor to 1998’s Resolution 1876 and will define priorities for transit expansion, both rail and bus (see inset story), for an undefined number of years into the future. MTC has set the deadline for completion of the RTEP at November 2001. The Coalition believes this deadline will deprive the process of valuable contributions from a number of studies on transit expansion in key corridors.

"Time for proper dialogue and analysis is essential to maintain the credibility of the process and to ensure the chosen projects are the ones that do the most to meet MTC’s five regional goals," said Stuart Cohen, Coalition chair, in a June 4 letter to the Commission signed by 21 Coalition members. "The Coalition supports the creation of an RTEP, but we are extremely concerned that this opportunity will be squandered."

Several studies will be completed in the next 12 months that could have an impact on RTEP priorities, including:
"With a November deadline, the RTEP may need major revisions or wholesale rewriting as early as six months after its adoption," said Cohen.

The Coalition is also concerned with the lack of a defined process for the development of the RTEP. To date, the plan is being generated in closed-door meetings between MTC officials and staff members of the nine county-level Congestion Management Agencies. The letter suggests that the "process should elicit input from the public and low-income communities, extend the duration of the Environmental Justice Advisory Group to analyze the projects and ensure transportation justice goals are realized, and establish a deadline for completion no earlier than February 2002."

For more information on the RTEP, please contact Stuart Cohen at stucohen@igc.org.

Coalition wins inclusion of buses

Through the combined efforts of the Coalition, Project Express and transit operators, MTC has agreed to allow Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) systems to be included in the Regional Transit Expansion Policy (RTEP). The Commission had left out this innovative and relatively new form of transit, meaning that light rail proposed for a given corridor would have been eligible, while BRT would not.

BRT--which typically operates on urban arterial roads--integrates a variety of proven, low-cost technologies to reduce travel time and allow buses to efficiently move through and around traffic congestion. "The growing popularity of Bus Rapid Transit means that speed, comfort and reliability are no longer the sole property of trains and light rail," said Seth Schneider of Project Express. "Twenty-one of the 25 most cost-effective projects in MTC’s Blueprint study were rapid bus projects. It’s this cost-effectiveness that can help stretch scarce transportation dollars to better serve more transit users."

Following a joint Coalition/Project Express press conference highlighting the success and appeal of BRT systems around the world, MTC Commissioners voted on April 25 to correct the omission and make BRT eligible for inclusion in the RTEP.

For more information please contact Seth Schneider at (510) 740-3104 or seth@projectexpress.org.

Providing Equal Access to Schools

When low-income families can’t afford bus fares, their children miss classes. A proposed free bus pass program would solve this problem, providing basic bus service to more than 30,000 disadvantaged kids who already qualify for subsidized school lunches and children with disabilities within the AC Transit service area.

"The transportation barriers for low-income kids are appalling and we must take the necessary steps to ensure that all kids are able to get to school," said Supervisor Keith Carson of Alameda County, who along with Supervisor John Gioia of Contra Costa County and a diverse array of community groups are leading the effort to fund this program. At about $12 million for a three-year pilot program, the cost of the passes is greatly outweighed by the benefits to low-income schoolchildren.

To get involved or for further information, contact Reynaldo Guerrero, Transportation Justice Coordinator, at (510) 740-3105 or reynaldo@transcoalition.org. Also visit the Transportation Justice Campaign section of this website.

Wish List

The Coalition would greatly appreciate donations of the items listed below. A receipt for tax purposes may be arranged. For more information contact Alice Watson at (510) 740-3150 or alice@transcoalition.org.