Planning

Last week, California voters supported equitable transportation, open space and climate spending by large margins at the ballot box.

If your community is planning to apply for Cycle 4 of the Active Transportation Program, you have until July 31 to do so. Information and resources for applicants are available on the CalTrans website and at the Active Transportation Resource Center.

Stanislaus County has released its draft Regional Transportation Plan (RTP) and Sustainable Communities Strategy (SCS). The 2018 RTP/SCS is the long-term coordinated transportation/land use strategy and provides a framework for transportation investment out to the year 2042. Public workshops are being held throughout May, and public comments are accepted until July 5.

In early May, California Senior Policy Manager Jonathan Matz joined our partners in the Sustainable Communities for All coalition (SC4A) in Sacramento to lobby state lawmakers for an equitable portfolio of investments from the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund (GGRF). Among the programs SC4A would like to see funded from the GGRF this year are Urban Forestry and Urban Greening; the Low Income Home Weatherization Program; and transit passes for K-14 students in public education institutions.

Proponents of an effort to repeal SB 1 (last year’s increase in the State Gas Tax) submitted nearly 1 million signatures to place a proposition on the statewide ballot this November, widely exceeding the minimum number to qualify (584,000).

A June ballot measure to be voted on in the nine counties of the Bay Area will help address the region’s air quality, congestion, and transportation needs. The Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC) and the state legislature worked to place the measure on the ballot, which will raise bridge toll revenue to finance $4.45 billion in transportation improvements, including:

• $500 million for new BART cars

On April 5, the Fresno Council of Governments released a draft of the Regional Transportation Plan (RTP) 2018 – 2042 for a 55-day review and public comment period. The plan addresses greenhouse gas emissions reductions and other air emissions related to transportation, with the goal of preparing for future growth in a sustainable manner. Public hearings will be held on April 26, and  May 15.

The California Transportation Commission has announced another (likely final) workshop on the applications and guidelines for Cycle 4 of the Active Transportation Program on Tuesday April 17 in Sacramento. The workshop will also cover SB 1 accountability guidelines. Please see the meeting announcement with full details including how to participate remotely here.

Last month, a group of youth and community residents initiated a meeting with Assemblymember Eloise Gómez Reyes of the 47th District in San Bernardino County. Youth representatives from the group Soar IE envisioned an initiative for safer sidewalks around neighborhood schools in Muscoy. Muscoy is unincorporated area of San Bernardino that has a CalEnviroScreen pollution burden profile of 96-100%, is low-income, and the population is 82 percent Latinx.

The San Joaquin Council of Governments (SJCOG) has released a