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HomeMy WebLinkAbout56-Public Works o o C I T Y o F SAN B ERN A R D I INTEROFFICE MEMORANDUM 1I!:i, f:r:;.: TO: MAYOR W. R. "BOB" HOLCOMB FROM: ROGER G. HARDGRAVE, Director of Public Works/ City Engineer SUBJECT: Congestion Management Plan - San Bernardino Associated Governments DATE: March 12, 1991 COPIES: Anwar Wagdy; File No. 6.44-3; Reading File --------------------------------------------------------------- SANBAG has been designated as the responsible agency for devel- opment of the Congestion Management Plan (CMF) as required by Proposition 111, passed by the voters in June, 1990. JHK & Associates has been selected to develop the CMP, in cooperation with the local agencies. A technical advisory com- mittee has been formed to assist JHK & Associates in this endeavor. Anwar Wagdy and Valerie Ross have been attending the meetings of this committee. There are some major policy issues involved in the development of the CMF. One of the main questions is selection of the Level of Service (LOS) to be used throughout the valley area. If a high value, such as C, is selected, the list of deficiencies may be greater than can be financed with available funds, which could lead to a loss of state gas tax funding. Also, some de- velopments could have difficulties in maintaining this level of service. On the other hand, if the LOS is set at a low value, such as E or F, we could experience Orange County style congestion. SANBAG intends to serve in the capacity of coordinator for major developments, in order to ensure that regional traffic impacts are addressed. Their exact role has not been defined. Attached, "Approach 3-11-91. for your reference, is a progress paper, entitled: to the Countywide Congestion Management Plan," dated 5"6. .. " o MAYOR HOLCOMB Congestion Management Plan March 12, 1991 Page - 2 - o According to the schedule for the CMP, the selection of a LOS will be submitted to the SANBAG Executive Board at their meeting ~in May, 1991. SANBAG staff has indicated they would be pleased \ to provide a briefing on the status of the development of the CMP. Please advise if you would like to have a personal briefing, or if one should be presented to the Council Trans- portation Committee or th ull Council at a workshop. ROGER G. HARDGRAVE Director of Public Works/City Engineer RGH:rs Attach. " o o APPROACH TO THE COUNTYWIDE CONGESTION MANAGEMENT PLAN SAN BERNARDINO ASSOCIATED GOVERNMENTS March 11, 1991 BACKGROUND Proposition Ill, passed in June 1990, created new funding for transportation through an increase in the state gas tax of $.09 per gallon. This equates to a return to source of approximately $6.27 annually per capita for cities, and up to $7.1 million annually for the County. Included with the provision for additional transportation funding was a requirement to undertake congestion management programs within each urbanized county, including development and adoption of a countywide Congestion Management Plan by a designated Congestion Management Agency (CMA). Within San Bernardino County, SANBAG was designated the CMA by a majority of the cities and county with a majority of the population. The countywide Congestion Management Plan is currently being developed by JHK & Associates, consultants to SANBAG, in cooperation with a technical advisory committee composed of SANBAG, cities, and County planning and engineering staff. The requirement for congestion management planning was included in Proposition III to provide a tool to meet several objectives: . to maintain or improve the performance level of the regional transportation system, . to help focus available transportation funding on regionally significant facility and service needs, . to provide for technical consistency and enhance coordination among neighborinjt jurisdictions, . to ensure consideration of the impacts of new development on the regional. transportation system and provide means to develop and test mitigations, and . to promote air quality through implementation of strategies contained within the Regional Transportation Plan and the appropriate Air Quality Plan. To meet these objectives, the Congestion Management Plan includes the following: 1) An element that defines the regional system of roadways and designates level of service standards to be maintained on the system. 2) Transit routing and frequency standards. 3) A trip reduction and travel demand element. 4) A program to analyze the impacts of land use decisions on the regional transportation o o system. 5) A seven-year capital improvements program to maintain or improve traffic and transit performance, and to mitigate impacts on the regional system identified by the land use/transpOrtation program. The proposed capital improvements must conform to air quality transportation control measures. In addition, the Congestion Management Agency is required to develop a database, consistent with the regional (Southern California Association of Governments) datllb<>se, to serve as input to a countywide transportation computer model. The CMA is also required to approve computer models of specific areas that are used by local jurisdictions to assess the impacts of development on the circulation system. SANBAG'S APPROACH TO CONGESTION MANAGEMENT PLANNING Some individuals and agencies have expressed concern that the CMP is simply another onerous state-mandated local program that appears to promote interdiction by regional agencies in local decisions and threatenS receipt of the additional state gas tax increment. Instead, SANBAG views the CMP as an opportunity for local governments and SANBAG to implement comprehensive, inteIjurisdictional transportation planning, while focusing existing and additional transportation funding on projects where the need is greatest. In fact, the CMP provides no land use authority to any regional agency, and provides a process through which local agencies are unlikely to jeopardize their gas tax subventions unless they "opt out" of the program or consciously decide to permit development without sufficient mitigation of the of the impacts of the development. Steadily worsening traffic congestion and smog are listed by many residents of San Bernardino County as among the most serious issues threatening our quality of life. Discussions with agencies in San Bernardino County have indicated that factors, such as inadequate coordination between land use and transportation planning, lack of coordination and consistency among plans and activities of neighboring jurisdictions, and failure to mitigate inteIjurisdictional impacts, have contributed to these problems. The CMP is a means to directly address these problems. It will better define the land useltransportation linkage, coordinate planning at an interjurisdictional level, and maintain or improve the performance of the regional transportation system while meeting air quality objectives. SANBAG's primary interests in the CMP, beyond fulfilling its legal obligation to implement the program, are these: . assisting in the coordination and cooperation among the local agencies to optimize our irivestments in the regional transportation system, . protecting the performance of the system through anticipation and correction of problems affecting the system, and . coordinating the systematic development of a cost-effective multimodal transportation system. " o o These are appropriate roles for SANBAG, a joint powers authority of all local jurisdictions in San Bernardino County. The congestion management program, to be implemented by SANBAG in cooperation with the local agencies, specifies a process that is well-suited to meet these objectives. CMP RF.NEFITS AND llRClPONSIBILITIES The Congestion Management Program will benefit both the regional transportation system and local agencies' planning efforts: . It provides a mechanism to define an existing and a future regional transportation network, and objectively evaluate proposed improvements using standardized methods. . It provides a process to relate land use and transportation plans, analyze the impacts of new development on the regional transportation system, and provide for inteIjurisdictional communication and coordination. . Through the CMP, a countywide dlltll....'!e of roadway information including traffic counts and traffic forecasts will be developed, and will be made available to each jurisdiction to support planning activities. . The CMP requires periodic monitoring of the performance of the roadway and transit system, including a cost-effective traffic counting program, standardized level of service analysis procedures, and report formats that will provide information on current roadway and transit operations. In addition, a consistent approach to travel demand forecasting will be used throughout the county to evaluate future system performance. These will provide decision makers with knowledge needed to evaluate proposed improvements on the regional transportation system. . The CMP provides a mechanism for SANBAG and local agencies to identify and take advantage of cost-saving opportunities to improve the regional roadway system. For example, a mechanism will be established through the land use/transportation review process to highlight right-of-way acquisition opportunities along the CMP network as development or redevelopment occurs adjacent to CMP roadways. The CMP process is also expected to enhance communication and coordination between local agencies and Caltrans on development activities or improvements adjacent to state roadways. . Finally, the CMP provides a procedural framework within which regional and long-range transportation planning and programming can be accomplished comprehensively with coordination among all jurisdictions. The CMP pfON'CC can be applied to local, state, and federal funding sources for transportation facilities and maintenance to objectively focus funding on areas of need. The Congestion Management Program also imposes responsibilities on SANBAG and the local agencies, and explicit or implicit penalties for failure to fulfill the responsibilities. SANBAG, the Congestion Management Agency, is required to: J o o . Develop, adopt, and monitor implementation of the Congestion' Management Plan. . Ensure that the County and cities are in conformity with the CMP, through use of consistent methods and performance standards, adoption of a trip reduction and travel demand management ordinance, and adoption and implementation of a program to analyze the impacts of land use decisions on the transportation system, including estimates of costs to mitigate the impacts. . Through the monitoring program, ensure that the performance standatds on the CMP system are maintained, or that plans to improve performance to the designated standard are prepared and implemented by the local agency. Failure of SANBAG to fulfill these responsibilities could comprise grounds for legal action. The local agencies' responsibilities include: . Use consistent LOS methodologies, performance standards, and travel forecasting techniques. . Adopt and implement a trip reduction and travel demand ordinances, and implement the land use/transportation impacts evaluation program. . Participate in annual monitoring activities, maintain acceptable performance levels on the system, or if necessary, designate individual segments or intersections deficient through adoption and submission of a Deficiency Plan to remedy the problem to SANBAG. Failure to fulfill these responsibilities could be grounds for loss of state gas tax funding. SANBAG's approach to the Congestion Management Program is to accomplish the objectives and fulfill its responsibilities while making administration of the program as simple and painless as possible. The process under development will utilize existing procedures where overlaps exist to avoid duplication of effort and unnecessary work. Despite this, some additional effort will be required by local agencies. However, we anticipate the benefits and ultimate cost savings to far exceed the cost of the program. We believe that to fail to meet the CMP requirements, or even to do the absolute minimum required by the state legislation, would be a disservice to the opportunities for regional interaction, long-range planning, and cost-effective programming that the CMP process affords. UPCOMING ACTIVITIES The draft CMP is scheduled for completion in June 1991. We have had excellent involvement in development and review of concepts and draft materials by senior staff from nearly all jurisdictions through the CMP Technical Advisory Committee, and data needed for development of the required CMP database have been provided. Your agency's role in this process is appreciated. Many significant technical and policy issues remain, and comments or recommendations will continue to be welcomed regarding any CMP concepts advanced by "- " '~_. " o o SANBAG or the consultant. Participation by each local agency, Caltl'aIls, and neighboring counties is essential to maximize the benefits to be gained from the CMP. If you have questions regarding the CMP, please direct them to SANBAG at 884-8276.