Transportation - Policy
2050 Regional Transportation Plan for San Diego County
The San Diego Association of Governments (SANDAG) has begun its initial work on the development of the 2050 Regional Transportation Plan (RTP) that will lead to the adoption of an updated RTP in July 2011. There are several new components in this RTP update including compliance with Senate Bill 375 (SB 375).
The Sustainable Communities Strategy (SCS) is a new element of the RTP, as required by SB 375, and will demonstrate how the development patterns and the transportation network, policies, and programs can work together to achieve the greenhouse gas (GHG) emission reduction targets for cars and light trucks that will be established by the California Air Resources Board, if there is a feasible way to do so. If a Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) cannot meet the targets through the SCS, then the region is required to develop an Alternative Planning Strategy that demonstrates how the emission reduction targets could be achieved. For more information from SANDAG on the process of developing the RTP and how to get involved, click here.
To view the Equinox Center's December 14, 2010 letter to the SANDAG board regarding the 2050 RTP, click here.
SB 375
Senate Bill 375 is the recently approved, state-wide legislation aimed at fighting climate change in California through smart development. Besides creating a state-mandated program that brings together formally disjointed planning activities, SB 375 will set benchmark goals of carbon emission reduction within the different regions of California. Also, by creating Sustainable Community Strategies, each region will be led to incorporate housing needs, transportation alternatives, and regional targets for emission reductions into their already existing planning structures. Uniting invested stakeholders in the planning discussion, as well as creating timetables for the implementation of new ideas, SB 375 hopes to considerably reduce climate change and promote sustainable development throughout California.