Public
Hearing on the Regional Transportation Plan, January 29, 1997, Santa Monica, CA
Notes
by Jim Stewart, SCCED
Kathleen
Gildred, SCCED: We believe the most significant way to impact our regional
transportation system is to have more public input into the transportation
plan. SCAG is mandated to have public input. Review the plan tonight and you
can have input at any time before next July when the plan will be adopted.
Santa
Monica Mayor Pam O'Connor: Welcome, public input is important. The Regional
Transportation Plan will address the congestion and air quality problems for
the entire region. The plan will set the funding priorities for highways,
public transit, as well as address issues of land use. I am proud of the Santa
Monica Blue Bus system, I would like it to be convenient and user friendly.
The West LA area is one of the most congested parts of the region. I hope the
public can help provide solutions.
Clint
Rosemond, SCAG: SCAG is designated as a metropolitan planning organization,
which is required by the Federal government to plan under the Intermodal
Surface Transportation Efficiency Act (ISTEA).
SCAG
was formed in 1965. It covers 6 counties, 38,000 sq. miles, with 14
subregions. The Westside Cities includes Santa Monica, Beverly Hills, West
Hollywood, and Culver City. We take a bottom up approach to planning, where
issues are presented at the subregion and move up to the SCAG Regional Council.
There is also a Westside Summit which includes the Santa Monica mayor.
SCAG
also does a Regional Comprehensive Plan looking to the year 2020, including 15
elements, of air quality, transportation, housing, waste, open space, water, etc.
The
key factor in transportation planning is Regional Population Growth. It drives
all our planning, we have demographers who go to every city and discuss their
projected future growth, based on open space, job base, attractiveness factors,
etc.
We
start with the 1994 base year population of 15.6 million, and by 2020 expect 6
million more people, 22.5 million: therefore we need some form of expanded
transportation.
Public:
What % of developed land area is devoted to transportation purposes? Clint
Rosemond: About 40%
Public:
How well have past plans succeeded in channeling growth in desired ways? Clint
Rosemond: Some have and some have not.
Public:
Water problems? Clint Rosemond: MWD feels they have the plans to handle the
water needs.
Clint
Rosemond: The expected population growth in the next 20 years is going to be
80% internal births over deaths, only 20% from immigration. About 40% of
population are Latinos in LA county, and they and recently arrived Asian
immigrants have high birthrates (this is normal for all immigrants).
Clint
Rosemond: We are looking at HOV toll lanes as a way to get people who want to
go fast to pay for the privilege. We need to hear from you if that is a good
idea
Public:
Relationship of SCAG & MTA? Clint Rosemond: SCAG is the planning agency,
MTA is the implementing agency
Public:
How do you plan to handle the transportation needs? Clint Rosemond: At this
point we are projecting a serious congestion problem, as you can see on the
2020 baseline chart. This is the projection if we spend all the current money
in the pipeline and do nothing else. We need to work out different ways of
transportation before then. We want to promote debate and to get your ideas.
We want to take them to the next step. We have a detailed analysis for this
subregion that we can make available to you.
Public:
We need more mass transit.
Public:
What is the track record of SCAG in terms of its planning process? Clint
Rosemond: We have had success and failure. We have no regulatory power, so we
cannot make a mayor or the MTA do anything. We look at the future and say what
it looks like. We have the power of the pen to convince you of the needs. For
example, our analysis has suggested the need for line haul rail systems, such
as the old Pacific Electric Red Line. We also do project review for
consistency with air quality standards. and it will not get funded if it does
not meet the standards.
Public:
The radio said population projections are based on developers plans? Clint
Rosemond: No, We start with Dept. of Finance projections and do statistical
analysis.
Public:
What about more infill instead of sprawl?
Public:
We should not develop Playa Vista, because it will increase population and
congestion on the West Side.
Public:
I notice the parking lots along the Metrolink stations are full, so that seems
to be working, but car pooling has not worked? Clint Rosemond: The problem is
more the magnitude of growth of the number of cars.
Public:
Smart shuttle? Clint Rosemond: We are suggesting we use the best existing
technology to pick up people, including global positioning systems (GPS) to
demand-actuate the system for maximum efficiency.
Public:
The shuttle is key to any public transit, so you don't need to use your car,
except to get to an outlying parking lot.
Public:
We need to look at the monorail or other silent rail, which could be elevated
over the streets.
Public:
We should use city-wide public access TV channels to engage people in this
transportation planning, perhaps on every month for a half-hour.
Clint
Rosemond: We taped a show with Warren Olney, we have a one hour tape that we've
sent to all the local stations. We are planning 6 electronic TV live town hall
forums through local access.
Public:
You need to promote the broadcast so people can watch.
Public:
The real problem is the sprawl, we need to have more density to have mass
transit.
Public:
The problem is the high cost of smart shuttle, and there is not enough traffic
throughout the day. The transit needs to be accessible.
Public:
Many people want their own home in order to have a pet, and so sprawl gets
worse. Santa Monica is an example of some increased density.
Public:
We can slow sprawl by making it pay for itself.
Public:
I would like to promote bicycling. Clint Rosemond: It is in our plan under
non-motorized transportation, including pedestrian.
Clint
Rosemond: We also include air transportation, and its related surface
transportation. We also look at movement of freight, such as through the
Alameda Corridor.
Public:
The problem is Southern California has fragmented government, people do not
look regionally.
Public:
Get people on the Internet to see the effects of in-fill vs. sprawl using
geographic information systems (GIS). Clint Rosemond: SCAG just implemented an
ACCESS program, by providing computers to all 184 cities and counties so they
all have access to our database. We hope that citizens could participate
through their local city's computer.
Public:
No, the people have no access, only city employees.
Public:
Internet? Clint Rosemond: The plan will be up on the website when it is
finished and sent to the printer.
Public:
The rail is 100 year old technology, now there are new cutting edge
technologies, some can be build for a fraction of the cost of current rail.
Clint
Rosemond: We have a section in our plan on technology, and we can send you more
information on technology.
Public:
Remove the farebox and finance it through taxes on gasoline. That would
dramatically increase transit use.
Public:
How do we see the draft plan? Clint Rosemond: A summary of the plan will be
sent to every one who signs in tonight.
Public:
Dial-a-ride is the most expensive form of transportation.
Public:
HOV lanes are getting crowded, soon they will increase to 3 persons. We need
to limit them to buses.
Public:
The MTA has to go through SCAG, you could enforce the financial restraint, but
you are not using that power.
Public:
We want to try to build a coalition to enforce SCAG to carry out its legal
responsibilities.
Public:
SCAG goals include, "Meet the regional and subregional mobility and access
needs . . . while reducing congestion to 1990 levels of performance." Many
people say there is
no
system that can reach that goal, unless we create less demand by creating
livable communities where people don't need to move to meet their needs. Local
communities could meet needs for housing, jobs and shopping in their
neighborhoods. We should encourage MTA to provide money to encourage
communities to develop plans for their downtown areas to meet livable community
standards. For example, other communities could do things like the Promenade
or Pasadena Old Town.
Public:
I want to contribute to the plan, but I have not been allowed access to SCAG.
I wanted to be a part of the planning process, but the plan is now in the final
stages. Clint Rosemond: You certainly can have input, the draft plan is not
even finished yet.
Public:
Mayor Riordan wants to finish the subway to Universal Studios MCA by taking
road repair money. I believe that SCAG is helping this. SCAG had a planner
speak in support of the MCA project that will help to destroy that community.
Clint
Rosemond: SCAG should not be a proponent of a project, except to reflect the
views of the SCAG executive body.
Bob
Getz: We need to communicate the process of the plan. This is an early step in
the process. We will have an opportunity to comment on the draft plan when
available. We are forming a "Regional Citizenry," including 500 community
leaders to voice their opinion on matters.
Public:
The key is the nature of the community, you have to the change the structure of
the community so people travel less, and the community is more self-contained.
Public:
The wealthy are impacted differently than others by the plan.
Public:
How to you get jobs into the small communities. In Paris, government said that
no more businesses could locate in the congested areas.
Clint
Rosemond: We looked at recommending a jobs-housing balance, but the problem it
is hard to make this work for all housing. It is hard to match specific jobs
and housing. Phoenix has sucked a lot of jobs out of LA.
Public:
The problem is businesses move to less expensive land.
Clint
Rosemond: Sprawl seems to happen as long as the land is available.
Public:
Get people off the freeway by raising the gas tax.
Public:
Even with free or low fares, the problem is you attract mainly the poorer
people to the buses, and you still have the problem of suburban people driving.
Public:
To change land use is very slow, it has happened €V@ DÔÀDÔÀ~
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Public:
SCAG should challenge the supposition that communities on the perimeters, such
as Temecula, Palmdale will grow, because they assume we will underwrite the
transportation system to support their growth. But we don't have to support
sprawl, we could support infill development. SCAG doesn't have to assume that
we have to support that growth.
Public:
It seems that development money is influential in our economy, how do you deal
with that?
Public:
We are subsidizing sprawl at about $50,000 per household.
Public:
Orange County developed because people wanted to live in a rural area.
Clint
Rosemond: Orange County developed because of the I-5.
Public:
If you did not subsidize that development, then it wouldn't happen.
Public:
We should put theme parks in regional centers served by mass transit.
Clint
Rosemond: We could create special study sessions on these big projects such as
Playa Vista.
Public:
There are not connecting ramps in all directions of the 101 and 170, there
should be connecting ramps to reduce street congestion.
Public:
Thank you for you candor and responsiveness. SCAG is only an association of
governments, so it only reflects the opinions of the elected officials. We
need to put our attention on the people we vote for, our mayors and County
Supervisors.
Public:
I would hope that democracy requires a lot of more input than the 25 people
here and there, to influence the spending of $80 billion and a trillion in
infrastructure.
Public:
City ordinances that require free parking could not pass EIR. When are
employers going to be require to provide paid parking.
Public:
Currently trains are very expensive and not cost effective, we need to expand
bus service, until the changes in lifestyle happe