Evaluation of California State and Regional Transportation Plans and Their Prospects for Attaining State Goals

Assembly Bill (AB) 285 (Friedman, 2019) requires the California Strategic Growth Council (SGC) to submit a report to the Legislature by January 31, 2022, that includes the following: An overview of the California Transportation Plan (CTP). An overview of all regional Sustainable Communities Strategies (SCS) and any alternative planning strategies, as needed. An assessment of how the implementation of the CTP and regional plans “will influence the configuration of the statewide integrated multimodal transportation system.” A “review of the potential impacts and opportunities for coordination” of key state funding programs,” to be conducted in consultation with the administering agencies. Recommendations for the improvement of these programs or other relevant transportation funding programs to better align the programs to meet long-term common goals, including the goals outlined in the CTP. In spring 2021, the SGC contracted with the University of California (UC) to provide materials supporting its report to the Legislature. Researchers at the UC Berkeley Institute of Transportation Studies (ITS), UC Davis ITS, UCLA ITS, and Berkeley Law joined forces to prepare a series of papers to provide the evidentiary basis for the project. The UC Berkeley principal investigator coordinated the work and prepared this final summary report. The report is based on findings from the professional and academic literature, a detailed analysis of the identified plans and programs of concern, meetings with staff of the agencies whose plans are being reviewed, feedback from briefings and presentations on draft findings, and nearly 100 hours of individual interviews with stakeholders across California.