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FOSTERING SUSTAINABLE
COMMUNITIES THROUGH
TRANSPORTATION POLICY
2012 National Planning Conference
Fostering Sustainable Communities
through Transportation Policy
Diego Cardoso, Executive Officer, LA Metro
Sarah Jepson, Sustainability Policy Manager, LA Metro
Ellen Greenberg, Associate Principal, Arup
Session Overview
1) Opening Comments: Diego Cardoso
2) About Metro
3) Project Presentation: LA Metro: Sustainable
Communities Planning Framework
4) Not Ready for Prime Time: Favorites that
didn’t make the cut
5) Discussion with session attendees
About Metro
• Los Angeles County’s Transportation:
– Planner
– Coordinator
– Designer
– Operator
• 1,433 square-mile service area
• Clean-air fleet of over 2,635 CNG buses
• 79 miles of Metro Rail – 78 stations
• 513 miles HOV lanes
• 1,252 miles in Metro Bikeways
• Funding partner of 16 Municipal Transit
Operators
• Employs approximately 9,000 people
30/10- America Fast Forward Proposal
Goal: Accelerate critical
infrastructure initiatives that create
jobs and generate major public
benefits
Provides Specific Federal Financing
Tools to leverage local funds
LA County Transit Impacts
• 12 transit projects completed in
10 years
• 160,000 new jobs created
• Substantial cost savings
Sustainability at Metro
Business Practices
Planning & Programming
Green Construction (Equipment) Policy
Energy and Sustainability Policy (Green Buildings)
Design Guidelines
Renewable Energy Policy
Recycling and Reuse Policy
Environmental Management System
Regional Sustainable Communities Strategy
Countywide Sustainability Planning Policy
Active Transportation and Design Policy
Sustainability Criteria in Funding Programs
Urban Greening Plan @ Stations
Partnerships
Los Angeles County
Metropolitan Transportation Authority
Countywide Sustainability
Planning Policy
Metro Ad Hoc Sustainability Committee
April 18, 2012
Agenda
1) Policy Overview
2) Technical Analysis: Planning Framework
3) Next Steps
Purposes of the Policy
Establish a framework to:
• Better integrate sustainability in Metro Planning
Functions
• Support cities in taking complementary local
actions
• Foster collaboration and partnerships
Policy Development Process
Final Policy—July
Completion/Review of Policy—April-June
Develop Strategies and Draft Policy—Feb-Mar
Technical Analysis to develop Planning Framework—Nov-Jan
Development/Review of Principles & Priorities—Sept-Oct
Policy Outline
I. Overview and Background
II. Planning a Sustainable Transportation System
A. Principles and Priorities
B. Key Concepts
C. Planning Framework
III. Planning Guidance
IV. Policy Implementation and Impact—Under
Development
Policy Elements:
Principles and Priorities
Society Economy Environment
Access Prosperity Green Modes
Healthy
Neighborhoods
Community
Development Urban Greening
Context
Sensitivity
System
Productivity
Environmental
Stewardship Conserve
Create
Connect
Policy Elements:
Key Concepts
• Transportation and Land Use Integration
• Context Sensitive Design
• “Bundling” for Greatest Impact
• Network Optimization
• Think Regionally, Act Locally
Policy Elements:
Planning Framework
• Establishes Accessibility Index (AI) to identify locations with
similar characteristics that may benefit from similar strategies
• Helps leverage and create linkages between investments in all
modes
• Facilitates benchmarking and sharing of best practices between
similar communities
• Ensures policy implementation activities support progress and
provide benefits to all parts of the county
The focus is not on making all locations the same, but providing
“best fit” strategies that respond to a community’s land-use
conditions and aspirations.
Policy Elements:
Planning Guidance
• Provides mix of land-use and transportation strategies that could be
sponsored by Metro or considered by partner agencies
• Resource for Metro planners/project managers to incorporate
sustainability principles and priorities into activities
• Resource for sub-regional agencies/cities developing transportation
projects/plans, climate action plans, general plans and mobility
elements, TOD plans
• Based on original analysis and published research findings
• Presented as universal strategies and context-based strategies
associated with “AI” clusters
Policy Elements:
Implementation & Impact—
Under Development
Implementation Plan
• Outline of process for implementing policy across planning functions in collaboration with regional partners
• Formulated with stakeholder input (forthcoming)
• To include:
• Short term actions
• Mid term actions
Evaluation Metrics
• Method to capture countywide progress and inform future planning and policy decisions
• Program Metrics: Are we following through on commitments?
• Performance metrics: Are we reaching desired outcomes?
Planning Framework: Original Data Analysis
A. Explored Relationships between
– Built Environment Factors and
– Transportation Performance
B. Mapped for LA County
Planning Framework:
Accessibility Index
A. Based on quantitative
analysis
B. Creates 9 Accessibility
Index (AI) values
reflecting:
1. Residential Density
2. Employment Centrality
C. Clustered to present
best-fit strategies
23,993
21,455
19,695
21,046
19,438 18,440
18,864
17,619
15,988
10,000
12,500
15,000
17,500
20,000
22,500
25,000
2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
VM
T p
er H
ou
seh
old
Accessibility Index
Average Annual VMT for the Typical Los Angeles County Household
Source: Center for Neighborhood Technology 2012
Accessibility
Index Clusters
represent four
different types of
areas across the
County.
Strong and very strong accessibility places are a small
percentage of overall county area, and are home to
approximately 2/3 of the jobs and population.
Very Strong Moderate
Strong Mixed
Data Analysis by Center for Neighborhood
Technology (CNT)
• An evidence base for making investment
choices
• Robust– regression analysis of an extensive
data set
• Concrete – explained through place types
identified throughout the county
2/29/2012 27
Data Analysis by Center for
Neighborhood Technology (CNT)
• Net household density
• Gross household
density
• Transit Connectivity
• Employment Centrality
• % Retail
• Median Income
Variables Examined
• Transit access
• Average block size
• Commuters/household
• Land Use Diversity Index
• Intersection Density
• % of land in non-streets
• Per capita median income
• Average commute time
28
Explanatory Power of the Variables
2/29/2012 29
85
89
77
70
72
74
76
78
80
82
84
86
88
90
for VMT for Auto Ownership for Transit Usage
R2 o
f S
ingle
Inp
ut F
it
for
all
vari
able
s
Place Types Analysis
0.000%
0.010%
0.020%
0.030%
0.040%
0.050%
0.060%
0.070%
0.080%
0.090%
0.100%
Perc
en
t R
edu
ction
in V
MT
fo
r
a 1
% C
hange in V
ariable
Los Angeles County
Land Use Diversity
Residential Density
Retail
TCI
Gross Density
Employment Centrality
Outcomes
Strategy
Selection and
Implementation
Sustainable Transportation:
Planning Framework
Local
Conditions
& Priorities
Metro
Policies &
Programs
SCPF:
“Best-Fit”
Strategy
Suggestions
Analysis &
Best Practices
Metro SCPF Work Plan
Final Deliverables
Countywide Sustainability Planning Policy
Technical Appendices
Planning Tools (Accessibility Index Catalogue, Corridor Study Analysis)
April May June July
Additional Outreach
Planning Tools Development
NOT READY FOR PRIME
TIME….
Fostering Sustainable Communities through Transportation Policy
Principles and Priorities
(from the cutting room floor)
Every Trip
The Whole Trip
All of us
SUSTAINABLE FUTURE
Interim Material Produced During Development of Principles and Priorities
Sustainable Future
• Angelenos can live in 80/20 neighborhoods
• No child’s future is compromised by traffic-related health problems
• LA county is famous for its transit, walk and bike system, and for the efficiency of its streets and freeways
• Zero traffic deaths
• Transportation investments catalyze a clean tech economy
8/17/2011
Sustainable Future (Options)
• Greenhouse Gas emissions from travel within LA County are less than half of what they are today
• Metro is financially secure on an annual and long-term basis
• Children in LA county are active and healthy, with dramatically reduced obesity and asthma rates
• LA County’s economy is robust and successful in the global economy, resilient in responding to economic shifts, climate change, and rising energy prices
• Angelenos spend more time with loved ones and are not burdened by long commutes and high transportation costs
8/17/2011
Sustainable Future (Options)
• LA county is famous for its transit, walk and
bike system, and for the efficiency of its streets
and freeways.
• Angelenos can live in 80/20 neighborhoods: 8
out of 10 trips by walk, bike or transit
• Angelenos can opt out of congestion, while
conveniently reaching destinations
8/17/2011
Sustainable Future (Options)
• The transportation system contributes to the
economy of LA’s neighborhoods and business
districts, the region and the nation.
• Livable communities support healthy, active lives
for people of all ages, abilities and backgrounds
in all of Los Angeles’ communities
• Energy and non-renewable resources are used
efficiently and are increasingly replaced with
renewable energy and fuels
8/17/2011
Sustainable Transportation:
Principles and Priorities
Society Economy Environment
Access Prosperity Green Modes
Healthy
Neighborhoods
Community
Revitalization Urban Greening
Context
Sensitivity
System
Productivity
Environmental
Stewardship Conserve
Create
Connect
Connect People and Places
• Access. Better integrate land-use and
transportation planning to reduce trip lengths
and increase travel choices.
• Prosperity. Reduce transportation costs for
residents and provide the mobility necessary
to increase economic competitiveness.
• Green Modes. Promote clean mobility options
to reduce criteria pollutants, greenhouse gas
emissions, and dependence on foreign oil.
Create Community Value
• Healthy Neighborhoods. Improve public health
through traffic safety, reduced exposure to
pollutants, and design for walking and biking.
• Community Development. Design and build
transportation facilities that promote infill
development, build community identity, and
support social and economic activity.
• Urban Greening. Enhance and restore natural
systems to mitigate the impacts of transportation
projects on communities and wildlife.
Conserve Resources
• Context Sensitivity. Build upon the unique
strengths of Los Angeles County’s communities
through strategies that match local and regional
context and support investment in existing
communities.
• System Productivity. Increase the efficiency and
ensure the long-term viability of the multimodal
transportation system.
• Environmental Stewardship. Plan and support
transportation improvements that minimize material
and resource use through conservation, re-use, re-
cycling, and re-purposing.
