AgdaPkt 2010-02-01 clsd and regular

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Saltworks proposal- Transportation Group Summary Report (22 January 2010) 7A - ATTACHMENT NO.4 Page 12 CHAPTER 2 - REGIONAL CONSIDERATIONS 2.1 PROXIMITY OF HOUSING TO JOBS AND REGIONAL TRANSPORTATION One of the main objectives of the proposed Saltworks development is to "provide housing on the jobs rich/housing poor Peninsula thus reducing commute trips and their associated vehicle miles of travel (VMT) and green house gas (GHG) emissions." Based on the scale of the project and the provided materials, the project would substantially change the job/housing balance with the addition of up to 12,000 dwelling units in the mid-Peninsula area between SR 92 in the north and SR 85 in the south. It is generally accepted that well-designed mixed-use developments can reduce vehicle trips and trip length by combining complementary land uses that create communities where alternative modes of travel - such as walking, biking, and transit - replace auto trips. Creating a balance between the jobs, housing, and services, such as shopping, schools, and parks within a given development, will minimize the need for vehicle trips outside the community. Placing a large amount of housing in an area with an excess of jobs can produce benefits similar to those of a self-contained mixed-use development, but at a regional level by reducing average trip lengths and therefore reducing the VMT and GHG emissions 1. For the Saltworks proposal future residents would replace employees working at nearby jobs who currently reside farther away. The effectiveness of this type of regional approach to jobs/housing balancing is highly dependent on the types of housing (price) in the Saltworks compared to the types of available jobs (their salaries) in the Peninsula region, as well as the number of the housing units compared to the number of available jobs. In addition, the application does not provide definitive information on the extent of, commitment to, and mechanisms used to deliver programs that would create linkages between Saltworks housing and neighboring employment, such as employee-preference housing subsidies. The Statement of Justification has a stated goal of "reducing by 50 percent the average VMT generated per household by employees that, absent a new housing opportunity at Saltworks, would commute into Redwood City for employment." Further reductions in VMT could be gleaned from the proposed transportation demand management programs and transit service in the community. Based on the information provided in the application, the Saltworks site appears to have an opportunity to alter travel patterns on the Peninsula as well as reduce the use of solo-occupant vehicles. Figure 1 shows an example of how existing, long-distance auto trips could be replaced by shorter trips due to the location of additional housing in proximity to existing jobs. It also demonstrates how these shorter commute trips could also be made using alternative modes of travel. However, no formal technical analysis has been prepared for the Saltworks project that would estimate specific levels of reduction in either VMT or GHG emissions due to the project as compared to the current development patterns. There are some valid reasons why this type of analysis has not been performed by DMB, including the lack of an adopted method for estimating VMT at both the regional and State levels and the need for local agencies to provide input into its key assumptions. However, without a detailed analysis, the veracity of the anticipated 50 percent reduction in VMT cannot be assured. 1 Growing Cooler, the Evidence on Urban Development and Climate Change, Reid Ewing, Keith Bartholomew, Steve Winkleman, Jerry Walters, and Don Chen, 2009 5