      Copyright © 1996-1998 ABAG. All rights reserved. cl 07/16/99 |
ISSUE 1: MOBILITY |
| CONGESTION LEVELS | JOBS-HOUSING IMBALANCE | COMMUTE ALTERNATIVES | COMMUTE PATTERNS | ADDRESSING CONGESTION | TDM / TSM PROGRAMS | FUTURE STRATEGIES |
While projections for the period from 2000 to 2020 show Pacifica with a small 5 percent increase in household growth, the Midcoast communities and Half Moon Bay will together experience a 50 percent increase in housing growth - the highest rate of housing growth in the County.33 During the same 20-year period, job growth within the subregion is projected to average just 20 percent.34 As with the projected Countywide growth trends, the imbalance in job and housing growth projected for the subregion represents a fundamental obstacle to any comprehensive strategy to address the Coastside's growing congestion problem. COMMUTE ALTERNATIVES Convenient fixed-rail transit service such as BART or Caltrain is not readily available to commuters south of Pacifica due to the area's geography and remote location. Remaining commute alternatives include telecommuting, bus service, ridesharing or driving alone. Interviews with transportation managers at several large Bayside high tech firms and with staff at the region's transportation systems management agency - Multi-City Transportation Systems Management Agency (MTSMA) - indicate that very few workers will telecommute on a regular basis in the foreseeable future.35 Aside from bus service between Pacifica and downtown San Francisco, commuter bus service in the subregion is very limited. According to rideshare coordinators who have attempted to establish Coastside car and vanpools, coast commuters as a group have demonstrated an exceptionally strong reluctance to give up their cars compared to commuters in other regions.36 The empty park and ride lots temporarily established during the closure of Highway 1 at Devil's Slide and the resulting congestion it created is testament to the level of local resistance to the rideshare option, even in gridlock conditions. COMMUTE PATTERNS 1990 Census data reveals that three out of four commuters living in the subregion drives alone to work while the others either carpool (15%) or take transit (4%). Countywide projections indicate the preference for driving alone to work will continue well into the future as commute patterns shift further away from jobs concentrated in San Francisco, which are well served by transit, to widely-dispersed job sites in San Mateo and Santa Clara Counties and the East Bay, where transit service is limited.37 By the year 2010, Countywide projections indicate that nine out of ten commuters will continue to drive to work.38 Growing car and truck emissions further degrade air quality, threaten public well-being and pollute the natural environment while adding to the health care costs associated with breathing dirty air. The economic impact in lost productivity and wasted resources due to congestion in the nine-county Bay Area is estimated to be $3.5 billion annually.39 Public concern with increased congestion and its associated impacts on public health, the economy and the natural environment has motivated elected officials and transportation planners to evaluate a variety of strategies for addressing congestion using a comprehensive and multi-faceted approach. TOOLS AND STRATEGIES TO ADDRESS CONGESTION The City/County Association of Governments (C/CAG) serves as the Congestion Management Agency (CMA) for San Mateo County. C/CAG is comprised of representatives from each of the city councils in the County, three members of the Board of Supervisors and six nongovernmental members appointed by a committee from the Council of Mayors and Board of Supervisors. C/CAG is required by state law to prepare and adopt a Congestion Management Program (CMP) every two years to alleviate or control projected increases in roadway congestion. The Trip Reduction & Travel Demand Element of the CMP promotes the use of alternative transportation modes and ways to reduce future travel demand. Improving the County's jobs-housing balance and implementing travel demand management strategies such as ridesharing and transit are specific strategies for attaining the objectives of the CMP.40 The CMP also contains a Traffic Level of Service (LOS) Standard Element, a qualitative term used to describe a roadway's operating condition. The level of service of a road is designated by a letter ranging from A to F, with LOS A representing free flow conditions with little or no delay and LOS F representing completely jammed conditions with excessive delays. In recent years, levels of service on key segments of the subregion's two primary roads have been operating at LOS E, characterized by rapidly fluctuating speeds and flow rates, low maneuverability and low driver comfort.41 By 2010 or sooner however, segments of Highways 1 and 92 are projected to be at LOS F during peak commute periods characterized by heavily congested and stop-and-go traffic flows.42 The purpose of the Trip Reduction & Travel Demand Element of the CMP is to describe ongoing efforts to reduce congestion including promoting the use of travel modes other than the single-occupant automobile. The transportation management programs described in detail below represent the primary techniques for reducing the projected increases in congestion both Countywide and within the subregion. TDM/TSM Programs Measures that reduce the number of vehicle trips or vehicle miles traveled on the roadway system are referred to as Transportation Demand Management (TDM) measures and include such techniques as ridesharing (car and vanpools), telecommuting, transit, and non-vehicular transportation modes including walking and bicycling. County long-range land use planning facilitating a jobs-housing balance is also defined in the CMP as a TDM technique. Measures that improve the efficiency of the roadway system are referred to as Transportation Systems Management (TSM) measures and include signal synchronization, ramp metering, high occupancy vehicle (HOV) lanes, park and ride lots, and rapid accident removal service. At the local level, the Multi-City TSM Agency (MTSMA) oversees many of the TDM measures while TSM programs are generally managed by state and regional agencies including the California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) and the Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC).43 TDM Programs MTSMA was formed in 1991 to coordinate TSM efforts among the eight cities in northern San Mateo County including the cities of Pacifica and Half Moon Bay. Although the unincorporated Midcoast communities are not served by a specific TSM Agency, MTSMA programs serve residents from those communities. MTSMA's mission is to reduce traffic congestion and improve air quality by reducing automobile commute trips. MTSMA offers TDM programs to employers and the community and acts as a key resource for other public agencies and the private sector in facilitating alternative transportation programs. A summary of the primary MTSMA programs operating within the subregion is described below. Ridesharing A joint program with RIDES for Bay Area Commuters through a $500,000 grant from the Regional Air Quality Management District, the "SMARTPool" van service was created as a demonstration/pilot program primarily serving Coastside commuters to destinations outside the area using vans fueled by compressed natural gas. The purpose of the program has been to demonstrate how vanpooling can serve a medium- distance commute market and reduce drive- alone trips. Also, using clean fuel vans serves to keep fares lower due to lower maintenance and fuel costs while aiding in efforts to reduce air pollution. In 1997 four vans served Coastside commuters, but a chronic lack of ridership has recently forced MTSMA to redirect one of the four vans outside the region that formerly served Half Moon Bay commuters to Foster City. The three remaining vans - two serving Midcoast and Pacifica commuters to San Francisco and one taking Half Moon Bay farm laborers to Pescadero - will continue in 1998. Later this year MTSMA will transfer ownership of the vans to RIDES for Bay Area Commuters who will continue to manage the vanpool service although their long-range operation in the subregion remains uncertain. Non-Vehicular Modes TDM programs promote non-vehicular transportation modes, particularly bicycling and walking. These modes offer clean, healthful and low-cost commuting alternatives that can be made more attractive by providing the necessary facilities for safe and secure access, e.g. rights-of-way that are clearly marked, free of debris and safe. These modes can also be encouraged by providing changing areas and showers at employment sites and by promotional materials, including brochures and maps. Telecommuting MTSMA offers businesses resources to test the telecommuting option and is available to assist those interested in setting up a telecommunications program. In May 1996, MTSMA and the City of Pacifica sponsored a six-month telecommuting pilot project with ten individuals who lived and/or worked in Pacifica. The primary objective of the project was to confirm that telecommuting is a viable commute alternative as well as a productive workstyle option for employers. Guaranteed Ride Home At participating businesses, Coastside employees using public transit to work are assured they have a ride home when their transit option is unexpectedly eliminated, with employers and MTSMA agreeing to split the cost of either a cab ride or rental car. ETC Hot Spots Congestion Task Force Active employers join MTSMA to identify strategies to alleviate traffic woes on four highly congested roadways in four cities including Pacifica. A new ETC project targeting congestion along Highway 101 on the Peninsula is planned for later this year. Countywide Transit Incentives Campaign This program introduces new employees to their transit options before they get into the drive alone habit. Employees have the option of selecting tickets for Caltrain, BART or SamTrans. MTSMA's "Better Way" Video The video introduces viewers to commuters using alternatives to see firsthand how carpooling, riding transit and biking to work can save them time, money, increase their quality of life and reduce congestion. Bus Service In addition to the alternative transportation programs and services provided through MTSMA, the San Mateo County Transit Authority (SamTrans), operates bus service Countywide including 11 routes within the subregion. Commute service from a park and ride lot in Pacifica to the two BART stations in Colma and Daly City provides transit users with access to downtown San Francisco while neighborhood routes offer Pacifica residents service within the City and to shopping centers in Daly City and San Bruno. Peak service to the United Airlines Maintenance Base at the San Francisco airport provides Pacifica airport employees with a transit option. In Half Moon Bay, local off-peak hour bus service provides mid-day access over Highway 92 to the Bayside City of San Mateo with stops at the community college, Hillsdale Shopping Center and the downtown district. However, no commute hour service is available on Highway 92. Commuters to San Francisco are served by a route from Half Moon Bay to Pacifica where riders transfer for commuter service to BART and downtown San Francisco. SamTrans is currently conducting a study of bus service within its district and is considering recommendations to eliminate or consolidate one or more of the routes described above. While staff is recommending that service within the subregion not be eliminated, a final decision will be made by the SamTrans Board of Directors later this year. In response to commuter frustration with increasing levels of morning congestion on Highway 92 due to road construction and truck traffic, SamTrans recently conducted a mail survey of Coastside residents to determine the feasibility of establishing commuter shuttles along Highway 92 to worksites outside the subregion. The survey results identified concentrations of commuters in El Granada and Half Moon Bay interested in shuttle service, and it appears likely that these individuals will be contacted sometime later this year in an effort to provide them with a rideshare alternative.44 TSM Programs The transportation system management (TSM) programs available throughout the Bay Area include signal synchronization, ramp metering, HOV lanes, rapid accident removal service and park and ride lot facilities. However, due to the project area's remote geographical location, limited population and predominant two-lane road system, the only TSM program currently being implemented in the subregion is the presence of the park and ride lots in Pacifica and Half Moon Bay. No other TSM programs currently exist within the subregion. Park & Ride Lots Today there are three park and ride lots within the area, including two situated less than a mile apart along Highway 1 in Pacifica at Linda Mar Boulevard and Crespi Drive. The Linda Mar facility serves as the primary hub for commute bus service to BART and downtown San Francisco. Half Moon Bay has a facility at the Strawflower Village Shopping Center. Signal Synchronization Signal synchronization enables traffic flows to move more efficiently by coordinating the timing of traffic signals in an area. While not currently used in subregion, Half Moon Bay is now evaluating the feasibility of implementing signal synchronization in the future. Rapid Accident Removal Sponsored by the MTC Service Authority for Freeways and Expressways (SAFE), Caltrans and the CHP, the Freeway Service Patrol is a network of 50 tow truck drivers who patrol 235 miles of Bay Area freeways quickly clearing accidents and other incidents which contribute to the region's congestion. The program is funded through federal, state and local monies, including a $1 annual vehicle registration fee, and covers selected routes based on several factors, including population, traffic volumes and congestion. The program only serves four-lane or wider freeways. Based on the existing criteria for inclusion in the service sponsored by MTC, the subregion's predominant two-lane road system and population size precludes the Coastside from being served by the program. IMPLEMENTATION OF TDM AND TSM PROGRAMS Policy Framework While the implementation of such transportation management techniques as rapid accident removal, traffic synchronization, ramp metering, or HOV lanes may not be feasible in the subregion for the foreseeable future, existing County planning policies encourage the use of other techniques on the Coastside. San Mateo County Local Coastal Program (LCP) policies address alternate forms of transportation within the subregion including transit and ridesharing and, with regional policies contained in the Countywide CMP and CTP, provide the policy framework for implementing TDM services along the Coastside.45 For example, County policies encourage coordination with SamTrans in gaining use of or developing a park and ride facility near the intersection of Highways 1 and 92 in Half Moon Bay. SamTrans is also encouraged to run express buses between Coastside park and ride facilities and the Bayside during peak weekday commuter periods. On weekends, County policies suggest using the park and ride facilities for parking by visitors who could then walk, bike, or take a bus to shoreline recreation points. County CMP and CTP policies also contain strategies for increasing alternative forms of transportation through transportation management techniques aimed at reducing congestion throughout the county as well as in the subregion. Vanpools Coastside commuters are not unlike most commuters throughout the Bay Area where, despite dramatic increases in congestion in recent years, interest in vanpooling has remained stagnant for the past decade.46 While only 12 daily riders are needed to maintain one viable vanpool, MTSMA and private sector transportation coordinators note that recruiting those riders typically requires working from a pool of 24Ð36 interested commuters. Despite extensive efforts to encourage commuter interest in vanpooling among Coastside residents, with just three exceptions to date, the critical mass of riders required to expand vanpool service has not yet been recruited. For example, in an extensive employee outreach effort at Genentech in South San Francisco, of the roughly 200 Genentech employees living in the subregion, less than 10 expressed interest in ridesharing, not enough even to fill one vanpool.47 In the case of Oracle, where one of every four of its 7,000 employees resides in San Francisco, just one van provides service to roughly ten employees. Due to fluctuating ridership, a $100 monthly subsidy provided by Oracle is needed to keep the van in operation.48 Within the subregion, a Foster City-based firm supported a vanpool serving employees from Half Moon Bay with a $300 monthly subsidy to cover expenses resulting from low ridership. With mounting costs resulting from decreased ridership, after several months in operation, the company decided to cancel the vanpool. Not only do most Coastside residents share their disinterest in ridesharing with Bay Area commuters, according to rideshare coordinators, they have historically shown greater levels of independence and resistance to ridesharing compared to other Bay Area commuters. While a recent Samtrans survey of Coastside commuters indicates that there may yet be a growing interest in vanpooling, until an adequate number of commuters actually commits over the long term to abandon their car in favor of ridesharing, the current situation will prevail. Telecommuting Based on telephone interviews with transportation program managers and coordinators at several large Peninsula-based high tech firms, company-driven telecommuting programs remain very limited and are not expected to be expanded in the foreseeable future.49 Rather than establish formal, company-wide telecommuting programs, the larger Bayside firms employing coastal residents have instead opted to rely on informal arrangements made directly between managers and their employees. Yet, while thousands of employees at these computer-dependent companies have direct access to the tools that would enable them to telecommute, very few of them does so on any regular basis.50 Even in the high-tech telecommunications environment that drives much of the region's business activity, many of the larger employers are choosing to forego telecommute alternatives, preferring instead to maintain daily or regular personal communication with their employees. Park and Ride Lots In 1992, transportation planners at Caltrans and Samtrans considered the potential for constructing formal park and ride sites along the Midcoast and in Half Moon Bay near the intersection of Highways 1 and 92 and at the Princeton Harbor in El Granada. Unfortunately, state funding for the Caltrans park and ride program has steadily decreased since 1992 and has been virtually eliminated as of this year. Similarly, funding at the local level has evaporated with steady budget cuts and changes in state and federal laws. FUTURE STRATEGIES Vanpools One strategy for increasing Coastside participation in ridesharing suggested by MTSMA would entail the promotion of a longer-range vanpool service from the Coastside to Silicon Valley. While the current MTSMA pilot vanpool program serving mid-range commutes of 15-30 miles has had difficulty recruiting and maintaining adequate ridership, a longer-range commute service of 40-60 miles may be more attractive to Coastside commuters to the South Bay. Compared to shorter routes previously attempted, longer-range service has the potential to offer drive-alone commuters greater time and costs savings. In the past several years the rapid expansion of commercial development in and around the Redwood Shores Parkway has contributed to increased levels of congestion along the Highway 101 corridor from San Mateo to Redwood City. In response, this summer a unified effort by the two regional TSM Agencies operating in the County will establish a joint Hot Spots Congestion Task Force focused on increasing ridesharing among expanding companies along the corridor. A particular focus will be Oracle, which is currently pursuing plans to add two additional office facilities along the 101 corridor in Belmont. With over 100 Oracle employees currently commuting alone by car from the Coastside, an opportunity may emerge to provide vanpool service to a portion of those employees and others from the subregion now driving alone to larger Bayside worksites. Today, inexpensive door-to-door shuttle service to San Francisco, Oakland and San Jose International Airports is provided by private operations to travelers throughout the Bay Area. Yet, such service to the subregion is not available. Expanding airport shuttle service to the Coastside has the potential to offer both coastal residents and visitors with a convenient vanpool alternative. Park and Ride Lots With previous budget allocations earmarked directly for park and ride lot development no longer available, transportation planners have been required to identify other funding strategies. Today, funds for park and ride facility development are typically made available through larger transportation improvement projects. State transportation funds are available to local governments through a regional source of discretionary funds set aside each year for "ready-to-go" projects seeking less than $300,000. Such projects are reviewed each spring for funding the following fiscal year. One option to the construction of new park and ride lots pursued by Caltrans in recent years involves the leasing of existing parking lot space at shopping centers, churches, and other appropriate locations with convenient access to major transportation corridors. While Caltrans does not pay for the use of the privately-owned parking spaces, they do pay for the liability insurance to cover users of the facility, as well as for necessary signage and stripping, including required handicap access improvements. Most property owners or managers enter into these lease agreements with the expectation that rideshare users will stimulate retail sales or use at their facility. In Half Moon Bay, the use of parking lot space at the Lucky/Thrifty Shopping Center might provide the convenience needed to motivate Coastside commuters to consider the rideshare option. Along the Midcoast, space at the Half Moon Bay Airport or the Princeton Harbor might offer weekday commuters a more convenient park and ride location. Caltrans could be encouraged to evaluate opportunities to lease space and establish park and ride facilities at these sites. Non-vehicular Modes In concert with ongoing TDM efforts, governments in the subregion should continue to encourage biking, walking, and other alternative transportation modes in the subregion. Telecommuting Even though the large high tech firms employing Coastside residents contacted for this study do not have formal telecommuting programs, the results of MTSMA's Pacifica Pilot Telecommuting Project confirm the viability of telecommuting as both a commute alternative and a productive workstyle option for employers. To overcome the negative perceptions associated with telecommuting and encourage wider acceptance of this transportation alternative, the project's results could be more ctively promoted at select workplaces with concentrations of employees now commuting from the subregion. Land Use Reform Current and proposed strategies for addressing San Mateo County's increasing congestion recognize the need for multi-faceted approaches that incorporate both the TSM/TDM programs described above as well as changes in land use. As stated in the County Congestion Management Program (CMP), reforming land use policies to improve San Mateo County's jobs-housing balance is a method for achieving the congestion reduction goals of the County TSM Plan.51 In light of current and projected increases in Coastside congestion resulting from the factors described above, the land use reforms recommended in the CMP may represent a particularly useful method for addressing congestion in the subregion. Jobs-Housing Imbalance During the 20 year period between 2000 and 2020, ABAG projections reveal that net increases in the number of households will outpace the net increase in job growth by a ratio of over 2 to 1 in Half Moon Bay and the Midcoast.52 Pacifica is projected to experience relatively small net increases in both households and total jobs during the same 20-year period, and its existing ratio of three households for every local job is projected to remain unchanged. ABAG projections indicate the subregion will continue to experience a significant jobs-housing imbalance and will likely remain a bedroom community for the increasing number of residents employed in jobs located outside the subregion. ABAG projections reveal that by the year 2020, the expanding gap between the projected number of households and the number of available jobs on the Coastside will result in more and more residents commuting to work outside the subregion. By the year 2020, ABAG projections show that of the 8,000 additional employed residents living in Half Moon Bay and the Midcoast, 7,000 of them will work outside the subregion. With three out of four employed residents in the area currently driving alone to work and likely to continue doing so well into the future, that translates into at least 5,250 additional single-occupant cars on the Coastside's already congested highways. While projected growth trends on the Coastside show housing growth outpacing job growth by a 2 to 1 margin between 2000 to 2020, the opposite is projected for the County as a whole as job growth outpaces housing growth by a ratio of nearly 2 to 1.53 A projected shortage of new housing units in Santa Clara County is expected to further increase development pressures in San Mateo County. These trends together result in a projected Countywide deficit of over 10,000 housing units by the year 2010.54 In contrast, the amount of residential development currently allowed by existing land use plans in the subregion would create a surplus of approximately 4,800 potential housing units above the number needed to accommodate projected growth in Coastside jobs through the year 2015.55 With the Coastside representing the only subregion in the County containing a surplus of potential housing units, the projected shortage of housing in the remainder of the County is likely to place additional development pressure within the subregion to accommodate projected Countywide housing demand. The 1995 CMP and most recent draft versions of the 1997 CMP and CTP reveal that the most effective strategy for reducing projected increases in congestion is through a combination of improvements to highway and mass transit systems and land use reforms. One CTP draft policy encourages the location of housing in high employment areas in order to support land uses that increase transit viability while promoting a closer balance between job and housing growth.56 With projected housing development dramatically outpacing growth in Coastside jobs, and very limited access to mass transit, the subregion appears to represent an area suitable for land use reforms designed to foster a jobs-housing balance. Balancing Job and Housing Growth For the past several months, elected officials, planners and community leaders throughout San Mateo County have been discussing strategies for promoting a jobs-housing balance and the location of new housing closer to mass transit systems and major transportation corridors. They are now considering a balanced growth program which, in its current form, would foster a balance between new jobs and housing by monitoring the net number of new jobs and new housing created in each city within the County. Under the program, if a city failed to provide an adequate net increase in housing to accommodate net increases in job growth and did not correct the housing deficiency after a two year grace period, then it could lose its share of state transportation funds. If approved and adopted for inclusion in the Land Use Element of the County's CMP, the program would formalize a strategy to reform land use policies designed to foster a countywide jobs-housing balance. Yet, as currently envisioned, the proposed balanced growth strategy does not address the Coastside subregion's unique jobs-housing imbalance where, in contrast to every other subregion in the county, a lack of job growth is projected to create a substantial surplus in housing. Instead, the program's emphasis is on providing housing in areas experiencing rapid job growth. CONCLUSION The subregion currently suffers from some of the worst peak hour congestion in the County and all indications are that Coastside congestion will be getting even worse despite the planned public investments in highway and transit systems improvements on the Bayside.57 If every one of the potential housing units currently allowed by existing local coastal plans is eventually built in the subregion, projections indicate the Coastside's jobs-housing imbalance will expand and further complicate any comprehensive strategy to minimize increases in Coastside congestion. Analysis of transportation management techniques reveals that the most effective strategy for reducing projected increases in congestion throughout the County is through a combination of improvements to highway and mass transit systems and land use reforms. Given the subregion's remote location and limited road expansion capability, a combination of alternative transportation programs including ridesharing and telecommuting should be pursued in tandem with reforms in land use aimed at improving the Coastside's jobs-housing imbalance through creation of a local job market for its professional residents. In developing land use policy for the Coastside, it is crucial for the County to acknowledge the importance of promoting a jobs-housing balance in the subregion by fostering additional job growth while considering the feasibility of allowing other land uses in areas currently zoned exclusively for housing. |
| Copyright © 1996-1998 ABAG. All rights reserved. cl 07/16/99 |