HomeMy WebLinkAbout2019-12-10; City Council; ; How Transportation System Management and Transportation Demand Management Programs Advance Mobility and Climate Goals(i) CITY COUNCIL
Staff Report
Meeting Date:
To:
From:
Staff Contacts:
Dec. 10, 2019
Mayor and City Council
Scott Chadwick, City Manager
Paz Gomez, Deputy City Manager, Public Works
Paz.Gomez@carlsbadca.gov, 760-602-2751
Gary Barberio, Deputy City Manager, Community Services
Gary.Barberio@carlsbadca.gov, 760-434-2822
CA Review :A:L a,-,
Subject: How Transportation System Management and Transportation Demand
Management Programs Advance Mobility and Climate Goals
Recommended Action
Receive an informational report on the use of transportation system management and
transportation demand management programs to advance the city's mobility and climate goals.
Executive Summary
This informational report explains how transportation system management is used to manage
existing traffic, and how transportation demand management is used to reduce the demand to
drive, particularly during the peak commute hours.
Discussion
City staff made an informational presentation to the City Council on the city's Growth
Management Plan on July 9, 2019, and followed up on July 16, 2019, with an agenda item to
consider the city's Fiscal Year 2017-18 Growth Management Plan Annual Monitoring Report.
That report analyzed traffic on various street facilities, or portions of roadways, throughout
Carlsbad.
In that presentation, staff told the City Council that eight street facilities in the city fell below
the city's required standards for service and discussed the steps set forth in the Growth
Management Plan to address those deficiencies.
At the July 16, 2019 meeting, the City Council indicated a need for a detailed discussion with
additional information before the City Council takes action on the matter. As a result, the City
Manager asked that the matter be continued to a future City Council rryeeting to allow time for
staff to prepare presentations related to:
1) The different ways the transportation system and transportation demand management
programs work to manage traffic congestion and improve mobility
Dec. 10, 2019 Item #17 Page 1 of 11
2) Recommendations on addressing the deficient level of service on four street facilities
located outside Local Facilities Management Zone 15
3) Additional options to address the deficiencies in level of service on four street facilities
affecting Local Facilities Management Zone 15, which relate to the uncompleted portion
of College Boulevard
This staff report covers the first of those topics. Staff will make two additional presentations at
future City Council meetings to cover the other two topics.
City goals
In 2015 the City Council adopted amendments to its General Plan, which sets forth the
vision for the growth and development of the city. This plan noted that the city's transportation
system had long been focused on the automobile and acknowledged that the roadways and
intersections that had been envisioned in the General Plan, approved in 1994, had largely been
built out as planned.
While the General Plan had previously included a Circulation Element focused on vehicle
circulation, that is, on how automobile traffic could move around and through the city, the
2015 General Plan's Mobility Element focused on improving all types of mobility around
Carlsbad. Specifically, "to enhance vehicle, walking, bicycling, and public transportation systems
options within Carlsbad, and improve mobility through increased connectivity and intelligent
transportation management."
This shift in focus acknowledges that Carlsbad's roadway system is almost completed as
planned and the city can no longer physically improve its roadways to ease traffic congestion in
those areas where the infrastructure is built out. Meanwhile, the traffic that flows through the
city has been increasing, a trend that's expected to continue.
The General Plan's Mobility Element approved in 2015 set forth a vision of improvements to the
transportation system intended to create more livable streets, provide viable connections
between transportation options and enable people and cargo to move around the city as
efficiently and reliably as possible. It also called for efforts to reduce people's demand to drive
by promoting travel options other than driving alone.
The City Council also approved a Climate Action Plan in 2015 as part of the city's efforts to
promote a sustainable environment. This plan lists measures intended to reduce Carlsbad's
greenhouse gas emissions, and one of those measures focuses on managing the demand to
drive.
This is why the city has moved away from road-widening projects to implementing
transportation system and demand management strategies.
Two complimentary strategies
Transportation system management and transportation demand management share common
goals: to manage and reduce traffic congestion, improve air quality by cutting down on
Dec. 10, 2019 Item #17 Page 2 of 11
greenhouse gases and reduce or eliminate the need for improvements to the city's
transportation infrastructure.
But while they are complimentary, they are very different approaches. One is focused on
enhancing the flow of traffic on the existing roadways, the other on changing commuter
behavior over time.
These strategies are designed to increase the reliability and efficiency of the city's roadways
while providing and encouraging alternatives that can get cars off the road.
Transportation system management is aimed at vehicles on the roads now
Six large screens cover one wall in the city's Traffic Management Center at the City of Carlsbad
Faraday Center. They show video images of key intersections around the city, charts showing
how many cars are passing given points and other up-to-the-minute data. A technician
monitoring this data can adjust the timing of traffic signals to manage·slowdowns caused by
traffic accidents, or other unpredictable problems. On one busy corridor, along Rancho Santa Fe
Road, an automated system adjusts the timing of traffic lights in real time to try to prevent
avoidable congestion. It also flags unexpected problems, including equipment malfunctions, so
that the technician can step in to try to keep traffic moving.
The Traffic Management Center and the adaptive traffic signals pilot project along Rancho
Santa Fe Road are examples of transportation system management, which uses technology and
infrastructure to move people and goods through an area as efficiently as possible.
The strategy enables the city to get the best performance possible from our existing
transportation infrastructure when widening roadways would be inconsistent witli the General
Plan's Mobility Element.
Transportation system management is useful when:
A roadway is approaching congestion, but increasing the physical capacity of the
roadway may not be feasible or desirable
• Increasing the capacity of a roadway is too costly or ~nvironmentally damaging
• Traffic congestion exists only at specific bottlenecks, which can be addressed with
improvements to the system
Examples of transportation system management strategies that can improve traffic flow
include:
Coordinating traffic signal timing
Improving vehicle detection and monitoring
Limiting access to main thoroughfares
Setting aside lanes for public transit vehicles or multi-occupant vehicles, either
permanently or only during peak hours
Limiting on-street parking
Creating one-way street networks to reduce turning movements and congestion
Designating turn-only lanes
Putting railroad tracks above or below streets (e.g., in a trench)
Dec. 10, 2019 Item #17 Page 3 of 11
Deploying a system that directs commuters to available on or off-street parking
The adaptive signals along Rancho Santa Fe Road, which use artificial intelligence and data on
traffic flow to make minute adjustments to signal timing, are an example of using cutting-edge
technology to manage transportation. Staff recently expanded the adaptive signals pilot
program to include weekends in a step toward rolling it out across the city.
All these transportation system management efforts are focused on managing today's traffic
and transportation infrastructure to try to make it flow more efficiently and reliably.
Transportation demand management is aimed at reducing the demand to drive
The city recently launched the Carlsbad Connector, an on-demand service that shuttles
commuters between the Carlsbad Poinsettia Coaster train station and nearby workplaces. City
staff have also been trying to encourage parents to use carpools to get their children to and
from school.
These are examples of transportation demand management strategies.
Unlike transportation system management, which tries to help traffic flow efficiently and safely,
transportation demand management is an effort to reduce the demand to drive, particularly
during the morning and evening rush hours.
And while transportation system management affects all travelers through an area, the city's
current transportation demand management is focused on people commuting to and from
work or school. That's because those trips are predictable, scheduled and adjustable, unlike, for
example, a quick trip to the supermarket or an emergency trip to a doctor's office.
Those daily trips to and from work or school are also the main cause of the normal weekday
traffic congestion that can slow traffic to a crawl. Building new roadways or physically widening
existing ones will not provide the lasting effects that can be realized by reducing the number of
single-occupancy vehicles.
Transportation demand management includes a collection of elements designed to cut down
on the demand to drive, particularly during the peak commute hours. Those elements include:
Providing ridesharing services like the Carlsbad Connector, which help commuters travel
that "last mile" from a transit station to their destinations
Working with employers to offer alternate work schedules and encourage and support
the use of public or alternate forms of transportation
Requiring non-residential developments to create plans for getting employees to and
from work in ways that cut down on single-occupancy vehicle trips
Getting vehicles off the road through transportation demand management, particularly during
those peak commute hours, reduces traffic congestion and air pollution, improving the quality
of life for Carlsbad's residents and workers.
Dec. 10, 2019 Item #17 Page 4 of 11
Simple steps can be effective in this effort. For example, providing secure bicycle parking and
showers can encourage workers to bike to work. Providing a subsidy for public transit can make
taking a train or bus more financially appealing. Offering dining options and services such as dry
cleaning at a work site reduces the need to drive to run errands. Allowing telecommuting and
flexible work schedules lets workers stay at home and reduces vehicle use and idling. And
public outreach and education can encourage people to change their driving routines.
Carlsbad's Transportation Demand Management Ordinance (Carlsbad Municipal Code Chapter
18.51) which became effective in April 2019, requires all new non-residential developments
that will generate a minimum of 110 average daily employee trips to develop and implement
transportation demand management plans.
Some employers have voluntarily offered commuter benefit packages to attract and retain
quality workers. These three Carlsbad employers voluntarily participate in the San Diego
Association of Governments' regional transportation demand management program and have
been able to get about 30% of their employees to use alternative means of transportation:
Thermo Fisher Scientific: The 2,000 employees at this biotechnology company get better.
parking spots if they commute by carpool and have access to on-site showers and
lockers for commuting by bicycle. The company also subsidizes a van pool, encourages
the use of public transit and has a monthly commuting challenge and other programs to
help employees break the habit of commuting alone by car.
CommonGrounds: This co-working space provides on-site bicycling facilities that include
a repair station and a bike share program, racks, showers and lockers. Transit riders get
complimentary COASTER passes and other incentives. An on-site cafe and on-site
services such as dry cleaning alleviate the need to run errands during peak traffic hours.
Viasat: This communications company provides on-site bikes to its 2,500 employees for
short trips between buildings. It also offers shower facilities, a cafe and coffee shop as
well as a fitness center, a carpool partnership and other on-site amenities to try to
reduce vehicle trips.
The city's practice of allowing some employees to work flexible work schedules, such as
working 80 hours over nine days instead of ten, is an example of transportation demand
management. The city is working to implement more flexible work schedules for its workers to
get more vehicles off the road or avoid peak commute times.
The city has also launched a pilot campaign to encourage carpooling to and from schools and
will consider how homeowner associations could also be involved in transportation demand
management efforts.
How these strategies relate to the Mobility Element of the General Plan
The Mobility Element of the city's General Plan calls for the city to implement transportation
demand management and, specifically, traffic signal management to improve mobility and carry
out Carlsbad's Community Vision. (Mobility Element Goals & Policies 3-G.5.)
Dec. 10, 2019 Item #17 Page 5 of 11
It also requires new developments that add traffic to a roadway the council has exempted from
meeting the levels of service required by the city's Growth Management Plan to implement
transportation system and demand strategies. (Goals & Policies 3-P.9 and 3-P.11.)
Transportation system management measures consist of the developer installing or improving
traffic signal control systems or paying a fair share of the cost of traffic signal control system
improvements.
The city has not yet implemented transportation demand measures on a roadway designated
as exempt. Staff could use the city's Transportation Demand Management Handbook to
develop an appropriate plan for such a street facility. Such plans would include requirements
for monitoring and reporting results.
How performance is measured
Carlsbad, like other cities, has historically tracked such factors as vehicle speeds and motorist
convenience in its efforts to monitor the performance of its transportation system. The city's
standards for service could be met by increasing roadway capacities.
But that system is now largely built out, as noted above, and the level of service on the city's
streets is expected to continue to degrade as traffic and congestion throughout the region
continues to increase.
Proper transportation system management can help maintain acceptable levels of service
longer by making the existing system work as efficiently and reliably as possible. These
strategies slow down increases in congestion, even though they can't halt the trend.
For example, recently collected data show that transportation system management efforts
have been helping the city's traffic flow more smoothly at lower, off-peak volumes, but,
because the roads cannot bear additional traffic, peak-hour congestion is expected to occur at
the same levels as before.
The performance of the city's transportation system management efforts can be assessed by
how well the city manages the predictable congestion of those morning and evening commutes
as well as the non-recurring congestion of crashes and construction. Another benchmark is how
the city handles and avoids equipment failures.
More specifically, we can see the benefits of transportation system management along Rancho
Santa Fe Road, where the adaptive signals pilot program has improved traffic flow along the
thoroughfare and reduced delays on side streets during midday hours, if not during rush hours.
Improved transportation system management has also reduced complaints about the reliability
of the system, that is, traffic signal lights that are broken and flashing red, as city technicians
are now automatically notified of such problems.
The performance oftransportation demand management strategies is a measure of how many
vehicle trips through and around the city can be avoided. It's about changing behavior, so the
results can be tough to trc:ick, but initial indications from three local businesses are encouraging.
Dec. 10, 2019 Item #17 Page 6 of 11
Staff will assess the impact of transportation demand management through surveys of
employees to gauge their commuting habits. The city makes these surveys mandatory for
employers who meet the thresholds stated above. Fourteen businesses in Carlsbad are subject
to the Transportation Demand Ordinance and will be required to conduct surveys. Staff expects
to receive data from these surveys in early 2021, after the first full year ofimplementation.
City staff are also looking into using transit ridership figures and other sources of data to try to
track results.
The city has also contracted with a company called UrbanTrans to develop ways to measure the
results of transportation demand management measures with surveys at participating business
and other data.
Conclusion
As the city continues working to improve transportation conditions, it's helpful to remember
how these two transportation strategies, system and demand management, interact with one
another.
For example, efforts to reduce the demand for driving by providing bike racks and showers at
an employment center are more likely to succeed when dedicated bike lanes link the complex
to a train station. More mobility options are needed to reduce demand for those predictable
single-occupancy trips, but they must be planned strategically. There is a balance to be struck
between transportation system and demand management efforts, and it's important to keep
the city's broader mobility and climate action goals in mind.
It's also worth noting that both transportation system and transportation demand management
have citywide and project-by-project components.
On the system side, implementing adaptive signal technology across the city is an example of
the broader approach. Setting transportation-related conditions on an individual development
is an example of the more granular component.
On the demand side, the city is working with the San Diego Association of Governments and the
North County Transit District-to try to develop options to driving alone by car across the city
while also working with individual businesses to reduce the need to drive to and from their
locations.
A very small number of cities in the region have successful city programs for implementing
transportation system management and none has a formal transportation demand
management program. Many cities have begun the process and are working on programs to
address traffic congestion and the related air pollution, but Carlsbad is further along than most
in these efforts and has an opportunity to be a leader in how cities can effectively manage
traffic now and in the future.
Dec. 10, 2019 Item #17 Page 7 of 11
As part of the FY 2017-18 annual growth management monitoring report update, this item was
presented to the Traffic and Mobility Commission on Dec. 2, 2019, as an informational item.
Attached as Exhibit 1 are the draft minutes from that meeting.
Fiscal Analysis
This item is an informational presentation on the topic of transportation system and demand
management and as such there is no financial impact.
Environmental Evaluation (CEQA)
Pursuant to Public Resources Code Section 21065, receiving an informational presentation on
the work related to transportation system and demand management does not qualify as a
"project" within the meaning of the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) in that it has
no potential to cause either a direct physical change in the environment, or a reasonably
foreseeable indirect physical change in the environment, and therefore does not require
environmental review.
Public Notification
This item was noticed in accordance with the Ralph M. Brown Act and was available for public
viewing and review at least 72 hours prior to the scheduled meeting date.
Exhibits
1. Draft Minutes from the Dec. 2, 2019 Traffic and Mobility Commission Meeting
Dec. 10, 2019 Item #17 Page 8 of 11
December 9, 2019
All Rec"ive -Agenda Item# I·::,-
For the Information of the:
CITY COUNCIL
Date 12-!vi CA _:f!_cc:f!._
CM __:f2coo ~ DCM (3) _:e-
Re: 12/10/2019 City Council Agenda Item #17 -Transportation Systems Management (TSM) and
Transportation Demand Management (TOM) Programs
Honorable Mayor Hall and Members of City Council:
At the 12/2/2019 Traffic and Mobility Commission meeting, the commission considered a combined
agenda item that included: (1) an overview of the TOM and TSM programs, and (2) four Growth
Management Plan (GMP) street facility deficiencies with recommended vehicle level of service (LOS)
exemptions/expedited Capital Improvement Plan projects. You are receivingthe TSM/TDM item at your
12/10/2019 meeting, and the street deficiency matter is scheduled for your 12/17/2019 meeting.
For the latter (GMP) item, the commission supported Staff's recommended actions, including exemption
of three of the facilities. However, the commission also voted to recommend that you prioritize
implementation of meaningful and trackable TDM and TSM programs to help mitigate congestion on
the ever increasing list of exempted street facilities, pursuant to Mobility Element Policy 3-P.11.
It is not evident from the Staff Report that this recommendation will be passed along, and apparently
because the TDM/TSM portion of this matter was considered "information only," a representative of the
commission was not asked to attend your meeting to directly relay that recommendation.
Based on the discussion at the commission meeting, the TDM Ordinance is geared more toward
greenhouse gas reduction and is only mandatory for developments that generate at least 110 average
daily trips (ADT). Mobility Element Policy 3-P.11 requires TDM/TSM to help mitigate congestion and
related traffic flow problems, but formal programs have not yet been implemented, and performance
monitoring is not in place.
My own view is that the programs should apply to all developments, regardless of whether they are
non-residential or residential, and that any developments that add traffic should be responsible for their
fair shares. In addition, I believe that direct performance measures are needed (e.g., direct evidence of
mode shifting away from single-occupancy vehicles) rather than indirect measures (e.g., existence of
amenities that might encourage mode shifting, such as showers at work places or vague surveys).
Best regards,
Steve Linke, Carlsbad
1
How Transportation System and Demand
Management Programs Advance
Mobility and Climate Goals
Paz Gomez, Deputy City Manager, Public Works
Gary Barberio, Deputy City Manager, Community
Services
Dec. 10, 20191
Background
•July 16, 2019 report noted annual traffic
monitoring done to carry out city’s Growth
Management Plan found eight street facilities
did not meet required standards
•Council asked for additional options
2 Dec. 10, 2019
Overview
First of three presentations:
1.Transportation system and demand
management
2.Options on addressing service deficiencies
on four street facilities (road sections)
3.Options for the service deficiencies on the
second four street facilities
3 Dec. 10, 2019
From cars to mobility
•General Plan updated in 2015
•Previous plan focused on the automobile
•Road system is largely built out as planned
•But traffic will keep increasing
•So focus is now on all forms of mobility and
transportation system, demand management
4 Dec. 10, 2019
Mobility Element
Mobility Element’s transportation vision
•A network of livable streets
•Viable links between transportation options
•Efficient and reliable mobility around the city
•Fewer single-occupant vehicles on the roads
5 Dec. 10, 2019
Climate Action Plan
Climate Action Plan adopted in 2015
•Lists measures to reduce greenhouse gases
•One measure calls for efforts to reduce the
demand for people to drive
6 Dec. 10, 2019
Common goals
Transportation system and demand management:
•Manage and try to reduce traffic congestion
•Improve traffic flow
•Cut down on greenhouse gas emissions
•Improve all forms of mobility
7 Dec. 10, 2019
Different strategies
System management
•enhances flow of traffic on existing roadways
8 Dec. 10, 2019
Demand management
•encourages behavior shift away from single-
occupant vehicle trips
Helping traffic flow
9
Carlsbad’s Traffic
Management Center
Dec. 10, 2019
Getting the most from existing roads
Transportation system management helps when
•A congested roadway cannot be widened
•Adding capacity is too costly, or damaging
•Congestion can be relieved with improvements
10 Dec. 10, 2019
Examples of system management
•Coordinating the timing of traffic signals
•Setting aside lanes for buses or carpools
•Limiting on-street parking
•Designating turn-only lanes
11 Dec. 10, 2019
System management in Carlsbad
•Advanced detection of vehicles, bikes, people
•Extending left-turn bays to keep traffic flowing
•Adding turn lanes with right-and left-turn
green arrows
•Setting up automated alarms to flag problems
•Implementing adaptive traffic signals
12 Dec. 10, 2019
Traffic signals project update
Mid-2011-2017:
•Traffic Management Center set up
•Proactive equipment upgrades
•Retiming signals improves peak-hour traffic
Mid-2018-present:
•Adaptive software and equipment
•Adaptive signals improve off-peak traffic
13 Dec. 10, 2019
Traffic signals project results
Phase 1: Peak hours
•Improved signal coordination
•Travel times on major corridors reduced by 40%
Phase 2:
•Rancho Santa Fe Road pilot project completed
•Improved travel times
•Reduced delays on side streets
14 Dec. 10, 2019
Reducing the demand to drive alone
15 Dec. 10, 2019
Examples of demand management
•Creating ridesharing services
•Offering flexible work schedules, telecommuting
•Providing bike racks, lockers and showers
•Having dining, laundry, services at worksites
•Giving incentives for not commuting alone by car
•Encouraging use of public transit
16 Dec. 10, 2019
Targeting weekday commuters
•Daily trips to and from work are the main
cause of routine congestion
•Travel times are predictable and adjustable
•Reducing single-occupant vehicle trips has
more lasting benefits than building new
roads
17 Dec. 10, 2019
Demand management in Carlsbad
•Carlsbad Connector
•Requiring developers to create demand management plans
•Pilot campaign to encourage carpooling to schools
•Possible flexible work schedules for city staff
•Employers voluntarily working to reduce demand
18 Dec. 10, 2019
When demand management is required
General Plan’s Mobility Element
•Requires demand –and system –management by new developments that add traffic to roadways declaredexempt from meeting level of service standards
Transportation Demand Management Ordinance
•Requires demand management by all non-residential projects adding 110 average daily employee trips
19 Dec. 10, 2019
Measures of performance
Signs transportation system management is
working:
•All forms of traffic flows better
•System is as efficient and reliable as possible
•Unavoidable traffic increases are slowed down
20 Dec. 10, 2019
Measures of performance
Signs transportation demand management is working:
•Fewer vehicle trips by solo commuters
•Flexible schedules and amenities being offered
•Increased transit ridership
•Connections between that last mile and transit
•Voluntary implementations by businesses
21 Dec. 10, 2019
Next steps
•Finalize ways to measure performance
•Implement adaptive signal technology
•Fill gaps in transportation system
•Develop more options to solo commuting
•Work with employers on reducing demand
22 Dec. 10, 2019
Conclusions
•These strategies are intricately connected
•Carlsbad is further along than other cities in
using these strategies to manage
transportation and reduce greenhouse
gases
23 Dec. 10, 2019
Thank you
24