Bill Text: CA SB960 | 2023-2024 | Regular Session | Introduced
NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft
Bill Title: Transportation: planning: complete streets facilities: transit priority projects.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 6-0)
Status: (Introduced) 2024-05-06 - May 6 hearing: Placed on APPR suspense file. [SB960 Detail]
Download: California-2023-SB960-Introduced.html
requirements. requirements, and shall prioritize the implementation of comfortable, convenient, and connected facilities for pedestrians, bicyclists, and transit users on all projects in the program, where applicable, pursuant to Section 14526.7.
Bill Title: Transportation: planning: complete streets facilities: transit priority projects.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 6-0)
Status: (Introduced) 2024-05-06 - May 6 hearing: Placed on APPR suspense file. [SB960 Detail]
Download: California-2023-SB960-Introduced.html
CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE—
2023–2024 REGULAR SESSION
Senate Bill
No. 960
| Introduced by Senator Wiener (Principal coauthor: Assembly Member Friedman) (Coauthor: Senator Menjivar) (Coauthor: Assembly Member Lee) |
January 23, 2024 |
An act to amend Sections 14526.4 and 14526.6 of, and to add Section 14526.8 to, the Government Code, and to add Article 3.9 (commencing with Section 159) to Chapter 1 of Division 1 of the Streets and Highways Code, relating to transportation.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
SB 960, as introduced, Wiener.
Transportation: planning: transit priority projects: multimodal.
(1) Existing law requires the Department of Transportation to improve and maintain the state’s highways, and establishes various programs to fund the development, construction, and repair of local roads, bridges, and other critical transportation infrastructure in the state.
This bill would require all transportation projects funded or overseen by the department to provide comfortable, convenient, and connected complete streets facilities unless an exemption is documented and approved, as specified.
(2) Existing law requires the department, in consultation with the California Transportation Commission, to prepare a robust asset management plan to guide selection of projects for the state highway operation and protection program (SHOPP). Existing law requires the
commission, in connection with the plan, to adopt targets and performance measures reflecting state transportation goals and objectives. Existing law requires the department to develop, in consultation with the commission, a plain language performance report to increase transparency and accountability of the SHOPP.
This bill would require the asset management plan to prioritize the implementation of comfortable, convenient, and connected facilities for pedestrians, bicyclists, and transit users on all projects in the program, where applicable. The bill would repeal the requirement for the commission to adopt targets and performance measures and instead require the commission to adopt 4-year and 10-year objective targets and performance measures reflecting state transportation goals and objectives, including for complete streets assets that reflect the existence and conditions of bicycle, pedestrian, and transit facilities on the state highway system. The bill would
require the department’s plain language performance report to include a description of pedestrian, bicycle, and transit facilities on each project, as specified. The bill would require the department, in consultation with the commission, to update the asset management plan and use it to guide the selection of transit priority projects for the SHOPP, as specified.
(3) Existing law creates transit districts in designated areas throughout the state and authorizes the use of various vehicles for the purpose of public and private transit. Existing law authorizes transit buses and other transit vehicles to operate on state highways.
This bill would define “transit priority project” as a roadway design, operations, and enforcement action, treatment, or project that helps transit buses and other transit vehicles avoid traffic congestion, reduce signal delays, and move more predictably and reliably, as
specified. The bill would require the Director of Transportation to adopt a policy on transit priority projects for state and local highways. The bill would require the department to take certain actions to streamline the approval of transit priority projects, as specified. The bill would require the department to approve, deny, or make a determination on an application for a transit priority project or an encroachment permit for a transit priority project within specified time periods. The bill would prohibit the department from denying or delaying by more than 60 days the implementation of a transit priority project to do a detailed traffic analysis, as specified.
The bill would require the department to establish 4-year and 10-year targets for the fast and reliable movement of transit vehicles on state highways. The bill would require the targets to be designed to measure progress on specified objectives and to encourage a minimum 20% improvement for each
objective for each 4-year cycle. The bill would require the department to incorporate the targets into the State Highway System Management Plan and to account for local plans in identifying transit priority projects, as specified.
The bill would require the department to establish a process to streamline the approval of pedestrian facilities, traffic calming improvements, bicycle facilities, and transit priority projects at locations where a local highway is above, below, or otherwise intersects with, a conventional state highway, as specified.
Digest Key
Vote: MAJORITY Appropriation: NO Fiscal Committee: YES Local Program: NOBill Text
The people of the State of California do enact as follows:
SECTION 1.
The Legislature finds and declares the following:(a) California’s laws and policies underscore the importance of reducing car dependence and instead increasing walking, bicycling, and transit use in order to create more sustainable, healthy, and affordable communities. However, this mode shift is not yet consistently expressed across and aligned across state policies, programs, and agencies.
(b) Increasing vehicle miles traveled and infrastructure throughput improvements exclusively for cars and freight continue to impede California’s efforts to curb vehicle emissions and pollution and to achieve state climate and environmental goals.
(c) People who are walking or bicycling are killed or seriously injured in California at much higher rates than car drivers or passengers based on their percentage of trips and relative miles traveled, and these disproportionate rates are increasing each year.
(d) Underserved communities, including low-income communities and communities of color, lack safe streets, bicycle lanes, and sidewalks. In many cases, underserved communities also lack access to private vehicles, are dependent on shared rides or public transit, or simply lack any reliable transportation options. As a result, these communities experience higher rates of traffic fatalities and serious injuries and chronic diseases related to air pollution and the lack of safe physical activity.
(e) The Department of Transportation adopted
Director’s Policy 37 (DP-37) in 2021 to establish the department’s “organizational priority to encourage and maximize walking, biking, transit, and passenger rail as a strategy to not only meet state climate, health, equity, and environmental goals but also to foster socially and economically vibrant, thriving, and resilient communities. To achieve this vision, [the department] will maximize the use of design flexibility to provide context-sensitive solutions and networks for travelers of all ages and abilities.”
(f) Despite policy commitments by the department since 2008, the 2024 draft state highway operation and protection program reveals that significant progress has not been made toward achieving the policy set forth in DP-37.
(g) As the owner and operator of the state highway system, the department should play a pivotal role in improving bus transit operations by providing
transit priority corridors to speed up buses stuck in traffic and make transit more convenient and attractive for current and future transit users.
(h) Making buses faster and more reliable can address some of the inequities embedded in the current transit system. When transit is given priority on California’s roadways, buses are even more well-suited to deliver many more people to destinations in a less stressful, less polluting, and less costly manner than private vehicles.
(i) Transit priority has many proven benefits. When transit moves quickly, predictably, and reliably, it results in shorter travel times, more competitive service that attracts new riders, and more reliable travel times allowing for seamless transfers, lower operating costs, and more revenue for transit agencies. It also improves safety by reducing bus-automobile conflicts and creates faster response times
for emergency vehicles.
(j) The department should play a leadership role in advancing transit priority. This includes making changes to the state highway network to support fast and reliable transit travel.
SEC. 2.
Section 14526.4 of the Government Code is amended to read:14526.4.
(a) The department, in consultation with the commission, shall prepare a robust asset management plan to guide selection of projects for the state highway operation and protection program required by Section 14526.5. The asset management plan shall be consistent with any applicable state and federal(b)The department may prepare the asset management plan in phases, with the first phase to
be implemented with the 2016 state highway operation and protection program, and the complete asset management plan to be prepared no later than the 2020 state highway operation and protection program.
(b) The department shall include complete streets assets in the asset management plan, including pedestrian, bicycle, and transit facilities on the state highway system that are not required under the federal Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (Public Law 101-336).
(c) In connection with the asset management plan, the commission shall do both of the following:
(1)Adopt targets and performance measures reflecting state transportation goals and objectives.
(1) Adopt 4-year and 10-year objective targets and performance measures reflecting state transportation goals and objectives, including for complete streets assets that reflect the existence and conditions of bicycle, pedestrian, and transit facilities on the state highway system.
(2) Review and approve the asset management plan, including the final version of the first phase and the complete plan prepared by the department pursuant to subdivision (b). plan.
(d) The department, in consultation with the commission, shall
update the asset management plan and use it to guide the selection of transit priority projects, as described in Article 3.9 (commencing with Section 159) of Chapter 1 of Division 1 of the Streets and Highways Code, for the state highway operation and protection program, commencing with the project delivery report that is due on or before November 15, 2026, pursuant to Section 14526.5.
(d)
(e) As used in this section, “asset management plan” means a document assessing the health and condition of the state highway system with which the department is able to determine the most effective way to apply the state’s limited
resources.
SEC. 3.
Section 14526.6 of the Government Code is amended to read:14526.6.
(a) The department shall report to the commission quarterly, for projects which complete construction in the previous quarter, on the information outlined in subdivision (b) for all major state highway operation and protection program projects, as defined by the commission pursuant to subdivision (f) of Section 167 of the Streets and Highways Code.(b) The department shall report to the commission on the approved capital and support budgets compared to expenditures at contract construction acceptance for all projects included in subdivision (a).
(c) The department shall develop, in consultation with the commission, a plain language performance report to increase transparency and accountability of the
state highway operation and protection program. The plain language performance report shall include a description of pedestrian, bicycle, and transit facilities on each project, including the number, extent, and type of the facilities.
SEC. 4.
Section 14526.8 is added to the Government Code, to read:14526.8.
(a) Commencing with the 2026 state highway operation and protection program, in locations with current and future pedestrian, bicycle, or transit needs, all transportation projects funded or overseen by the department shall provide comfortable, convenient, and connected complete streets facilities for people walking, biking, and taking transit or passenger rail unless an exception is documented and approved as provided in subdivisions (b) and (c), as follows:(1) Facilities for pedestrians and bicyclists shall be provided and improved consistent with the most recent department guidance and shall serve people of all ages and abilities, in consultation with the appropriate city or county.
(2) Facilities to improve the movement and operations of transit vehicles on the state highway system, and to improve the transit user experience in accessing transit, planning trips, or paying fares, shall be provided and improved consistent with the most recent department guidance and in consultation with the appropriate transit agency.
(3) Complete streets projects should prioritize underserved communities that have been historically harmed and segmented by the transportation network, and public engagement for these projects shall include specific outreach targeted to the most underserved areas. For purpose of this paragraph, underserved communities include both the following:
(A) Low-income communities, as defined in Section 39713 of the Health and Safety Code.
(B) Equity priority communities based
on the transportation equity index established by the department.
(4) Each project development team established by the department for a project in a location with current and future pedestrian, bicycle, or transit needs shall consult with, and document consultation with, representatives from local bicycle, pedestrian, and transit advisory committees, community-based organizations, residents of underserved communities, and other local stakeholders impacted by the project regarding the pedestrian, bicycle, and transit facilities proposed for the project.
(b) (1) Except as provided in paragraph (2), this section shall not apply to projects on state highways or other facilities that are closed, by law, to use by pedestrians, bicyclists, and other nonmotorized users, and that do not include a current or future transit route.
(2) If a project includes improvements to highway entrances and exits that interact with local highways, the department shall consider bicycle, pedestrian, and transit improvements to the entrance and exit intersections within the project in consultation with the appropriate city, county, or transit agency.
(c) If the department decides to not include complete streets elements in capital and maintenance projects, the justification for that decision shall be documented with final approval by the responsible district director and posted to the department’s public internet website. The department may exempt a project from the requirements of this section when supported by data demonstrating a lack of current and future pedestrian, bicycle, or transit needs, following public engagement on the project including the appropriate city, county, or transit agency, and the representatives
described in paragraph (4) of subdivision (a).
SEC. 5.
Article 3.9 (commencing with Section 159) is added to Chapter 1 of Division 1 of the Streets and Highways Code, to read:Article 3.9. Transit Priority Projects
159.
For purposes of this article, the following definitions apply:(a) “Design exception” means an exception to the design standards specified in the Highway Design Manual, including, but not limited to, an exception to a lane width, signage, or striping requirement.
(b) “Highway” has the same meaning as provided in Section 360 of the Vehicle Code.
(c) “Performance measure” means an analytical planning tool that is used to quantitatively evaluate transportation improvements and to assist in determining effective implementation actions, considering all transportation modes and strategies.
(d) “Rider delay” means transit delay weighted by the number of transit riders experiencing the delay.
(e) “Transit delay” means the additional time that a transit rider spends on a segment of a state highway relative to the time required to travel the same segment during free-flow traffic conditions.
(f) “Transit priority project” means a roadway design, operations, and enforcement action, treatment, or project that helps transit buses and other transit vehicles avoid traffic congestion, reduce signal delays, and move more predictably and reliably, including all of the following:
(1) Bus stop or station placements and physical configurations, such as level boarding and bus bulbs, that are designed to maximize boarding, align
efficiency, and reduce delays, and sidewalks and crosswalks that are designed to provide safe access to and from transit stops and stations.
(2) Payment systems that reduce boarding times.
(3) Turn restrictions and exceptions designed to minimize disruption to transit movements or to give transit vehicles and emergency vehicles special privileges to make otherwise restricted turns.
(4) Strategic enforcement designed to minimize vehicles blocking transit stops and transit routes.
(5) Queue jump lanes to help transit vehicles move to the front of traffic waiting at a signal.
(6) Transit signal priority, retiming, and preemption that adjusts traffic signal timing in real time to minimize
transit vehicle delays. This may include, but is not limited to, reducing the length of a red light for a transit vehicle or extending an existing green light for an approaching transit vehicle.
(7) Dedicated lanes reserved for the exclusive use of transit vehicles and emergency vehicles.
(g) “Transit travel time reliability” means the amount of variability in the time required to travel a segment of the state highway during a given time of day.
159.1.
(a) The department shall establish 4-year and 10-year targets for the fast and reliable movement of transit vehicles on state highways that also operate on local highways. The targets shall be designed to measure progress on all of the following:(1) Improvement in transit travel time reliability.
(2) Increased average transit travel speed.
(3) Increased average transit travel speed relative to automobile travel speed.
(4) Reduced transit delay.
(5) Reduced rider delay.
(6) Improved rider throughput.
(7) Improved accessibility of stops, stations, and boarding facilities.
(b) The department’s targets shall be set to encourage a minimum of 20-percent improvement for each of the measures described in subdivision (a) for each 4-year cycle, relative to existing conditions.
(c) The department’s targets shall be incorporated into the State Highway System Management Plan (SHSMP), commencing with the 2027 SHSMP.
(d) The department shall take into account local plans in identifying transit priority projects but shall primarily base its transit priority investment priorities and selection criteria on the objective performance measures developed pursuant to this
section.
159.2.
(a) On or before January 1, 2026, the director shall adopt a policy on transit priority projects for state and local highways.(b) Beginning January 1, 2026, the department shall make a determination on an application for a transit priority project on state highways within 90 business days of receiving the application.
(c) The department, in consultation with transit operating agencies, shall establish a list of automatic and expedited design exceptions, and a process to streamline the approval of transit priority projects on state highways where transit buses routinely experience significant delays. The streamlining process shall be adopted on or before December 31, 2025, and
shall enable the department to make a determination on a transit priority project within 90 business days of receiving an application.
(d) On or before December 31, 2025, the department, in consultation with transit operating agencies, shall establish and adopt a process to streamline the approval of changes to occupancy requirements and hours of enforcement on corridors where transit buses operate either in a high-occupancy vehicle lane or a high-occupancy transit lane on a state highway.
(e) Beginning January 1, 2026, the department shall not deny, nor shall it delay by more than 60 days, the implementation of a transit priority project to do a detailed traffic analysis unless the traffic analysis directly relates to achieving the desired transit performance targets or the traffic analysis relates to a potential safety risk.
(f) Beginning January 1, 2026, the department shall approve or deny an application for an encroachment permit for a transit priority project within 60 days of receiving the application.
