Late amendments added to Assembly Bill 2059 (Wilson) require the Department of Transportation, in consultation with the Office of Land Use and Climate Innovation, to develop guidance on Vehicle Miles Traveled (VMT) mitigation measures for transportation projects in nonmetropolitan counties.
The guidance is to include case studies examining the range of costs for VMT mitigation measures in those areas; a review of direct and indirect VMT mitigation measures used; and identification of barriers to implementing VMT mitigation measures. It also is to include recommendations for how to identify and implement appropriate VMT mitigation measures in nonmetropolitan areas and thresholds of significance.
RCRC strongly opposed the state’s expansion of VMT evaluation and mitigation statewide because none of the traditional VMT mitigation measures are applicable in rural areas. RCRC also raised strong objections to a newly created VMT mitigation funding tool because it could result in compulsory mitigation payments for projects in rural areas that benefit denser urban areas in different counties or regions of the state.
These provisions were added to AB 2059 too late in the legislative process to afford any meaningful opportunity for public input. Rather than study additional VMT mitigation measures that could be used in rural areas, the Legislature should have instead focused on exempting rural areas from the requirement to use VMT in place of the level of service metric that is much more meaningful in those areas.
For more information, contact RCRC Senior Policy Advocate, John Kennedy.