Too many cars, not enough land in SM
CITYWIDE — A community group that sued City Hall over access to internal e-mails and other documents related to the remodel of Santa Monica Place wants to partner with city officials in an effort to change the way traffic is measured.
The Santa Monica Coalition for a Livable City (SMCLC) believes the current method for calculating traffic impacts created by new development fails to accurately record the amount of cars passing through side streets and other arterial roads, as it relies heavily on data collected only at major intersections during peak hours.
To develop a more precise methodology — one which looks at the effects of development on the city as a whole — SMCLC would like City Hall and Big Blue Bus to join with them in applying for up to $250,000 from the California Department of Transportation (CalTrans), which has $3 million available for community development studies, such as traffic planning.
“We will never realistically be able to determine how much development is right for our city if we don’t get a better handle on how that development will impact traffic,” said Diana Gordon, spokesperson for SMCLC.“From the Planning Commission to members of the City Council, people in city government are aware that our current methodology for counting traffic is seriously flawed and the city hasn’t changed. Here’s our chance.”
Traffic congestion has long been a problem for Santa Monica as the population on the westside of Los Angeles County has skyrocketed in the last decade. During rush hour, it can take motorists between 30 minutes and an hour just to drive in or out of the city on major thoroughfares such as Pico and Wilshire boulevards. Traffic is cited as one of the top concerns among residents, according to City Hall surveys.
SMCLC originally asked the City Council to spend $250,000 on a study of traffic methodology during budget discussions ear-lier this year — a request that was denied because of financial constraints.
“Now the city won’t have to spend any money,” Gordon said.
City Manager Lamont Ewell said he has received SMCLC’s request and has passed it on to city planners for consideration.
The deadline to apply for the grant is Oct. 13. Gordon is hoping that city officials and members of SMCLC can meet before that date with CalTrans officials to better tailor a grant proposal.
Under the California Environmental Quality Act, any new project proposed must demonstrate that no net negative effect will impact the city if it is built. If an analysis shows that a proposed project will have a significant, negative effect on the community, mitigation measures must be taken. If there are no feasible mitigations, the City Council can still approve the project if they find there are overriding considerations, such as benefits to the community that outweigh the impacts.
Lucy Dyke, City Hall’s transportation planning manager, said the current methodology used to study the impact of developments on traffic is the same one used by nearly every other municipality in the state. She said the methodology works with respect to answering those questions posed by environmental law, however, improvements could be made, particularly when talking about the regional transportation network.
“The system is adequate,” Dyke said. “We do a good job of using it. But I think it’s not very well suited for real problems people are facing today. It’s based off the idea that every single new thing you build generates a certain amount of cars and that it is the public agency’s responsibility to provide street parking for all those cars, and the reality is we don’t have the space.”
Mitigation measures have little success given Santa Monica’s streets already are stretched to capacity, particularly in downtown, Dyke said. Instead of looking to City Hall, residents should lobby elected officials in the Legislature to enhance the region’s public transportation network, Dyke said.
“People get frustrated with the results of our studies when they look at the experiences they have while trying to drive in some of the congested areas of the city,” Dyke said. “They think the real culprit is development and they expect the studies to show that and assign large impacts to new development.
“We did a feasibility study in the early 1980s, in which we identified the number of ulterior streets that would have to be constructed to provide for the anticipated auto capacity for those who want to drive here in 20 years,” Dyke said.“We didn’t have enough real estate.”
Dyke said city officials are currently studying ways to better address congestion as City Hall drafts a new land use plan. That could include a greater emphasis on public transit and mixed-use construction in which walking is encouraged.
Gordon said a new way of measuring traffic will help city officials and residents decide what kind of development they want to see in the future and where it should be constructed. If more commercial buildings bring in more cars than residential, that may be something to consider, she said.
“I understand that we are stuck with 19th century streets,” Gordon said. “But we have to continue to look at traffic in a more cumulative way and not just continue to approve projects in isolation.”
Resident Nicole Picard said traffic has become almost unbearable in Santa Monica at times and she would like to see City Hall do something, even if it’s just applying for the grant.
“If it means putting a moratorium on development, so be it,” Picard said. “It takes strong people to make big decisions. Are you up to the task?”
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on September 2, 2006. Read the original PDF.