Event Summary: The Land Use & Transportation Connection
There’s no turning back now. The Eugene Climate & Energy Action Plan hit its official halfway point at the Land Use &
Transportation public forum held Tuesday, December 1st (check out our events page to see topics already covered and those yet to come). Familiarity however has not resulted in reduced enthusiasm–turnout at the Land Use & Transportation event topped 100, the largest in the plan’s public engagement phase to date.
Like past forums, participants were greeted with a short intro from plan coordinator Matt McRae and a presentation by the Sustainability Commission’s Joshua Skov. Skov’s talk grounded land use and transportation in the greater climate change and peak oil picture, noting the two inseparable sectors permeate almost every slice of the greenhouse gas emissions “pie.” The context for the nights discussion? One unavoidable energy future (peak oil and the energy economy transformations to come), one transportation-land use system fueling an unsustainable energy ‘present,’ and one chance to create a more ecologically, socially appropriate system, together.
Also true to form, participants were given a list of actions other cities across the country have proposed or undertaken to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions and adapt to rising fuel prices. This time however, people may have been surprised by just how many actions were presented. The task of prioritizing actions that all seem necessary is tough in any sector, let alone the land use and transportation sectors that are so intricately tied to each other and to most other sectors. We extend a huge thank you to those present who voted for their lowest and highest prioroties. From this vote, we idenitfied the following community priorities:
1. Make 20-minute complete neighborhoods (places where residents can safely walk a relatively short distance from home to most of the destinations and services they use every day) a core component of the City’s strategic plan. (Portland, Seattle)
2. Identify mobility gaps that could be addressed through additional bicycle/pedestrian infrastructure and create an implementation strategy (Berkeley)
3. Accommodate all population and business growth within the existing urban growth boundary. (Portland, Portland Peak Oil)
4. Implement zoning adjustments to facilitate a mix of housing (including affordable housing), retail services, and employment centers in the areas of Eugene best served by transit. (Berkeley, Seattle, Portland Peak Oil, Fort Collins)
5. Facilitate walking and bicycle use through improved, and new, programs and services that make alternate modes more convenient, faster, and safer.
6. Protect existing intermodal freight facilities and support centrally located and regionally significant industrial areas that may provide for future intermodal facilities and provide for efficient local deliveries (Portland)
7. Integrate bus routes into broader alternative transportation system, identify gaps in bus service routes and potential scenarios for addressing such gaps, and improve frequency and reliability of bus service where required. (Berkeley)
8. Establish sustainable funding sources adequate to maintain the existing transportation system and to invest in transportation capital projects and programs that reduce carbon emissions. (Portland)
9. Accelerate the transition to plug-in hybrids and electric vehicles by supporting the installation of a network of electric car charging stations. (Portland, Portland Peak Oil)
10. Identify, and invest in, infrastructure that meets access and mobility needs with less fuel (Portland Peak Oil)
These public priorities complemented those from our Land Use & Transportation expert panelists, who also agreed it would be wise to address actions No. 1, 2, 4, 7 and 9. Despite this overlap, panelist and public interests diverged in key areas. A few panelist favorites that failed to generate much public interest were:
- Make parking requirements more flexible for developers that site near transit and that provide services, infrastructure, and/or mitigation payments to reduce parking demand (e.g. car share or bicycle parking, indoor showers and changing facilities, dedicated parking for electric/hybrid vehicles, implement an employee transit pass program, mitigation payments to be allocated to transportation demand projects). (Berkeley)
- Examine and improve the interface between transit, pedestrians, and cyclists.
- Expand and improve metro and regional service and connections (San Francisco)
- Identify how biofuels can play a role in decreasing Eugene’s vulnerability to energy markets and promote appropraite use and local production of biofuels. (Portland, Portland Peak Oil, Vancouver)
In fact, the issue of biofuels was largely discounted in the public vote, receiving three times as many “lowest priority” 
votes as “highest priority” votes. Public discussion also centered on some issues that didn’t provoke as much excitement among our local experts, e.g. protecting intermodal freight facilities (Action No. 6) and establishing sustainable funding for green transportation projects (Action No. 8). In meeting the needs of the entire community while effectively meeting the challenges of climate change and peak oil, it is especially important to see where experts and community members converge and where they split.
Halfway does not mean slow down. It means take stock of successes to date, remember that this plan is a first for all of us, and continue to learn from, and contribute to, this process that is just as much about strengthening our community and our capability to face climate change and peak oil together as it is about the final end product that will guide us in this effort. It means acknowledge the immense contributions of our community so far–city residents, local experts, CEAP planning team members, the Advisory Team, and the Sustainability Commission. And it means there are still three more events like this one where we will need your help. The next public forum (on Wednesday, January 6th) will discuss topics of Consumption & Waste. Come consume knowledge, responsibility for our future, and free food. Same time, same place (6 pm tp 9pm at EWEB).