Corridor Planning is a multimodal transportation planning approach that recognizes that transportation needs are based on the complex geographic, demographic, economic, and social characteristics of communities. These locations are tied together by a complex system of streets, roads, highways, trails, paths, rail lines, bus corridors, and other elements that affect the convenience, safety, and accessibility of transportation choices.

While corridor planning is not a new concept, it is increasingly key to addressing the travel needs of Californians by focusing on the existing transportation system as well as all modal options.  The Transportation Agency has used this approach to evaluate several key regional routes throughout the county, including the State Route 68 Scenic Highway Plan and the Highway 68 Pacific Grove Corridor Study.  In addition, the Agency is in the process of developing corridor plans for Canyon Del Rey Boulevard (State Route 218) and Pajaro to Prunedale - G12.  These studies are used to conduct a technical traffic forecast analysis, and utilize public input to identify a set of complete streets, stormwater drainage, active transportation, and environmental and wildlife preservation improvements for the corridors.

To facilitate development of corridor plans where Caltrans is partnering with local agencies, Caltrans has released a draft Corridor Planning Guidebook, which is intended to provide direction to Caltrans Districts on how to engage with internal and external partners in the corridor planning process.  As part of this process, Caltrans expects the following elements to be considered within a Corridor Plan, no matter the lead or sponsoring agency:

• Clear demonstration of State, regional, and local collaboration.
• Short, medium, and long-term planning horizon.
• Specific corridor objectives.
• Multimodal considerations for and approaches to address transportation system issues.
• Identification and evaluation of performance measures for recommended projects and strategies.
• Recommendations and prioritization of multimodal improvements that feed into transportation funding programs and regional transportation planning.
• Consistency with the principles of the California Transportation Plan and including the Caltrans’ Smart Mobility Framework, California’s Climate Change Scoping Plan, and climate adaption plans.
• Consistency with the goals and objectives of the regional transportation plan including the forecasted development pattern identified in the Sustainable Communities Strategy and, when applicable, areas identified as high-priority for growth.
• Consistency with other applicable regional or local planning frameworks such as local jurisdiction land use plans including transit supportive land use plans, freight and goods movement plans, and policies.

To develop a corridor plan that is acceptable to Caltrans, the Guidebook lays out an eight-step planning process, to include:

1. Scope Effort - this step will result in a defined corridor team, agreement on the issues and potential opportunities that will be considered, and a comprehensive set of goals, objectives, and performance measures for the corridor.
2. Gather Information - this step outlines the corridor description, basic system characteristics of the corridor, and its unique elements with a larger State and regional context.
3. Conduct Baseline Performance Assessment - this assessment, at a minimum, creates corridor profiles for mobility, safety, travel time reliability, and sustainability.
4. Identify Potential Projects and Strategies - projects and strategies are identified at sufficient levels of detail for analysis and evaluation based on existing plans and studies.
5. Analyze Improvement Strategies - a corridor scenario analysis is conducted to evaluate the effect of potential transportation improvements on corridor performance.
6. Select and Prioritize Solutions - the set of corridor projects and strategies are ranked based on short, medium, or long-term horizons, with a recommended set of multimodal solutions for the corridor.
7. Implement the Plan - the plan should include an implementation schedule, as well as identify responsibilities of the various partner agencies.
8. Monitor and Evaluate Progress - ongoing reporting on corridor performance is conducted to evaluate the effectiveness of the recommended projects and strategies.

The Transportation Agency will be using this Guidebook as a reference in the development of the US 101 South of Salinas Corridor Plan, and is in the process of preparing comments to Caltrans on the Guidebook, which staff will share for discussion at the February 2019 Technical Advisory Committee meeting.  Caltrans is seeking comments from all interested parties on the draft Guidebook by February 5, 2019, and will provide an overview of the Guidebook at the Technical Advisory Committee meeting.