Transportation planning
Transportation Planning Planning Offices Office of Community Planning Public Participation and Engagement Public Participation and Engagement
The federal Transportation Equity Act for the 21 st Century (TEA-21) and its predecessor, the federal Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act are both emphatic about the role of public participation in the transportation decision-making process . More recently, the Safe, Accountable, Flexible, and Efficient Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users (SAFETEA-LU) encourages collaboration with stakeholders as well. Execu tive Order 12898 on Environmental Justice (1994) and Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, and a host of other federal laws and regulations, also require public involvement, particularly the underrepresented, in transportation decision making.
Caltrans' policy equally requires that the delivery of transportation programs be consistent with the requirements of these relevant laws, including Environmental Justice requirements to involve all constituents as a precondition to using federal funds for transportation improvements. Caltrans supports a balanced representation of all stakeholders in the planning process and considers it a good planning practice to seek out and consider the needs of all stakeholders, especially those that are traditionally underserved. The Division of Transportation Planning (Division) envisions transportation decisions as the product of collaborative work and choices made jointly by all stakeholders. In order to realize this vision of public participation, the Office of Community Planning is addressing public participation in planning, which can be summarized in the following efforts:
Public Participation Inventory
This Office is examining and incorporating the Department's current public participation practices. We worked with all components of the Department to develop this PP Inventory. The goal of this inventory was to benchmark our current public participation efforts, and develop a Public Participation Plan that enhances our efforts. The participation process includes notifications such as public notices, press releases, advertisements, map display, media relations, media requests, public info office onsite, web sites, surveys, phone information line, joint press releases, flyers, newsletter, fairs, and project fact sheets. It also includes active participation events such as public hearings, public information meetings, presentations, expositions, tours, emergency meetings, public advisory committee, public phone inquiries, district functional units, public awareness campaigns, “bring a child to work,” public comment, open houses, and district task forces. You can view some of these in the inventory web page at:
Public Participation Guide
A Public Participation Guide provides strategies and tools to California Department of Transportation staff on how best to reach and engage the public in transportation decision-making. We are continuously tracking our public outreach efforts during transportation planning activities. This allows us to gauge how well we are engaging the public, and to determine how best to improve in our obligation to involve all stakeholders that might be impacted by the Department's transportation planning decisions.
Planning Public Participation Contract (Scope of Work)
In order to meet these legal requirements for public involvement and enhance the Department's ability to reach out to the traditionally underserved, the Division of Transportation Planning executed a two-year Planning Public Participation Contract with Jones & Stokes Associates, Inc. beginning July 30, 2002. This contract allowed the Department to engage the public and to facilitate consultation with Indian Tribal Governments; and assisted transportation planners in designing and implementing public involvement programs to achieve compliance TEA-21 and other planning requirement regarding the involvement of low-income and minority populations. The on-call services for this enhanced public involvement included: refining and updating existing public participation mailing lists; marketing and promoting public participation events as well as facilitating consultation with tribal governments; conducting and facilitating planning meetings; providing resources and technology to enhance public participation; and, providing measurable results of planning meetings. The contract was used in the outreach effort for the long-range California Transportation Plan (CTP)—a plan required by federal and state law. Public participation and input was a major part of this plan.
Best Practices Public Participation Reference
The Best Practices Public Participation Reference was the product of a three-year public engagement effort, and was distributed to the Districts within the Department in 2005. This reference provides Caltrans planners with additional public engagement and outreach strategies and guidance, and includes examples and samples of the many deliverables executed under the Planning Public Participation Contract. The reference also supplements the Public Participation Guide prepared in August 2002.
Public engagement is linchpin to the Department's policy on context sensitive solutions-- a process-driven policy that demands a fundamental shift involving communities. This community involvement process demands that all stakeholders be engaged, influential, and informed decision makers. Collaboration with local communities is needed to ensure that both the Department and the communities understand the local context of long-range transportation planning. The keys presented in this reference will help planners acquire the skills needed to successfully communicate the local context of their long-range transportation planning.
Additional Public Engagement Resources
Finally, in order to assist in public engagement efforts these additional public involvement resources are provided for your use. This is merely a sampling of the many public participation resources available, and in no way constitute an endorsement of any one product over another product. Please take the opportunity to review these resources.
For additional information regarding public participation, please contact Terri Bridges.