All-in-one
Director’s Message
Caltrans helps recovery efforts following L.A. fires
Tony Tavares
These past few months have tested our collective resolve in ways we never thought possible. We painfully watched as wildfires roared through parts of Southern California where some of our Caltrans colleagues, friends and families make their homes. We will not soon forget the scenes of the devastating aftermath.
Despite the confusion, heartache and gut-wrenching emotions associated with a disaster of this magnitude, our 23,000 strong mobilized in real time to lend a helping hand.
As I grieved for our co-workers forced to navigate a life-changing crisis, I was also overcome with pride in our department.
I want to express my profound gratitude for your unflinching professionalism and selfless dedication to public service during this historically challenging crisis. Your care and concern for those affected underscore the department’s People First values that make Caltrans a special organization.
Many Caltrans employees in District 7 and beyond have continued to serve their communities despite being personally affected by this unprecedented event.
Their strength and fortitude are admirable, and your capacity to be present in their time of need offers hope and a sturdy shoulder to lean on as they continue the recovery process.
In this spirit, Caltrans immediately mobilized emergency repairs and cleanup efforts that continue today. Thousands of workers have supported or been deployed to conduct complicated debris removal operations, fix destroyed infrastructure, prepare for the effects of winter weather and serve in supportive roles for other state agencies.
I also want to thank everyone from Caltrans who has pitched in to assist our impacted colleagues. Your generosity and compassion exemplify why we consider Caltrans a family.
For those affected, we created a dedicated page to share resources and information useful during the recovery process. (Only Caltrans employees can access this page.)
And for anyone who wishes to contribute to help colleagues who lost their homes, the California Transportation Fund (CTF) has established a Fire Relief Assistance Fund for Caltrans employees who have lost their homes in the Los Angeles and Ventura County wildfires. Donations to this account are tax deductible and will not be matched by CTF. Here’s the link.
If you were impacted by the fires and need assistance or would like to contribute to the recover effort by volunteering and/or donating, visit this state-government webpage.
To our affected colleagues: You are not alone. Caltrans will be here every step of the way as you navigate the long recovery process.
In solidarity and continued support,
Director Tavares
Throughout the state, district personnel and their partners chalked up a variety of wins through collaboration, creativity, innovation and hard work
Late last year, Caltrans released its fourth annual Accomplishments Report, which highlighted many of the department’s achievements from January 2023 through June 2024.
The collection celebrates successes that span the breadth of all Caltrans’ programs and districts and emphasizes the broad reach of the department’s impact on all Californians. The report is framed in the context of Caltrans’ Core Four Priorities — Safety, Equity, Climate Action and Prosperity — with People First at the forefront of what we do.
Whether our employees are out in the field maintaining the roads or working behind the scenes to plan California’s transportation future, our mission is the same — to improve lives.
The Core Four Priorities assert the general direction Caltrans will take to realize its vision. The priorities indicate where resources will be directed to have the greatest impact, and each is accompanied by a series of desired, specific outcomes.
Taken from the 2023-2024 report, whose PDF is available online, are these five examples of Caltrans’ accomplishments during those 18 months.
Safety
At the intersection of State Routes 25 and 156 in San Benito County, District 5 completed construction of the first turbo roundabout in California. It operates like a regular roundabout but has additional features that reduce the potential for collisions and was designed and constructed to address the immediate safety needs at this intersection.
The SR 25/156 intersection serves commuters and important goods movement for the region. Prior to adding the turbo roundabout, the junction had been experiencing a pattern of broadside and rear end collisions at more than twice the number of similar intersections in California. This innovative new facility improves safety while maintaining intersection traffic flow and efficiency.
Equity
District 6 created a Tribal Engagement Plan in collaboration with Headquarters’ Division of Environmental Analysis. The plan is derived from the California Transportation Plan (CTP), the state’s long-range transportation blueprint for a better future.
The purpose of the engagement plan is to establish and maintain communication, coordination and meaningful consultation with Caltrans’ tribal partners. The plan allows for regular and proactive communication, capacity-building workshops and collaborative planning sessions to ensure that tribal voices are integral to transportation decision-making processes. Additionally, this plan prioritizes cultural sensitivity and mutual respect, fostering long-term partnerships that honor tribal sovereignty and enhance the quality of life for all community members.
Climate Action
In March 2023, District 4 shifted Highway 1 traffic at Gleason Beach onto the new alignment that veered inland, away from the rapidly eroding coastal bluffs. The project encompassed a 4,000-foot, two-lane roadway realignment on State Route 1 in Sonoma County, near Bodega Bay.
The improvements included a bridge over Scotty Creek, a pedestrian pathway and a shoulder for bicyclists. These projects required demolishing the culvert that crossed Scotty Creek, relocating a major waterline and clearing the way for the initial alignment of the California Coastal Trail.
This is the first Caltrans project specifically designed to address sea-level rise, and it will also integrate broadband facilities into the roadway. Additionally, the project remediated a significant fish passage barrier by removing a triple box culvert at Scotty Creek and restoring salmonid habitat.
Economic Prosperity
District 11 completed all necessary infrastructure to support the State Route 11/Otay Mesa East Port of Entry Project, a key project for California, the San Diego region, the United States and Mexico. The SR 11/Otay Mesa East Port of Entry project has been in progress for more than 20 years. It is a collaboration between federal, state and local entities with a goal to construct a modern port of entry that can handle the current cross-border traffic, decrease greenhouse gas emissions, boost economic growth and improve regional mobility.
This project is a joint effort between the California State Transportation AgencyCaltrans, the San Diego Association of Governments and the Federal Government. It has long been envisioned in the California-Mexico Border Master Plan and now, it’s nearly complete.
People First
District 7 reached a significant milestone in property sales in the State Route 710 corridor, with the first sale to housing related entities (HREs). Additionally, a sale to a current tenant at fair market value was finalized and approved, and escrow has completed.
District 7 is also in the process of sales to current tenants and the cities of Los Angeles, Pasadena and South Pasadena, with 56 open escrows. The sale of these properties, along with their reintegration as housing stock, will provide additional affordable housing for the residents of these jurisdictions, as well as first-time homeownership opportunities to some long-time renters of these properties.
Find many more examples of Caltrans’ 2023-2024 accomplishments by viewing this online PDF.
District 9 photograph
Quick, innovative and forward-looking solutions implemented after widespread damage
There was a pervasive feeling of disbelief in the offices of District 9 on August 5, 2022, as pictures and videos came in from maintenance staff monitoring State Route 190 in Death Valley National Park (DVNP).
The driest place in North America, known for its unforgiving temperatures and expansive salt-flats, was being inundated with water. Record rainfall turned the dusty landscape into debris flows, cascading over the highway and ripping up many park roads. West of the park, a section of State Route 190 known locally as Upper Centennial Wash was completely washed away.
Meteorologists called it a once-in-a-1,000-year event. That was two and a half years ago. It would be just 380 days until the region would see another “once-in-a-1,000-year event.” Only this time, the damage was far more extensive.
The section of State Route 190 at Upper Centennial Wash that had been rebuilt the previous year was once again washed away. Segments of the highway over Towne Pass within DVNP broke apart and scattered with the flood waters.
Farther west, along Owens Lake in an area known as Lower Centennial Wash, the storm undercut the roadway, displaced culverts, buckled the highway asphalt and impacted the Coso Wash Bridge (pictured).
Repair work began almost immediately, and access to the bulk of the highway was restored on October 15. But with two record-breaking weather events in less than 400 days—along with the other significant storms that followed—simply restoring the roadway wasn’t enough. District 9 would need to make State Route 190 more resilient and better able to withstand Mother Nature.
To keep State Route 190 scenic while enhancing its climate resiliency, engineers elected to go with gabions—wire mesh baskets filled with rocks, sand and soil that blend into the surrounding environment—and concrete slope paving at strategic locations. These elements are designed to protect the roadway from the type of erosion it experienced with these storms.
Some of the locations that will see these climate improvements include popular tourist destinations within Death Valley, including Furnace Creek Inn, Zabriskie Point and Emigrant Campground.
Outside of the park, gabion shoulder reinforcement will be implemented at Upper Centennial Wash. These climate resiliency elements for State Route 190 are in construction and expected to be completed by the end of 2024.
One piece of resiliency engineering was included in the original Director’s Order for Coso Wash Bridge. Hilary’s flood waters devastated the rock slope protection (RSP) that braced the bridge’s slim pillars. Rather than just repair the RSP as it did the year before, Caltrans sought an upgrade that would make the bridge far more resilient to erosion. The recommendation: a sheet pile check dam measuring approximately 150 feet wide and 36 feet tall, with the base driven 10 feet below the tip of the existing bridge piles. A 92-foot-long concrete slab with a 6-foot-high cutoff wall, native material backfill and RSP would support the bridge structure.
According to Ali Ahmad Bahadori, a Caltrans transportation engineer who worked on the new facility’s design, the sheet pile check dam is a superior countermeasure over the original grouted RSP because it is embedded into the channel bed and banks, ensuring stability for the life of the structure. This is a considerable improvement over the grouted RSP that partially collapsed during the Hilary flooding.
Work at Lower Centennial didn’t begin until after repairs wrapped up at Upper Centennial and inside DVNP as Caltrans prioritized restoring highway access to isolated communities. The section of State Route 190 between the town of Olancha at U.S. Highway 395 and the junction of State Route 136 east of Owens Lake would remain closed throughout the winter and spring.
After months of roadway facility repairs and construction of the new dam at Coso Wash Bridge, State Route 190 fully reopened in Inyo County on May 22, 2024. The dam stands out as a striking piece of hydraulic engineering among the dusty barrens that extend out of Owens Dry Lakebed, one that may become a blueprint for how Caltrans can protect its infrastructure from future climate change-driven superstorms.
Death Valley represents a particularly challenging region for Caltrans, due not only to the hot and arid climate's impact on roadways but also because state and federal agencies (i.e., Caltrans and the National Park Service) must collaborate to ensure safe transportation through the park on SR-190.
District 9 Director Ryan Dermody said that the recent roadway closures and subsequent repairs served to strengthen the bond between Caltrans and the NPS, "It’s not easy operating and maintaining a State Highway in a National Park given that the focus of the National Park Service is preservation and conservation of natural and historic resources," said Dermody. "To that end, we have developed a great partnership with the NPS team at Death Valley. In addition to the restoration of the highway from two major storms, we also installed broadband conduit in a portion of Death Valley."
Source: Christopher Andriessen, District 9 public information office chief
Yurok Tribe plays a partnership role in modernization of U.S. Highway 101 span north of Klamath
Modernization, pedestrian safety, improved wildlife migration and community involvement all featured prominently in a bridge replacement late this spring in the far reaches of northwest California.
On June 11, Caltrans celebrated the completion of the Hunter and Panther Creek Bridge Replacement Project along U.S. Highway 101 north of Klamath in Del Norte County. The $34 million project replaced outdated bridges that were narrow, did not meet current seismic standards and were past their 50-year design life. The new bridges feature wider lanes, separated pedestrian paths, fewer piers in the water and a pedestrian railing design created in collaboration with the Yurok Tribe, enhancing safety, accessibility and aesthetics.
The ribbon-cutting ceremony also celebrated the resumption of two-way traffic in the area. Periodic short delays occurred throughout the rest of the month to allow for finishing touches.
Notably, the Panther Creek Bridge, a steel-tied arch bridge, is the first of its kind in District 1, designed without piers in the water to protect juvenile Coho salmon and other aquatic species. Additionally, the Hunter Creek Bridge design reduced the number of piers in the creek to only one, minimizing impacts to the Klamath River tributary.
The Road Repair and Accountability Act of 2017 (Senate Bill 1, or SB1) funded about 85 percent of the project, contributing approximately $29.1 million. Additionally, a five-year follow-up mitigation project, costing around $430,000, focuses on post-construction revegetation and monitoring. The planning document for this project was approved in 2013, and it was programmed in 2014. The environmental phase concluded in 2018, followed by the completion of the design phase in 2019. Construction began in October 2020 and was finished in June 2024.
The project also featured a Memorandum of Understanding with the Yurok Tribe to ensure environmental and cultural considerations were integrated throughout the construction process. Additionally, a change order facilitated the installation of broadband middle mile conduit, paving the way for improved digital connectivity for the Yurok Tribal Office.
Caltrans’ goal with the project was to provide a safe and reliable transportation network component that serves all people and respects the environment. The Hunter and Panther Creek Bridge Replacement Project exemplifies those values while fostering partnerships with local communities.
According to Caltrans District 1 Project Manager David Melendrez, the project reflects years of planning and collaboration among Caltrans, the Yurok Tribe and other partners. “We are proud to deliver infrastructure that supports safety, reliability and mobility needs in our community,” Melendrez said.
Caltrans North Region Area Construction Engineer Clayton Malmberg added that despite challenges such as the pandemic, supply chain disruptions and worksite challenges, Caltrans and contractor Golden State Bridge persevered to successfully complete the bridges.
“The new bridges honor our teamwork and protect culturally vital species such as Coho salmon,” said Yurok Tribal Council Member Ryan Ray, who also offered a blessing for the new bridges. “This project is a model of how collaboration can lead to outcomes that benefit all.”
Source: Myles Cochrane, District 1 public information officer
Caltrans’ central think tank takes on some of the department’s biggest challenges
Welcome to the third story in a Mile Marker series, where we take you behind the scenes of a specific Caltrans program. This issue shines a spotlight on the Division of Research, Innovation and System Information (DRISI).
Did you know that Caltrans contains a think tank for cutting-edge solutions? That is what DRISI is – Caltrans’ version of IBM Research. The division puts research and development (R&D) at the heart of Caltrans’ innovation process, tackling some of the department’s toughest challenges.
DRISI (colloquially pronounced dry-ess-eye) consists of nine offices statewide, all coordinated by the Executive Office in Sacramento. Its team of approximately 160 full-time employees is dedicated to enhancing California’s transportation system. DRISI leverages its skills, knowledge and resources to deliver top-tier research and innovative solutions to its customers.
Here’s an inside look at some of the programs within DRISI’s portfolio:
Research: DRISI has more than 196 active projects funded by approximately $25 million annually. In addition, the division funds four major research support centers that conduct focused research on specific topic areas. These research support centers are the University of California Pavement Research Center, the Advanced Highway Maintenance Construction Technology Center, the UC Berkeley Partners for Advanced Transportation Technology Center and the Pacific Earthquake Engineering Research Center.
Research implementation: DRISI recently unveiled a research implementation webpage that offers a roadmap to applying for implementation seed money for successful research projects. This platform simplifies the process, helping Caltrans employees turn ideas into reality.
Innovation hub: DRISI acts as the innovation hub for the department and manages the Innovation Station, which is an intradepartmental platform that serves as a crowdsourcing tool. It provides a place to engage employees at all levels of the organization in community brainstorming activities. It is one component of a process to get from good ideas to implemented solutions.
Caltrans Vendor Day: This new program connects vendors and potential contractors with Caltrans leaders to address key problem statements.
Data Governance Initiative: DRISI leads Caltrans’ data governance through the Enterprise Data and Geospatial Governance program (CTDATA). CTDATA works to position Caltrans staff to maximize the value of our data assets by making them findable, accessible, usable and high-quality. CTDATA also works to ensure staff are data-literate, knowing how to work with and understand data for analysis and informed decision making.
Geospatial Information System (GIS): DRISI manages Caltrans’ GIS data library, publishing real-time information on the state of California’s open data portal. This includes data on highways, bridges, railroads, aviation and boundaries. The online portal provides information in tabular format for data that changes near real time, including lane closures, roadside weather, chain controls, changeable message signs, closed-circuit TV and travel time.
Safety database development: In collaboration with Information Technology, DRISI is developing a state-of-the-art safety database through the Transportation System Network Replacement (TSNR) project. Set for completion in June 2025, this project is expected to revolutionize transportation system management.
Crash analysis: DRISI uses location coding and sequence of event coding processes to identify crash prone areas for safety investigation. The division completed location and sequence of event coding for 153,340 crashes on the State Highway System that occurred during 2023. The ongoing crash coding supports Caltrans’ safety-first goal by providing up- to-date and more accurate crash information allowing Caltrans the ability to use data for publications, mapping, safety analysis, safety investigations and safety projects.
Generative AI implementation: Following Governor’s Executive Order N-12-23, DRISI is building a comprehensive artificial-intelligence (AI) resource repository to guide Caltrans staff on current and future AI applications.
National engagement (NE) research: DRISI spearheads Caltrans’ national and regional transportation research, collaborating with federal agencies, other state DOTs and academic institutions. The DRISI NE effort focuses on national-and regional related transportation research, planning and technology transfer activities in a range of categories, including pavements, bridges, design, safety, administration, environment, security and maintenance. National, collaborative work enables DRISI to get more out of a study by pooling funds, subject matter expertise and resources. Beyond its funding and administrative advantages, the variety of expertise and experience brought together can have a much broader impact.
Intelligent Truck-Mounted Attenuator (ITMA) field trials: DRISI has been successfully conducting monitored field trials of ITMA system on California public roads, performing different maintenance operations including sweeping, paint striping and raised pavement marker operations. The ITMA system is composed of a leader vehicle (LV) and a follower vehicle (FV) in which the FV follows the path of the LV while maintaining a user-defined, safe distance. The goal of this project is to remove the Truck-Mounted Attenuator (TMA) operator from this vehicle and reduce operator injuries for Caltrans due to public vehicles’ impacts with the TMA vehicles in highway work zones.
Environmental DNA (eDNA): DRISI developed an innovative approach known as environmental DNA (eDNA) that is less expensive, less invasive and offers higher detection probabilities than traditional monitoring approaches used to detect coho salmon, a federally and state listed species. This new approach has shown to reduce the amount of resources required to obtain construction permits.
To dive deeper into Caltrans’ Division of Research, Innovation and System Information, visit its website. There you will find the recently updated 2023 Accomplishments Report, showcasing the division’s top achievements aligned with Caltrans goals.
Source: Dara Wheeler, DRISI division chief
Caltrans System Investment Strategy promises to play role in combatting climate change
Last August, Caltrans unveiled an innovative tool to prioritize transportation projects that further California’s climate, safety and equity goals for certain state and federal grants.
The Caltrans System Investment Strategy (CSIS) updates the department’s project evaluation and nomination process to better identify and promote multimodal, climate-friendly projects in funding decisions.
The new tool fulfills a key action in the Climate Action Plan for Transportation Infrastructure (CAPTI), which called for a data- and performance-driven investment strategy to more effectively align the projects Caltrans supports for state and federal grants with the state’s ambitious climate goals.
Deploying this investment strategy is expected to significantly reduce Caltrans’ carbon footprint and provide a tool to substantially improve the safety, equity and accessibility of California’s highway system.
The new analytical tool includes quantitative and qualitative metrics to evaluate projects. Quantitative metrics are safety; vehicle miles traveled; accessibility; the effect on disadvantaged communities; land usage; improvements to bicycle and pedestrian infrastructure; improvements to zero-emission vehicle infrastructure and improvements to freight movement.
Qualitative metrics are climate resilience and public engagement. Caltrans will use the recently unveiled Equity Index tool as part of the process.
Under CSIS, projects that reduce dependence on driving and expand access to multimodal options such as transit, walking and biking will score higher during the project evaluation process. Caltrans will use CSIS to inform its decisions around which projects to nominate for applicable state and federal grants while collaborating closely with partner agencies to make their projects as competitive as possible.
In addition to combatting climate change, the new investment strategy will help the department gauge other values in transportation infrastructure projects such as safety, mobility and accessibility, environmental health and justice and quality of life.
CSIS does not include the prevention of local partners from proceeding in project development and applying for state and federal discretionary programs, does not affect projects funded by the State Highway Operation and Protection Program (SHOPP) and does not impact proposals to develop a project initiation document.
Some critics might say CSIS is anti-car or anti-rural. To address those concerns, Caltrans points out that people using every mode of transportation will benefit from better data. The better the planning, the better the outcomes across our safety, climate, equity, economic prosperity and mobility priorities.
Also, the department has worked closely with rural counties and transportation providers throughout the development of CSIS to focus on projects that provide the most benefit to rural communities.
Caltrans published the draft CSIS for public comment and incorporated feedback in the updated plan. Caltrans reviewed comments from regional transportation agencies, local governments, rail authorities, advocacy groups and interested members of the public.
Caltrans will test the new tool in upcoming grant processes, evaluate the results and update as needed to make it as effective as possible.
Sources: Division of Transportation Planning, Division of Public Affairs
CTC greenlights more than $1.8 billion for infrastructure work
These major investments include funding by nearly $458 million from Senate Bill (SB) 1, the Road Repair and Accountability Act of 2017, and more than $1 billion in funding from the federal Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA).
The approved projects include $43 million to reconstruct and upgrade the water and wastewater systems at the eastbound and westbound Cactus City Safety Roadside Rest Areas along Interstate 10 near Indio; $29 million to improve on-ramps and off-ramps near Fairfield; and a $41 million project near Pismo Beach that will include new bike lanes and bikeway designations.
For more information, visit this Division of Public Affairs webpage.
Caltrans awards $51.4 million for sustainable transportation projects
With most of the funding coming from Governor Gavin Newsom’s clean transportation infrastructure package and the California Climate Commitment, Caltrans last summer awarded $51.4 million in planning grants for 89 sustainable, climate-resilient transportation projects throughout California to help communities better withstand the impacts of extreme weather events fueled by climate change.
The selected projects will help reduce planet-warming pollution, improve resiliency of the state highway system, enhance access to safe walkways and bike paths and expand natural disaster preparedness. Nearly $29 million comes from one-time state and federal sources made possible by Governor Newsom’s historic $15 billion clean transportation package in the 2022-23 state budget to further the state’s ambitious climate goals. Another $12.4 million comes from Senate Bill (SB) 1, the Road Repair and Accountability Act of 2017. The awards will fund project planning and conceptual design efforts, helping move the projects closer to construction.
Included are:
- $28.8 million in Climate Adaptation Planning Grants to 30 local, regional and transit agencies to identify transportation-related climate vulnerabilities; 97 percent of these projects will benefit disadvantaged communities.
- $19.2 million in Sustainable Communities Competitive and Technical Grants to 50 local, regional and transit agencies for transportation and land use planning, as well as planning for electric vehicle charging infrastructure; 92 percent of these projects will benefit disadvantaged communities.
CTC greenlights $2 billion-plus for infrastructure projects
The California Transportation Commission (CTC) last summer approved more than $2 billion to improve and maintain a transportation system that serves as the backbone for the world’s fifth largest economy.
The approved funding will support the next generation of transportation projects, ranging from bridge maintenance and rail system upgrades to enhanced railroad safety features and increased access for bicyclists and pedestrians. These benefits will help power economic opportunity as well as mitigate the effects of climate change.
The latest allocations include more than $483 million from the federal Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act of 2021 (IIJA) and approximately $443 million from Senate Bill (SB) 1, the Road Repair and Accountability Act of 2017.
The investments include $103 million for the North Coast Corridor Rail project in San Diego County; $17.8 million to improve State Routes 99 and 68 in Tulare County; $10 million to provide Santa Barbara residents with cleaner, climate-friendly electric buses and chargers; and $3.5 million for Stockton’s East Channel Street Streetscape, which will install bike lanes and sidewalk extensions.
Nine Caltrans workers honored with governor’s award
The State of California last year honored nine Caltrans employees by presenting them with the Governor’s State Employee Medal of Valor, the highest honor California bestows on its public servants. The awards are given annually to state employees for acts of heroism to save lives or protect state property.
The Gold Medal of Valor recipient was Geoff Clute, District 4 Bridge Maintenance Supervisor, for saving a man trapped inside a burning vehicle in Solano County on July 7, 2023.
The Silver Medal of Valor recipients were:
Sultan Abassy, District 12 Transportation Engineering Technician, for heroism during a dangerous rescue to save an unconscious motorcyclist after his bike skidded sideways in Orange County on July 20, 2023.
Danny Dube, District 2 Electrician, for saving a woman from her damaged vehicle that had rolled over into the center highway divide on a foggy day in Siskiyou County on February 7, 2023.
Kenny Myers, Bruce Perry and Darrell Van Natta, District 3 Equipment Operators, for rescuing a driver and five passengers who were trapped in their burning vehicle in the Sierra Nevada on December 28, 2022.
Michael Butner and Gonzalo Garcia, District 1 Tree Maintenance Workers, for rescuing a couple after their RV became trapped in heavy snow and low hanging trees in Mendocino County on February 23, 2023. Following the rescue, the trees crashed through the RV and split it in half.
Davidray Sumaya, District 7 Electrician, for rescuing two travelers who became trapped in their vehicle by flood waters on Interstate 5 during winter storms in Los Angeles County on Feb. 23, 2023.
Congratulations to all of these Caltrans heroes!
Caltrans Strategic Plan Performance Objectives
Caltrans 2020-2024 Strategic Plan has a series of performance objectives meant to gauge success at affecting the intended outcomes for each of the six goals. This dashboard represents those performance objectives that we are tracking and are able to report on.
Goal: Safety First
Reduce the number of on-the-job serious injuries to zero, annually.
An on-the-job serious injury is any work-related injury or illness resulting in a fatality, inpatient hospitalization, amputation, or loss of an eye. Annual traffic safety targets are presented as not-to-exceed targets. Data is provisional and subject to change. The traffic collision data used for these performance objectives will not be final until the third quarter of calendar year 2024.
Goal: Cultivate Excellence
In alignment with Caltrans mission, vision, and goals, the Equal Employment Opportunity Program along with our partners at Cooperative Personnel Services Human Resources, are excited to provide online Implicit Bias training. This training is designed to raise awareness, improve decision-making, and help avoid unintended outcomes at Caltrans. The training will also offer steps to prevent implicit biases from negatively affecting workplace decisions and conduct.
Increase the percentage of employees who take Implicit Bias training for the year, to 90%.
Goal: Multimodal
Caltrans is in the process of establishing a baseline and to begin reporting on the number of Caltrans Active Transportation Plan's location-based needs planned and constructed by programmed projects. The location-based needs provides information related to bicycle, sidewalk, and crossing needs. Initially the projected due date for this effort was March 2022 however statewide data was not available which caused delays. The updated timeline is 2024.
Goal: Strengthen Stewardship and Drive Efficiency
The California Department of Transportation, Office of Civil Rights is dedicated to increasing the participation of Small Business (SB), Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE), and Disabled Veteran Business Enterprise (DVBE) firms in both Federal and State contracting and procurement.
Increase the utilization of DBE-certified contractors, overall and across each Socially and Economically Disadvantaged group, to annually achieve our DBE goal of 22.2%.
Increase the dollar value of small businesses, disabled veteran business enterprises, and disadvantaged business enterprises, by 100% by June 2024.
Goal: Lead Climate Action
Pursuant to the Governor’s Executive Order (EO) B-16-12, state departments are required to increase the number of zero-emission vehicles (ZEVs) within their state fleet. As the steward of California’s state highway system, Caltrans serves an important and unique role in the state’s efforts to increase ZEVs on California’s roadways. In coordination with Caltrans Divisions and Districts, other state agencies, and external partners, the Department's ZEV strategy includes transitioning the Caltrans vehicle fleet, including locomotives, to ZEVs.
Increase the percentage of Caltrans fleet that are Zero-Emission Vehicles, to 12% by June 2024.
