Helping Oregon Create Healthy & Sustainable Communities
February 24 UPDATE: SB 1059 Passes House & Senate
Our prioirity bill for the February session, SB 1059, passed on the floor of the Oregon House today, following yesterday's Senate approval. It will now go to the Governor to be signed into law.
The Connection Between Transportation, Land Use and Climate Change
Transportation is responsible for over one-third of the greenhouse gas emissions that cause global warming. As Oregon continues to grow, our communities and our economy will need a strong, balanced, climate-friendly transportation system. Creating healthy, climate-friendly communities provides multiple benefits, including:
- Reduced household costs and greater economic benefits: Transportation is the second largest expense for most households. In communities with transportation choices, families can save a bundle on cars and gas. In the Portland region, where residents travel about 20% fewer miles by car than residents of other major U.S. metropolitan areas, transportation cost savings are calculated at $1.1 billion per year. Every dollar not spent on gasoline creates greater energy independence and frees up money for local goods and services. That benefits Oregon’s economy.
- Healthier lifestyles and more time with family: In many communities, people have no choice but to drive. Even short trips can’t be done by foot or on a bicycle. This has led to more sedentary lifestyles where people don’t get the exercise they need. And when people have to drive long distances in heavy traffic, they have less time to spend with their families. Smart growth reduces commute times and supports walking and bicycling.
- Reduces infrastructure costs: Many studies comparing compact growth to sprawl have found that compact growth saves money on the total costs of buildings, land, infrastructure and transportation.
- Protects the environment: Transportation is a major contributor to air quality problems like smog. Every mile not driven keeps about one pound of heat-trapping carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere.
Senate Bill 1059-B: Creating Healthy, Climate Friendly Communities
Oregon lawmakers have a chance to give Oregon cities the tools to achieve these benefits - and reduce transportation-related greenhouse gas emissions - with the passage of Senate Bill 1059-B.
SB 1059-B implements the recommendations of the Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) Greenhouse Gas Emissions Task Force. And, yes, the name is scary enough to make you want to run the other way...fast. But the task force, made up of diverse stakeholders from around the state, came to a consensus that a combined state and local government approach, phased in over time, could achieve the above benefits while helping Oregon meet our goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions that cause climate change.
The bill focuses on Phase 1 of the Task Force Report, in which the Oregon Department of Transportation and the Department of Land Conservation and Development will:
• develop a statewide transportation strategy on greenhouse gases
• craft a toolkit to assist local governments and MPOs in reducing GHG emissions from the transportation sector
• develop guidelines for scenario planning, which is a method used by communities across the country to consider alternative choices of land use patterns and transportation options to reduce GHG emissions
• work with the Oregon University System to educate the public about the need to reduce GHG, and the costs and benefits of doing so
• report back to the 2011 Legislative Assembly with an estimate of the costs for local governments to prepare and select a land use and transportation scenario that reduces GHG emissions, and potential sources of funding, and
• report back to the 2013 Legislative Assembly with an assessment of how the agencies are doing on these tasks
What's an MPO?
Transportation planning in Oregon’s largest urban areas is done by metropolitan planning organizations (MPOs). Oregon has six regions serves by MPOs - Portland, Salem/Keizer, Eugene/Springfield, Corvallis, Bend, and Medford. In 2009, the Legislature adopted HB 2001 which requires Metro, the MPO for the Portland region, to develop land use and transportation scenarios that will meet the region’s share of greenhouse gas reductions. Metro is then required to work with local governments to adopt the preferred scenario through scheduled updates to transportation and land use plans. The work of the MPO Task Force builds upon the work that Metro will be doing to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
Click here for our fact sheet about the issue.
Click here to download the Task Force's final report
Oregon's Metropolitan Planning Organizations
- The Portland region is served by Metro's Joint Policy Advisory Committee on Transportation
- The Eugene-Springfield is served by the Central Lane Metropolitan Planning Organization
