BILL ANALYSIS Ó SENATE TRANSPORTATION & HOUSING COMMITTEE BILL NO: AB 946 SENATOR MARK DESAULNIER, CHAIRMAN AUTHOR: stone VERSION: 4/22/13 Analysis by: Erin Riches FISCAL: yes Hearing date: June 25, 2013 SUBJECT: Counties of Monterey and Santa Cruz: transit bus-only corridors DESCRIPTION: This bill authorizes the Monterey-Salinas Transit District and Santa Cruz Metropolitan Transit District, in consultation with the state Department of Transportation and the California Highway Patrol, to designate certain highway shoulders as transit bus-only corridors. ANALYSIS: Existing law: Authorizes the state Department of Transportation (Caltrans) to construct exclusive or preferential lanes for buses only, or for buses and other high-occupancy vehicles, or to permit exclusive or preferential use of designated lanes on existing highways that are part of the state highway system. Creates the Monterey-Salinas Transit District (MSTD) and the Santa Cruz Metropolitan Transit District (SCMTD) and prescribes the duties and responsibilities of each. Requires motorists to drive on the right side of the roadway, with specified exceptions such as when the motorist is legally passing another vehicle. Prohibits motorists from passing on the right, except in specified circumstances if conditions enable the motorist to pass safely, such as when the vehicle overtaken is about to make a left turn. Prohibits a motorist from passing on the right if it requires driving off the paved or main-traveled portion of the roadway. AB 946 (STONE) Page 2 Allows a bicycle to travel on a shoulder of a roadway. This bill : Authorizes MSTD and SCMTD, subject to approval by Caltrans and the California Highway Patrol (CHP), to designate shoulders of certain highways and freeways within those transit districts as transit bus-only corridors (commonly referred to as bus-on-shoulder programs). Requires MSTD and SCMTD to each determine jointly with Caltrans appropriate segments for bus-on-shoulder programs based on peak congestion hours and the most heavily congested areas. Requires MSTD and SCMTD to each work with Caltrans and CHP, in a transparent manner that includes opportunity for public comment, to develop guidelines to ensure driver and vehicle safety, as well as integrity of the infrastructure. Requires Caltrans, MSTD, and SCMTD to monitor the state of repair of highway shoulders used in the program, including repairs attributable to the operation of transit buses on the shoulders. Provides that MSTD and SCMTD shall be responsible for all costs attributable to this program. Authorizes the program to commence operation as soon as MSTD, SCMTD, Caltrans, and CHP have agreed upon guidelines. Authorizes operation of a transit bus on the shoulder of a state highway in conjunction with a bus-on-shoulder program within the areas served by MSTD and SCMTD. COMMENTS: 1.Purpose . The author states that Highway 1, the primary traffic corridor through Monterey and Santa Cruz Counties, suffers significant congestion during daily work commute times. By enabling transit buses to utilize highway shoulders, this bill will help ease that congestion. The sponsors of this bill note that bus-on-shoulder programs are a low-cost strategy to improve transit system reliability and service, as well as an effective method to help relieve traffic congestion and thus improve air quality. AB 946 (STONE) Page 3 2.Bus-on-shoulder programs . A comprehensive 2006 study by the Transit Cooperative Research Program, sponsored by the Federal Transit Administration, found that bus-on-shoulder programs had been working successfully for more than a decade in various parts of the US. The study noted that these programs work because they minimize congestion-related interruptions of bus schedules, improve travel times for buses versus cars, are low cost and easy to implement, do not require new rights-of-way, and are not visually obtrusive. The study also found that these programs are popular with bus passengers and have not drawn significant complaints from motorists. In 2005, the San Diego Association of Governments (SANDAG) received a Caltrans grant to evaluate the feasibility of converting freeway shoulder lanes to transit-only lanes. SANDAG implemented a pilot project, in partnership with the San Diego Metropolitan Transit System (MTS), Caltrans, and CHP, beginning in December 2005. The project, which is still in effect, utilizes the freeway shoulder on MTS Express Route 960 on portions of State Route 52 and Interstate 805 as a transit-only lane during morning and evening rush hours when freeway speeds drop below 35 miles per hour. SANDAG considers the program so successful that it is identifying additional routes for bus-on-shoulder programs. 3.Is this an appropriate use of shoulder lanes ? Current law generally designates highway shoulder lanes for emergency use only. Emergency vehicles commonly use shoulders to bypass traffic congestion when responding to emergencies. In addition, when a motorist's car breaks down, he or she may move the car to the shoulder to avoid blocking traffic in the main highway lanes. Converting shoulder lanes to bus-only poses the risk of blocking emergency vehicles and creating a safety hazard when a disabled car pulls off to the shoulder. To help address such concerns, this bill requires MSTD and SCMTD to obtain Caltrans and CHP approval before implementing a bus-on-shoulder program, and to work with CHP and Caltrans to develop safety guidelines for such programs. 4.Undue wear and tear ? Because shoulder lanes are intended for emergency use only, they are not built to withstand large amounts of traffic. Running buses on shoulders on a daily basis could cause a great deal of wear and tear, which will likely result in significant maintenance and rehabilitation costs. This bill provides that MSTD and SCMTD shall be AB 946 (STONE) Page 4 responsible for all costs attributable to the bus-on-shoulder program. The committee may wish to consider amending the bill to clarify that these costs include costs related to repairs attributable to the operation of transit buses on shoulders. 5.Technical amendments : On page 2, delete line 9 after "Patrol." On page 2, delete lines 10 through 12. On page 2, line 13, before "participating," insert "The departments and". On page 2, line 13, after "districts," insert, "shall determine jointly the segments of each highway where it is appropriate to designate shoulders as transit bus-only traffic corridors, based upon, but not limited to, factors including right-of-way availability and capacity,". Assembly Votes: Floor: 74-0 Appr: 17-0 Trans: 15-0 L. Gov.: 9-0 POSITIONS: (Communicated to the committee before noon on Wednesday, June 19, 2013.) SUPPORT: Monterey-Salinas Transit District (co-sponsor) Santa Cruz Metropolitan Transit District (co-sponsor) California Transit Association OPPOSED: None received.