The Los Angeles Regional Collaborative for Climate Action and Sustainability research on transportation demand management

The Los Angeles Regional Collaborative for Climate Action and Sustainability sponsored three student interns to research transportation demand management (TDM) ordinances for implementation of the first ever County Sustainability plan. The students presented their research to the Los Angeles County Sustainability Office last month and highlighted how carpooling, alternate transportation, and informing citizens of travel options can propel the people of Los Angeles towards a more sustainable transportation system.

As part of its new sustainability plan, LA County has the goal of issuing a TDM ordinance to help it meet its objectives of lowering greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from car travel. Over the past decades, single occupancy vehicle travel has dominated the region of Los Angeles and as a result, people have been exposed to poor air quality and congested, hazardous roads. These GHG emission also contribute to climate change in the long term.

“The basis of our research was investigating TDM best management practices in other cities and counties in order to understand how TDMs work and what is effective. After that stage, we studied LA County specifically, understanding its policy history and transportation norms,” said Madeline Reznick, a fourth-year student from the University of Oregon who is studying environmental policy.

“We hope this work will be valuable to the County in establishing a TDM ordinance that will assert prioritization of TDMs into climate action,” said Joyce Lee, a third-year environmental studies student at UCLA.

“This project is extremely important for policies to change how people travel. The strategies we found involved pedestrian safety, public transit improvements, cycling infrastructure improvements, equity among various income groups, and increasing mixed-use developments,” saidSofia Boronkay, a fourth-year student at UC Davis who is studying sustainable environmental design.

The California Center for Sustainable Communities (CCSC) is home to the Los Angeles Regional Collaborative and is proud to be able to support the County’s implementation of its sustainability plan.  The plan’s development was led by CCSC and the UCLA Grand Challenge, with its partners Buro Happold and the Liberty Hill Foundation who are committed supporting the Plan’s implementation.