First Name | Randi |
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Last Name | Kinman |
Email Address | randikinman@yahoo.com |
Affiliation | |
Subject | Greenhouse Gas Reduction Goals |
Comment | TO: California Air Resources Board Honored Board Members; As a volunteer who has spent the last several years working on transportation equity issues, I must object to your proposed reduction goals. While admirable, the goal you have proposed does not consider the unintended consequences and could, in fact, cripple local economies and ruin families financially. It took us decades to get to this place; it shouldn't take decades to fix our emissions, but it cannot be done without careful coordination. I am involved in local and regional long term planning efforts, so my comments are not just a knee jerk reaction. I am a former Planning Commissioner for the City of San Jose, have worked on Redevelopment projects for over a decade, focusing on disadvantaged neighborhoods. I've sat on any number of local planning committees related to planning, land use and transportation. I sit on the Metropolitan Transportation Commission's Policy Advisory Committee and chaired the equity analysis committee. I know that local and regional bodies have worked hard to coordinate long term land use and transportation measures. Implementation of policy is dependant upon funding. Unless you can provide the funding to speed up this process, implementing excessive target goals will simply create problems the local agencies cannot handle. We cannot just assume that we can, for instance, push people from the suburbs into urban settings as a means of reducing road emissions. The urban centers are in a delicate balancing act of planning for increased long term growth while preserving, maintaining and enhancing existing infrastructure. Local transit agencies are not funded to take on a rapid shift in ridership. The economic reality is it can't be done. Not at this point in time. I strongly, strongly, strongly urge you to reconsider your target goals and reduce them to the levels recommended by MTC and other regional bodies. They have arrived at their numbers by consulting with local bodies and working with hundreds of interested residents, businesses and non-profits. They have not simply made up numbers, their numbers reflect a great deal of work from staff around the region and also, by the way, from volunteers like me. Please act on the information gathered and compiled. Please respect the goals set by MTC and other agencies. They are reasonable and achievable goals based on existing infrastructure, and the long term planning and policy process that will allow us to reduce emissions while still growing as projected. Unless you plan on financing the upgrade, installation or expansion of our transit network, it is irresponsible to attempt to impose goals that can't be met. Sincerely, Randi Kinman San Jose |
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Date and Time Comment Was Submitted | 2010-09-22 10:48:04 |
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