Returning To Our Roots: The City of San Diego’s Climate Action Plan Update
ABOUT THIS REPORT:
We believe a transportation system that centers equity and slashes emissions towards Zero Carbon is achievable. Every San Diegan deserves access to high-quality, affordable, and sustainable mobility options. Success starts with a transportation system that connects people to basic needs. This means easy access to good jobs, educational and medical centers, and community amenities.
Today, this system system does not exist! But we know that this version of San Diego is possible, and with this report we aim to highlight the key problems with the San Diego region’s transportation system, and to outline Climate Action Campaign’s vision for an equitable transportation future.
KEY FINDINGS:
These are the key problems found within San Diego region’s transportation system:
-
Diminished Mobility: due to county sprawl and far away job centers, San Diegans are forced to commute long distances. With inaccessible and limited public transportation, this breeds inequity for demographics who don’t have access to cars.
-
Exposure to Air Pollution: San Diego has the 6th worst ozone pollution, which disproportionately impacts communities of concern.
-
Low Access to Economic Opportunity: there are 30% less job opportunities for San Diegans without access to a car.
-
Climate Crisis: San Diego’s transportation sector contributes to nearly half of our greenhouse gas emissions, thus fueling the climate crisis. This climate crisis then threatens our infrastructure and further hurts our transportation system.
REPORT RECOMMENDATIONS:
This is our moment to transform San Diego’s transportation system. The solutions we’ve outlined in this report are as important as ever. Two years following this report’s release, San Diego faces three game-changing opportunities to secure a better transportation future:
-
SANDAG’s Regional Transportation Plan
-
The City of San Diego’s Climate Action Plan Update
-
The County of San Diego’s Climate Action Plan
Here are some of the solutions that we recommend in this report to ensure successful implementation of these policies and climate action steps:
-
We need better and more equitable transportation infrastructure.
-
A transportation system that reverses decades of racial, economic, and environmental injustices that have plagued low-income communities of color.
-
Expanding public transportation rather than highway infrastructure.
-
Incorporating Bus Rapid Transit (BRT), Youth Opportunity Passes (YOP), and Light Rail and Commuter Rails, in our transit system.
-
We need bikeable, walkable neighborhoods with ambitious mode share targets.