On October 28, 2000, transit planner Alan Hoffman addressed a plenary meeting of San Diego Dialogue's membership, along with several invited guests. Hoffman is head of The Mission Group, a transportation planning and consulting firm based in San Diego. In addition to his work on projects around the world, Hoffman is currently a consultant to the Metropolitan Transit Development Board and has a real insider's view of the future of public transportation in our region. The discussion was enlivened by the presence of Gary Gallegos, director of Caltrans District 11; Leon Williams (chairman) and Bill Lieberman of the MTDB,and interim City Councilman Phil Blair.
Among the discussion points were the following:
-- A
coordinated effort is needed between highway planning and the development
of a more robust transit system. This also brings in finance issues.
-- Putting a robust transit plan in place requires cooperation from local
jurisdictions in determining land use policies. No transit plan can be
implemented without such cooperation.
-- It is critical to "connect the dots" between transit, increased density
and preservation of open space. As an example, it can be very expensive
to plan for new or renovated housing in older communities because of the
need for parking facilities. A reinvigorated transit system could make
such infill housing development more cost-effective by reducing reliance
on the automobile.
-- Finally, a public education effort is needed around all of these issues,
as well as around the benefits and costs of a more robust public transit
system.
Because of the importance of this issue to the future of San Diego, we are making Hoffman's PowerPoint presentation, "Building a Public Transit System for Everyone: Lessons Learned Outside the Box," available here. We have divided it into several sections (Adobe Acrobat Reader required):
Where Are We Going, and Why the Rush?
Adapting a City for Transit: Curitiba, Brazil
Different Transit Technologies
