Fairfield Municipal Code § 11.14 Purpose

The purpose of this ordinance is to establish Transportation Management Program (TMP) requirements for employers located in the City of Fairfield, in the furtherance of the provisions of Proposition 111 passed by the voters in the State in June 1990, the California Clean Air Act passed by the State legislation in September 1988, and the City’s General Plan. These requirements will promote alternative commute modes and reduce the total number of vehicles trips as part of a program to achieve the following objectives:

Reduce peak period traffic and congestion by decreasing the number of single occupant vehicle trips associated with commuting;

Reduce or delay the need for major transportation facility improvements by making more efficient use of existing facilities;

Reduce present and future motor vehicle emissions as a contribution towards complying with federal and state ambient air quality standards;

Establish TMP goals for employers so that a significant number of their employees are encouraged to arrive at the work site by means other than single occupant vehicles.

The City of Fairfield hereby finds and declares that:

A. The City of Fairfield is projected by both the State and the Bay Area Association of Governments to experience significant growth in population which will result in substantial increases in traffic volume;

B. The geographic and meteorological conditions in the City of Fairfield are conducive to the formation of air pollution attributed largely to motor vehicle emissions according to both state and regional air pollution control agencies;

C. Transportation Management Program (TMP) techniques including, but not limited to, ridesharing, transit, compressed work weeks and bicycle use among employees are effective means of reducing work related trips. A reduction in the number of trips will reduce congestion and vehicle emissions.

For the purpose of this article, the following words and phrases shall have the meanings respectively ascribed to them by this section.

"ALTERNATIVE COMMUTE MODE"

shall mean a trip where the transportation method is other than single occupant vehicle.

"AVERAGE VEHICLE RIDERSHIP (AVR)"

shall mean the number of employees arriving at the work site during the peak period divided by the number of vehicles used by the arriving employees at the work site, averaged over the survey week. The denominator shall be reduced by one for each zero emission vehicle used by arriving employees and by a proportionate amount for employees using compressed work weeks and employees that telecommute. The denominator shall also be reduced by the following amounts for employees arriving in clean fuel vehicles:

"COMMUTE"

shall mean a home to work or work to home trip.

"COMPRESSED WORK WEEK"

shall mean a regular full-time work schedule which eliminates at least one round-trip commute trip (both home-to-work and work-to-home) at least once every two (2) weeks. Examples include, but are not limited to working three twelve-hour days (3/36) or four ten-hour days (4/40) within a one week period; or eight nine-hour days and one eight-hour day (9/80) within a two week period. Works less than ten days during any fourteen day period.

"EMPLOYEE"

shall mean any person hired by an employer and works twenty hours or more per week, on a regular full-time or part time basis. The term includes independent contractors, but excludes field construction workers, field personnel, seasonal/temporary employees, and volunteers.

"EMPLOYER GUIDELINES"

shall mean a document provided to the employer by the TRO Administrator to help Employee Transportation Coordinators (ETCs0 develop effective Transportation Management Programs.

"EMPLOYEE TRANSPORTATION COORDINATOR (ETC)"

shall mean an individual appointed by employer and trained to promote and implement TMP strategies at the work site. ETC must complete the Bay Area Air Quality management District certified training within nine (9) months of the effective date, July 1, 1994, or within six (6) months of appointment when appointed after the initial nine-month time frame.

"EMPLOYER"

shall mean any public or private entity, including the City of Fairfield, with a permanent place of business or work site in the City of Fairfield, includes non-profit organizations.

"EMPLOYER TRANSPORTATION MANAGEMENT PLAN (ETMP)"

shall mean a document detailing TMP measures of an Employer to reduce employee vehicle trips to and from the work site in compliance with the requirements of this TRO.

"EMPLOYEE TRANSPORTATION SURVEY"

shall mean a TRO Administrator approved questionnaire distributed by employers to employees designed to provide sufficient information to calculate AVR for the work site pursuant to TRO requirement.

"FIELD CONSTRUCTION WORKER"

shall mean an employee who reports for work to a temporary field construction site.

"FIELD PERSONNEL"

shall mean employees who spend 20% or less of their work time at the work site and who do not report to the work site during the peak period for pick-up and dispatch of an employer provided vehicle.

"INDEPENDENT CONTRACTOR"

shall mean an individual who enters into a direct written contract or agreement with an employer to perform certain services. The period of the contract or agreement is at least ninety (90) continuous days or is open-ended.

"PEAK PERIOD"

shall mean the commute hours from 6 a.m. to and including 10 a.m. Monday through Friday inclusive.

"RIDESHARE"

shall mean two or more persons traveling together.

"SEASONAL/TEMPORARY EMPLOYEE"

shall mean an employee who works for the employer for less than 90 continuous days (three months) within a calendar year.

"SINGLE OCCUPANT VEHICLE (SOV)"

shall mean a vehicle occupied by one employee.

"SURVEY WEEK"

shall mean a regular five (5) day, Monday through Friday (inclusive) work week. The survey week for work site with Saturday and Sunday work schedules will include only those work days Monday through Friday. The survey week cannot contain a federal, state, or local holiday, regardless of whether the holiday is observed by the employer. A survey week that meets the above criteria is to be selected by the employer during January through May or September through November for the employer transportation survey as required by TRO Section 11.14.5(B). The survey week cannot be Rideshare Week or contain any other rideshare or transit promotional event, e.g. "Beat the Backup."

"TRANSIT"

shall mean public transportation including bus or rail service.

"TRANSPORTATION MANAGEMENT CERTIFICATE (TMC)"

shall mean a document issued by the City of Fairfield to denote compliance with the requirements set forth in this ordinance.

"TRANSPORTATION MANAGEMENT PROGRAM (TMP)"

shall mean a group of measures developed and implemented by an employer that are designed to provide transportation information, assistance and incentives to employees. The purpose of such measures is to reduce the number of motor vehicles driven to the work site by increasing AVR, and to achieve and maintain the performance objectives listed in Section 11.14.5.B.2.

"TRIP REDUCTION ORDINANCE (TRO)"

shall mean the City of Fairfield’s ordinance describing in detail the transportation management program including implementation schedule in compliance with the Bay Area Air Quality Management District’s Regulation 13 Rule 1 (Trip Reduction Requirement for Large Employers).

"TRO ADMINISTRATOR"

shall mean the person designated by the City Manager with the responsibility for the implementation of this Trip Reduction Ordinance.

"VEHICLE"

shall mean a device by which any person or property may be propelled, moved, or drawn upon a highway, except the following:

a device moved exclusively by human power;

a device used exclusively upon stationary rails or tracks;

buses used for public or private transit.

"VOLUNTEER"

shall mean an individual who does not receive any wages, salary, or other form of financial reimbursement from the employer for services provided.

"WORK SITE"

shall mean any property, real or personal, which is being operated, utilized, maintained, or owned by an employer as part of an identifiable enterprise. All property on contiguous, adjacent, or proximate sites separated only by a private or public roadway or other private or public right-of-way, served by a common circulation or access system, and not separated by an impassable barrier to bicycle or pedestrian travel such as a freeway or flood control channel is included as part of the work site. If two or more employers each have 100 or more employees at a single work site, then that work site is considered a separate work site for each employer.

"ZERO EMISSION VEHICLE (ZEV)"

shall mean any vehicle deemed a zero emission vehicle by the California Air Resources Board.

A. Employers.

The TRO applies to all public and private employers with 100 or more employees at a work site. If an employer has 100 or more employees but no single work site with 100 or more employees, this TRO does not apply to that employer. For purposes of determining the applicability of this TRO, the number of employees at a work site is determined as the maximum number of employees reporting to that work site on any single week day, Monday through Friday, during the current calendar or fiscal year.

B. Exemptions.

Notwithstanding any other provisions of this ordinance, the following activities shall be exempt from the requirements of this ordinance:

1. Work sites with 100 or more employees where less than fifty (50) employees start work during the peak period of 6 a.m. to and including 10 a.m. on a single week day Monday through Friday.

2. Temporary construction activities, including activities performed by engineers, architects, contractors, subcontractors, and construction workers when such activities are related to the construction, development or other improvements to real property.

3. Emergency activities in which persons are employed to render aid or other services in the event of an emergency or natural disaster.

4. Other temporary activities which employ persons for a period of less than ninety days.

A. Transportation Management Certificate (TMC) Requirements:

All Employers that do not achieve the performance objectives shall be required to file an Employee Transportation Management Plan (ETMP) with the TRO Administrator.

The goal of the ETMP is to designate TMP measures which will result in an ultimate average vehicle ridership (AVR) of 1.30 during the peak period.

A TMC shall be granted to the Employer for a one year period upon approval of the ETMP by the TRO Administrator in accordance with the requirements set forth in 11.14.5.B.

B. Requirements to submit Employee Transportation Management Plan (ETMP):

1. Employee Transportation Surveys:

Employers must conduct employee transportation surveys consistent with procedures contained in the Employer Guidelines and submit the survey responses to the TRO Administrator in accordance with the schedule contained in Section 11.14.6B. The purpose of the survey is to establish whether the performance objectives listed in Section 11.14.5-B.2. have been achieved. An employer has the option of processing the employee transportation surveys on-site or having the surveys processed outside the entity. Verifiable records must be maintained. Employee transportation surveys are to be conducted annually unless a work site demonstrates that a future year performance objective is achieved. These work sites are required to survey every other year as long as future year performance objectives continue to be achieved. An employer shall not offer any special incentives or disincentives in addition to its regular Transportation Management Programs during the survey week.

2. Performance Objectives.

Performance objectives are expressed in terms of AVR.

3. Requirements for Employers Not Achieving Performance Objectives

Employers that do not achieve the performance objectives for the applicable year at any work site subject to this TRO shall prepare and submit an ETMP for that work site within 120 days of a determination that the performance objective was not achieved.

4. Minimum Requirements

At a minimum, the ETMP, shall include the following provisions;

(a) Provide documents indicating proper employee notification;

(b) Provide a status report on current commute modes for employees in a format specified by the TRO Administrator;

(c) Document the TMP measures needed to increase AVR in the following year;

(d) A description, schedule, and commitment to implement additional or enhanced measures which include all reasonable, feasible, and cost effective trip reduction measures that can be expected to bring about significant progress toward achievement of the performance objectives.

5. Multiple Work sites

Each work site of an Employer with 100 or more employees shall submit a ETMP with TMP measures for the specific work site. If an Employer has work sites with 99 or less employees, the ETMP shall list all work sites and the number of employees at each site. To improve efficiency, employer with multiple work site are given the option to report directly to the Bay Area Air Quality Management District rather than to the City of Fairfield.

A. Registration

At least 60 days before the schedule set forth in Section 11.14.6B, all public and private employers with 100 or more employees at a single work site shall register with the City of Fairfield. Registration shall be submitted to:

Employer registration shall include the following information:

1. Employer name and mailing address;

2. Separate identification of each work site(s), including location and address;

3. Employee Transportation Coordinator’s (ETC’s) name and telephone number for each site(s);

4. The total number of employees reporting or assigned to each work site(s); and

5. The total number of employees who start work at each work site(s) during the peak period.

Employers who become subject to this TRO subsequent to the schedule above due to an increase in employees or the establishment of a new or expanded work site shall register with TRO Administrator within 60 days of becoming subject to this TRO.

B. Schedule of Compliance.

1. Employers subject to this TRO with work sites of 100 to 499 employees must conduct an initial employee transportation survey of those sites by September 30, 1994.

2. Employers subject to this TRO with work sites of 500 or more employees must conduct an initial employee transportation survey at those work sites by September 30, 1994.

C. Remedial action required by employer

Employers that do not achieve the performance objectives for the applicable year at any work site subject to this TRO shall prepare and submit an ETMP for that work site within 120 days of a determination that the performance objective was not achieved. Employers that demonstrate a future year performance objective is achieved will not be required to submit an ETMP for that work site for the applicable year.

D. ETMP Approval Process

Upon receiving the employer ETMP, the TRO Administrator shall examine the plan to determine whether the plan complies with the provisions contained in Section 11.14.5.B.4. The TRO Administrator shall approve and the employer shall implement the ETMP that includes all reasonable, feasible, and cost effective TMP measures. Inspection of the location by TRO Administrator or his/her staff may be conducted as necessary to determine compliance with these provisions.

E. Issuance of TMC

Except as otherwise provided, the TRO Administrator shall approve the ETMP upon finding that the requirements contained in this article have been met. The TMC shall be issued and will be valid for a period of one year from the date of issuance by the TRO Administrator. The TRO Administrator shall notify the applicant, in writing, of the decision to issue or not to issue the TMC.

The TRO Administrator shall disapprove any ETMP that does not meet the minimum requirements contained in Section 11.14.5.B.4. Employer shall revise and resubmit to the TRO Administrator any disapproved ETMP within 60 days of the disapproval. If the revised ETMP is disapproved, the employer has one additional 30-day opportunity to revise and resubmit a plan before final disapproval. Final disapproval is a violation of the TRO subject to penalty.

A decision to approve or disapprove the ETMP shall be deemed final fourteen calendar days after the date that the applicant received notice of the TRO Administrator’s decision, unless an appeal has been filed pursuant to Sec. 11.14.9.

F. Renewal of TMC

1. Renewal of Certificates with less than 1.30 AVR

The TMC shall be renewed annually except as specified in Sec. 11.14.6 F. 2. In order to renew a TMC, each employer shall provide the following information to the TRO Administrator at a minimum:

(a) Provide an update of the initial status report in a format specified by the TRO Administrator.

(b) Provide a summary of the previous year’s TMP program, progress in meeting ETMP goals and a description of program organization and resources.

The TRO Administrator may require additional documentation or may visit the site and conduct his or her own survey. If an employer is unable to provide the required information on the employees’ transportation modes, then the TRO Administrator may require an employer to retain a consultant. The consultant shall submit the required information to the TRO Administrator.

If the information provided indicates the employer has achieved the peak period AVR goal for the applicable year, a TMC shall be renewed. If the information provided indicates that the goal has not been reached after a period of one year from the date the ETMP is approved, the employer shall amend their ETMP to include additional TMP measures.

2. Attainment of Reduction Goal

If the monitoring information provided for the renewal of the TMC indicates the achievement of the AVR goal during two consecutive years, the employer may apply for TMC valid for two years.

The City of Fairfield may by resolution prescribe fees for administering the provisions of this ordinance and for the issuance and renewal of Transportation Management Certificates. Such fees shall be used for the purpose of defraying costs incurred in the administration, monitoring and enforcement of this ordinance.

All fees for the issuance and renewal of certificates shall be paid at the time of, and with the filing of the application with the TRO Administrator. No application shall be deemed valid or complete until all prescribed fees have been paid. Unless otherwise prescribed, fees shall not be refundable in whole or in part whether or not the certificate is issued or approval granted. No fee shall be refundable in whole or in part if a permittee ceases operating under the certificate in advance of the expiration of the certificate.

A. Infractions

Except for a violation of Section 11.14.b.2. (Failure to achieve the AVR performance objective at an affected work site), any violation of the provisions of any section of this article shall be a violation of the Fairfield City Code which constitutes an infraction subject to monetary penalties as contained in the Fairfield City Code Section 1.7. Each day a violation exists or continues shall be considered a separate violation for purpose of enforcement.

B. Public Nuisance

Except for a violation of Section 11.14.5.B.2 (failure to achieve the AVR performance objective at an affected work site), any violation of the provisions of any section of this article shall also constitute a public nuisance subject to the provisions of Chapter 27 of the Fairfield City Code.

Employers may appeal any ETMP disapproval made by TRO Administrator pursuant to subsection 11.14.6.E. to the Fairfield Planning Commission following the procedures listed below:

1. The employer shall submit a written notice of appeal to the TRO Administrator within 10 days.

2. The TRO Administrator shall notify the Planning Commission of the appeal and the Planning Commission will set a time to hear the appeal.

3. The Planning Commission shall issue its decision on the appeal within 10 days after the close of hearing.

4. The due date of revised plans pursuant to Subsection 11.14.6.E. will be suspended during the appeal process.

The decision of the Planning Commission shall be final.