Porterville Municipal Code Ch. 27 Transportation Demand Management Program

The purpose of this chapter is to promote the development of transportation demand management (TDM) programs at all existing development and at new development within the city. In order to accomplish this purpose, this chapter establishes certain requirements to enable the city of Porterville to evaluate the effectiveness of TDM programs and to chart progress toward achieving the average vehicle ridership goals established in this chapter. It is also the purpose of this chapter to require certain employers to designate specified individuals to ensure the proper coordination of such reporting and implementation programs.

This chapter is intended to meet the requirements of Government Code section 6508(a) et seq., which mandates the development of a trip reduction and travel demand element of the congestion management program adopted by the Tulare County Association of Government/Transportation Planning Agency (TCAG/TPA). Further, the legislation requires all local agencies to prepare and adopt a TDM ordinance. (Ord. 1482 § 1, 12-15-1992)

As used in this chapter, the following words and terms shall have the meanings herein described:

APCD: San Joaquin Valley unified air pollution control district.

ALTERNATIVE TRANSPORTATION MODES: Any mode of travel that serves as an alternative to the single occupant vehicle. This can include all forms of ridesharing such as carpooling or vanpooling, as well as public transit, bicycling or walking.

APPLICATION PROJECT: Any development project that is determined to be a worksite for the number of employees equal to or greater than the employee threshold number established by city council.

AVERAGE VEHICLE RIDERSHIP (AVR): The total number of employees assigned to a worksite, Monday through Friday, divided by the number of vehicles they drive from home to work. Credit may be given and the calculation for employee work trips eliminated during a biweekly no work period due to the use of compressed work week or telecommuting.

CARPOOLING: Two (2) or more persons traveling together in a single vehicle.

CITY ENGINEER: The city engineer of the city of Porterville or his/her duly authorized designee.

COMMUTE: A home to work or work to home trip.

COMMUTE ALTERNATIVES: Any form of commute transportation except by single occupancy vehicle powered by an internal combustion engine.

COMMUTE COORDINATOR: An employee or contractor of an employer, whose responsibility is the day to day management of any transportation demand management program.

COMPRESSED WORK WEEK: A work schedule for an employee which eliminates at least one round trip commute biweekly. For example, forty (40) hours of work in four (4) 10-hour days or a work plan that allows one day off every other week, known as the "9/80 plan".

DESIGNEE(S): Any private entity, governmental agency or city employee designated by the city to administer all or any of the provisions of this chapter except those related to the bringing of enforcement actions under this chapter.

DEVELOPMENT PROJECT: Any nonresidential or mixed use project which requires discretionary approval by the city.

DIRECTOR: The public works director or designee for the city of Porterville.

EMPLOYEE: One who is assigned to the designated worksite. An employee who works in the service of an employer for either wages or salary, as a contract employee under the direction of the worksite employer or through a temporary service agency during a period of more than ninety (90) days.

EMPLOYEE THRESHOLD: The number of employees as defined in section 27-3 of this chapter and set by resolution of the city council that determines when the terms of this chapter apply to an employer.

EMPLOYER: Any public or private employer, including the city of Porterville, which has a worksite in the city. For purposes of this chapter, the annual average number of full time employees on the day shift at the designated worksite shall determine the size of the employer.

FLEXIBLE WORK HOURS: A variation of an employee's work hours to provide an incentive for the employer to use commute alternatives.

IMPROVEMENT PLANS: Plans submitted to the city as part of an application for a building permit for new nonresidential development or expansion of existing or change of use (as defined by the uniform building code) of any nonresidential building facility.

MIXED USE DEVELOPMENT: The development of a parcel(s) or structures(s) with two (2) or more different land uses such as, but not limited to, a combination of limited residential, office, commercial retail, public or entertainment in a single or physically integrated group of structures.

PEAK PERIOD: The hours from seven o'clock (7:00) A.M. to nine o'clock (9:00) A.M. and four o'clock (4:00) P.M. to six o'clock (6:00) P.M., Monday through Friday, excluding federal holidays. Peak periods shall mean employees' commute trips to a worksite where the employees' workday begins.

PERSON: An individual, trust, firm, joint stock company, corporation, partnership, association or other business entity, city, county, district, the state, department or agency thereof, or the United States, to the extent authorized by law.

SINGLE OCCUPANCY VEHICLE: A motor vehicle occupied by one employee for commute purposes.

SITE DEVELOPMENT PLAN: A plan of development that is subject to public hearing before the city council or project review committee.

TELECOMMUTING: A system of either working at home or at an off site workstation with computer facilities that link to the worksite.

TRANSPORTATION DEMAND MANAGEMENT (TDM): The provision of information, assistance, incentives or other measures designed to meet an average vehicle ridership (AVR) and which is intended to reduce the number of vehicles with internal combustion engines driven on streets or highways to the worksite.

TRANSPORTATION MANAGEMENT ASSOCIATION (TMA): An organization through which developers, employers and/or local governments cooperate in designing, implementing or evaluating a TDM program.

TRANSPORTATION SYSTEM MANAGEMENT (TSM): Low cost improvements to the transportation system (roads and transit) which increase the operational efficiency and/or capacity of the system.

TRIP REDUCTION: Reducing the number of work related trips on streets or highways taken during workweek hours in single occupancy vehicles powered by internal combustion engines.

VANPOOL: A van occupied by five (5) or more persons traveling together.

WORKSITE: A building or group of buildings which are in actual physical contact or separated solely by a private roadway or easement and which are owned and operated by an employer. (Ord. 1482 § 1, 12-15-1992; Ord. 1614 § 3, 9-17-2002)

This chapter shall apply to all existing employers (both public and private) within the city with the employee threshold number or more employees, defined by resolution of the city council, or those existing employers which reach the employee threshold, and all new development projects that are estimated to generate, either in the project itself or as a result of adding the project to an existing development, the employment of the employee threshold number or more persons, as determined by using the methodology set forth in subsection B of this section.

A. For purposes of determining whether an existing development is subject to this chapter, the number of employees will be based on official payroll records and shall be calculated on the annual average number of full time employees.

B. For purposes of determining whether a new development project is subject to this chapter, the total number of employees which the project is estimated to generate will be determined by the city of Porterville as follows:

1. Employment projections developed by the project applicant, subject to approval by the city engineer or responsible staff; or

2. Employment projections developed by the city engineer or responsible staff using the latest institute of transportation engineer's "Trip Generation Manual"; or

3. In the case of a multiuse development, the employment projection shall be calculated on a case by case basis based upon the proportion of development devoted to each type of use.

4. The employment projections for land uses not identified above shall be determined pursuant to subsection B1 of this section.

C. The employer shall be responsible for complying with the provisions of this chapter. (Ord. 1482 § 1, 12-15-1992)

An average vehicle ridership goal shall be established by a resolution of the city council for each employer participating in this program and is intended to measure progress toward a reduction in vehicle trips to the worksite. (Ord. 1482 § 1, 12-15-1992)

All employers both existing and proposed who meet the employee threshold criteria shall be responsible for the preparation and submittal of a transportation demand management plan. The plan shall be prepared to meet the average vehicle ridership goal. The plan shall include the following sections:

A. Employee profile of the business.

B. Existing average vehicle ridership.

C. Transportation demand management strategies selected for implementation.

D. Implementation timetable.

E. Monitoring program.

F. Contact person or commute coordinator. (Ord. 1482 § 1, 12-15-1992)

The following strategies should be considered when developing employer based transportation demand management plans or as part of the design of new projects or the remodeling of existing development:

A. Rideshare Programs: The establishment of a carpool/vanpool program for the employer (if practical) or the participation in an existing carpool/vanpool matching service. The designation of parking spaces, located as close as is practical to each entrance or at other preferential locations within the employee parking area, for use by carpool and vanpool vehicles can be part of this program. These spaces, may be reserved and designated for carpool/vanpool parking by marking such spaces "carpool only".

B. Park And Ride Lots: The establishment of park and ride lots on or near the development project site or at satellite locations should be coordinated with public transit routing or carpool/vanpool services.

C. Bicycle Programs: Bicycle racks may be provided for use by employees who commute to the site by bicycle. The bicycle parking area may be established in a secure location and be in close proximity to employee entrances. Provision of connections to existing and planned on street and off street bike trails may also be incorporated into the site plans. Development projects may also wish to include shower facilities into their facility design.

D. Transit Service Programs: Transit waiting shelters, including bus pullouts, bus pads and right of way for bus stops may be provided for development projects located along established or proposed bus routes. The applicability of this provision shall be determined in conformance with standard traffic engineering principles including, but not limited to, the frequency and relative impact of blocked traffic due to stopped buses and the level of transit ridership at the location. Transit information services or employer based transit pass programs may also be considered as strategies.

E. Alternate Work Schedules: Employers may wish to establish flexible work hours, compressed workweeks or staggered work schedules which move commute trips out of the peak period (7:00 A.M. to 9:00 A.M. and 4:00 P.M. to 6:00 P.M.).

F. Pedestrian Access: Sidewalks and other paved pathways may be provided on site to connect off site external pedestrian circulation systems (planned or existing) to the building site. Sidewalk locations may integrate existing and planned waiting shelters with building entrance(s).

G. Joint Access And Shared Parking: For applicable developments designed as a worksite, provision of joint access and shared parking across multiple parcels may be incorporated into project design to facilitate integration of TDM strategies.

H. Telecommunications: The employer's use of telecommunications, teleconferencing and telecommuting can be made a part of the strategy as it relates to the reduction in peak period trips to the worksite.

I. Commuter Information: An area within the facility may be provided to disseminate information on alternative transportation modes. This area shall be centrally located and accessible to all employees. The space shall be of sufficient size to provide information on alternative transportation modes, such as current maps, routes and schedules for public transit.

J. On Site Support Facilities: Mixed use developments which include such services as daycare, lunchrooms/cafeterias, banks, restaurants and retail uses. (Ord. 1482 § 1, 12-15-1992)

A. All existing employers which are subject to the provisions of this chapter shall submit a transportation demand management plan prepared in conformance with the city's guidelines by July 1, 1993.

B. Any existing employer which attains the employee threshold contemplated under this chapter shall be required to submit a transportation demand management plan within twelve (12) months of reaching the employee threshold.

C. Any new development project which begins business at or above the employee threshold established by resolution of the city council as determined under subsection 27-3B of this chapter shall submit a transportation demand management plan for review at the time an application for a discretionary permit is submitted.

D. An employer or new development project submitting a transportation demand management plan under this chapter shall submit two (2) copies of the plan to the city.

E. All transportation demand management plans shall be reviewed by the city engineer or his designated representative. All employers with an approved transportation demand management plan shall make annual reports to the city of Porterville on the success of their efforts at achieving the average vehicle ridership goal. (Ord. 1482 § 1, 12-15-1992)

This chapter shall be implemented and enforced in accordance with customary methods and procedures of the city of Porterville regarding developments. (Ord. 1482 § 1, 12-15-1992)

For the purposes of meeting its obligations under this chapter, the city of Porterville may impose on each transportation demand management plan which is submitted a fee, as set by resolution of the city council, for the cost of processing and reviewing the plan. A separate fee may be collected for the review of the annual report. This annual fee shall also be set by resolution of the city council. (Ord. 1482 § 1, 12-15-1992)

An employer may, within ten (10) days following the date of a decision made by the city engineer pursuant to this chapter, appeal said decision to the director. The appeal shall be in writing and shall set forth the terms upon which the appeal is based and state specifically the error or abuse of discretion or lack of evidence to support said decision. If said employer is still not satisfied by the decision of the director he shall submit in writing an appeal to city council. The council shall consider and decide all issues raised in the appeal, and may affirm, reverse or modify the decision appealed to it. The decision of the council shall be final. (Ord. 1482 § 1, 12-15-1992)

The city council hereby declares that should any section, paragraph, sentence or word of this chapter, hereby adopted, be declared for any reason to be invalid, it is the intent of the city council that it would have passed all other portions of this chapter independent of any such portion as may be declared invalid. (Ord. 1482 § 1, 12-15-1992)

For the purpose of ensuring that applicable developments comply with the provisions of this chapter, city shall, following written notice to the employer, initiate enforcement action(s) against the employer which may include, but not be limited to, the following:

A. Withholding the issuance of a building permit or certificate of use and occupancy.

B. Issuance of a stop work order.

It shall be unlawful for any person, firm or corporation to violate any provision or to fail to comply with any of the requirements of this chapter. Any person, firm or corporation violating any provision of this chapter or failing to comply with any of its requirements shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction thereof, shall be punished by a fine not exceeding five hundred dollars ($500.00) or by imprisonment not exceeding six (6) months, or by both such fine and imprisonment. Each such person, firm or corporation shall be deemed guilty of a separate offense for each day during which any violation of any of the provisions of this chapter is committed, continued or permitted by such person, firm or corporation, and shall be punishable therefor as provided for in this chapter. (Ord. 1482 § 1, 12-15-1992)

Notwithstanding any other provisions of this code, the following uses and activities shall be specifically exempt from the provisions of this chapter:

A. Development projects expected to employ fewer than the employee threshold number.

B. Temporary construction activities on any affected project, including activities performed by engineers, architects, contract subcontractors and construction workers.

C. Other temporary activities, as defined in this code, or as authorized by the city when such temporary activities shall discontinue at the end of the designated time period.

D. Employers that can show that the implementation of the various transportation demand management strategies will not achieve the goals of transportation demand management, air quality and congestion management. (Ord. 1482 § 1, 12-15-1992)

The requirements of this chapter do not apply individually to members of a local transportation management association if the association is in compliance with all sections of this chapter on behalf of its members. Should an employer no longer participate in a transportation management association, this chapter shall be applicable to his/her development immediately. As a result, the affected employer must comply with all sections of this chapter. (Ord. 1482 § 1, 12-15-1992)