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III.  IMPLEMENTATION MEASURES

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The seven measures presented in this section constitute a strategy for implementing the recommendations of the Transportation Element of the county’s GMA Comprehensive Plan. These implementation measures are recommended and adopted as part of the GMACP and entail both regulatory and nonregulatory actions. This TE provides more detail on these strategies than is presented within the GPP. Importantly, the development and adoption of these implementation measures is guided by the goals, objectives and policies of the GPP and are consistent with the adopted CWPPs.

A.  Concurrency Management System
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Maintain a concurrency management system per Chapter 30.66B SCC (Concurrency and Road Impact Mitigation Ordinance) using the integrated arterial and transit level of service provisions as adopted within the transportation element of the comprehensive plan.

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Where land development causes a deterioration of LOS below the adopted standard, the county is obligated to demonstrate that a needed improvement or strategy can be completed within six years. If the needed improvement or strategy cannot be funded and constructed within the six-year time frame, then developments impacting the road with deficient LOS may not be approved. Where it is evident that transportation facilities and services cannot be funded or provided in sufficient time to maintain concurrency land use designations may be reconsidered. While the planning-level LOS methodology described in Chapter II. Relationship of Planned Land Use to Transportation is used to determine the potential need for capital improvements, the LOS standard used in the concurrency management system and described in this chapter defines the actual need for improvements.

The concurrency provisions of the Growth Management Act (GMA) necessitate a three-way balancing of land use, transportation LOS and capital facility financing. Three key provisions of the GMA (RCW 36.70A.070(6)) help define concurrency management for transportation facilities and require:

LOS standards for all county arterials and transit routes to serve as a gauge to judge system performance;

specific actions and requirements for bringing into compliance any facilities or services that are below an established LOS standard; and

that improvements or strategies are in place at the time of development, or that a financial commitment is in place to complete the improvements or strategies within six years.

The Washington Administrative Code (WAC) also provides detailed guidance on transportation concurrency regulations and procedures the county can use in order to determine whether transportation facilities have adequate levels of service to accommodate proposed development. The County addresses several key procedural issues when implementing concurrency management. These issues include:

compliance with applicable environmental protection regulations;

monitoring level of service for state highways, arterials and transit;

condition land development approvals based on achievement of transportation concurrency;

deferral or denial of development approvals subject to the later availability of transportation facilities; and

integrating SEPA compliance with the project-level process for concurrency management.

In order to comply with the provisions of the RCW and WAC 365-196-840, the County is pursuing both regulatory and non-regulatory actions.

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The LOS standard and concurrency management system are implemented through Chapter 30.66B SCC and other development regulations, and are consistent with the CWPP and comprehensive plan by including the following features:

transportation concurrency determinations for land development are made in light of the overall goals, objectives and policies of the county's comprehensive plan;

LOS shall be used in a manner that is consistent with growth management tools that manage the rate of growth in rural areas and encourage more intense development within urban areas, particularly where transit service and nonmotorized facilities are available;

the travel impacts of development considered in multimodal terms and on a systems basis;

recognize there are rural arterials that carry significant amounts of urban-related traffic; and

recognize there are transportation services and facilities that are at ultimate capacity and alternative mitigation may be considered in making concurrency determinations.

a.  Chapter 30.66B SCC Amendments

Chapter 30.66B SCC Concurrency and Road Impact Mitigation addresses the impact of land development on the county road system. It details the obligations and procedures that must be met in order to approve land development and implement administrative procedures for concurrency management. The county’s concurrency management system provides the basis for monitoring the traffic impacts of land development and determines if needed transportation improvements are keeping pace with the prevailing rate of land development.

The department of planning and development services conducts the transportation-related part of development review and provides technical analyses, concurrency determinations and mitigation recommendations. The requirements of Chapter 30.66B SCC affect land development review by making the issuance of building and other permits contingent on a positive concurrency determination. Where concurrency problems arise, permits for development would be issued after approval of commitments to actions and funding in compliance with adopted LOS standards.

b.  Level of Service Provisions

The LOS standard used for concurrency management is adopted in the comprehensive plan and is presented in Tables 8, 9, and 10. This standard is implemented through the provisions of Chapter 30.66B SCC.

The arterial LOS standard is based on a two-step evaluation process. Step one determines whether or not the ADT on an arterial unit exceeds a predefined threshold. If it does, then step two evaluates whether or not average travel speed falls below predefined minimums. An arterial unit fails the LOS standard when ADT exceeds the threshold and average travel speed is less than the minimum. Table 8 illustrates the application of the county’s concurrency LOS standard.

Table 8 Level-of-Service Standard for County Arterials

Snohomish County Level of Service Standard for Arterial Units

Rural/Urban Arterial Unit Classification

Multimodal Arterial(1) or Qualifying Public Facilities (2)

Roadway Level of Service Standard (3)

Step One: ADT Threshold

Step Two: Average Travel Speed Minimum

Rural

No

See Table 9

C (4)

Yes

See Table 9

D (4)

Urban

No

See Table 9

E (5)

Yes

See Table 9

Five Miles Per Hour Less than E (6)

(1)Multimodal arterials meet a specific multimodal standard for bicycle and pedestrian facilities and transit service including frequency of transit service, presence of pedestrian and bicycle facilities, and residential and employment densities within ¼ mile of transit routes. Developments which impact arterials determined to meet the multimodal criteria will be required to provide additional TDM mitigation.

(2)Certain public facilities needed to support residential development may qualify for a lower travel speed standard. The determination of whether or not a proposed development qualifies for the lower travel speed standard will be based upon the following criteria with additional specificity provided by department rules:

a.The development proposed by the public agency is needed to support residential development that is already constructed, approved or deemed concurrent; and

b.the public agency submitting the application for development is directed by a publicly elected official or board; and

c.the location of the agency’s facility is constrained by established legal or public districts; and

d.siting the development in the proposed location would provide a legitimate public benefit to the occupants of the residential areas.

Public developments which use the lower travel speed standard to achieve concurrency will be required to provide additional road mitigation in the form of TDM.

(3)The ADT threshold is applied first. If the ADT on an arterial unit exceeds the threshold identified in Table 9, then the average travel speed is reviewed. If the average travel speed on the arterial unit falls below the appropriate minimum travel speed then the LOS on the arterial unit does not meet the County standard.

(4)The letter grades for rural roads correspond to varying actual travel speeds, depending on the free flow speed of the specific arterial unit and the number of controlled intersections. The method used to determine the threshold is established in rules based on the principles of the Highway Capacity Manual published by the Transportation Research Board, Washington, D.C.

(5)The letter grades for urban roads correspond to varying travel speeds as established in the Highway Capacity Manual and depend on characteristics of the arterial.

(6)For urban roads that meet the multimodal criteria, Snohomish County applies a 5 mph reduction to the average travel speed minimums for urban arterials. This 5 mph reduction also applies to certain public facilities that qualify as needed to support residential development based on the criteria in footnote (2) above and departmental rules.

i.  Average Daily Traffic (ADT) Thresholds

Two-way, weekday, 24-hour volumes are used as the measure of ADT on arterial units, consistent with rules establishing details on the methodology, frequency and validity of counts. Thresholds vary by urban/rural, number of lanes, and whether or not arterial units have been designated as ultimate capacity by the county council. For ultimate capacity arterial units, the thresholds are based upon maximizing the use of the roadway with volumes at or near capacity from early morning to late evening. For arterial units not designated as ultimate capacity, the thresholds are based upon the minimum volumes for which the roads are designed. Typically, roads with volumes below these thresholds have peak-hour average travel speeds reflecting uncongested conditions. Also, volumes below the thresholds typically characterize roads functioning as local roads rather than as arterials.

In some cases, roads with volumes below the thresholds are classified as arterials for purposes of system continuity or to establish a base arterial system in areas of the County that will experience future growth. In aggregate, these arterial roads carry a small percentage of total daily travel demand and therefore do not contribute significantly to travel delay experienced on the arterial system. The ADT thresholds are established in Table 9.

Table 9 Average Daily Traffic (ADT) Thresholds

Road Not Designated as Ultimate Capacity

Road Designated as Ultimate Capacity

Number of Lanes

Rural Arterial Unit

Urban Arterial Unit

Rural Arterial Unit

Urban Arterial Unit

2

4,000

7,000

18,000

22,000

3

5,000

9,000

27,000

33,000

4

7,000

12,000

36,000

44,000

5

n/a

15,000

45,000

55,000

6

n/a

16,000

54,000

66,000

7

n/a

21,000

63,000

77,000

ii.  Average Travel Speed

Existing or forecasted, average, weekday, directional travel speed during the a.m. and p.m. peak hour is used as the measure of average travel speed on arterial units. This method is consistent with rules establishing details on the methodology and validity of evaluations. The Highway Capacity Manual is used as the basis for determining the correspondence between travel speed and LOS letter grades.

Letter grades are used as the standard, rather than the corresponding miles per hour, to maintain consistency with the Highway Capacity Manual as it evolves over time. Most urban arterial units in the County have a free flow speed of 35 to 40 miles per hour. The threshold between LOS “E” and “F” for these roads is generally between 10 and 13 mph.

For a rural arterial unit, the threshold between “C” and “D” varies depending on its length’s impact on free-flow speed, the off-peak average travel speeds, and the number of controlled intersections. The methodology for determining the rural thresholds, based on average travel speed, are contained in the public works administrative rules. (ref. 15)

iii.  Ultimate Capacity Provisions

There are some arterials for which additional improvements would require unwarranted public expenditures and/or would have severe environmental or community impacts. In such cases the Council reserves the option to designate such arterials as being at ultimate capacity, where provisions are made for traffic safety, pedestrian mobility and bicycle circulation as applicable.

The LOS standard for arterials designated as ultimate capacity includes a higher ADT threshold, representing the highest hourly traffic volumes over an extended part of the day. For an ultimate capacity arterial, until ADT threshold is exceeded, developments impacting the arterials would be deemed concurrent, even though average travel speed could drop below the travel-speed minimum during the peak hours and other times during the day. Arterials already widened to the design standard identified in the TE are likely candidates for ultimate capacity, but other arterials could also be designated as ultimate capacity based on criteria established in code and/or rules.

Several measures are proposed to help mitigate the effects of ultimate capacity designation by promoting efficiencies. Developments adding new traffic to arterials designated as being at ultimate capacity would be required to support TDM measures. The County would commit to continued transportation systems management (TSM) and arterial access management measures on ultimate capacity roadways. The County would increase its funding for pedestrian facilities countywide, with an expectation that additional funds would be spent to improve pedestrian access to transit on or adjacent to ultimate capacity arterials. The County would also provide corridor-level TDM for the purpose of reducing trips on the ultimate capacity corridors.

Once roads have been designated by the Council as ultimate capacity, developments impacting such roads may be subject to additional design or mitigation requirements, but lower average travel speeds would potentially be tolerated. The basic strategy for ultimate capacity consists of a number of actions, listed below.

Establishing higher ADT thresholds for arterial units designated as ultimate capacity. The thresholds are set so that higher volumes and potentially lower average travel speeds are tolerated until the ADT threshold is exceeded.

Adopting code language and/or promulgating administrative rules with criteria for determining a road to be at ultimate capacity. The public works department will use these criteria to make an engineer’s report and recommendation for legislative action to the Executive and Council. Among other things, the report will address the extent to which improvements are needed to improve LOS on the county facility, and whether or not such projects are identified in the TE as likely for construction by the planning horizon year.

Requiring development impacting ultimate capacity facilities to meet new TDM requirements.

Making determinations of ultimate capacity that can include commitments to full-design standards, additional safety and operational improvements, development of access manage-ment plans, signal coordination and signal upgrades, and support for corridor-level trip-reduction programs.

iv.  Rural Arterials with Urban Traffic

Rural arterials with urban traffic represent roadways outside of UGAs that are primarily accommodating higher volumes of traffic between or oriented to urban growth areas (UGA) and rural areas of more intensive commercial development. Table 10 designates and Figure 3 illustrates the location and limits of these arterials. These rural arterials will be evaluated for their LOS using the urban LOS standard. The criteria considered in designating arterials outside of UGAs as rural arterials with urban traffic are:

provide direct connections between UGAs and/or rural areas of more intensive commercial development;

provide an opportunity for urban-oriented traffic to feed rural arterials with urban traffic from a UGA, rural areas of more intensive development, or Highways of Statewide Significance; and

exhibit ADT higher than the thresholds for urban arterials not designated as ultimate capacity arterials.

Where rural arterials with urban traffic are the subject of a concurrency evaluation, the applicable LOS standard would be the same as that used for urban arterials.

Table 10 Rural Arterials with Urban Traffic

Arterial Roadway

Limits

Connecting

19th Avenue NE/156th Street NE/ 23rd Avenue NE/ 140th Street NE/ Stimson Road/ 136th Street NE

Marysville C/L on 19th Avenue NE to Marysville C/L at I-5

Marysville to Marysville UGA

34th Avenue NE

136th Street NE to 116th Street NE

Marysville to Marysville UGA

Marine Drive NE/Marine Drive

I-5 to 64th Street NW

I-5/Marysville to Tulalip

27th Avenue NE

Marine Drive NE to end of county road

I-5/Marysville to Quil Ceda Village

67th Avenue NE

108th Street NE to Arlington C/L

Marysville UGA to Arlington UGA

152nd Street NE

67th Avenue NE to Marysville C/L

67th Avenue NE to Marysville UGA

132nd Street NE

67th Avenue NE to Marysville C/L

67th Avenue NE to Marysville UGA

108th Street NE

67th Avenue NE to SR 9

Marysville UGA to SR 9

84th Street NE

SR 9 to SR 92

Marysville to Granite Falls UGA

Sunnyside Boulevard

SR 204 to Lake Stevens UGA

Lake Stevens to Lake Stevens UGA

Sunnyside Boulevard

Lake Stevens UGA to Soper Hill Road

Lake Stevens UGA to Marysville UGA

Machias Cutoff/South Machias Road

123rd Avenue SE (Lake Stevens UGA) to Snohomish UGA

Lake Stevens UGA to Snohomish UGA

Williams Road

Lake Stevens UGA to Machias Cutoff

Lake Stevens UGA to Machias Cutoff

N/S Machias Road

12th Street NE (Lake Stevens UGA) to Machias Cutoff

12th Street NE (Lake Stevens UGA) to Machias Cutoff

Bunk Foss Road/Ritchey Road

South Machias Road to 99 Avenue SE

South Machias Road to US 2/SR 9

Lowell-Snohomish River Road

Everett C/L to Snohomish UGA

Southwest UGA to Snohomish UGA

Marsh Road

Lowell-Larimer Road to SR 9

Southwest UGA to SR 9

88th /92nd Street SE

SR 2 Overpass to Snohomish C/L

Snohomish UGA to SR 2

Broadway Avenue

Maltby UGA to SR 9

Maltby UGA to SR 9

164th Street SE

Broadway Avenue to SR 9

Broadway Avenue to SR 9

180th Street SE

Southwest UGA to SR 9

Southwest UGA to SR 9

180th Street SE

Broadway Avenue to SR 9

Broadway Avenue to SR 9

169th Street SE/ West Interurban Boulevard/ 51st Avenue SE

Southwest UGA to SR 524

Southwest UGA to SR 524

228th Street SE

Southwest UGA to SR 9

Southwest UGA to Maltby UGA

Paradise Lake Road

Maltby UGA to King County Line

Maltby UGA to King County

v.  Multimodal Arterials

Included in the LOS standard is a consideration of multiple transportation modes including factors supportive of transit, pedestrians, and bicyclists. Where these characteristics are sufficient to make multimodal transportation a viable mobility choice, a higher amount of traffic congestion will be tolerated. A multimodal arterial has:

transit service operating at 15 minute headways or better during the peak period;

a continuous bicycle facility meeting county standards;

a continuous pedestrian facility meeting county standards; and

a gross density of 20 persons and/or employees per acre within ¼ mile of transit facilities.

The LOS standard for arterials meeting the multimodal criteria is adopted in Table 8. The standard allows a 5 mph reduction to the minimum peak hour travel speed. The application of the multimodal arterial LOS for concurrency management is described in administrative rule. (ref. 16) If a land use development impacts an arterial determined to meet the multimodal LOS criteria then the development is required as a condition of approval to take measures to increase the efficiency of the existing road system and preserve capacity through increased TDM measures as provided for in Chapter 30.66B SCC.

The consideration of multiple modes in the LOS standard provides incentive for transit-supportive developments and takes advantage of existing investments in services and facilities. Providing additional roadway capacity for automobiles in some urban corridors may undermine investments in public transportation and may discourage trip-making using pedestrian and bicycle modes. In urban areas, the county can make the most of its transportation investment by focusing on roadways where adequate transit facilities and services, as well as nonmotorized connections can be made available. The aim of this focused investment would be to enhance the overall people-moving capacity of a roadway.

A multimodal arterial is different than the transit emphasis corridors discussed in Section III.D. Support for Transit, though both are critical to Snohomish County’s multimodal strategy. The LOS criteria for a multimodal arterial provide a standard for analyzing traffic operations, project programming, and concurrency management. A transit emphasis corridor designation provides a framework for future land use, transit, and infrastructure planning. Additionally, because the criteria for multimodal arterials are part of the county’s LOS standard, it is only applied to county roadways while transit emphasis corridors also include state highways.

vi.  Public Facilities Needed to Support Residential Development

The county utilizes a lower LOS travel speed standard for schools and certain other public facilities needed to support residential development. Like all land use developments, schools and other public facilities are subject to the concurrency requirements of the GMA and the county code. In a given area, building of some of these public facilities typically lags behind the residential growth that necessitates them. Residential development may proceed until area roads have reached capacity and further permitting is constrained by concurrency. In these instances, the public facilities may have trouble meeting the concurrency requirements, and may not be available in a timely fashion to serve the residential areas. To avoid this situation, the County provides that certain public facilities needed to support residential development may qualify for a lower travel speed standard.

The County effectively reserves capacity for certain public facilities needed to support residential development by allowing an average travel speed of 5 mph less for those that meet certain criteria. Those criteria are adopted in Table 8, footnote (2), and in Chapter 30.66B SCC. Examples of public facilities that are likely to qualify for the reduced travel speed standard include, but may not necessarily be limited to: public schools; community parks; fire stations; public hospitals; and local water or sewage treatment facilities.

If a public facility needed to support residential development is deemed concurrent based on the lower travel speed standard, then the development is required as a condition of approval to take measures to increase the efficiency of the existing road system and preserve capacity through increased TDM measures under Chapter 30.66B SCC.

FIGURE 3 Rural Arterials with Urban Traffic

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Concurrency management is necessarily pursued in the context of the County’s broader transportation planning and programming process. Figure 4 illustrates the relationship of concurrency management with transportation planning and capital improvement programming processes. It is important to note that concurrency management is only one basis for prioritizing and programming transportation improvements.

a.  Comprehensive Plan: Transportation Components

The transportation components of the comprehensive plan consist of the goals, objectives, and policies in the Transportation chapter of the General Policy Plan and the Transportation Element. As is required by RCW 36.70A.070(6), the Transportation Element includes an Inventory of Transportation Facilities and Services, adopted LOS standards, an analysis of deficiencies and needs, long-range improvements and management strategies, and a multi-year financial plan.

b.  Transportation Needs Report

The Transportation Needs Report (TNR) is a technical compendium prepared by public works that provides detailed information on the county’s current and future transportation needs. (ref. 17) The TNR includes a prioritized list of improvements needed to meet existing and future travel demand, improvement costs based on a cost-estimating model, a map of designated Transportation Service Areas (TSA), and the technical cost-basis for impact mitigation fees. The TNR provides an administrative method for regularly updating transportation needs and their costs as initially identified in the TE.

c.  Priority Programming/Concurrency Management

Priority Programming and Concurrency Management are two coordinated processes conducted by public works that results in the programming of funds for needed transportation improvements, operations and maintenance. Priority programming deals with the annual programming of funds for multimodal project construction (roads, bridges, walkways, bikeways, etc.), public works operations, and road maintenance.

Concurrency management ensures needed transportation facilities and services are provided concurrent with land development. It deals with the monitoring of arterial level of service, evaluation of development proposals for concurrency (including denial of those not concurrent) and the programming of improvement funds necessary to maintain adopted level of service standards. Both the priority programming and concurrency management processes lead to the annual preparation of a six-year transportation improvement program.

d.  Transportation Improvement Program

The Transportation Improvement Program (TIP) is a schedule of transportation capital improve-ment projects matched to expected revenues that the County anticipates pursuing over the subsequent six years. The TIP is annually updated by public works and is adopted by the Council. The TIP is a state requirement under RCW 36.81.121. It satisfies internal programming needs as well as state and federal requirements for regional coordination. The TIP is prepared consistent with the TE and the TNR.

FIGURE 4 The Role of Concurrency Management in the Land Use Transportation Planning Process

e.  Capital Improvement Program

The Capital Improvement Program (CIP) is a schedule of all capital improvements matched to expected revenues that the County anticipates pursuing over the subsequent six years. The CIP is annually updated by the finance and planning departments, incorporates transportation improvements from the TIP, and is prepared to be consistent with the comprehensive plan.

f.  Annual Construction Program for Transportation

The Annual Construction Program (ACP) presents descriptions of capital improvement project expenditures and their funding for the calendar year. The ACP, in tandem with the county road fund budget, authorizes expenditures on projects and is balanced with the annual budget.

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The concurrency management system is implemented through Chapter 30.66B SCC Concurrency and Road Impact Mitigation and related rules promulgated by the County. Chapter 30.66B SCC is applied through the overall land development review process administered by the departments of Planning & Development Services and Public Works. A concurrency management report is prepared and issued annually. See Chapter VI. County Project Prioritization and Programming Process for additional information.

B.  Transportation Demand Management
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Continue administering the County's adopted regulatory and nonregulatory measures aimed at achieving vehicle trip reduction goals. These measures entail: a) the employer trip reduction plan and ordinance (SCC 32.40) required by state law (RCW 70.94.521-551); b) nonregulatory employer and residential based programs; and c) the County's TDM provisions under Chapter 30.66B SCC affecting all new urban developments.

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Transportation demand management (TDM) refers to a set of strategies aimed at maximizing the efficiency of the transportation system by reducing automobile transportation demand, particularly during the most congested times of the day. Reducing such demand can be achieved in a variety of ways, including:

Travelers switching from driving alone in a single occupant vehicle (SOV) to carpooling in a high occupancy vehicle (HOV), vanpooling or using transit

Travelers switching from driving to biking or walking

Travelers changing the time of day of their trip to avoid the most congested periods

Travelers eliminating trips through consolidation of trips, flexible work schedules, or telecommuting.

There are many benefits to a TDM strategy including the reduction in vehicle miles traveled (VMT), improving air quality, alleviating traffic congestion, preserving roadway capacity, and reducing greenhouse gas emissions. The County has previously adopted two major regulatory measures aimed at reducing single occupancy vehicular traffic generated by major employers and developers. These measures are the Commute Trip Reduction (CTR) plan and its implementing ordinance (Chapter 32.40 SCC) and the developer TDM provisions of Chapter 30.66B SCC. (ref. 18) The County has also implemented a non-regulatory residential TDM program focused on reducing trips on some of the County’s most congested arterials and highways.

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Employer-based programs aim to increase the use of transit, vanpools, carpools, walking, bicycling, telecommuting, and compressed work weeks as a method for employees to get to work. Importantly, these programs reflect a partnership between the public and private sector to find more efficient ways of getting employees to work within the constraints of a congested road system. The success of this effort depends on a combination of regulation and incentive. Regulation involves the continuing involvement of local jurisdictions in requiring that the employers implement programs and adjust the programs if necessary. Incentives involve the support offered to employers by the transit agencies in terms of services, technical assistance, marketing, training, recognition, and other support efforts.

The employer CTR plan and ordinance are a continuation of the CTR program which began with the passage of the state CTR law in 1991 and the adoption of local ordinances beginning in 1993. The ordinance applies to employers with 100 or more full-time employees at a work site who are scheduled to begin their work day between 6:00 and 9:00 a.m. during weekdays. The ordinance establishes performance objectives for reducing commuter vehicle miles traveled (VMT) and proportion of SOV trips by the employees of affected employers. In 2013, Snohomish County and eight other Snohomish County jurisdictions submitted an alternate CTR plan through the WSDOT pilot rulemaking for implementing the State Commute Trip Reduction Law. WSDOT approved the Snohomish County alternate plan as one of five adopted statewide to run through 2017. The alternate CTR plan focuses on both large and moderately sized employers in the more urban parts of the county where there is a higher level of transit services. In addition to the requirements contained in the CTR ordinance, the plan calls for increased support and incentives for employees at these employment sites.

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Since 2008, Snohomish County has partnered with Community Transit on a corridor-based, residential TDM program. A residential trip reduction program focusses strategies to residential areas where trips originate. The Snohomish County/Community Transit program provides one-on-one individualized support and incentives for those who are interested in using an alternate mode of transportation (transit, carpool, walking, biking). The program began as part of a strategy to address congestion and preserve available vehicle capacity on 164th St SW/SE after it was declared to be at ultimate capacity. The success on that corridor convinced the county and Community Transit to expand to three other congested corridors including 128th St SW, 196th St SW, and State Route 527.

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The county’s developer TDM provisions, contained in Chapter 30.66B SCC, use trip reduction as a strategy to address and mitigate the impacts of new development. TDM for developers provides incentives for a wide range of measures to increase the use of ridesharing (carpools/ vanpools), transit, and nonmotorized transportation such as bicycling and walking. Examples of programmatic TDM measures include: transportation coordinators; ride-match assistance; preferential parking; flex-time; transit subsidies; increased parking fees; reduced parking supply; provision of shuttle buses for areas lacking parking; and site design features that provide improved pedestrian access.

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a.  Commute Trip Reduction (CTR)

The CTR ordinance is administered by the public works department. Employers prepare and submit these programs for review by the county. After initial review and approval, the county monitors CTR programs and receives an annual report on progress towards the trip reduction performance objectives. Enhancement of programs not achieving the performance objectives can be required. Affected employers will not be penalized for failing to meet trip reduction performance objectives. Civil penalties, however, can be assessed for violations of noncompliance with program requirements. Affected employers can appeal the determination of a violation and/or any penalties assessed to the county hearing examiner and county council.

b.  Transportation Demand Management (TDM)

Developer TDM review and programming is conducted by public works as part of the overall land development review process administered by the Snohomish County Planning & Development Services. This process involves an application for development permits, review and approvals by the public works department, and quasi-judicial hearings conducted by the Hearing Examiner in some cases.

C.  Arterial Access Management
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Provide access management standards and guidelines for arterial roads, within the most current Engineering Design and Development Standards, to help preserve capacity or mitigate congestion related to adjacent land uses.

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The objective of access management is to minimize the severity and frequency of conflicts between roadway vehicular traffic and vehicles accessing abutting properties. Access management deals with the way vehicles operate on roadways and access land uses with respect to five design features: 1) location and number of driveways; 2) driveway entrance dimensions; 3) internal circulation of the property; 4) on-street median treatments; and 5) vehicle guidance into and out of the property.

Most land developments within unincorporated Snohomish County need access to county roadways, and sometimes state highways. The county has the obligation to ensure that land development has reasonable access to roadways in some form and that access is safe and efficient. The placement, design, and amount of access can have a profound impact on traffic flow and safety. As the number of driveways increases, the potential for traffic congestion and accidents also increases. In general, accident summaries available through the Washington State Patrol show the predominant accident location on county roads is related to intersections and driveways. Limiting the frequency of access points and restricting turning movements along a roadway has shown to reduce traffic congestion and accidents. Access management is an effective way to preserve capacity and maintain overall traffic flow.

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Over time, access management will need to play an ever-increasing role in maintaining the efficiency of the county’s arterial roadways, particularly for arterials designated as being at ultimate capacity or along transit emphasis corridors. Utilizing effective access management treatments can help preserve capacity and improve safety. There are different categories of access management treatments applicable to county roadway projects and developments. Listed below are examples of some broad categories of access management, which should be applied to county roadways, where they are determined to be appropriate.

Shared or consolidated driveways for new development and redevelopment.

Geometric design and location of driveways.

Frequency of driveways.

Spacing of driveways.

Internal circulation and relationship to access points.

Median treatments and median barriers or other access restrictions.

Continuous left-turn lanes.

Positive vehicle guidance.

All new or improved minor collector, major collector, minor arterial and principal arterials in the county should be designed and built to incorporate access management treatments where applicable. Most county roads will operate more efficiently and safely with access management included within their design. Phasing of most access management treatments can be coordinated with the designs of larger improvement projects.

A number of county arterials, located within suburban areas, can be expected to experience urban growth impacts under the county’s comprehensive plan. Many roadways have relatively few access points and provide good overall traffic flow. Unfortunately, traffic flow may be degraded significantly if development is allowed without the application of good access management treatments as part of an overall corridor design. A well-conceived access management treatment will provide adequate access to adjacent properties and still maintain the integrity of traffic flow. Access management efforts will likely be in response to arterials with higher accident rates, arterial ultimate capacity designations, commercial land uses with high driveway volumes, and travel speeds at or below the adopted LOS standard.

Access management can be applied to current access problems and those problems anticipated in the future. Lastly, some of the access management treatments may need to be coordinated with other jurisdictions as they cross city-county boundaries or involve state highways.

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Generally speaking, access management would be implemented through two processes: 1) the overall land development review process administered by the planning and development services department; and 2) the roadway design and development process conducted by the public works department. The county will also work with WSDOT to assist and ensure implementation of access management designs on state highways.

D.  Support for Transit
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Enhance the county’s efforts to implement transportation facility design and land use development that is supportive of and compatible with public transportation services, facilities, and programs to increase transit use.

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As the County’s population and economic base expands, increased transit usage reduces the growing demand for SOV travel, and that helps alleviate traffic congestion. By providing support and compatibility with public transportation, the county optimizes the public’s investment in public transit and integrates transportation with land use as outlined in the transportation goals, objectives and policies of the GPP.

The county promotes increased transit usage by pursuing:

intergovernmental coordination and transit agency plan review;

placement of transit compatible land uses and transit supportive investments by the county in centers and along transit emphasis corridors;

higher development densities and mixed-use development;

reduced parking requirements;

safe, convenient pedestrian access to transit through development review, site design;

Capital projects to provide pedestrian connectivity to bus stops, transit centers, station areas, park and ride lots and along transit emphasis corridors;

Commute Trip Reduction and other TDM programs;

transit oriented on-site and off-site transportation improvement requirements; and

inclusion of transit facilities in road improvement projects.

In order to establish a more transit-supportive and compatible environment, the county can pursue some specific actions. Actions under this implementation measure include regulatory and nonregulatory actions.

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A transit emphasis corridor is an arterial road or highway where high levels of transit service already exists or is likely to exist in the future. Recognizing the strong linkage between land use, transit, and infrastructure, these corridors are intended to serve as a framework for higher density land uses, transit market development, pedestrian and bike-oriented infrastructure, and high-occupancy vehicle roadway improvements.

A transit emphasis corridor is different than the multimodal arterials discussed in Section III.A. Concurrency Management System. Where a transit emphasis corridor designation provides a framework for the future land use, transit, and infrastructure planning, the criteria for a multimodal arterial provides a measurement of existing traffic operations, project programming, and concurrency management. Additionally, the criteria for multimodal arterials are only applied to county roadways while a transit emphasis corridor can also include a state highway.

Community Transit (CT) designated transit emphasis corridors in its 2011 Long Range Transit Plan (LRP) (ref. 14) using criteria on community design, transit service, and long-term potential as well as consultation with cities and the county. The highways and arterials that constitute CT’s transit emphasis corridors are among Snohomish County’s most urban and most congested corridors. These corridors provide access to the county’s urban centers and other high-growth urban areas.

Two levels of arterial-based transit emphasis corridors are designated in the CT plan: “Core” corridors have a greater near-term potential with a generally higher-intensity land use patterns and a higher-frequency of current transit service; “Community Based” corridors are those with long-term potential but which currently have a more dispersed land use pattern and lower levels of current transit service or no transit service at all. In addition to corridor listed in CT’s LRP, Snohomish County is including Ash Way as a transit emphasis corridor due to its high frequency transit service, the land development pattern along the corridor, and the corridor’s role in connecting two important transit destinations, Ash Way Park and Ride with Mariner Park and Ride. Table 11 designates and Figure 5 illustrates the location and limits of the transit emphasis corridors.

Table 11 Transit Emphasis Corridors

Core Corridors

State Route 99/Evergreen Way/Rucker Ave

Everett to Shoreline

State Route 526/State Route 527

State Route 525 to Bothell

Airport Rd/128th St SW/State Route 96/Cathcart Way

Paine Field to State Route 9

196th St SW/Alderwood Mall Blvd/164th St SW/SE

Edmonds Ferry to Mill Creek

Smokey Point Blvd/State Ave/Broadway Ave

Smokey Point to Everett

State Route 524

Lynnwood to State Route 9

US Highway 2/20th St SE/State Route 9

Everett to Lake Stevens

Ash Way/134th St SW/4th Ave W

164th St SW to 128th St SW

Community-Based Corridors

Bickford Ave/US Highway 2

Lake Stevens to Monroe

State Route 525

Mukilteo Ferry to I-405

State Route 531

Smokey Point to Arlington

State Route 528/State Route 9

Marysville to Lake Stevens

State Route 104/228th St SW/236th St SW/228th St SE

Edmonds Ferry to Bothell

35th Ave SE

Everett to Bothell

The Snohomish County General Policy Plan (GPP) (ref.8) provides direction on how a transit emphasis corridor strategy will be used. It encourages land uses that support transit, pedestrians, and bicyclists within a quarter-mile to half-mile of a transit emphasis corridor. The GPPs also encourage investment in nonmotorized transportation improvements and infrastructure standards that accommodate and enhance the operation of transit services.

FIGURE 5 Transit Emphasis Corridors

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a. Include development features that support transit, such as those identified in Snohomish County Tomorrow’s Transit Oriented Development Guidelines (ref. 19), in land development review where supported by adopted code and standards. The compatibility between transit and land uses is especially important within centers and along transit-emphasis corridors. Land use features that support transit include but are not limited to:

higher densities and mixed-use land uses within a quarter-mile to half-mile walking distance of transit stops;

circulation improvements that maximize access to transit and pedestrian facilities;

efficient and transit-friendly parking elements that include reduced parking ratios, HOV parking, shared parking arrangements, locating and designing lots to limit pedestrian/ vehicle conflicts, and counting on-street parking as part of site parking requirements;

site design features that increase access to transit and convenience such as compact development, building orientation and design, and weather protection oriented towards transit system access points; and

access features that ensure that safe, continuous sidewalks, walkways and arterial crossing are constructed within a quarter-mile walk of bus stops and are directly accessible from developments.

b. As discussed in section III.A, Snohomish County considers the frequency of transit service and transit-supportive land use densities in the LOS measurement for county arterials and as part of the concurrency management system. The consideration of transit provides an incentive for transit-supportive developments, takes advantage of the existing investment in transit facilities, and allows for the use of transit improvements to mitigate transportation deficiencies and impacts.

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a.  Coordination

The county would continue working with the transit agencies and cities within the county to coordinate the preparation of land use, circulation, and transit plans, which include:

future transit routes and proposed route changes including fixed-route bus service, commuter and light-rail corridor alignments, and bus rapid transit (BRT) services;

identification of capital facilities necessary to support transit such as bus stops, bus pull outs, park-and-ride lots, transit centers, street crossings, walkways, and other roadway design elements;

transit service and facility planning which reflect the land use designations of the county's comprehensive plan, especially with regard to designated urban centers;

improved communications with transit agencies, especially with regard to HCT planning and joint review of land use development applications that incorporate transit supportive improvements; and

work with local and regional transit agencies to identify priority transit corridors where investments in enhanced transit service and transit-oriented development (TOD) can achieve transportation and land use goals.

b.  Funding

The county would continue to aggressively pursue grants for pedestrian and transit improvements.

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Transit supportive actions are typically applied through routine county program administration, public works documents such as the six-year TIP, and interagency coordination and planning efforts. These actions are nonregulatory and have only indirect application to land development regulation since they mainly affect public works operations.

Transit compatibility actions, generally viewed as regulatory, are applied through the land development review process administered by the department of planning and development services. Transit compatible actions may affect approval decisions for permits and agreements as to the types and costs of development impact mitigation. The approval process involves an application for development permits, staff review and, in some cases, quasi-judicial hearings conducted by the Hearing Examiner.

Overall, these transit-supportive and compatible actions will provide support for public transportation through a full range of actions, from land use regulations such as minimum dwelling units per acre to implementation programs such as walkways within a quarter-mile of transit routes. By relating all of these measures to support transit, the county is building relationships between roadway and site design, land use, route planning, capital facility implementation programs and impact mitigation.

E.  Countywide Nonmotorized Transportation
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Participate with WSDOT, cities and tribes within Snohomish County, Bicycle Pedestrian Advisory Committee (BPAC), Puget Sound Regional Council (PSRC), and interested stakeholder groups to plan and develop a countywide system of bike and pedestrian facilities for nonmotorized transportation consistent with the countywide bicycle and pedestrian facilities map.

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The continuous development and growth of the nonmotorized network in Snohomish County will reduce impacts to the environment (reduce greenhouse gases and vehicle demand), encourage enhanced community access, and promote healthy lifestyles and exercise. A countywide network of bicycle and pedestrian facilities is needed to allow bicycling and walking for people of all ages and incomes as a practical alternative to automobile travel in some cases. It will also make the broader community more accessible, enjoyable and safer.

It has been Snohomish County policy and practice that future urban roadways and improvements to existing urban roadways will be designed as “complete streets” to enhance the safety and mobility of all users, including pedestrians and bicyclists, consistent with the adopted design standards. Since the original 1995 transportation element was adopted, Snohomish County has included both bicycle and pedestrian facilities on all completed full corridor arterial widening projects, new arterials in urban areas, as well as completing a number of trail projects. Some examples of completed bicycle and pedestrian facility arterial/trail improvement projects include the following:

Corridors

112th St SW

148th St SW

164th St SW

52nd Ave West

Beverly Park Rd/112th St SW

Cathcart/132nd/128th St SW/Airport Rd

Trails

Centennial Trail

Interurban Trail

In addition, the County requires that roadway frontage improvements be provided as properties are developed or redeveloped, including pedestrian and bicycle facilities as is appropriate.

Snohomish County has made significant progress on its bicycle and walkway facility network; however, improvements are still needed to complete the County system. Snohomish County has collaborated with cities and tribes, the state, PSRC, and interested stakeholder groups to designate bikeways and develop planned improvements for bicycle facilities. By reviewing both the planning documents and communicating with the various stakeholders, the county continues to maintain consistency with bicycle and pedestrian facilities that connect with adjacent jurisdictions, residential and employment areas, community and regional destinations, schools, and public transit services. The county has mapped existing pedestrian facilities to better identify gaps in the system. Planning for facilities and improvements to increase safety has been done by reviewing pedestrian and bicycle collision data. Snohomish County has, in collaboration with Community Transit and the Cities of Everett and Mukilteo, identified bicycle and pedestrian access needs in the Swift bus rapid transit (BRT) station areas. (ref. 20)

Over the next 20 years Snohomish County will be working to fill identified pedestrian and bicycle connectivity gaps to major transit routes and school facilities. For example, the County is working with school districts to build pedestrian facilities with dedicated funding through the Safe Kids Improved Pathways (SKIP) program. (ref. 21) This funding will also be leveraged as grant match and or bonding to increase program funding. The County will continue to build nonmotorized facilities as part of arterial system improvement projects and require these facilities as part of development as is appropriate.

Bicycle FacilitiesGenerally speaking there are four types of bicycle facilities and five types of pedestrian facilities.

Shared Use Paths:Located on exclusive right-of-way and physically separated from motorized traffic, these paths serve multiple users including pedestrians, bicyclists, and possibly equestrians. Shared use paths include the Centennial Trail and the Interurban Trail.

Bicycle (Bike) Lanes:Bicycle lanes are designated for exclusive use by bicyclists and are delineated from traffic lanes by a painted or thermoplastic stripe. They are distinguished from the off-road paths in that they are not separated from motorized traffic. Bicycle lanes can be present with or without walkways. Walkways can be traditional raised sidewalks or extensions of the paved roadway surface and its shoulders with a painted or thermoplastic line serving as delineation.

Signed Shared Roadway:Shared roadways are roadways with appropriate widening and striping that have been designated by signs as a suggested route for bicyclists. Roadway shoulders, may also serve as pedestrian facilities. Roadway shoulders are generally suitable for a mix of pedestrian and bicycle use where the volume of pedestrians and bicyclists is low.

Shared Roadway:All roadways open to both bicycle and motor vehicle traffic. Delineated bicycle facilities are not provided.

Pedestrian Facilities

Sidewalk separated by curb, gutter, and planter stripA dedicated concrete or asphalt facility constructed between the curb line, in the lateral line of a roadway, and adjacent property.

Walkway separated by ditch, gravel, or planter stripWalkways are designated for pedestrian and nonmotorized traffic and typically constructed of asphalt and built over existing ground without being raised. Separation from vehicle traffic may be provided by, a ditch, gravel shoulder, planter strip, or open space.

Raised walkway separated by extruded curbSame as “Walkway” described above except raised in elevation.

At-grade paved shoulder adjacent to travel wayPaved roadway shoulder typically separated from traffic by striping.

Shared Use PathsSee “Shared Use Paths” definition above under Bike Facilities.

Considering the different skill level and preferences of pedestrians and bicyclists, a countywide nonmotorized network that contains a balance of these facility types coordinated between jurisdictions is the most practical philosophy. Relying only on exclusive, non-shared facilities would do little to assist the experienced cyclist who desires a safer but still direct transportation route along existing roadways. Exclusive facilities are rather expensive in terms of right-of-way and development costs; thus a network based solely on these facilities would be very limited in geographic coverage. Conversely, providing too few miles of exclusive or separated facilities would limit the riding opportunities of the less experienced bicyclist.

As part of the pedestrian and bicycle component of the transportation element, Snohomish County has created both bicycle and pedestrian maps to identify designated bikeways for bicycle facilities and corridors and existing facilities for pedestrians. The bicycle facilities system map displays both existing and proposed county bikeways lanes, shared use paths, regional trails, and paved road shoulders. In addition, the map shows the bicycle facilities of the state and local jurisdictions to show how the county’s facilities link to those in adjacent jurisdictions. It is also used as a regulatory document indicating where bicycle lanes must be built as capital projects are constructed or developer frontage improvements are required. Planned bicycle facility improvements can be found in Table 14 “Recommended County Arterial Improvement Projects” listed under project description.

The pedestrian facilities map displays existing county sidewalks, pedestrian connectors, and other facilities in areas of high pedestrian use such as designated centers, major transit routes, and school walk routes. The map also shows state and local jurisdiction pedestrian facilities. It can be found in the Inventory of Transportation Facilities and Services. Planned pedestrian facility improvements can be found in Table 14, “Recommended County Arterial Improvement Projects”, listed under project description.

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Snohomish County regulates bicycle facility requirements, design, plans, and programs via the county’s land development codes and the Engineering Design & Development Standards (EDDS) (ref. 22). The Countywide Bicycle Facility System map is used to determine where bike lanes are required in urban areas. Also per EDDS, rural arterials are required to be built with a minimum shoulder width that can be used by bicycles. Snohomish County Unified Development Code regulates pedestrian and nonmotorized facility requirements and EDDS provides design standards for urban and rural pedestrian facilities. Sidewalks are required on both sides in urban areas while rural areas must have either separated walkways or widened shoulders that can used by pedestrians.

a.  Design Standards

The County, WSDOT, and the cities work to maintain and use compatible bicycle and pedestrian facility design standards. The County has instituted a set of bicycle and pedestrian facilities standards that include sensitivity to the needs and abilities of the different users and consistency with the countywide bicycle facility system map. The rural and urban standards for bicycle and pedestrian facilities included in the County’s EDDS are consistent with state and national design guidelines. Design standard issues include:

drainage grates that are safe for bicyclists and flush to the roadway surface;

at-grade railroad crossings at right angle to the rails;

pavement structure and surfaces free of irregularities;

sight-distance;

signing and marking;

geometrics (width, clearance, design speed, grades sight-distance);

traffic control devices (including signal actuation devices sensitive enough to detect bicycles); and

intersection design treatments that allow safe bicycle turning.

b.  Collaboration on Grants and Funding

The public works and parks departments, along with cities, tribes, and the state, will collaborate in the pursuit of grants from both the public and private sectors to fund the development of bicycle and pedestrian facilities. Such funds could be used for physical facilities or used for realignment. Any principal or minor arterial should include consideration of bicycle safety or other bicycle operational problems that could not be feasibly mitigated.

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Bicycle and pedestrian facility design standards can be refined as needed through routine administrative updates of existing design manuals and programming documents by public works. This measure has indirect application to land development regulation since they affect county facility design, operations, and review of the county’s CIPs. See Map 2: Countywide Bicycle Facility System for the coverage and type of existing and proposed bikeways. See the Southwest Area Pedestrian Facility System Map in the Inventory of Transportation Facilities and Services for the coverage and type of existing pedestrian facilities.

The process of how nonmotorized projects are prioritized and funded is covered in Chapter VI: County Project Prioritization and Programming Process in the transportation element. This section describes how countywide arterial improvement projects are programmed and funded, which is the same method used for nonmotorized projects.

As stated above in the bicycle and pedestrian component and as per EDDS, road construction, reconstruction, or frontage improvement projects within urban areas are required to have sidewalks and also striped bike lanes if designated as a county bikeway on the Countywide Bicycle Facility System Map. Snohomish County will continue to build pedestrian and bicycle projects as part of arterial widenings and to require full frontage improvements as development occurs.

F.  Air Quality Conformity and Climate Change
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In order to meet the requirements of the federal Clean Air Act, the air quality provisions of the Federal Transportation Acts, the Clean Air Washington Act, and other relevant legislation, Snohomish County will commit to work with Puget Sound Regional Council, Puget Sound Clean Air Agency, WSDOT, transit agencies, and other jurisdictions in the development of transportation control measures and other transportation and air quality programs where warranted.

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The federal Clean Air Act requires states to have State Implementation Plans (SIPs) to achieve established air quality standards for several different pollutants.

The United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has set National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) for the following six common air pollutants (criteria pollutants): Ozone (O3), Particulate Matter (PM2.5, PM10), Carbon Monoxide (CO), Nitrogen Oxides (NO2), Sulfur Dioxide (SO2) and Lead (Pb). These pollutants can harm health and the environment.

Table 12 presents the National ambient air quality standards (NAAQS) in parts per million as adopted by the EPA and the Washington State Department of Ecology (Ecology). The NAAQS consist of primary standards designed to protect public health and secondary standards designed to protect public welfare (e.g. preventing air pollution damage to vegetation). The more stringent secondary standards are used to regulate air quality.

Based on measured ambient air quality data, EPA and Ecology designate all portions of the state as attainment (meeting a NAAQS standard), nonattainment (not meeting a NAAQS standard), or unclassifiable (not enough information to designate). If, as is the case of most of Washington State, the measured concentrations in a nonattainment area improve so they are consistently below the NAAQS standards, Ecology and the EPA can reclassify the nonattainment area to a “maintenance area.” In that case, Ecology and the regional planning agencies are required to implement a maintenance plan to ensure ongoing emission reductions and continuous compliance with the NAAQS standards. Snohomish County is not located in a nonattainment area. Currently, the western portion of Snohomish County is a maintenance area for CO.

WSDOT, PSRC, and local governments are required to adopt transportation plans and improve-ment programs that conform with the SIP for Air Quality in order to continue receiving federal funds. Federal conformity guidance requires PSRC to determine that regional transportation improvements do not increase the frequency or severity of violations of air quality standards.

Transportation Control Measures (TCM) are an important aspect of air quality conformity from WSDOT and local government standpoints. TCMs can aid in reducing or eliminating violations of air quality standards. TCMs are implemented by WSDOT and local governments and serve to increase the efficiency of existing facilities, reduce travel demand, and lower the amount of pollutant emissions. TCMs include such wide ranging projects and programs as traffic signal improvements, signal priority to transit, improved public transportation, ridesharing programs, arterial HOV lanes, transit compatible facilities, and bikeways. In a nontraditional vein, TCMs could also include land use design and densities that allow higher transit usage and less SOV use, or trip reduction programs.

The overall intent of TCMs is to reduce vehicle emissions of CO and ozone air pollutants and other priority pollutants. PSRC will perform the elaborate technical and modeling analysis to confirm conformity of transportation plans and programs with the SIP. The County will include TCMs in the transportation element of its comprehensive plan and the subsequent CIPs.

Table 12 Ambient Air Quality Standards in Washington

Pollutant

National (Primary)

Washington State

Puget Sound

Carbon Monoxide

8 Hour Average

9 ppm

9 ppm

9 ppm

1 Hour Average

35 ppm

35 ppm

35 ppm

Ozone (1)

8 Hour Average

0.08 ppm

0.08 ppm

0.08 ppm

1 Hour Average

0.12 ppm

0.12 ppm

0.12 ppm

Nitrogen Dioxide(2)

Annual Mean

0.053 ppm (100 µg/m3)

0.05 ppm (100 µg/m3)

0.05 ppm (100 µg/m3)

Particulate Matter PM10

24 Hour Average

150 µg/m3

150 µg/m3

150 µg/m3

Particulate Matter PM2.5

Annual Average

15 µg/m3

12 µg/m3

12 µg/m3

24 Hour Average

35 µg/m3

35 µg/m3

35 µg/m3

Lead

Rolling 3 month Average

0.15 µg/m3

0.15 µg/m3

0.15 µg/m3

Quarterly Average

1.5 µg/m3

--

--

Sulfur Dioxide

Annual Average

0.03 ppm

0.02 ppm

0.02 ppm

24 Hour Average

0.14 ppm

0.14 ppm

0.14 ppm

3 Hour Average

--

0.50 ppm

0.50 ppm

1 Hour Average

75 ppb

75 ppbv

75 ppbv

(1)Standard is attained when expected number of days per year, with an hourly average above 0.12 ppm, is only one day or less.

(2)Not to be above this level in a calendar year.

ppb = parts per billion

ppbv = parts per billion by volume

ppmv = parts per million by volume

PM10 = particles 10 microns or less in size

PM2.5 = particles 2.5 microns or less in size

µg/m3 = micrograms per cubic meter

The process for maintaining conformity with the SIP and the Clean Air Act is through local and regional transportation planning and improvement programming. Transportation projects or programs eligible for federal funding will be programmed within the local TIP and submitted to PSRC for conformity analysis and modeling. Projects and programs shown to be in conformance with the SIP, consistent with the regional transportation plan, and successfully competing for federal funds would be programmed within the regional TIP.

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Climate change is a global issue, influenced by many interrelated factors that have consequences for the Pacific Northwest, including Snohomish County. The U.S. National Climate Assessment (NCA) states that the warming of the past 50 years is primarily due to human-induced emissions of heat-trapping gases and that these emissions come mainly from burning coal, oil and gas. (ref. 23) Limiting climate change will require substantial and sustained reductions in Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions. Climate change represents two distinct challenges for Snohomish County; reducing the emissions of greenhouse gases that contribute to climate change and planning for adaption to the impacts of climate change. The Snohomish County Executive in in 2007 issued an executive order addressing the importance of reducing climate change effects, minimizing the County’s impact on the environment, and beginning to adapt to the effects of global warming. (ref. 24) Additionally, a 2013 county executive order addressed the importance of taking actions to reducing climate change effects, County government’s impact on climate change, and adaptation to the effects of global warming. The Order also adopts and implements a Sustainable Operations Action Plan (SOAP). (ref. 25)

Transportation planning has an important role in greenhouse gas reductions. According to PSRC’s Vision 2040, the transportation sector accounts for nearly half the GHG emissions in the Central Puget Sound Region and represents a significant emission reduction opportunity. (ref. 5) There are variety of measures used for reducing GHG emissions from the transportation sector. The three primary approaches are: 1) use a less polluting fuel, 2) use a more efficient vehicle, 3) reduce vehicle miles traveled (VMT) by walking, biking, ridesharing, or taking transit.

Vision 2040 also encourages local jurisdictions to comply with state initiatives and directives regarding climate change and the reduction of greenhouse gases. One state initiative is RCW 47.01.440 which enacts statewide VMT reduction benchmarks for 2020, 2035, and 2050. These benchmarks are not requirements but were enacted to encourage measurement of VMT as part of an overall greenhouse gas reduction strategy. Analysis conducted by PSRC for Transportation 2040 has demonstrated that VMT per capita in the region is already meeting the state’s 2020 benchmark and that regionwide measures contained in the regional transportation plan will provide additional reductions. (ref. 35)

In Snohomish County many measures are planned for the next 20 years that will provide positive results in the reduction in per capita VMT. Specific actions include: the expansion of Sound Transit’s light rail system to Lynnwood and eventually to Everett, the designation of Transit Emphasis Corridors and the buildout of Community Transit’s Swift bus rapid transit system, further development of the bicycle network, and programs to provide pedestrian connectivity. Analysis done for this TE has shown that per capita VMT in Snohomish County will be reduced by 6 percent by 2035.

The NCA points out that the “Northwest’s economy, infrastructure, natural systems, public health, and vitally important agriculture sector all face important climate change related risks. Those risks – and possible adaptive responses – will vary significantly across the region.”(ref. 23) Possible impacts to the transportation system include road and bridge deterioration, infrastructure damage from sea level rising, flooding and increased stormwater, and more frequent landslides. Examples of adaptation responses to these impacts could include changes to the design or design assumptions of roadways and other facilities, changes in the locations of new and existing facilities, including the impacts of climate change in emergency response or hazard mitigation plans, the use of alternative materials and construction techniques, and implementation of other “green” road strategies.

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Many of the substantive transportation projects and programs recommended within this TE are implementation measures that have the benefit of improving air quality and reducing greenhouse gas emissions by reducing traffic delay and VMT. Reductions in travel can be expected to reduce negative air quality impacts from CO and reactive hydrocarbons. Implementation measures that will aid in maintaining air quality standards, conform to the SIP and reduce greenhouse gas emissions are:

transit supportive land use;

transit emphasis corridors

HOV treatments on arterials and freeways;

signal priority treatments for transit on county arterials;

access management on county arterials;

TDM on congested corridors and for major employers and developers;

high-capacity transit such as light rail and bus rapid transit;

bicycle and pedestrian facilities; and

roadway operations improvements.

These recommended actions, taken in total, are a move toward balanced investment in various travel modes such as automobile, public transportation, paratransit, pedestrian and bicycle.

G.  Freight Mobility
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Snohomish County shall advocate and participate in freight planning and mobility projects in partnership with local jurisdictions, port authorities, state and regional agencies, and the private sector that help sustain a reliable and efficient freight transportation system.

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Snohomish County’s employment opportunities depend in large measure on the continued efficient movement of freight. Freight and goods mobility is critical to local jobs and businesses. Freight mobility–the movement of goods by truck, train, ship, plane, or all of these transportation modes combined–will be a pivotal factor in our ability to stay economically competitive in the regional and international marketplace.

Transportation costs (e.g. physical distribution costs) are a very important component of business planning. Increasingly, the transportation industry is emphasizing timeliness of delivery, which transportation experts indicate is a trend driven by just-in-time production and consumer demand for prompt deliveries. Traffic congestion in Snohomish County and the greater Central Puget Sound threatens this growing trend in business product delivery.

Monitoring and managing freight and goods movement is a complex task that takes place in both the private and public sectors. Private transportation companies and manufacturing firms that provide goods transport, schedule shipments and select routes for product movement and delivery in order to minimize costs and meet customer expectations. Public sector responsibilities include regulating freight movement; monitoring freight flows to assess impacts; providing for new and improved roads, highways, airports, and other intermodal facilities to meet demands; and working together in partnership with the private sector to help understand and plan for the needs of more specialized freight and goods movement.

At the State level, WSDOT has designated the Washington State Freight and Goods Transportation System to help guide planning and funding improvement programs. The County participated in designation of the FGTS system and assists in periodic system updates.

At the regional level, the highway, arterial, air, rail and water system most crucial to the move-ment of freight and goods has been designated as part of the Metropolitan Transportation System (MTS) by PSRC. The County participated in designation of the MTS and provides system monitoring of county arterials. The County also maintains a database and digital maps of transportation facilities such as air, rail water and port freight system components.

Determining future freight traffic and necessary facility improvements is a critical component of understanding the impact of future volumes on the transportation system, as well as how the system shapes and impacts economic development. Comprehensive land use, transportation, and economic development planning play a combined role in determining how the transportation system will function in the future.

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In support of maintaining and improving an effective freight transportation system, regulatory measures that Snohomish County could implement include:

coordinating with WSDOT and cities regarding uniform regulation on commercial vehicles;

designating truck routes in cooperation with shippers, cities, ports and WSDOT; and

protecting ports, airports, ferry terminals, industrial areas, and designated freight transportation corridors (i.e. road, highway, rail and pipeline) from incompatible activities and development.

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Several nonregulatory actions should be pursued by the County in order to better plan for, protect, and improve the freight transportation system. These actions include:

continue participation in state and regional freight systems designations and updates;

continue participation in PSRC’s Freight Action STrategy (FAST Corridor) for the Everett-Seattle-Tacoma Corridor Partnership and consistently attend the PSRC Freight Mobility Roundtable;

continue to maintain an updated Inventory of Transportation Facilities and Services which includes major freight system components and services;

continue providing freight and goods rating to proposed transportation projects in the county’s long range TNR to help direct project prioritization and TIP project programming;

provide all-weather improvements to county roads and bridges where warranted to minimize seasonal weight restrictions and closures;

participate in major economic development initiatives, planning and project development where transportation analysis, recommendations and improvements are a component;

aggressively seek funding for freight and goods-related improvements; and

develop the county’s eastside rail corridor by adding a potential future shared regional nonmotorized multi-use trail, an excursion train, and commuter rail.

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The county will continue to monitor freight movement on the designated arterial system, participate in regional and state level freight transportation planning initiatives, and pursue arterial system improvements as part of county project design and implementation. The county will apply data and analysis to help gain a greater understanding of freight system needs and incorporate them into the project development and prioritization processes. Improvements will be programmed through the county’s TIP and ACP. Joint improvement project development with WSDOT, the cities, and the private sector will be coordinated and funded where practical.