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    1. Management

    MTC-led initiative develops perspective paper, weighs options for new Transbay bridges, tunnels

    Nov. 11, 2019
    The paper explores three different future scenarios and makes observations on the relative merits of seven different potential Transbay crossings. 
    Related To: Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC)
    MTC
    Mtc 5dc991ed93506

    A perspective paper, “Crossings: Transformative Investments for an Uncertain Future,” was developed as part of the Horizon initiative led by the Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC) and the Association of Bay Area Governments (ABAG). 

    MTC says Horizon is a planning effort that, for the first time in the Bay Area, comprehensively addresses transportation, housing, economic development and environmental resilience. In order to expand the traditional long-range planning process and incorporate uncertainty from a wide range of external forces, Horizon considers multiple what-if scenarios for the future of the region.  

    The Crossings Perspective Paper was developed to embrace the uncertainty and to test the extent to which potential new crossings of San Francisco Bay can be expected to perform in each of the three futures considered as part of the Horizon process. These include a future known as “Rising Tides, Falling Fortunes” in which the nine-county Bay Area’s population rises by just 1 million people over the next 30 years; a “Clean and Green” future in which the region’s population increases by a bit more than 3 million; and “Back to the Future” in which, by 2050, some 6 million more people call the Bay Area home.  

    Crossings makes observations about the relative merits of seven different potential Transbay crossings with respect to mode and performance under these different futures, and it includes recommendations about which crossings should be analyzed further in the coming months and years. The report does not provide specific conclusions about the selection of any specific crossing. Rather, the findings and conclusions of this perspective paper will help inform the preparation of Plan Bay Area 2050, the region’s long-term blueprint for transportation, housing, the economy and the environment. In addition to Plan Bay Area 2050 — which is slated for adoption by MTC/ABAG in 2021 — the Bay Area Rapid Transit, Caltrans and other transportation agencies also may use the Crossings Perspective Paper to shape their own planning and project development efforts.