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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCommute Trip Reduction Plan (ORD 6180) CITY OF RENTON COMMUTE TRIP REDUCTION FOUR YEAR PLAN UPDATE: 2025-2029 Department of Public Works – Transportation Systems Division City of Renton Commute Trip Reduction Four-Year Plan Update: 2025–2029 Benefits of CTR 1. Describe the local land use and transportation context and objectives. a. Describe the setting in the jurisdiction as it is today or will be in the near future. The City of Renton is located on the southeastern shore of Lake Washington. It is a suburban city located equidistantly south of Seattle and Bellevue and surrounded by other suburban cities and pockets of unincorporated King County to the south of Renton. The city is located near several major transportation routes including Interstate 405, Interstate 90, and Interstate 5 along with State Route 167, an older major state route that has historically served as the spine for manufacturing and industrial commerce through the eastern valley of King and Pierce Counties. All of these routes connect the city economically and socially to the greater Seattle-Bellevue area. The current population is 107,000 making Renton the eighth largest city in Washington and the fourth largest in King County. Renton has been designated a Core City by the Puget Sound Regional Council (PSRC). A Core City contains a regionally designated growth center – Renton’s Urban Center encompassing Boeing, The Landing, and Downtown Business District – serves as a key hub for the region’s long-range multimodal transportation system, and provides major civic, cultural, and employment centers. Renton is served by regional transit including high-capacity transit, bus rapid transit, and regular bus service and the city will continue to play a role as a major hub in the regional transit network through the Puget Sound Regional Councils Vision 2050 plan. Locally, there are sidewalk gaps and pedestrian crossings that lack enhanced safety measures, gaps in bikeways, needs for improved access to transit stops, and so on. Filling in these gaps is along with improving arterial corridor connectivity are the focuses of the capital improvement plan. b. Describe features of land use and transportation facilities and services that affect commuters. Renton’s largest employers are located on both sides of I-405 at the base of Lake Washington (such as Boeing, Paccar and Kenworth) and west of SR 167 (such as Providence Health and Kaiser Permanente). All of those areas are served by one or more King County Metro bus routes with frequent service during typical commuting hours. However, some employers affected by the CTR law are not located in those areas and are not well-served by transit. Bus routes serving stops in Renton connect to Seattle, Bellevue, Kent, Tukwila and other places where people who work in Renton may live. The Downtown Renton Transit Center is the city’s largest transit hub and there are several smaller and older KC Metro-owned park and ride facilities. KC Metro is currently constructing the South Renton Transit Center as part of plans to relocate transit service from Downtown Renton to the planned Rainier-Grady Transit Oriented Development subarea to connect with future Sound Transit freeway Bus Rapid Transit and planned KC Metro RapidRide service expansion. Many transit commuters in Renton use Sounder Commuter Rail service at the Tukwila station and connect to the station using KC Metro RapidRide service. The city’s bicycle network consists of on street shared use paths such as the Lake Washington Loop trail, and off-street shared used paths commonly used for commuting such as the Lake Washington Trail and Interurban Trail. Other bike facilities include striped bike lanes and signed or sharrowed shared roads. Gaps in the bicycle network are present along several arterials including Lake Washington Boulevard, Logan Avenue, Rainier Avenue, and Talbot Road among others. The Cedar River Trails provide an all-ages and abilities separated trail that serves as a major east-west bike corridor, especially because east-west bike travel in Renton becomes challenging due to the uphill topography of the eastern side of the city. For workers who live close enough to their worksites to walk, there are sidewalks on many of Renton’s streets, but gaps remain. The transportation projects in the Transportation Improvement Plan are focused on completing infrastructure systems for all transportation modes. This focus will facilitate more commuter access to drive alone modes. c. Describe whether and how commuting patterns have changed in the past few years Renton’s traffic volumes and volume growth rate was on a decreasing trend between 2015 and 2019. Renton experienced decreases in traffic volumes during the COVID-19 pandemic however they remained similar to volumes during 2018, indicating that there was still a level of active demand for commuting likely attributed to the demand on industrial/manufacturing/shipping activity throughout the East valley region. However, volumes from 2023 decreased at a more noticeable rate indicating a large drop in traffic volumes. This trend appears consistent with several major healthcare employers in Renton that have either downsized their worksites, shifted employees to other worksites, or increased telecommuting among their Renton employees. d. List the most important land use and transportation objectives from your city’s transportation plans that commute trip reduction most directly affects. Renton recognizes that reducing trip-making, dispersing peak period travel demand throughout the day, and increasing transit usage and ride sharing are significantly less costly means of accommodating increased travel demands than constructing new or widening existing transportation facilities. Reducing the number of trips made via single occupant vehicles is also an effective way of reducing automobile- related air pollution, traffic congestion and energy use. Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) can be used to apply technological solutions to problems such as congestion, safety, and mobility. Substantial investment in ITS – such as signs and internet sites providing real time feedback on travel times and alternatives – continues in the Puget Sound Region. The City is currently developing plans to implement an Adaptive Signal Control System (ASCS) along the SW 43rd Street/Carr Road/Petrovitsky Road corridor as was installed on Rainier Avenue S. Adaptive signal control systems adjust the timing of intersection stop lights (green, yellow, red lights) to accommodate changing traffic patterns and ease traffic congestion (FHWA 2015). Goals relevant to CTR in Renton’s Comprehensive Plan Transportation Element include: Policy T-10: Implement transportation demand management (TDM) programs to reduce disruptive traffic impacts and to support mixed-use development, commercial centers, and employment areas. Policy T-11: Through investments in non-motorized facility connections, collaboration with transit providers, and commute trip reduction programs with employers, encourage a reduction in drive alone work trip shares to below 75% by 2035 within the Regional Growth Center. Policy T-12: Invest in and maintain Renton’s Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) Program coordinated with other agencies. Policy T-13: Incorporate TDM measures such as priority parking places for HOVs and convenient, direct pedestrian access from transit stops/stations in site design and layout for all types of development. Policy T-14: Educate employers about their commute trip reduction obligations under the City of Renton’s Commute Trip Reduction (CTR) Ordinance and CTR Plan. Policy T-15: Regularly review and refine parking ratios to account for existing parking supply, land use intensity, and access to transit. Policy T-16: Encourage shared and structured parking in downtown Renton to achieve land use and economic development goals as expressed in the City Center Community Plan and to coordinate parking for the benefit of the district businesses and residents. e. Describe critical aspects of land use and transportation that should be sustained and key changes that should be considered to improve commute trip reduction’s contribution the land use and transportation objectives you referenced. The city should accelerate investments in transportation improvements, especially the planned action Rainier-Grady transit-oriented development (TOD) subarea, to meet its sustainability, livability and economic development goals. Increases in density of new housing in this subarea as well as downtown Renton, the Sunset neighborhood and the South Benson neighborhood area are continuing to be planned for so that the capital improvement projects to build out multi-modal networks can be advanced in support commute trip reduction and jobs-housing balance. 2. Describe how the CTR program will help achieve the jurisdiction’s land use and transportation objectives. a. Describe how and to what extent your CTR program will help your city achieve the land use and transportation objectives referenced in question 1. The CTR program and the city’s focus on increasing housing density, building out the transit-oriented development subarea, and completing the multi-modal networks are mutually complementary and reinforcing. The Rainier-Grady TOD subarea is intended to encourage residents to commute via transit or non-drive-alone modes that the CTR program supports while encouraging demand for multi-modal networks. Higher density near transit and seamless multi-modal transferability in the network offers more opportunities for non-drive-alone trips. 3. Describe how the CTR program will help achieve the jurisdiction’s environmental objectives. a. Describe how the CTR program will support jurisdiction greenhouse gas emission reduction efforts. Renton’s CTR program is a key facet of the city’s goal to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, as identified in its Clean Economy Strategy even though the city has not identified specific reduction targets at this time. The CTR program seeks to coordinate resources, such as electric vehicle (EV) charging stations and expansion of the EV network, with known commute patterns among residents and employees. The city intends to explore ordinance revisions that may require developments in the TOD subarea to provide amenities, such as transit passes to subarea residents or bike lockers & parking, in an effort to ensure that transportation demand management strategies are actualized in the subarea. The City will also continue to consider emission reduction targets and the implementability of such. b. Describe how the CTR program will support jurisdiction environmental objectives in addition to greenhouse gas emission reductions. The CTR program is oriented to promote and encourage a maximum effort of using transit, especially since Renton is served by express RapidRide routes, routes with daily frequent headways, flexible on- demand service within specified service areas (MetroFlex), commuter rail, and future planned bus rapid transit (Stride 1) routes. At specified locations in the network, these high preforming transit routes make connections with major well known non-motorized regional bike trails such as the Interurban Trail, Lake Washington Trail, and Cedar River Trail. Such multi-modal connectivity is key for the City to achieve environmental greenhouse gas reduction efforts as well as reduce vehicle idling during congested peak hours by removing single occupancy vehicle commuting from the network. 4. Describe how your CTR program will help achieve regional and state objectives. a. Summarize the local, regional, and state benefits that would be gained if you achieve your CTR targets. Achieving Renton’s CTR targets will contribute to local, regional, and state aspirations for: increased transit ridership, improved and increased non-motorized travel, collecting of more useful transportation behavior data, reduced dependency on ancillary parking, widened commute options for small businesses, robust economic conditions for small business districts such as downtown Renton. By providing various commute options and encouraging alternate modes of transportation, the city of Renton will benefit locally through reduced traffic congestion during peak periods, leading to improved travel times and reliability on Renton’s arterial and highway corridors. This will also result in improved air quality and reduced greenhouse gas emissions. By increasing transit and active transportation options, the city will also support a more balanced transportation system that reduces strain on the current system and encourages healthier transportation options. By achieving Renton’s CTR targets, the region will benefit from reduced vehicle numbers on the road, reduce congestion, as well as improved flow of traffic, given that the city currently functions as a throughfare for many commuters from south King County into the Eastside. Additionally, higher transit ridership will contribute to these goals while providing a justification for improved frequency and reliability by Sound Transit and other providers. Together, these efforts will contribute to the broader air quality and climate change mitigation targets for the Puget Sound. At the state level, Renton’s CTR program will contribute to the Washington state targets for reducing commute related pollution and congestion. Renton’s CTR program also supports the states’ goals in reducing greenhouse gas emissions and improving air quality. Additionally, improved mobility and reduced congestion would help improve regional mobility and help make the state more attractive and competitive, leading to improved economic conditions and statewide growth. b. List adjacent CTR-affected cities and counties. Cities: Tukwila, Bellevue, Kent Counties: Pierce, Snohomish c. Describe the top few cross-border and regional transportation issues that affect your jurisdiction. The top cross-border and regional transportation issues affecting Renton are: regional traffic congestion on the I-405/SR 176 corridor destined to/from Bellevue or Seattle, interstate truck travel & congestion from trucks & freight vehicles destined between the East Valley manufacturing area (SR 167 corridor through south King County) and I-90 or the Port of Seattle, transit connectivity between Tukwila Sounder Station and major employers in Renton (i.e. Boeing), I-405 widening and the implementation of the I-405 and SR 167 Master Plans thru Renton. d. Describe the strategies you, adjacent cities and counties, and your region have agreed to use to address the top issues described in the previous bullet. Currently Renton coordinates with the City of Tukwila, City of Burien, City of Seattle (Commute Seattle) and WSDOT for the purposes of ensuring participative surveying at Boeing’s various large worksites throughout the Tukwila/Renton/South Seattle area. Because Boeing has worksites in several jurisdictions, it surveys as an organization and not with the jurisdictions. Boeing typically surveys all its worksites and employees at the same time, and the timing of Boeing’s surveys is typically not the same as that of the other worksites in those jurisdictions. WSDOT works directly with the Boeing ETC (currently Chandra Kramer), rather than the implementers, to coordinate the surveying process. Therefore, the jurisdictional representatives are not responsible for making sure that Boeing surveys. The current plan is to survey Boeing in the spring of 2025. That will count as their survey for the 2023-2025 survey cycle. Renton currently relies and will continue to rely on WSDOT to take the lead on working with Boeing for its worksite surveying. Renton will also continue to coordinate with the City of Tukwila on regional transit and Sounder station commute reduction programs. Performance targets 5. List your jurisdictions CTR performance target(s). a. List performance targets that reflect only CTR-affected worksites. Renton’s performance target for 2029 uses “option 2” from Appendix B in the Guidance for 2025-2029 City, County, Regional Commute Trip Reduction Plans where the drive alone rate (DAR) performance target is 66% for CTR affected worksites. This number represents the weighted average of 15.5% below, or less, of Renton’s census performance in 2019 for CTR-affected worksites at the jurisdictional level; and WSDOT has selected a measure of DAR and a statewide target of 60%. Renton will use 2023-2025 CTR survey data (to be completed in 2025) to set the baseline and potentially reevaluate the target. Renton will work in conjunction with PSRC to develop a regional baseline and target for the regional plan. b. List any additional performance targets. None 6. List the base value you’ll use for each performance target. a. For each performance target, provide the number you’ll use as the baseline (or starting number). You’ll measure the difference between this number and your results to report performance. Renton’s performance target for 2029 uses “option 2” from Appendix B in the Guidance for 2025-2029 City, County, Regional Commute Trip Reduction Plans where the drive alone rate (DAR) performance target is 66% for time being until worksite surveys are completed in 2025 including Boeing surveying led by WSDOT. Once local surveys are completed Renton will reassess its performance target and base values. 7. Describe the method you used to determine the base value for each target. Describe the method you used to determine the base value for each target. a. Provide the source for each base value listed. The base value is sourced from “option 2” from Appendix B in the Guidance for 2025-2029 City, County, Regional Commute Trip Reduction Plans where the drive alone rate (DAR) performance target is 66%. 8. Describe how you’ll measure progress toward each target. a. List the method you’ll use to measure progress for each target. Renton seeks to initiate and complete worksite surveys in 2025 including Boeing surveying led by WSDOT. Once local surveys are completed Renton will reassess its performance target and base values using the data directly reported from the worksites. 9. List your jurisdiction’s CTR-affected worksites. a. List all your CTR-affected worksites. 1. Allpak 2. City of Renton 3. Cutter & Buck – Corporate Headquarters 4. Geico Insurance 5. Hartung Agalite Glass Company 6. Kaiser Permanente – Renton Medical Center 7. Kenworth Truck Company = Renton Plan 8. King County – Regional Communications & Emergency Coordination 9. Meteorcomm LLC - HQ 10. Paccar – ITD and Parts 11. Providence Health - Corporate 12. Puget Sound Education Services – District #121 13. Renton Technical College 14. Sekisui Aerospace Corporation – Renton Operations 15. The Boeing Company (Renton Plant and Garden Plaza) 16. Trojan Lithograph 17. Tyler Technologies 18. Valley Medical Center – Main Campus 19. Wizards of the Coast - HQ 10. List a performance target for each CTR-affected worksite. a. For any performance targets tied to the CTR survey, indicate that you’ll establish performance targets during the 2023-2025 survey cycle. Renton did not survey in 2023 and 2024 due to limited staff availability in addition to WSDOT’s guidance for surveying during this time period, which was delayed as WSDOT was establishing and setting up its survey tool. Therefore, the City will use on a DAR performance target of 66% as explained above until worksite surveys are completed in 2025. Once surveys are completed Renton will need to determine whether a DAR performance target greater than 66% can be achieved. If larger sites such as Providence Health, Kaiser Permanente, Geico Insurance and the City of Renton are still implementing hybrid and work-from-home models. If worksites are still teleworking less than 4 days/week, then the DAR is expected to be comparable to 66% or lower since employees will not be commuting into Renton. 11. List the base value you’ll use for each site. a. For any performance targets tied to the CTR survey, indicate that you’ll establish a base value during the 2023-2025 survey cycle. Response is the same as above. Renton did not survey in 2023 and 2024 due to limited staff availability in addition to WSDOT’s guidance for surveying during this time period, which was delayed as WSDOT was establishing and setting up its survey tool. Therefore, the City will use the base value(s) as established in Appendix B of the CTR Guidance until worksite surveys are completed in 2025. Once surveys are completed Renton will need to determine how to best revise the base values. Services and strategies 12. Describe the services and strategies your jurisdiction will use to achieve CR strategies. Renton seeks to heavily refresh its CTR program and implementation strategies during the 2025-2029 workplan period. Since the CTR program and its goals lend itself to shared goals with other city divisions, namely the city’s Sustainable Public Works group and Economic Development group, the city will seek to reassess staff resources toward the program so that we can better coordinate CTR promotions and campaigns with other city divisions that also engage with the city’s affected worksites and non-affected worksites. Renton also seeks to refresh its efforts toward marketing and promotion of existing King County Metro services. Renton benefits from Metro’s “Metroflex” on-demand service which allows users to access Metro service through on-demand pick up and drop offs within a specified service area, specifically in an area of Renton where vulnerable populations have been long-identified. In addition, Metro’s Vanpool and Vanshare service are a well-known and well-used service for commuters accessing Sounder Commuter Rail service and the City seeks to refresh its approach toward marketing, promoting, incentivizing, and recruiting worksites to participate in Vanpool/Vanshare services. Marketing, promoting, and providing education to worksites about the ORCA Passport and Business Passport program will continue to be a key facet of Renton’s CTR program so that the CTR program can assure that education is provided to Renton’s businesses, small and large, so that employers can provide transit passes to their employees. Renton will also seek to try new strategies that involve coordinating the CTR program’s messaging and goals with the community events and programs run out of our Parks Department. The city’s regional trail system is often used among commuter cyclists and promoting events and special activities for Bike to Work Month is a specific area where the city wants to enhance the resonance of the CTR program. The City is currently working on cultivating relationships with the Cascade Bicycle Club and BikeWorks for greater stakeholder support and cross coordination that can benefit the city’s broader goals related to multi-modal safety & travel, commuting, recreation, and visitorship The CTR program manager may seek regional mobility grant funds to implement open streets event(s) that promote and encourage cycling and walking/rolling to work or transit & business destinations.. 13. Describe how jurisdiction services and strategies will support CTR-affected employers. Currently the city’s Economic Development division works with entities such as the Renton Chamber, Renton’s burgeoning Downtown Business District, major commercial property owners, and small business groups to promote business leadership and partnerships. The CTR program administrator will seek to improve coordination with Economic Development staff in developing special partnerships with entities such as the Renton Landing or Triton Towers group to market and promote transportation demand management strategies at the land use level, or commute trip reduction for tenants and employees. The CTR program administrator may promote the Switch Your Trips challenge, organized by the Washington State Ridesharing Organiza  on, to CTR-affected employers. It involves logging non-drive- alone trips, encouraging behavior change through the chance to win high-value prizes. The CTR program administrator will schedule an opportunity to be on-site at Renton Technical College and Providence Health, plus additional employers, to promote transportation options and answer employees’ questions. This could be a Transportation Options Expo event hosted by one or more employers at Renton Community Center. The CTR program administrator will also accept invitations from CTR-affected employers elsewhere in the city to carry out outreach at their on-site events, like commute fairs or worksite sponsored Bike to Work activities. 14. Describe barriers your jurisdiction must address to achieve CTR targets. a. Describe how you’ll address these barriers. Barrier 1: Not all CTR-affected worksites are well served by transit. More transit service is on the way, including the Metro I-Line and STRide 1 Bus Rapid Transit but the commuter rail users experience and average of two transfer points, and the average bus transit user experiences 1-2 transfers to their destination outside of Renton. The City will continue advocating for expanded transit service, such as expanding the Metroflex service area. Expanding the Metroflex service area to include the Tukwila Station would greatly reduce transfer points for longer distance commuters using rail. Barrier 2: Negative perceptions about the reliability and safety of transit. The City’s messaging encouraging transit use will address these perceptions. The City will cooperate with King County Metro on enhancing safety at bus stops and transit centers. Barrier 3: Unpredictability of employers’ work-from-home policies. For some employers, the base values for their drive-alone rates (question 11) were impacted by the number of days their staff were allowed to work from home. If some employers decide to require their staff to come to their worksites more frequently than was the case in fall 2023 – spring 2024, which is a decision that is the employers to make, this will make it more difficult to achieve the CTR targets. Barrier 4: Lack of bicycling and/or pedestrian facilities that safely and seamlessly connect with interregional trails or transit facilities. The City will be implementing its Comprehensive Walkway Plan during the four-year CTR workplan period. The Walkway plan aims to provide and infill streets with new sidewalk where it is currently missing, especially among older neighborhood streets that were formerly owned or managed by King County. The City will also update its Bicycle and Trails Master Plan in 2026- 2027 with the goal of refreshing the non-motorized network for completeness of its streets and improving connectivity between interregional trails to the neighborhood street network. 15. Describe the transportation demand management technologies your jurisdiction plans to use to deliver CTR services and strategies.  Encouraging the use of trip-matching tools like RideshareOnline.com for carpools and vanpools  Encouraging people to load their transit passes onto their mobile phones, once ORCA enables that capability for both Android and iOS  Encouraging employee transportation coordinators to promote to their colleagues the best phone apps for transit trip planning and real-time transit tracking as well as promoting the Metroflex app and service  Using the State’s online CTR tool to conduct CTR surveys and collect program reports 16. Transcribe or link to your local CTR ordinance. City of Renton Ordinance No. 5422; Adopted November 15, 2008 CTR ordinance for Renton - King County, Washington 17. Describe your financial plan. a. Describe the estimated average annual costs of your plan. Activity Est. Average Annual Cost Employer engagement1 $15,400 Performance Reporting2 $25,000 Engagement/Promotion materials & supplies (may include food/beverage/gift card purchases for promotion & incentivizing or raffle purposes) $5,000 Administration3 $45,000 1Includes identifying CTR-affected worksites and ETCs, conducting training, providing technical assistance to ETCs, and reviewing employer CTR plans $20,000 2Includes worksite survey and program reports $20,000 3Includes financial and program management CTR/ETC duties for city employees; involvement in regional transportation coordination with Metro/PSRC/Sound Cities Association/WSDOT/organizational advocacy groups (ex. Cascade $30,000 Bicycle Club, Bikeworks, and all others); transportation demand management assistance to capital projects ORCA Business Passport (Renton City Hall and Shops employees) $113,190.48 Total $267,690.48 b. Describe likely funding sources, public and private, to implement your plan. Source of Revenue Est. Average Annual Revenue City of Renton1 $113,190.48 WSDOT (agreement # PDT0838) $155,400 ($77,700 annual) Total $267,690.48 1This amount varies every year as it is based on the number of annual employees 18. Describe your implementation structure. a. Describe who will conduct the activities listed in your plan. The City of Renton employee designated as the CTR program administrator is staffed out of the Transportation Planning group in the Public Works Department. They will be responsible for implementing and administering the plan with support from the Transportation Planning Manager. Assistance with CTR and TDM activities may utilize consultant support if needed for special activities identified throughout the plan period. The CTR program administrator also shares the same role as the Employee Transportation Coordinator for the City of Renton. b. Indicate who will monitor progress on your plan. List job title, department and name. As of December 2024, the Transportation Planner and Program Coordinator 2 positions in the Public Works Department are vacant and either of these positions would normally staff the CTR program manager and City’s ETC role. Currently, Ellen Talbo, Transportation Planning Manager, is acting as the CTR program manager and City’s ETC. She will monitor progress on the overall CTR work plan as well as current TDM contract with WSDOT. 19. List your implementation schedule. a. Provide the timeline for anticipated projects. 1st Biennium January 2025 - December 2027 2nd Biennium January 2028 – December 2029 Activities Recruit, orient, train new employees with the city’s CTR/TDM program and requirements. (high priority for Jan-Sep 2025 timeframe) Identify worksites and employee transportation coordinators. (high priority for Jan-Sep 2025 timeframe) Continue training and education for new or current employees with the city’s CTR/TDM program and requirements. Identify worksites and employee transportation coordinators. Conduct worksite surveys and program reports. Conduct worksite surveys and program reports. (high priority for Jan-Sep 2025 timeframe) Review employer CTR plans and identify any engagement gaps; plan and conduct engagement as needed. (high priority for Jan-Sep 2025 timeframe) Participate in special engagement opportunities: Bike to Work month, City of Renton River Days, etc. Provide commute and other employee transportation coordinator services to city employees. Train and provide technical assistance to employee transportation coordinators. Monitor and oversee financial and program management. Engage in comprehensive, regional transportation, and transit planning. Provide transportation demand management technical assistance to capital projects. Review employer CTR plans and identify any engagement gaps; plan and conduct engagement as needed. Participate in special engagement opportunities: Bike to Work month, City of Renton River Days, etc. Provide commute and other employee transportation coordinator services to city employees. Train and provide technical assistance to employee transportation coordinators. Monitor and oversee financial and program management. Engage in comprehensive, regional transportation, and transit planning. Provide transportation demand management technical assistance to capital projects. 20. Describe the CTR plan for jurisdiction employees. a. Describe the services, programs, information, and other actions your city or county put in place to help its employees reduce their drive alone commute trips. The City is a customer of the ORCA Business Passport program and makes all resources available to all benefitted employees including unlimited-use ORCA card transit passes and access to the Metro VanPool and VanShare programs, which is commonly used among commuter rail user employees. The City also currently implements a hybrid 3-day in office/2-day work from home telework policy. The CTR program manager also serves as the ETC for the City’s two CTR-affected worksites: Renton City Hall and the Renton Maintenance Shops. The person in this role administers the CTR survey to City employees and completes the CTR program reports for the two worksites. The person in this role also: - Analyzes the CTR survey results and makes recommendations for reducing single-occupant vehicle trips generated by the worksites - Encourages City employees to make use of their unlimited-use ORCA cards through strategic interoffice communications (i.e. employee wellness newsletters, postings, hosted office hours) - Serves as a commute advisor to employees - Publicizes promotional challenges and campaigns as needed - Co-hosts the City’s internal Teams Vanpool/Vanshare channel 21. Describe how the CTR plan for jurisdiction employees contributes to the success of the overall plan. a. Describe how the plan for jurisdiction employees reinforces the success of the jurisdiction plan? The actions included in the city-as-employer plan indicate the city’s commitment and are similar to those carried out by other CTR-affected worksites. They create a mutually reinforcing community focused on CTR/TDM. Alignment with plans 22. List the transit agencies that provide service in your jurisdiction. King County Metro and Sound Transit 23. List the transit plans you reviewed while developing this plan. King County Metro –Metro Connects Long-Range Plan Sound Transit Development Plan and service ridership dashboard 24. Describe how this CTR plan supports the transit plans. Renton has long been coordinating with both KC Metro and Sound Transit to support expansion of both providers’ systems through the city, especially through supportive land use like the Rainier-Grady transit- oriented development area. The Rainier-Grady TOD has been a long-standing piece of the region’s Vision 2050 for its focus on centering land use with transit to improve jobs-housing balance locally and regionally. This CTR plan provides framework for the transportation demand management aspects associated with a cohesive land use plan that is intended to directly link to transit in an effort to reduce single occupancy commuting and drive alone trips. The planned expansion and redevelopment of the Renton Transit Center will support CTR goals by improving transit access and increasing housing and retail opportunities within walking distance of the station. The integration of Stride Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) and Transit-Oriented Development (TOD) will further advance objectives such as expanding transit choices, promoting active transportation, and reducing congestion, greenhouse gas emissions, and air pollution. A new park-and-ride facility will also improve access for long-distance commuters, helping to ease traffic on local streets, arterials, I-405, and SR 167. Collectively, these investments will lead to higher transit ridership, more active transportation use, and less congestion across the region. 25. Describe any comprehensive plan updates that are needed and when will they be made. In 2024 the City of Renton updated its Comprehensive Plan with a 10-periodic review update. It is in the current stages of responding and incorporating final review comments from PSRC and the Department of Commerce. Consecutively, the Transportation Element is also being updated and the final version of the Transportation Element along with an amended Comprehensive Plan that incorporates additional housing element considerations is planned for completion by December 2025. The Transportation Element will make updates to 1) incorporate the four-year CTR plan by reference, and 2) update language in its TDM policies to bring them into consistency with the TOD planning policies. Engagement 26. Describe stakeholder engagement. a. Who did you talk to? During 2023 and 2024 the City of Renton has been focused on the Complete Streets and multi- modal aspects of the transportation network. To that end, recent public engagement occurred out of the efforts from updating the Transportation Element of the Comprehensive Plan, which encompasses all aspects of traversing the network including transportation demand management, carpooling habits, and non-motorized trips. Other engagement efforts occurred related to updating the city’s Comprehensive Walkway Plan, which analyzed streets and locations where pedestrian circulation lacks sidewalk, crossing and proper ADA infrastructure to reach transit and other destinations. The city worked with the Renton School District to host a youth-focused walk, bike, and roll safety education campaign and engagement was specifically focused on two of Renton’s underserved communities: the Benson Hill and West Hill neighborhoods. Finally, the CTR program manager outreached with worksite ETCs in an effort to refresh connection with them and also generally check in with worksites about the status and outlook of continued telecommuting among their workforce(s). c. When did you talk to them? All public engagement timing is summarized below: - Comprehensive Plan website and information sharing: June 2023 – December 2024 - Comprehensive Plan and Transportation Element community survey: October – December 2023 o Interviews and focus groups with Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW local chapter), Renton Chamber, Renton Seniors group: September 2023 – January 2024 o Public Workshops: November 2023, February 2024 o Planning Commission consultations and Public Hearings: June 2024, September 2024, October 2024 - Comprehensive Walkway Plan website launch (June 2023) and online survey + receive open letters and comments: May 2023 – August 2024 o Outreach booth promotion at Renton River Days Summer festival: July 2023 and July 2024 - Safe Access to Neighborhood Destination (SANDs) youth safety education academy: April 2023 – December 2023 o Website launch (April 2023) and online survey + receive open letters and comments: April 2023 – December 2023 o Promotion of survey & collect responses at Renton River Days: July 2023 o Worked with school district to recruit participants: June 2023 – September 2023 o Hosted 3 separate academy dates: September 2023 – October 2023 o Prepare summary report: October 2023 – January 2024 - CTR program outreach with worksite ETCs: January 2024 – July 2024 d. What did they have to say? Comments and feedback received from Renton’s public engagement efforts trended toward four general topics with regard to the transportation network:  A desire for light rail access through the city and specifically destined to the Renton Landing  A desire for safer streets where speed limits are observed and slower for better/safer pedestrian access  A desire for more and better bicycle infrastructure so that people can ride with less mixing or interruption with cars  A desire for more sidewalks along smaller roads through and amongst the neighborhood streets (i.e. sidewalks on collector and some local roads) Upon checking in with affected worksite ETC’s we found that it was difficult to obtain meaningful feedback about goals or desires due to high turnover among ETCs at the worksites. In general, responsive ETCs were generally receptive to engaging with Renton CTR program staff but in many cases, we encountered new ETCs that were catching up and new to commute trip reduction concepts and the state and local legislation. Therefore, we engaged with worksite ETCs to provide education about the CTR program during most of 2024. e. How did what they said influence the plan? Based on the feedback that we received across all transportation planning efforts in 2023-2024, we have been pursuing and responding as follows:  A desire for light rail access through the city and specifically destined to the Renton Landing o The city recognizes the goal of pursuing light rail as a long-term transportation planning goal due to the built-out nature of the city’s land use and right of way and existing track usage of existing rail facilities. To that end, the City of Renton has been taking incremental approaches to enhancing transit access and connectivity through coordinated planning with KC Metro and Sound Transit as well as private development. The city made progress during pre-covid years in partnering with private developer interest in the south base of Lake Washington near the Renton Landing to provide a Southport Pedestrian Connection as well as a shuttle service. These projects currently remain unfunded, but the city continues to program them in the six- year transportation improvement plan as longer-term projects.  A desire for safer streets where speed limits are observed and slower for better/safer pedestrian access o The city is currently developing a comprehensive safety action plan specifically drawing on the nationally recognized Safe Streets Approach. The safety action plan will update the city’s five- year period citywide crash analysis as well as analyze killed and severe injury (KSI) crashes especially when and where speed was a factor. The action plan will also engage with the public including focused engagement with vulnerable and underrepresented users. The goal for completing the action plan is December 2026.  A desire for more and better bicycle infrastructure so that people can ride with less mixing or interruption with cars o The city continues to make progress in constructing its complete streets projects out of its six- year TIP that include accommodation for bicycles. Specific projects with an intentional focus toward active transportation and bicycle circulation include:  the Renton Connector project – this project will construct a multi-use trail and linear parkway in the median of Burnett Ave with the intent to connect the future South Renton Transit Center to downtown Renton and eventually Lake Washington. The project is currently in the design phase, anticipated for design completion in 2026.  S. 7th Street Bike Lane project – this project will add a protected 2-way cycle track along S.7th Street between Burnett Ave to Shattuck Ave, and sharrows between Shattuck Ave to Rainier Ave, to provide better cycling connectivity to/from the future South Renton Transit Center and the area west of Rainier Ave. The project is currently in construction and completion is anticipated in by the end of 2025.  Updating the city’s Bike and Trail Master Plan in 2026 and updating it to become a citywide Active Transportation Plan  A desire for more sidewalks along smaller roads through and amongst the neighborhood streets (i.e. sidewalks on collector and some local roads) o The city continues to make progress in constructing its planned sidewalk projects out of its six-year TIP that improve pedestrian connection to transit or provide sidewalk for safer pedestrian circulation. These projects include:  116th Ave SE Sidewalk Project – this project will install sidewalk, curb and gutter, ADA ramps, and rectangular rapid flashing beacon crossings along 116 th Ave SE just adjacent to Cascade Elementary School and the Renton Family First Community Center. The project will begin construction in spring 2025 and be completed by the end of 2025.  Maplewood Sidewalk Rehabilitation Project – this project will replace aging sidewalks in the Maplewood Glen neighborhood. Construction will begin in 2025.  SE 170th St Stormwater Upgrade Project – this project will upgrade the stormwater infrastructure and add new sidewalk, curb, gutter and ADA ramps in the Cascade/Renton Park neighborhood on several identified local residential streets. Construction will begin in 2025.  Walkway Program development – the city is currently identifying the priority array of sidewalk infill projects for inclusion in the 2025-2030 TIP. In 2024, the City adopted a Transportation Benefit District (TBD) which is partially focused on generating an estimated revenue base of approximately $3 million annually for exclusive investment in sidewalk and pedestrian improvement infrastructure. 27. Describe vulnerable populations considered. During the city’s public engagement for all of its transportation planning efforts in 2023 and 2024, the city made an effort to provide engagement available to non-English speaking households using its LanguageLine interpretation resource and ensuring that website surveys were available to be bilingual to the best ability. In-person Spanish interpretation was available and provided at outreach during the 2023 Renton River Days summer festival. In addition, even though the comprehensive safety action plan is currently a work in progress, the project team is currently developing partnerships with community-based organizations such as The Lighthouse Institute and other groups whose clientele is visual/audible/mobility impaired and dependent on transit. The city intends to work specifically with these groups at a focus group and task force level to identify issues in the transportation network affecting these vulnerable populations. 28. Describe engagement focused on vulnerable populations. a. Who did you talk to? During the city’s public engagement for all of its transportation planning efforts in 2023 and 2024, the city made an effort to provide engagement available to non-English speaking households using its LanguageLine interpretation resource and ensuring that website surveys were available to be bilingual to the best ability. In-person Spanish interpretation was available and provided at outreach during the 2023 Renton River Days summer festival. In addition, even though the comprehensive safety action plan is currently a work in progress, the project team is currently developing partnerships with community-based organizations such as The Lighthouse Institute and other groups whose clientele is visual/audible/mobility impaired and dependent on transit. The city intends to work specifically with these groups at a focus group and task force level to identify issues in the transportation network affecting these vulnerable populations. b. When did you talk to them? All public engagement timing is summarized below, including consideration and accommodation for vulnerable populations: - Comprehensive Plan website and information sharing: June 2023 – December 2024 - Comprehensive Plan and Transportation Element community survey: October – December 2023 o Interviews and focus groups with Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW local chapter), Renton Chamber, Renton Seniors group: September 2023 – January 2024 o Public Workshops: November 2023, February 2024 o Planning Commission consultations and Public Hearings: June 2024, September 2024, October 2024 - Comprehensive Walkway Plan website launch (June 2023) and online survey + receive open letters and comments: May 2023 – August 2024 o Outreach booth promotion at Renton River Days Summer festival: July 2023 and July 2024 - Safe Access to Neighborhood Destination (SANDs) youth safety education academy: April 2023 – December 2023 o Website launch (April 2023) and online survey + receive open letters and comments: April 2023 – December 2023 o Promotion of survey & collect responses at Renton River Days: July 2023 o Worked with school district to recruit participants: June 2023 – September 2023 o Hosted 3 separate academy dates: September 2023 – October 2023 o Prepare summary report: October 2023 – January 2024 - CTR program outreach with worksite ETCs: January 2024 – July 2024 c. What did they have to say? Comments and feedback received from Renton’s public engagement efforts, including vulnerable populations, trended toward four general topics with regard to the transportation network:  A desire for light rail access through the city and specifically destined to the Renton Landing  A desire for safer streets where speed limits are observed and slower for better/safer pedestrian access  A desire for more and better bicycle infrastructure so that people can ride with less mixing or interruption with cars  A desire for more sidewalks along smaller roads through and amongst the neighborhood streets (i.e. sidewalks on collector and some local roads) We received specific feedback from youth (middle and high school aged students) in the Benson Hill and West Hill neighborhoods during the SAND academy. Their feedback was focused on cycling and getting around on foot throughout their neighborhoods and employment destinations. In general, the feedback received from these groups indicated that among middle and high school aged students, who tend to lack access to owning or driving a car, are dependent on transit and/or carpooling to complete trips to get to their job, school activities, and social activities. Students who carpool to their jobs starting from a friend or relative’s housework different shifts and don’t use the same carpool ride after their work shift ends and then depend on transit or walking/biking to get back home. Also, high school students that work after school and on weekends are typically working at jobs with off-peak commute hours so traffic congestion is less of a concern for them. The majority of students that participated in the SAND program expressed concerns about speeding and unsafe driving behaviors making it difficult or uncomfortable to walk or bike to/from school. d. How did that they said influence the plan? The city is working to address the feedback collected at this current time following the projects and actions described in question 26.e. With regard to the feedback received from youth in Renton’s underserved communities, Public Works staff met with Renton School District staff in October 2024 to establish cooperative partnership toward tighter inter-agency coordination and communication with the goal of improving overall walk/bike safety surrounding schools. In addition, feedback collected from the students informed city staff that marketing and promoting KC Metro’s Metroflex program more directly to youth populations in addition to youth ORCA passes would benefit Renton’s young riders and drivers in their trip decisions. 29. List employers’ suggestions to make CTR effective. The CTR program administrator spoke with four employee transportation coordinators for CTR-affected worksites in Renton. Their suggestions are listed below.  ETCs believe more employees would use transit if the existing routes were more expansive and buses came more frequently. Could the City advocate for increased frequency and route coverage?  Improving the transit connectivity between Tukwila station and Renton Technical College and Renton City Hall to reduce the number of transfers might increase its uptake among her coworkers.  Doing a transportation options fair the worksites was a welcome idea. 30. Describe results of engagement focused on vulnerable populations that will be provided for use in the comprehensive plan and transit plan updates. As described in 26.e, the city is working to address the feedback collected at this current time following the projects and actions described in question 26.e. With regard to the feedback received from youth in Renton’s underserved communities, Public Works staff met with Renton School District staff in October 2024 to establish cooperative partnership toward tighter inter-agency coordination and communication with the goal of improving overall walk/bike safety surrounding schools. In addition, feedback collected from the students informed city staff that marketing and promoting KC Metro’s Metroflex program more directly to youth populations in addition to youth ORCA passes would benefit Renton’s young riders and drivers in their trip decisions. In general, the City seeks solution-oriented resolution in the form of programming projects into the six- year TIP and/or pursuing grant funding to actualize the projects and programs that present solutions for vulnerable populations regardless of if or when feedback is received from these groups. Regional transportation planning organization CTR plan review RTPO comments: This section is awaiting comments to be received from PSRC.