Department of Transportation Submittal of Comments to Caltrans Regarding the Draft Environmental Impact Report/Environmental Impact Statement and Proposed Alternatives for the SR 710 North Study Council Meeting July 13, 2015

Department of Transportation Recommendation 1.Find that the following proposed action is exempt from review pursuant to the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), pursuant to State CEQA Guidelines Section (b) (3); and 2.Authorize the Mayor to send a letter to Caltrans on behalf on the City of Pasadena transmitting comments on the SR 710 North Study Draft Environmental Impact Report/Environ- mental Impact Statement as contained in the following: A.The 5-Cities Alliance comment letter; and B.The supplemental City of Pasadena comment table; and C.The Pasadena Preferred Alternative report; and D.The Beyond the 710: Moving Forward New Initiative for Mobility and Community report. 2

Department of Transportation 3

Pasadena History 1967 – City executes freeway agreement with State for SR 7 alignment in Pasadena 2001 – Measure A adopted by voter referendum in favor of completion of the 710 Freeway between the I-210 Freeway and the I-10 Freeway – City Legal Opinion that Measure A prohibits the City from taking a position against completion of Freeway proposals that would connect the I-10 and I-210 Freeways – Pasadena Working Group formed to develop Pasadena Preferred Alternative 2015 – City opposes freeway tunnel and adopts SR-710 Pasadena Working Group Preferred Alternative 4

Department of Transportation History March 6, 2015 – Caltrans released the Draft Environmental Impact Report/Environmental Impact Statement (DEIR/EIS) prepared by Metro for the SR-710 North Study May 2015 – Caltrans released the cost-benefit study of the DEIR/EIS alternatives. Comments received until August 5, 2015 A Locally Preferred Alternative (LPA) for the SR-710 corridor will be included in the Final EIR/EIS 5

Department of Transportation Environmental Process Timeline 6 Source: SR-710 North Study DEIR/EIS, Caltrans/Metro, March 2015

Department of Transportation Purpose (from DEIR/DEIS)  Improve efficiency of the existing regional freeway and transit networks.  Reduce congestion on local arterials adversely affected due to regional traffic volumes  Minimize environmental impacts related to mobile sources 7 Effectively and efficiently accommodate regional and local north-south travel demands in the study area of the western San Gabriel Valley and east/northeast Los Angeles

Department of Transportation DEIR/DEIS Alternatives No Build (Includes projects in the 2009 LRTP) TSM/TDM  2009 LRTP plus enhanced spot fixes and expanded existing transit service BRT  TSM/TDM plus BRT on Atlantic/Fair Oaks LRT  TSM/TDM plus LRT generally under Fair Oaks Freeway Tunnel  Reduced TSM/TDM plus one or two tunnels 8

Department of Transportation No Build (2009 LRTP) 9 Source: SR-710 North Study DEIR/EIS, Caltrans/Metro, March 2015

Department of Transportation Active TransportationEnhanced Transit Service 10 TSM/TDM Alternative Source: SR-710 North Study DEIR/EIS, Caltrans/Metro, March 2015

Department of Transportation Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) Intersection/Local Street improvements 11 TSM/TDM Alternative Source: SR-710 North Study DEIR/EIS, Caltrans/Metro, March 2015 $105 million (2014 dollars)

Department of Transportation BRT Alternative (Incl. TSM/TDM) 12 Source: SR-710 North Study DEIR/EIS, Caltrans/Metro, March 2015 Includes bus feeder routes  New route in Pasadena would connect to El Monte Bus Station via Colorado and Rosemead $241 million (2014 dollars)

Department of Transportation LRT Alternative (Incl. TSM/TDM) Underground station  Near Fillmore Gold Line Includes bus feeder routes  New route in Pasadena would connect El Monte Bus Station to the Fillmore Station via Colorado and Rosemead $2,420 million (2014 dollars) 13 Source: SR-710 North Study DEIR/EIS, Caltrans/Metro, March 2015

Department of Transportation Freeway Tunnel Alternative Analyzed with and without trucks and with and without tolls $5,650 million (2014 dollars)  Dual-bore 8-Lane $3,150 million (2014 dollars)  Single-bore 4-Lane Costs include about half of TSM/TDM Alternative  $50 million (2014 dollars) 14 Source: SR-710 North Study DEIR/EIS, Caltrans/Metro, March 2015

Department of Transportation Review of the DEIR/DEIS Detailed review of the DEIR/DEIS completed  Specialized consultants for transportation, CEQA legal, air quality/noise, geology/hydrology  Shared with 5 City Alliance  Staff review of all chapters for Pasadena-specific outcomes and concerns The broad themes of deficiencies emerged from staff and consultant analysis of the Tunnel Alternative for the SR 710 North Project 15

Department of Transportation Deficiencies Identified –Traffic The tunnel project increases regional vehicle miles traveled (VMT) and CO2 emissions. Regional traffic is not improved as a result of the tunnel; rather, it shifts congestion around. Traffic gets significantly worse on various connecting freeways as a result of the tunnel, in part by inducing extra driving. The DEIR doesn’t allow comprehensive analysis of real solutions to the San Gabriel Valley’s transportation needs, particularly for transit. 16

Department of Transportation Recommendation 1.Find that the following proposed action is exempt from review pursuant to the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), pursuant to State CEQA Guidelines Section (b) (3); and 2.Authorize the Mayor to send a letter to Caltrans on behalf on the City of Pasadena transmitting comments on the SR 710 North Study Draft Environmental Impact Report/Environ- mental Impact Statement as contained in the following: A.The 5-Cities Alliance comment letter; and B.The supplemental City of Pasadena comment table; and C.The Pasadena Preferred Alternative report; and D.The Beyond the 710: Moving Forward New Initiative for Mobility and Community report. 17