San Francisco County Transportation Authority
Moving the City

Download the TDM Partnership Fact Sheet (PDF).

WHAT IS TDM?

Transportation Demand Management (TDM) is a set of programs and policies that respond to real and perceived barriers to taking trips by transit, bicycling, walking, or carpooling/vanpooling, and that use market signals to reduce drive-alone trips. TDM strategies include information and education, incentives, physical changes, technology, and pricing.

ABOUT THE PROJECT

The Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC), through the Bay Area Climate Initiative, has awarded the San Francisco Transportation Authority a grant for the San Francisco TDM Partnership Project. The Partnership Project includes the following elements:

• Policy Review and Program Development. Coordinating existing and potential new TDM policies and programs across four San Francisco agencies.
• Muni Partners Program. Improved planning and management capacity to support the private shuttles sector and to integrate this growing market into the city’s transportation system.
• Employer Parking Management. Pilot deployment of employer-based parking management strategies, focused on a parking cash-out approach.
• Transportation Working Groups. Technical assistance and collaboration with geographic and market sector groupings of employers/institutions, focused on developing TDM initiatives of mutual interest such as rideshare, parking management, shuttles coordination, transit pass marketing, and other ways to decrease drive-alone travel.

The Partnership Project is being jointly undertaken by the Transportation Authority, the SFMTA, the Planning Department, and SF Environment. Private sector partners that have demonstrated interest in participating in the Project include employers in the greater downtown area, organizations in the southwestern neighborhoods, and medical institutions.

Project Goals

• Advance TDM programs that are effective, scalable, and sustainable over time.
• Build partnerships with and among private and institutional actors to achieve more efficient and wider-spread mode-shift impacts.
• Improve the City’s capacity to design and deliver effective TDM strategies in a coordinated manner.
• Strengthen the case for TDM in San Francisco, advance methods for measuring the success of TDM approaches, and document project activities and evaluation findings to support learning in other jurisdictions.

Muni Partners Program

The number of privately-operated shuttles in San Francisco has grown exponentially in recent years, and rapid growth is expected to continue into the foreseeable future. Shuttles support important citywide and regional goals by decreasing SOV trips and vehicle miles traveled (VMT) while encouraging walking and transit use.

The City’s existing transportation policy framework does not currently include this vital and growing segment of the transportation system. Because of the highly-visible nature of this quickly growing shuttle market, it is important to build strong working relationships with shuttle providers, riders, and neighborhood residents, and to understand their varied needs and concerns. The Muni Partners Program is the start of the process to integrate the private shuttle sector into the city’s overall transportation system. The Program has the following goals:

• Encourage and support the growth and integration of the private shuttle sector into the transportation system.
• Provide a safe environment for shuttle riders as well as other street users with whom shuttles interact.
• Identify and address adverse effects from shuttle operations on the performance of surface-running public transportation in San Francisco.
• Consistently and fairly apply and enforce any regulations/policies.
• Establish ongoing, positive communication and problem resolution between shuttle operators, City agencies, and the public regarding shuttle issues, growth, and changing needs.

Parking Cash-Out

State Assembly Bill 2109, known as the “parking cash-out” law, requires certain employers who provide subsidized parking for their employees to offer a cash allowance in lieu of a parking space. AB 2109’s intent is to reduce vehicle commute trips and emissions by offering employees the option of “cashing out” their subsidized parking space and taking transit, biking, walking, or carpooling to work. The potential of parking cash-out policies to reduce drive-alone trips is high, yet State law regarding parking cash-out affects only a limited number of employers (those with greater than 50 employees who currently lease their spaces). The TDM Partnership Project will develop an education- and incentive-based program that right-sizes this approach for San Francisco, through technical coordination, outreach, and challenge grants to encourage employers to offer this option to employees.

Project Team TDM Activities

Transportation Authority. Develops the long-range San Francisco Transportation Plan and congestion management program; undertakes policy studies focused on TDM and pricing; administers and oversees fund sources that support TDM programs, including Prop K, TFCA, and Prop AA.

SFMTA. Plans, manages, and operates the city’s surface transportation network, including the Muni transit system, pedestrian and bicycle network, and parking, traffic, taxis, and paratransit.

SF Environment. Administers the City’s CommuteSmart program, which supports sustainable travel choices in the city, particularly for workers and businesses, through information and education, commuter benefits, rideshare and telecommute programs, the emergency-ride-home program, and other services.

Planning Department. Plans for and monitors San Francisco’s built environment, including development and maintenance of the General Plan’s transportation policies and objectives; oversees the integration of TDM measures and requirements in area plans and specific land use projects.

Schedule

• Fall 2011: Grant startup
• Winter 2011-12: Analysis of existing TDM policies and programs
• Spring 2012: Stakeholder outreach and formation of collaborative working groups
• Summer 2012: Pilot project selection, analysis, and pre-implementation planning
• Fall 2012: Pilot project implementation and ongoing technical assistance
• 2013: Project evaluation and citywide policy development

Funding

The Partnership Project is funded by a grant of Bay Area Climate Initiative funds from the Metropolitan Transportation Commission. Local matching funds are provided by the Authority through the Prop K local transportation sales tax and the county-fund Transportation Fund for Clean Air (TFCA) program. Project Team agencies and private sector partners are also providing in-kind support to the project.

Contact Us

For more information, visit the project website at www.sfcta.org/tdm or contact Jesse Koehler at 415.522.4808 or .

San Francisco County Transportation Authority
100 Van Ness Avenue, 26th Floor
San Francisco, CA 94102
Attn: TDM Partnership