Transportation
Addressing the region’s transportation needs has been an ongoing challenge for decades. As with most urban centers, policymakers struggle to make existing modes of transportation more efficient while keeping an eye toward the future for new transportation modalities. As a former member of the Senate Transportation Committee and Chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Bay Area Sustainable Development and Economic Progress, Leland Yee received the Award for Outstanding Contributions to the Neighborhoods by the Coalition for San Francisco Neighborhoods, as well as being named “Environmental Champion” by Environment California.
Any driver who uses any of the Bay Area’s 8 bridges knows how bad traffic can get, particularly if a stalled car is blocking traffic. Unlike most streets and highways, stalls and accidents on bridges can cause significant traffic delays and need to be removed quickly to minimize their impact. One of the fastest and most cost effective ways of doing that is the usage of Freeway Service Patrols which have been estimated to generate a $3 to $5 payback for every dollar invested in their activities. In 2008, Senator Yee authored SB 1731 which allowed Bay Area governments to impose a modest fee to fund more patrols. The bill was vetoed by Governor Schwarzenegger.
Most are now familiar with California’s hybrid sticker—a program that allowed a limited number of hybrid vehicles to access the state’s car pool lanes. Before the program was created, hybrid vehicle sales lagged well behind traditional car sales. California’s unique incentive program gave people a compelling reason to purchase hybrids. Today, hybrids constitute a significant portion of the cars on the roads. Following that model, Yee is working on legislation for the next generation of “clean tech” vehicles. SB 535, if enacted, would provide incentives to consumers to purchase the next generation of more technologically advanced vehicles by giving them access to HOV lanes.
In 2008, California voters approved Proposition 1A which authorized nearly $10 billion in bond sales to finance a California high speed rail system. As the bill that put Prop. 1A on the ballot moved through the Legislature, the proponents sought to diminish the importance of the San Francisco-Los Angeles route, jeopardizing the overall success of the rail system. At the urging of Leland Yee, the Senate Transportation Committee restored language for the bond funding to be used on the “backbone” of the high speed rail project, ensuring that the line begins and ends at the San Francisco Transbay Terminal and runs through the San Joaquin and Antelope Valleys, stopping in Los Angeles before ending in Anaheim.
