On July 8, 2019, CCEC initiated litigation against the City of American Canyon over the energy and transportation impacts of the Broadway Specific Plan. The litigation follows extensive correspondence by CCEC and Caltrans, pointing out the failure to address measures to reduce transportation demand in the new plan for the city's Broadway Corridor (SR 29). The plan, which proposes widening of SR 29 to six lanes, is not a sustainable solution, nor will it meet future transportation demand generated by the region. Building roadway capacity typically results in increased driving. Moreover, funding is plainly not available for the costly road widening. Napa County Transportation Authority's county-wide plan points out clearly the challenge going forward for American Canyon and for the region, which has historically used American Canyon as an increasingly congested driveway into Napa Valley--
"Napa County’s economy is largely dependent on the wine and tourism industry which accounts for 40% of the local labor force. The top five fastest growing job sectors in Napa County, which will account for 63% of the projected job growth, are low wage earning job sectors. This is particularly significant because housing in Napa is expensive and projected housing production will not keep pace with job production. This will force the growing Napa County workforce to look for more affordable housing elsewhere. Conversely, residents that wish to live in Napa County are likely to seek higher paying jobs elsewhere. The housing/income mismatch will result in more vehicle miles traveled and the inevitable associated congestion on Napa’s roads. If projections are accurate, this could result in 30,000 workers commuting into Napa each day by 2040 – a 45% increase, and an additional 2,000 outbound-commuters or a total of 16,000 daily trips leaving the county for work over this same time period."
CCEC is demanding a robust discussion of meeting future transportation demand in the Broadway Corridor.
Letter from Caltrans District 4, Jan. 10, 2018
Example of a Credible Discussion Addressing Transportation Demand
Increasing Highway Capacity Unlikely to Relieve Traffic Congestion