California Air Resources Board

SB 350 De León, Chapter 547, Statutes of 2015) directs CARB to conduct a study on the barriers for low-income Californians to access clean transportation options, including those in disadvantaged communities, as well as recommendations on how to increase access.  In February 2018, CARB released the Final Guidance Document - Low-Income Barriers Study, Part B: Overcoming Barriers to Clean Transportation Access for Low-Income Residents (Barriers Report). CARB’s Barriers Report is an initial step in identifying the main barriers low-income residents, including those in disadvantaged and tribal communities, face in accessing clean transportation and mobility options.  Recommendations to overcome these barriers include both short-term and longer-term implementable actions that the Legislature, communities, State and local planning, transportation, public health, and air quality agencies can take to formulate innovative, meaningful solutions.

The Barriers Report identifies several barriers to accessing clean transportation and mobility options, such as affordability, funding for clean transportation investments, and a lack of awareness of clean transportation options. Additionally, CARB identified community-specific barriers such as access, convenience and safety. Because each community is unique and there are many factors to consider, such as geographic, economic, demographic, or cultural and linguistic attributes, and varied styles of communication, there is no single statewide solution to address the barriers. This increases the importance of developing equitable, but community-specific solutions, and targeting resources for residents that are most in need and face the greatest vulnerabilities and disparities in the transportation system.

SB 350 continues to be a key driver as CARB moves forward in reaching these goals, including developing clean transportation and mobility access as well as transportation equity policy solutions. SB 350 has shaped how CARB moves ahead with program implementation and the identification of funding and other needs that address barriers to clean transportation access for low-income residents. CARB continues to apply lessons learned, evaluate priorities to ensure that efforts promote community-level achievements in transportation equity, and supports capacity to both transition to and identify projects that are sustainable and applicable in other communities.

Clean Transportation and Mobility Options 

• Active transportation such as biking and walking
• Zero-emission and near zero-emission light-duty cars and trucks 
• Zero-emission and near zero-emission transit and school buses
• Innovative clean transportation projects that test shared and on-demand mobility services, including zero-emission carsharing, bike-/scooter-sharing, carpooling and vanpooling, innovative transit services, and ride-on-demand services
• Supporting infrastructure for vehicle charging and fueling and safe biking and walking

Public Participation

In an effort to develop the Barriers Report, CARB staff directly engaged local community members, including low-income residents, across the State to understand the transportation challenges faced within their communities. These conversations helped staff identify many of the main barriers to clean transportation access, and provided CARB an opportunity to inform residents of currently available clean transportation opportunities   to improve access and empower transportation decisions. Recognizing that California has regional differences, and that barriers differ by region, CARB identified case study and literature review communities statewide, including rural, urban, suburban and tribal community types that cover different California regions, (e.g., Northern California, San Francisco Bay Area, Central Valley and San Joaquin Valleys, and inland and coastal areas of Southern California). CARB also consulted with the California Energy Commission (CEC) and other State and local transportation and planning agencies on barriers and opportunities, and in the formulation of recommendations.

CARB incorporated input received from this process into the draft Barriers Report, published in April 2017 for public review and comment.  Following release of the draft document, CARB returned to meet with stakeholders and residents from the case study communities, and continued the public engagement process. The Final Guidance Document reflects this additional community and stakeholder feedback, and public comments submitted on the draft document. 

In May 2017, the Governor’s Office established an interagency task force to implement priority recommendations from both CARB’s and CEC’s Barriers Reports. The task force was comprised of over 15 state agencies implementing clean energy and transportation programs, as well as related disciplines including but not limited to public health, water, and housing. The task force met through the end of 2018 to ensure continued coordination across agencies. State agencies continue to collaborate through workshops and other informal activities.

CARB continues to engage the public through ongoing SB 350 implementation efforts including the development of the Outreach Roadmap, Funding Plan for Clean Transportation Incentives, and equity projects designed to benefit communities across the state. CARB staff continue to incorporate lessons learned from these processes across clean mobility projects.