The primary purpose of the Southern California Association of Governments (SCAG) Curb Space Management Study (CSMS) is to take a comprehensive and multimodal review of some of the most congested and complicated curb space locations within southern California. Forward Progress supports SCAG and the consultant team by leading peer-to-peer exchanges, developing targeted regional and city improvement strategies, and applying the FP Curbside Management Program Self Assessment Tool.
FP led a series of peer-to-peer exchanges for the participating SCAG cities, discussing ways to move forward from a traditional parking program to a progressive curbside management program. The forums included southern California officials and experts from across North America. Experts from Seattle, Minneapolis, Washington, D.C., and Toronto shared experiences and lessons learned with the SCAG cities.
FP applied its Curbside Management Program Self Assessment Tool to (1) benchmark member government programs in over 20 program element categories; (2) align strategies and recommendations at the regional, jurisdiction, and site-specific levels; (3) target pilot projects; (4) guide peer-to-peer discussions; and (5) assist the study in mapping a path forward for the region.
A clear need exists to assess policies, strategies, and infrastructure investments and their impacts on curb space activity, especially with the recent COVID-19 impacts, all being critical to the region and its localities. Benefits from this are looking to improve mobility, reduced congestion and vehicle miles traveled (VMT)/vehicle hours traveled (VHT), and air quality improvements such as Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions.
As part of the study, SCAG and Forward Progress also surveyed curb space users to seek input from users that have a vested interest in improving its function, legibility, and availability in order to best serve competing needs of all stakeholders. The input of private sector vendors adds valuable perspective for understanding the desired and current use of the curb, as well as the challenges curb users encounter in doing so. This information will help localities determine the best policies and strategies to optimize the use of this finite space.