Fewer trees, more asthma. How Sacramento can improve its canopy and public health

By the Sacramento Bee Editorial Board
October 15, 2019
The Sacramento Bee

We often plant trees as a symbolic gesture. We plant them on Earth Day in honor of clean air and sustainability. We also plant trees to commemorate people and events.
But trees do more than provide shade and improve landscapes. They are also critical to public health.
In Sacramento, which the American Lung Association named fifth worst U.S. city for air quality and where temperatures increasingly reach triple-digit highs, we must take the importance of trees seriously.

https://www.sacbee.com/opinion/editorials/article236197713.html

Click here to read the full article.

Unmet Transit Needs – Upcoming Meetings

Posted October 15, 2019

Whether you ride daily, occasionally or haven’t tried transit yet, the Sacramento Area Council of Governments is looking for feedback on our area’s bus, dial-a-ride, paratransit and light rail transit services. SACOG accepts transit needs related comments from any area in the counties of Sacramento, Sutter, Yolo and Yuba.

What are your thoughts on local transit service? Would you like to use it for more trips, but don’t because of issues like where it goes, the schedule or cost? Are there places you really need to go but cannot currently? Please give SACOG your thoughts by attending an Unmet Transit Needs meeting or by relaying your comments to SACOG.

The California State Transportation Development Act (TDA) requires the Unmet Transit Needs Process be conducted annually by Regional Transportation Planning Agencies. SACOG is the Regional Transportation Planning Agency for the counties of Sacramento, Yuba, Sutter and Yolo. SACOG staff conducts the Unmet Transit Needs process annually for these four counties. The TDA requires that SACOG make a determination whether there are “unmet transit needs that are reasonable to meet” in the jurisdictions throughout the four counties.

There are also a number of ways to comment beyond the hearings, so please feel free to also call, text, email, fax or mail your unmet transit needs comments to SACOG!

Upcoming Meetings

OCT 28 2019, MON
2 – 3pm
Sacramento Regional Transit Unmet Transit Needs Hearing
Sacramento RT Auditorium, 1400 29th Street, Sacramento, CA

OCT 30 2019, WED
2 – 3pm
City of Galt Unmet Transit Needs Hearing
Galt Council Chambers, 380 Civic Drive, Galt, CA

NOV 4 2019, MON
2 – 3pm
City of Davis Unmet Transit Needs Hearing
Davis Council Chambers, 23 Russell Blvd., Davis, CA

NOV 5 2019, TUE
2 – 3pm
Sutter and Yuba Counties Unmet Transit Needs Hearing
Yuba County Government Center, 915 8th Street, Marysville, CA

NOV 6 2019, WED
6 – 7pm
City of Elk Grove Unmet Transit Needs Hearing
Elk Grove Council Chambers, 8400 Laguna Palms Way, Elk Grove, CA

JAN 16 2020, THU
9:30 – 10:30am
Sacramento Regional Transit Unmet Transit Needs Hearing
SACOG – Board Room, 1415 L Street, Suite 300, Sacramento, CA

Click here for more details on the SACOG website.

Get involved in plans for I-80 and Hwy 65 Transportation Corridors

Posted October 15, 2019

Get involved in the future of the I-80 / Business 80 corridor from downtown Sacramento to Auburn and the Highway 65 corridor from Lincoln to I-80. The effort will result in a multi-modal plan that considers improvements to vehicle, truck, rail, bus, pedestrian, and bicycle travel along the corridor, with an emphasis on increasing travel choices to reduce congestion.

Learn more and join the conversation on Monday, October 28 from 5:00 – 6:30 p.m. for the second Placer Sacramento Gateway Plan Community Workshop. A brief presentation will begin at 5:45 p.m. Stop by anytime between 5:00 and 6:30 p.m. to hear a project update!

Can’t make it to the workshop? Go to http://bit.ly/more80choices for a livestream of the presentation.

Click here to RSVP.

SacRT to modernize light rail system, increase train frequency to Folsom

August 14, 2019
Emily Hamann
Sacramento Business Journal

“Sacramento Regional Transit District is in the beginning stages of a multiyear, multimillion-dollar project to upgrade its light rail system, which will include more frequent service to Folsom.

Most of SacRT’s current light rail cars are reaching the end of their useful life, and will start costing SacRT more money in maintenance and repair costs. So SacRT is upgrading to new low-floor cars. The doors on low-floor cars are level with the street, which eliminates the need for elevated platforms at light rail stops.

Most of the state funding for the project is directed toward upgrading the Folsom line, which is aimed at reducing traffic congested corridors. Some of the funding is also coming from the settlement of a lawsuit between Caltrans and the Environmental Council of Sacramento. The environmentalist group had sued Caltrans over a plan to add carpool lanes on Highway 50. As part of an out-of-court settlement, Caltrans agreed to pay $7 million toward improving the Gold Line, which parallels the freeway. “

Read the full article here.

Aerojet Superfund Site Community Workshop

June 24, 2019

The Environmental Council of Sacramento has been providing guidance for the cleanup of this Aerojet superfund site for several years now. There is a workshop about the cleanup happening on July 10, 2019 that the public is invited to attend.

EPA Community Workshop Aerojet Area 40 Operable Unit 10 Cleanup (click here for the Fact Sheet) – July 10, 2019 6:00 PM to 8:00 PM – Folsom Community Center – 52 Natoma Street, Folsom, CA 95630

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency invites you to participate in a workshop describing cleanup activities that will occur in August and September this year at Aerojet Area 40 OU-10, located east of and adjacent to Prairie City Road, south of Highway 50 and north of White Rock Road. The purpose of the meeting is to give a brief presentation on the cleanup, discuss the schedule and answer the public’s questions. In addition, there will a poster board session with subject matter expert available. If you have any questions, please contact Jackie Lane, Community Involvement Coordinator, at (415) 972-3236 or by email at lane[dot]jackie[at]epa[dot]gov.

Click here to access the Aerojet Area 40 Operable Unit 10 Remedial Action Plan.

Click here for past posts from us on the clean up of this property.