TRANSFORMCA

Programs: Safe Routes to Schools (SR2S) is a proven, comprehensive program to encourage more children to walk and bike to school and beyond. SR2S reduces traffic around schools, improves air quality, saves families money, fosters a stronger sense of community, and most importantly, increases physical activity. Walking and bicycling to school can provide an important part of the hour per day of exercise children need.  
GreenTRIP is a certification made to overcome these barriers. The GreenTRIP process creates a focused dialog on what really makes a difference in attracting and encouraging lower driving lifestyles. During its first pilot project, GreenTRIP certified five projects in the San Francisco Bay Area – and the direct and indirect impacts are exceeding expectations. GreenTRIP certification has three requirements, and in the Bay Area the thresholds for those requirements vary by six “place types”.

Great communities are walkable, bikable places with good public transportation and a mix of housing, shops, offices, community facilities, and parks.

Abundant parks and sidewalks create spaces for kids to play. Foot traffic keeps local businesses bustling. People in all phases of life and income levels can have a place to call home. Everyone is more active and engaged in their communities, bringing life to the streets and reducing congestion.

We can make great communities come to life by involving a wide range of people in local land use planning processes.

That's because when planning involves the people impacted by new development, amazing things happen. New development doesn't just build houses, condos, and apartments. It creates space for parks, libraries, childcare, and health facilities. It supports local businesses and diversity. It builds community in the truest sense of the word. And together, great communities make the entire region more sustainable and livable.

In comes the Great Communities Collaborative. Over 50 cities in the San Francisco Bay Area have identified areas where they plan to refocus growth around public transportation stations and existing downtowns. Meanwhile, dozens of new rails stations and Bus Rapid Transit corridors will open over the next decade. Together, these opportunities offer a chance to significantly shape land use planning and achieve countless local and regional benefits.

The Great Communities Collaborative was established to make the most of these opportunities by engaging people - particularly low-income people and people of color - in local land use planning so they can shape future growth and create great communities.

TransForm coordinates the Great Communities Collaborative, which includes Greenbelt Alliance, Non-Profit Housing Association of Northern California, Reconnecting America, Urban Habitat, San Francisco Foundation and Silicon Valley Community Foundation, and numerous local groups. These groups work in key locations around the Bay Area. For more information, visit http://greatcommunities.org.

Using a blend of community engagement, policy development and coalition building, TransForm has helped shape and pass funding measures that have allocated literally billions of dollars in support of public transportation, smart growth, affordable housing and bicycle/pedestrian safety. These included transportation measures in Alameda, Contra Costa and Santa Clara Counties, as well as a leading role in developing and helping to pass Regional Measure 2, a one-dollar bridge toll increase to fund public transit that was ultimately approved by voters in 2004.

To realize our vision, TransForm is focused on achieving world-class public transportation in the Bay Area and providing state-level leadership on transportation and land use. By achieving world-class transportation in the Bay Area, we can realize the following outcomes by 2035:

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