On Board With...

On Board With…California Transportation Commission Chair Hilary Norton

Hilary Norton was appointed to the California Transportation Commission (CTC) by Governor Gavin Newsom in September 2019 and elected as Chair in August 2020 and January 2021. Her goals as CTC Chair are investing SB1 gas tax funds into California’s transportation infrastructure system in order to improve outcomes in equity, mobility across numerous modes, safety, environment/climate change resilience, and economic growth. Norton has over 30 years of experience in transportation and community development, and work for elected officials and non-profits. She is the founding Executive Director of Fixing Angelenos Stuck in Traffic (FAST) since 2008, where she mobilized a diverse coalition of business, labor, civic groups, educational institutions, and transit organizations to support policy and infrastructure improvements to LA’s mobility, livability and economic prosperity.  

Norton is also Executive Director of FASTLinkDTLA – the Transportation Management Organization (TMO) for Downtown LA, which operated one of the first-ever in LA County micro-transit systems, connecting travelers through a unique multi-mobility app, and provided new on-demand wheelchair accessible vehicles (WAV), transit, vanpools, carpools, scooters, bike share, biking and walking. FASTLinkDTLA is dedicated to achieving a goal of reducing single-occupant vehicle trips in DTLA by 75 percent by 2030.   

She also served as 2018 Chair of the Los Angeles County Business Federation (BizFed) and is on the Board of Directors of the Central City Association. She Co-Chairs the Transportation Committees for BizFed, the LA Chamber of Commerce, the LA Business Council and is a SCAG GLUE Council member. She served as the Business Representative on LA Metro’s Policy Advisory Committee and was a member of the Advisory Boards for Metro’s Office of Extraordinary Innovation and NextGen Bus Study. 

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Transit California:
FAST focused on building support for solutions to LA traffic, including improved transit and better active transportation infrastructure, among community groups, business groups, and others concerned about traffic issues. Of what FAST accomplishments, while Executive Director, are you the most proud? 

Chair Norton:
As the founding Executive Director since 2008, I championed the implementation of some of the transit projects that were deemed revolutionary in California at the time, but are now highly successful best practices used to create a multi-modal mobility ecosystem and encourage more people to ride transit. More specifically, some of these projects included:

• Partnering with the cities of Los Angeles and Long Beach, FAST and other partners won a nearly $9M federal grant to implement mobility hubs – “one-stop” locations linking carshare, bikeshare, bike parking, EV charging, and traveler services at transit stations, and job and education centers. 
• FAST was instrumental in Metro ExpressLanes implementation throughout LA County. We worked with Metro to create the Metro ExpressLanes Business Roundtable to support the I-110/I-10 pilot corridors and expand these pilot corridors into a countywide network. I am particularly proud of the success of Metro’s Silver Line Bus ridership due to investments in new CNG buses and bus-only lane infrastructure made possible by investing ExpressLanes funds in bus infrastructure from the outset. The Silver Line will have all EV buses soon!

FAST was also instrumental in expanding LA County’s bus rapid transit (BRT) network:

• We advocated for the Wilshire BRT implementation, and are actively advocating for a new BRT from Pasadena to North Hollywood to go through Colorado Boulevard in Eagle Rock (my neighborhood’s main street) to link colleges and high schools, and job centers, with high-quality transit. 
• Reconstructing the Sixth Street Viaduct, Sixth Street Park, and Arts District Station – which is the largest bridge reconstruction project in LA’s history, adding bicycle and pedestrian lanes and one of the nation’s most ingenious bike ramps directly from the bridge, and connections to the LA River Bike Path and the planned 6th Street Station on the Metro Red/Purple Line.
• Advocating for comprehensive arterial improvements to improve travel time, encourage mode shift, and promote safety and transit connectivity. 
• FAST was part of Metro’s NextGen Bus Study to optimize bus travel throughout LA County – serving “lifeline to lifestyle” bus riders.
• FAST was also part of SCAG/City of LA TDM / Telecommuting Study.
• Before I became a CTC member, I served on Metro’s Office of Extraordinary Innovation Advisory Committee, where we worked on innovations such as micro-transit, carpooling incentives, and bus-only lane cameras on buses. 

At FASTLinkDTLA the Transportation Management Organization for Downtown Los Angeles, our goal is to reduce SOV driving by 75 percent in 2030. We seek to achieve this through an interconnected mobility eco-system, implementing new technology, EV / hydrogen mobility, an EV streetcar, an EV bus network, and multiple other transit systems and focused on the economy, equity, and environment.

Transit California:
Last month, the country witnessed the inauguration of President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris, as well as the rise of numerous Californians to the national stage. What policies, pulled from California or the local-level, would you encourage the Biden-Harris Administration to pursue nationally? 

Chair Norton:
First and foremost, it is important that the federal government fund transit in upcoming COVID recovery legislation so that transit agencies can continue to provide lifeline services for essential workers and transit-dependent riders. Now is also the time to re-examine transportation funding for the long term. Many options are out there: a road user charge or vehicle miles traveled fee; managed lanes and congestion fees; truck fees; the gas tax; and the general fund. The federal government could look to California’s experience in testing some of these new revenue options. In 2017, we conducted the nation’s largest road charge pilot to date, which included 5,000 participating vehicles traveling more than 37 million miles. We continue to work on exploring this revenue option, since we know we eventually will need to replace the gas tax as cars become more fuel-efficient and we shift to a zero-emission vehicle fleet. 

We also need the federal government to follow our lead in recognizing that long-term transportation infrastructure investments are going to benefit the economy, create jobs, and generate additional revenues for transportation, such as sales tax revenues, that in turn fund transit operations and other vital transportation services. We have seen this in California, the fifth largest economy in the world, thanks in large part to our long-term transportation infrastructure investments. Since SB 1 passed in 2017, the CTC has made construction allocations resulting in an estimated 350,000 jobs. Ensuring efficient goods movement through our transportation infrastructure will continue to help invigorate our economy.

Because we can only do so much as a state in terms of funding, we need the federal government to follow California’s lead in increasing funding for transportation programs. In 2020, the CTC allocated over $7 billion to projects, much of which was made possible from SB 1. We need to leverage these investments with increased, multi-year direct federal investment in transportation projects. We also need new federal funding specifically to address the impacts of climate change on our transportation infrastructure. We need to have more investment in data gathering to show the importance of CTC infrastructure investments in walking and biking projects through the Active Transportation Program, as these projects will deliver people more safely to transit stations and therefore increase transit ridership.   

California leads as an example for the nation in other ways too. We are redoubling our efforts to incorporate equity into our transportation programming decisions and urge the federal government to do the same. We are leading the way on technology and intelligent transportation systems and we urge Congress to support emerging transformative technologies - including connected and autonomous vehicles; app-enabled crowd-sourced data gathering; and integrated, automated multi-modal ticketing that will ease accessibility to all modes of transportation - and take measures to prepare our infrastructure for these technologies. We also are leading on clean vehicle transportation infrastructure but need more help and support from the federal government in installing charging infrastructure on our roads.

Transit California:
In September 2019, Governor Newsom issued Executive Order N-19-19, which requires every aspect of the state government to redouble its efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and mitigate the impacts of climate change, while building a sustainable, inclusive economy. In your opinion, what is the CTC’s role in this executive order, and what modifications to state programs are needed to align with N-19-19 priorities? 

Chair Norton:
I was appointed to the CTC by Governor Newsom on the same day that he issued Executive Order N-19-19, and I am excited for CTC to build upon the strong foundation it already has for factoring GHG emissions into its planning and programming policies and decisions. We’ve been doing this for many years, having partnered with the California Air Resources Board to provide technical assistance in our application reviews. It also shows up in our program investments. We recently made $2 billion in investments through our SB 1 competitive programs, which included many transit projects that will take cars off the road, such as improvements to BART services and new bus only lanes in LA. And, right now, we are gearing up to award about $450 million in walking and bicycling projects through the Active Transportation Program, which will make driving less necessary in communities located throughout California and help with first- and last-mile connections to transit. 

Executive Order N-19-19 offers an additional opportunity to bolster these efforts. To implement this important order, CTC has been providing input towards CalSTA’s effort to develop an action plan – the Climate Action Plan for Transportation Infrastructure (CAPTI). CalSTA expects to finish the CAPTI in the near future, which will include specific actions for state agencies. For CTC, it’s important to remember that we develop our planning and programming policies through a public workshop process, with extensive stakeholder input. We, therefore, plan to take the strategies identified in CAPTI and incorporate them through our future workshop discussions.

Transit California:
Congress is expected to pass a new surface transportation reauthorization bill later this year, creating the statutory framework and setting the funding levels for key transportation programs for at least the next five fiscal years. In an ideal world, how would this bill support the state’s goal of reducing transportation sector emissions?

Chair Norton:
California has been a national leader in efforts to address climate change. Federal policy should further reward states like California that have been leaders in making multi-modal investments to improve air quality and advance sustainability strategies. 

As we continue to “Grow the Grid” to make our ZEV networks more connected and resilient, there needs to be efforts towards augmenting EV conveyance, hydrogen fueling, broadband, and resurfacing that will last generations. 

We also need to see increased federal funding for ZEV transit, which CTC could leverage with infrastructure investments under SB1. Congress could do this by authorizing an incentive grant program that rewards state and local governments that have adopted or are willing to adopt best practices to reduce GHG emissions. They could also increase funding for existing programs that address emissions, such as the Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality Improvement program. Congress also should provide assistance for data collection, and determining and quantifying GHG emission and vehicle miles traveled (VMT) reductions, and other important data to track progress and encourage “best practices” strategies to address climate change.

Transit California:
CTC oversees various state transportation funding programs in California and issues recommendations on transportation policy to the State Legislature, including through the commission’s annual report. How is the CTC prioritizing and encouraging more equitable and inclusive transportation investments, given the increasingly evident disparities in transportation access, the unequal environmental impact of past transportation investments and heightened calls for environmental justice?

Chair Norton:
Equity has long been a key consideration in the Commission’s planning and programming guidelines. It is the Commission’s priority to ensure that no one is left behind and that all projects are equitable to all Californians. I’m very proud of our recently adopted racial equity statement at our last Commission meeting in January. In this statement, the Commission recognizes that throughout California’s history, improvements to the State’s transportation system have disproportionately benefitted some population groups and burdened others. The Commission condemns all forms of racism and is actively working to promote equitable outcomes through our programs, policies, and practices. 

Also, in this past year, we initiated new efforts to double our efforts on equity that we will continue to work on in 2021. This includes the creation of a new Equity Advisory Roundtable, with members representing a wide range of groups and areas of expertise, to provide input on Commission activities related to equity. In addition, we will be holding Community Listening Sessions, in partnership with Caltrans and the California State Transportation Agency, to hear from community members around the state about how we can bolster our equity and public engagement efforts. We will then use what we learn from these sessions to improve our transportation investment decisions. Also, in the coming year, we plan to develop a Public Engagement Guidebook to demystify the transportation process and increase public access to transportation planning, decision-making, and information.

We also need to be looking at equity and poverty. About one in every five Californians live in poverty, and Californians make up 12 percent of the country’s total population. Transportation investments play a big role in increasing access to jobs and affordable housing. We also need to stay focused on the equity issues experienced by our rural communities. We are looking forward to CTC’s equity listening sessions helping to identify where people are still disconnected and make sure no one is left behind. 

Transit California:
A few years ago, legislation (AB 179, AB 185) required CTC, California Air Resources Board (CARB) and the California Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD) to participate in joint meetings to discuss interagency efforts affecting transportation, air quality, and housing. Why are these joint meetings important? 

Chair Norton:
The CTC considers the joint meetings extremely important for coordinating efforts across agencies to meet state goals, and we were pleased when HCD joined for its first official meeting in July 2020. At our two 2020 meetings, we discussed the critical issue of how the COVID-19 pandemic and associated economic crisis has transformed California and has affected how people travel, transportation funding revenues, access to housing, air quality, and greenhouse gas emissions. We also worked on how to align and integrate state programs and policies to achieve transportation, housing, air quality, and climate goals.

We’ve really enjoyed these meetings and they are having a tremendous impact on our work. Linking housing, jobs, the economy, and environment together are critically important, so we need to be checking in with each other. We need to meet to make sure we can move housing closer to transit and transit closer to where people live and work and understand the importance of transportation investments to the state’s environmental health and economic recovery. While telecommuting also may play some role, we aren’t going to solve the problem by staying home. Even under the statewide pandemic stay-at-home orders, Caltrans found that only 34 percent of people telecommuted.  

Transit California:
What progress has occurred as a result of the joint CTC/CARB/HCD meetings? 

Chair Norton:
As a result of the joint meetings, our three agencies have increased our regular coordination, which has led to improved outcomes in our collective work. It has significantly impacted and improved Regional Transportation Plan and Sustainable Communities Strategies.

For example, at the Commission, we have incorporated new considerations related to housing, land use, air quality, and climate into our transportation program funding guidelines. CARB and HCD staff lent their technical assistance in the most recent guidelines update process and the evaluation of projects for our competitive transportation funding programs.

Moving forward, our goal is that these joint meetings will provide a venue for our agencies to respond to direction from Commissioners, Board Members, agency leadership, our partners, and the public at large, as well as report publicly on coordination efforts taken in between meetings.

Transit California:
We at the California Transit Association see active transportation as important green modes that are highly complementary to public transit. What is CTC’s perspective on investing in active transportation and what role does it play to help the state’s goals to reduce emissions and congestion?

Chair Norton:
CTC believes active transportation is critically important for mobility, safety, and climate goals in California and we have been investing in active transportation projects in many of our programs.

We included a $100 million reservation dedicated to complete street projects in the State Highway Operation and Protection Program. This will build or rehabilitate facilities for bicyclists, pedestrians, and other non-motorized street users on portions of the state highway system running through local communities. We also funded many active transportation projects and components in our SB 1 competitive programs this past year. For example, in our Solutions for Congested Corridors Program, we funded new bicycle lanes to take cars off our congested roads. 

Currently, we are gearing up for a fifth cycle of investments in our Active Transportation Program (ATP). We plan to adopt about $450 million in new projects in the spring. This program however is severely under-funded. We received application requests totaling $2.3 billion – nearly five times the amount of funds available. The program is very competitive and there are so many outstanding projects that we just don’t have the resources to fund.

CTC would like to see funding for this program augmented and specifically has been asking the Legislature to consider providing us with cap-and-trade funds. We’ve received cap-and-trade funds in the past for the ATP and they are a good fit for this program since we’re funding a lot of zero-emission community-wide projects that are instrumental at getting people out of their cars to travel, linking zero emission active transit with transit trips, and reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

Transit California:
You are known for your ability to be a consensus-builder, working across diverse groups. As Chair of CTC, what is your priority for the Commission and how has your background prepared you to lead at this particular time? 

Chair Norton:
My priority for the Commission is to work with the Legislature and the private and non-profit sectors and Agencies alike to deliver the highest quality transportation, housing, environmental, equity, and economic outcomes as we can. My diverse background in working with non-profits, chairing business organizations or their transportation committees, and working with public officials, has given me the experience and ability to work across these different communities. I’m delighted to work among many forward-thinking leaders to continue to consensus build and come to shared visions for the future, as we are envisioning sweeping new opportunities in transportation infrastructure.

In addition, I’d like us to implement more data-informed strategies. My goal is to implement the best practices and infrastructure that will last. We need to be accountable and deliver the promises we made to voters.

Transit California:
What other policy goals are important to the CTC that our members should know about that we have not already covered?

Chair Norton:
 In addition to our climate, transit, active transportation, and equity goals, we are also focused on: 

• Looking at how we finance transportation long term;
• Supporting efficient housing and transportation connections, encouraging affordable housing, and reducing the need for super-commuting;
• Improving the efficient movement of freight and helping to stimulate the economy;
• Making our transportation infrastructure resilient to the effects of climate change;
• Identify the role of technology and telecommuting in the life cycle of transportation infrastructure;
• Improving road and highway pavement conditions, which is a central goal of the Road Repair and Accountability Act (SB 1, Beall); and
• Improving the efficiency of project delivery and ensuring accountability over taxpayer expenditures.

Transit California:
Transit California readers can learn more about Chair Hilary Norton by following her on social media: @Hilary_FASTLink