If you are involved in planning, development and transportation issues in the Bay Area, you won't want to miss Bay Area 2010: The Future Begins Today, the Association of Bay Area Governments' Spring General Assembly and Regional Summit on Thursday, April 22, at the Oakland Marriott City Center, from 8:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. MTC is co-sponsoring this important event, which will bring together local elected officials, city and county planning and public works staff, developers, congestion management agency policymakers and staff, and the like to learn what Senate Bill 375 really requires of local government as we begin the process for developing the region's new state-required Sustainable Communities Strategy.

The line-up of Summit participants includes keynote speaker Michael Woo, dean of the College of Environmental Design at Cal Poly-Pomona, and various local officials (including MTC Chair Scott Haggerty, Vice Chair Adrienne Tissier and MTC Commissioners Steve Kinsey, Dave Cortese, Jim Spering, Ken Yeager, Tom Bates and Jake Mackenzie). Using electronic voting devices and roving microphones, attendees can provide input on key questions concerning SB 375 implementation, strategies for sustainability and options for reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

The ABAG member rate of $85 is available to all local government officials, including representatives from transit agencies and congestion management agencies, who register online at http://www.abag.ca.gov/events/ga.

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Can we achieve a sustainable future for public transit in the San Francisco Bay Area? That is the question posed by MTC's just-released 2009 Annual Report, titled "Transit in Transition." For the region's public transit operators, 2009 was a year of recession-ravaged finances, falling ridership and service cutbacks. Yet, the report makes it clear that transit's troubles run deeper than a single year's setbacks, and outlines a major new initiative launched by MTC to respond to this critical situation. The aptly named Transit Sustainability Project will undertake to design, fund and implement a flexible and affordable bus, rail and ferry system that more people will use for more trips.

The Annual Report can be viewed online, or printed copies may be ordered from the MTC Library: 510.817.5836, or library@mtc.ca.gov (while supplies last).

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If you care about open space and the future of the East Bay, you'll want to submit your ideas for Gateway Park, a new regional recreation area planned for the Oakland touchdown of the new East Span of the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge. The online Gateway Park objectives survey is still open through April 19, 2010.

Take the Gateway Park Survey

Gateway Park will be a place of history, inspiration and recreation, and will offer a departure point for pedestrians and bicyclists traveling to Yerba Buena Island and Treasure Island across the new East Span pathway. It will provide vantage points for viewing the iconic new East Span and the Port of Oakland. The proposed park is envisioned to draw visitors from the Bay Area and around the world. MTC's Bay Area Toll Authority is one of nine agencies making up the Gateway Park Working Group, which is directing this planning effort.

Join the excitement of Gateway Park! Complete the survey and share what makes a park special to you. And mark your calendar for our next public outreach meeting, set for the evening of Wednesday, June 2, 2010, in Oakland.

At the end of the survey, there will be a link to sign up for e-mail and printed updates.

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Do you know a transportation worker who has gone out of his or her way to brighten your daily commute? Or an organization that has done an extraordinary job of improving a neighborhood or stretch of road? Are you aware of an innovative project to encourage climate-friendly behaviors?

These are the types of people, organizations and programs recognized by MTC's biennial Excellence in Motion Transportation Awards Program.

Nominees must have been active or under way during the two-year timeframe from June 2008 to April 2010, and may be honored under certain award categories as determined by a panel of jurors. Submit your nomination online for the 2010 awards by April 30, or call 510-817-5757 to request a nomination form.

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MTC's 511 Traveler Information System is researching ways to make ridesharing more convenient and attractive to commuters. One idea on the table is real-time ride-matching, in which travelers could form carpools on the spot, with the help of a Web application. It's like casual carpooling gone virtual.

Participate in our online survey on this topic by May 15, 2010, and you can enter a drawing for a $100 gift card.  For questions about the project, please contact Susan Heinrich (511 Rideshare Program coordinator) at sheinr@mtc.ca.gov.

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Join thousands around the region who will pedal their way to work, school or errands on Thursday, May 13, 2010, or pick a day in May that works for you. Pledge to bicycle at least once in May, and you'll be eligible for prizes. Better yet, form a team with friends or coworkers, and bike all month long as part of Team Bike Challenge.

Presented by MTC, 511 and Kaiser Permanente with other sponsors. For more information and to register, go to YouCanBikeThere.com.

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