Pasadena got out in front of the state of California this week by replacing "level of service" with a more holistic, less car-centric, set of standards for review under the California Environmental Quality Act.
"On November 3, Pasadena’s City Council voted unanimously to ditch the car-centric measure of mobility called 'level of service,' or LOS," according to a post on the Boyonabike! blog.
The change at the local level occurs as the state is working to revise its Level of Service requirements as a part of the California Environmental Quality Act.
The Pasadena Department of Transportation staff report to the Pasadena City Council [pdf] explains the policy change, which would replace "two existing Transportation Performance Measures with five new Transportation Performance Measures and Set Thresholds of Significance for CEQA for the new measures." Those five new measures, as listed by the staff report: "Vehicle Miles Traveled Per Capita," "Proximity and Quality of the Transit," "Pedestrian Accessibility," Vehicle Trips Per Capita," and "Proximity and Quality of the Bicycle Network."
Boyonabike! also adds this commentary on how and why LOS was shown the door: "The policy change was developed and proposed by the staff at Pasadena DOT and is a critical element of Pasadena’s efforts to become a more environmentally-friendly city by encouraging multi-modal transportation, and denser, mixed-use development downtown."
FULL STORY: An End to LOS in Pasadena
Day One of the National Planning Conference—Reunions, Pandemic Planning, Equity, and VMT
The American Planning Association gathers for its first in-person National Planning Conference since 2019. Planetizen is in attendance, and here is some of what we saw on the first day of the conference.
The Final Days of 'Level of Service' in California's Environmental Review Process
A long-awaited draft update of the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) has finally been released, and Level of Service will finally be a thing of the past in the next two to four years.
California Environmental Law Continues to Frustrate Bike Planning (for Now)
Help is on the way. The law that requires the governor's planning office to devise an alternative method for measuring vehicle traffic for environmental compliance will also take up where an earlier law that exempted bike lanes from CEQA left off.
What ‘The Brutalist’ Teaches Us About Modern Cities
How architecture and urban landscapes reflect the trauma and dysfunction of the post-war experience.
‘Complete Streets’ Webpage Deleted in Federal Purge
Basic resources and information on building bike lanes and sidewalks, formerly housed on the government’s Complete Streets website, are now gone.
The VW Bus is Back — Now as an Electric Minivan
Volkswagen’s ID. Buzz reimagines its iconic Bus as a fully electric minivan, blending retro design with modern technology, a 231-mile range, and practical versatility to offer a stylish yet functional EV for the future.
Healing Through Parks: Altadena’s Path to Recovery After the Eaton Fire
In the wake of the Eaton Fire, Altadena is uniting to restore Loma Alta Park, creating a renewed space for recreation, community gathering, and resilience.
San Diego to Rescind Multi-Unit ADU Rule
The city wants to close a loophole that allowed developers to build apartment buildings on single-family lots as ADUs.
Electric Vehicles for All? Study Finds Disparities in Access and Incentives
A new UCLA study finds that while California has made progress in electric vehicle adoption, disadvantaged communities remain underserved in EV incentives, ownership, and charging access, requiring targeted policy changes to advance equity.
Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
Planning for Universal Design
Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.
City of Albany
UCLA Lewis Center for Regional Policy Studies
Mpact (formerly Rail~Volution)
Chaddick Institute at DePaul University
City of Piedmont, CA
Great Falls Development Authority, Inc.
HUDs Office of Policy Development and Research