More Local Jobs Good for the Environment? YES!

The following article was published in the San Mateo County Daily Times about Pacifica's Climate Action Plan:

http://www.insidebayarea.com/search/ci_13440820

An interesting excerpt reads:

"Other problems may prove more intractable, such as commute-based pollution. The city operations inventory found that 88 percent of city of Pacifica employees drive to work alone in their cars, even though the vast majority live within eight miles of work. The report suggests carpool incentives or another form of subsidized transportation.

Well car pooling is one solution, public transportation is another, but why so many commuters?  Here's your answer:


http://www.city-data.com/city/Pacifica-California.html

Daytime population change due to commuting: -15,740 (-41.0%)
Workers who live and work in this city: 2,747 (13.2%)

WOW!  15,740 people drive over the hill for jobs, and less than 2,800 work in Pacifica.  Seems a no brainer that perhaps creating more jobs in Pacifica might be an answer to significantly reducing our carbon emissions.  In fact, the effect of so many cars on Highway 1 (including increasing traffic from Half Moon Bay once the tunnel is completed) is exacerbated by the 4 traffic lights which cause the stop and go traffic, increasing pollution even more.

Yet, despite being given over $10 million in Measure A funds, Pacifica managed to have the worst reduction in road quality of SEVEN COUNTIES from 2004 to 2007, according to the Metropolitan Transportation Commission's 2007 "Pavement Condition Index" Report:

http://www.mtc.ca.gov/news/press_releases/pavement/PCI_2007.pdf

Pacifica went from a score of 70 (the bottom limit of GOOD) to a score of 60 (1 point above "At-Risk").

First of all . . . what did we do with all that Measure A money?  The city sure as heck didn't invest it all on road maintenance.  Secondly, the addition of a few hundred, maybe even a few thousand local jobs, in a walkable community, would increase our availability for public transportation options, reduce overall congestion along Highway 1, significantly reduce our local impact on carbon emissions, and increase our commercial base.  More than 100 biodiesel plants could ever dream of doing.

I find it ironic that the people most opposed to development of the Quarry, most opposed to fixing Highway 1, most opposed to ANYTHING are the loudest voices screaming about the "environment."  And the person in charge of Pacifica's Climate Action Plan is none other than Carlos Davidson, panel member of the No on L campaign and proponent for removing Sharp Park Golf Course in favor of Brent Plater's vision of an empty frog and snake preserve.

Do snakes understand hypocrisy?

JEFFREY SIMONS