TRN-6.10 - 2040 Portland Freight Plan

TRN-6.10 - 2040 Portland Freight Plan full text of policy

Purpose

WHEREAS, 2040 Portland Freight Plan ("2040Freight") is an update to and builds upon the City's first Freight Master Plan, adopted by City Council in 2006; and

WHEREAS, in Portland, freight moves by all modes of transportation including marine, air, rail, and heavy and medium-heavy trucks, as well as small trucks, vans, bicycles, and hand carts, which means that freight is not a mode itself: it is a system in which different modes work together; and

WHEREAS, the Portland Bureau of Transportation's 2019-2024 Strategic Plan directs staff to ask two key questions in thinking through each aspect of our work: Will it advance equity and address structural racism? And will it reduce carbon emissions?; and

WHEREAS, while the movement of commodities has been foundational to Portland's growth and development, at times it also has been at the significant expense of marginalized communities including the Original People of the land, immigrant laborers from China and other countries who helped build the transcontinental railroad, and Black Portlanders intentionally displaced from routing Interstate 5 through the Albina neighborhood; and

WHEREAS, the flow of goods and services is critical to everyday life for all Portlanders no matter who they are or where they live; and

WHEREAS, Portland City Council's June 2020 Climate Emergency Declaration (Resolution No. 37494) adopted a new target of achieving at least a 50% reduction in carbon emissions below 1990 levels by 2030 and net-zero carbon emissions before 2050; and

WHEREAS, across the U.S., diesel pollution related to freight traffic disproportionately impacts low-income and BIPOC communities and neighborhoods. This disparity is driven primarily by their proximity to major freight corridors and industrial land; and

WHEREAS, Portland has some of the highest rates of diesel emissions exposure in the country, with Multnomah County ranked fourth highest for diesel exhaust among all counties in the US. Portland-area residents are exposed to diesel emissions at a rate 10-times higher than the Oregon health-based particulate exposure standard, which means the future of Portland's urban freight system has a role to play in addressing equity, reducing carbon emissions, and improving air quality to help the City reach its goals and meet the climate emergency; and

WHEREAS, U.S. e-commerce grew three times faster than other retail over the last decade, resulting in changes to commercial fleets and last-mile operations (with more smaller vehicles used for the final delivery), increased demand for warehouse space, higher competition for the curb, more freight-related vehicle miles traveled, greater carbon emissions from freight vehicles, added congestion on local streets, and increased safety conflicts with vulnerable transportation users; and

WHEREAS, 2040Freight envisions Portland as a vibrant city and thriving economy that connects people, goods, and services within Portland, and to regional, national, and international markets. Our vision for a low-carbon future advances safe, equitable, and efficient urban freight movement for enhanced health, prosperity, and quality of life for all Portlanders; and

WHEREAS, to realize the 2040Freight vision, the plan establishes eight goals and prioritizes over 50 actions to advance those goals. These actions include developing, expanding, or exploring new programs, policies, and tools, like studying grade-separated rail crossings, updating freight district pavement standards, and piloting new curb configurations; and

WHEREAS, the City's July 2022 Climate Emergency Workplan (Resolution No. 37585) named adopting the 2040Freight Plan among its climate emergency priorities because the plan includes strategies and actions to equitably reduce emissions from freight and delivery (Priority T-8); and

WHEREAS, actions in 2040Freight support implementation of Portland's June 2023 Transportation Decarbonization Strategies (Resolution No. 37620, Action 2.A), which directs the Portland Bureau of Transportation, Bureau of Planning and Sustainability, and other City bureaus and Council offices to initiate pilot projects and research to identify policy, regulatory adjustments, investments and public-private partnerships to support goods movement by zero emissions vehicles, including e-bikes and e-cargo bikes, and promote micro-distribution centers to accelerate transportation decarbonization strategies, establish electric mobility as a near-term Citywide priority, and increase adoption of electric vehicles; and

WHEREAS, 2040Freight includes prioritization of 55 capital projects under City jurisdiction, which may be considered for updates to the Major Capital Projects list in a future Transportation System Plan update process; and

WHEREAS, given 2040Freight's 20-year timeline, the plan produced a data-driven project development tool to help meet the ongoing and dynamic needs of Portland's urban freight system over time; and

WHEREAS, 2040Freight recommends five changes to freight street and district classifications to better reflect current and desired freight use; and

WHEREAS, the plan introduces a conceptual transportation strategy for moving goods and services based on eight principles from prioritizing the right-size mode to integrating a resiliency lens into freight planning; and

WHEREAS, in accordance with the plan's goals, 2040Freight includes an analysis of Portland's industrial areas not served by transit to help guide future work to increase equitable access to these critical job markets and reduce vehicle trips and carbon emissions; and

WHEREAS, Portland's 2035 Comprehensive Plan identified a 320-acre shortfall of industrial land supply to meet forecasted employment growth. Given the City's urban growth boundary, meeting this shortfall of land is predicated on maximizing the utility of existing industrial lands and significant brownfield redevelopment; and

WHEREAS, while there are substantial challenges associated with brownfield redevelopment, one effective approach is to focus on enhancing public multimodal right-of-way infrastructure. This method not only facilitates industrial development, revitalization of previously underutilized areas, and the creation of well-paying jobs that come with such land use, but also enhances safety by reducing conflicts with vulnerable users for adjacent land uses, particularly residential areas; and

WHEREAS, 2040Freight identified 23 clusters of streets inside freight districts that could be candidates for the Local Improvement District program to help unlock underutilized industrial land within the city, preventing industry from developing farther away from the city in areas not well served by transit, resulting in longer commute times for Portland's underserved populations most served by these living wage jobs and greater carbon emissions; and

WHEREAS, 2040Freight is proudly the result of significant community and stakeholder engagement throughout the over three-year planning process including freight industry and business leaders, freight and delivery drivers and warehouse workers, communities impacted by freight, environmental advocates, industrial land developers and brokers, partner bureaus and agencies, and public advisory body members

Policy

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that the City of Portland adopts the 2040 Portland Freight Plan attached as Exhibit A; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, this resolution is non-binding city policy; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that the Council directs staff to engage in activities aimed at implementing the recommendations of 2040Freight; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that adopting the 2040 Freight Plan accomplishes Priority T-8 of the Climate Emergency Workplan (Resolution No. 37585).

Link to Exhibit A