Suggested Citation:
Hosseinzade, Rey (2025)

Environmental Policies from Ambition to Action: A Multi-aspect Policy Evaluation of SB 743 and Its Impact on Land Development and Transportation Network

. Institute of Transportation Studies, University of California, Davis, Dissertation UCD-ITS-RR-25-106

Abstract:

California’s Senate Bill 743 (SB 743) of 2013 was a landmark policy that replaced automobile Level of Service (LOS) with Vehicle Miles Traveled (VMT) as the metric for evaluating transportation impacts under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). While SB 743 aimed to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, promote infill development, and support sustainable land development patterns, the jurisdictions have the discretion to adopt a level of VMT as their thresholds of significance, raising important questions about variability in adoption, policy stringency, and environmental outcomes. I investigate the implementation of this policy from various perspectives in this dissertation. I use a mixed-methods design for my dissertation. I distributed a statewide survey of local officials and analyzed the responses to assess the institutional, political, and technical determinants of VMT threshold adoption. Logistic and linear regression models reveal that ideological alignment, staff advocacy, and agency core values significantly influence both the decision to adopt VMT thresholds and the degree of stringency of adopted thresholds. I also use the city of San Jose as a case study to evaluate how a large, transit-oriented jurisdiction operationalizes SB 743 through integrated land use planning and transportation policies. I first examine the discretionary adoption and stringency of VMT thresholds among California substate jurisdictions under SB 743. Based on survey data from 133 cities and counties and logistic regression analyses, the results demonstrate that local political ideology, planning staff advocacy, and institutional alignment with environmental goals are statistically significant predictors of threshold adoption. Jurisdictions with larger populations, greater technical capacity, and supportive learning cultures are more likely to adopt VMT thresholds. The presence of environmental advocates among planning staff increases the odds of adoption by over 30 times, underscoring the influence of internal leadership on environmental policy implementation.It is important to distinguish between jurisdictions adopting a status quo threshold and those committing to percentage-based VMT reductions below baseline levels. Findings show that jurisdictions with higher socioeconomic capacity, lower existing VMT levels, and more proactive environmental orientations are more likely to adopt more stringent VMT thresholds. These findings emphasize the need for integrated regional coordination and state-level mandates to enhance the consistency and effectiveness of SB 743’s environmental objectives.Analysis of residential projects permitted before and after SB 743 implementation in San Jose shows a shift toward low-VMT areas, providing evidence of this policy's regulatory influence on the geography of development. However, the findings also highlight the limitations of project-level mitigation, particularly in high-VMT, infrastructure-deficient areas. Interviews and policy documents confirm that VMT reduction is a challenge, necessitating systematic investments in multimodal transportation, regional mitigation frameworks, and interagency coordination at a large scale.My research contributes to the literature on environmental policy implementation, sustainable urban planning, and transportation-land use integration. It concludes that while SB 743 holds transformative potential, its outcomes are highly contingent on local institutional capacity, political will, and policy integration. To achieve California’s climate goals, VMT-based planning must be supported by state-led technical assistance, funding alignment, and broader systems-level reforms beyond CEQA.