The purpose of the Transportation Impact Study (TIS) Guidelines is to provide a comprehensive framework for assessing the potential transportation impacts of proposed development projects, General Plan Amendments, and zoning changes in San Bernardino County. This memorandum outlines the recommended format and methodology for preparing traffic studies, based on the County’s latest TIS Guidelines. These updates incorporate state-of-the-practice methodologies, address recent California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) legislation such as Senate Bill 743 (SB 743), and ensure consistency for future transportation studies within the County.
These guidelines serve as general recommendations for preparing a TIS Report. The Department of Public Works reserves the right to modify TIS requirements based on the unique characteristics of individual projects.
All TIS reports must be prepared by a registered Traffic Engineer (State of California) or a registered Civil Engineer with traffic experience. The TIS must include a Title Page that features, at a minimum, the project’s Tract or Parcel number, the applicant’s name and address, and the Engineer’s name, signature, address, phone number, and stamp. To avoid unnecessary delays or revisions and streamline the TIS preparation and review process, the County requires the applicant to submit and obtain approval of a scoping form from the Department of Public Works Traffic Division before preparing and submitting a draft TIS. A Word version of this document is attached to this memo.
CEQA Changes
Since the last update of the TIS Guidelines, SB 743 was signed into law. A key element of this legislation is the elimination or deemphasis of auto delay, level of service (LOS), and other similar measures of vehicular capacity or traffic congestion as the basis for determining significant impacts. This shift aims to balance the needs of congestion management with statewide goals related to infill development, promotion of public health through active transportation, and reduction of greenhouse gas emissions.
SB 743 includes amendments to current congestion management law that allow cities and counties to effectively opt out of LOS standards in areas where Congestion Management Plans (CMPs) are still used. Additionally, SB 743 requires the Governor’s Office of Planning and Research (OPR) to update the CEQA Guidelines and establish criteria for determining the significance of transportation impacts. In December 2018, OPR released its final recommended guidelines, based on feedback from the public, public agencies, and various organizations and individuals. OPR recommends Vehicle Miles Traveled (VMT) as the most appropriate measure of project transportation impacts. SB 743 does not prevent cities or counties from continuing to analyze delay or LOS as part of other plans (e.g., the General Plan), studies, congestion mitigation, or ongoing network monitoring; however, these metrics may no longer serve as the sole basis for CEQA impacts.
In recognition of SB 743 and OPR’s VMT recommendations, this memorandum includes VMT thresholds and mitigation measures to ensure consistency with CEQA Guidelines. It should be noted that these recommendations are provided in advance of the County’s General Plan Update, which will also include LOS standards, as automobile level of service remains important to the County’s unincorporated communities. Therefore, these TIS Guidelines also contain LOS analyses and threshold recommendations to maintain consistency with the General Plan.
Our Services are available throughout San Bernardino including cities Barstow, Big Bear Lake with Zipcodes 92311, 92312, 92315