Caltrans District 10 Active Transportation Plan

Story Map

Welcome

Welcome to the Caltrans District 10 Active Transportation Plan! This Story Map provides an interactive way to view existing conditions and needs for people walking and biking in District 10, which covers the northern San Joaquin Valley. This region encompasses 29 cities in eight counties: three urban counties on the valley floor and five rural counties in the foothills of the central Sierra mountain range. The Active Transportation Plan's main output is a prioritized list of location-based needs, which are mapped on this site. We encourage you to use this map to view conditions and needs in your community. 

The Caltrans statewide plan,  Toward an Active California , envisions that by 2040 people in California of all ages, abilities, and incomes can safely, conveniently, and comfortably walk and bicycle for their transportation needs. This Plan aligns with that vision by identifying needs along and across to the State Highway System (SHS). It is guided by the four goals in  Toward an Active California: 

  • Mobility: Reduce dependency on single-occupancy vehicles through mode shift to bicycling, walking, and transit.
  • Safety: Facilitate safe travel for all users (modes) and abilities, as expressed through Toward Zero Deaths (Caltrans) and Vision Zero (local agency) initiatives.
  • Equity: Promote active transportation solutions that serve the communities within the district by improving accessibility and healthy transportation options for disadvantaged communities.
  • Preservation: Ensure District active transportation strategies and actions adequately discuss the long-term maintenance needs and resources required to maintain a state of good repair for the SHS.

This Story Map is a companion to the Active Transportation Plan Summary Report, a more detailed written document that is available on the District 10 page of the   Caltrans Active Transportation Plans website  . The Summary Report includes background about this project, its process, and next steps for meeting the needs of people walking and biking in District 10.

This Plan uses the terms pedestrian and walking broadly to include people of all ages and abilities, including those walking and those using assisted mobility devices like wheelchairs. It uses the term bicycling to refer traditional bicycles and a wide variety of other human-powered bicycles that use typical bicycle facilities, including those adapted for use by people with disabilities.

The StoryMap sections below provided a guided narrative of key active transportation topics in District 10, sometimes using examples of locations throughout the district. The interactive "Explore the data" feature provides all available data about any location in District 10. This site is best viewed on a desktop in  Chrome  or  Firefox .

Existing conditions

The following maps detail general conditions of the State Highway System, the network of roadways across the district operated by Caltrans. Results of the full detailed analysis of state highways in the District are captured in the Existing Conditions Report, an interim document that complements this Active Transportation Plan, and which is available on the District 10 page of the  Caltrans Active Transportation Plans website  . This section summarizes the key highlights from that report.

See  this Explore map  for additional existing conditions measures.

Surrounding land use context

The SHS in District 10 includes 1,322 miles of roadway. These roadways serve as community main streets, connect rural communities, and provide access through sometimes rugged terrain. The active transportation needs identified in this plan reflect the diverse land use contexts in District 10, emphasizing locations where the frequency and quality of highway crossing opportunities are low for urban areas, and where walking and biking along roadways is impeded in rural ones.

Walking and bicycling along the State Highway System

Many SHS roadways were built specifically to serve motor vehicle trips. As a result, nearly 20% of SHS roadway miles in District 10 prohibit walking and 14% prohibit biking. Approximately half of all of segments on the District 10 SHS that prohibit biking and walking are on rural roads. People can, however, walk and bicycle on all Main Street SHS segments in the district. This leaves many opportunities available to adapt roadways to be safer and more inviting to people walking and bicycling, especially in places where active transportation demand is relatively high.

Walking and biking across the SHS

This map shows intersection density along the SHS. Generally, where there are more intersections there are more crossings per mile. In urban and Main Street contexts where under or over passes are often provided, there are generally more crossing opportunities. Not surprisingly, crossings are least frequent in rural areas. The quality of crossings is also very important; the presence of signals and marked crosswalks (along with other enhancements) and dedicated bicycle facilities on overpasses and underpasses can make crossing opportunities safer and more comfortable for all users of the roadway. This map is “zoomed in” to show in more detail areas with greater intersection density such as Modesto and Merced.

Existing bicycle facilities

Caltrans organizes bike facilities into four classifications:

  • Class I shared use paths are physically separated from the vehicular roadway.
  • Class II bike lanes provide a dedicated space adjacent to vehicle travel lanes either with or without a painted buffer.
  • Class III bike routes share roadway lane or shoulder space with vehicles.
  • Class IV separated bike lanes include hardened infrastructure such as a raised curb or vertical posts.

The District 10 SHS has nearly 9 miles of dedicated bike facilities, mostly along Main Streets, providing access to destinations many people visit every day. People frequently also bike along roadway shoulders in the absence of dedicated bike facilities. This plan prioritizes closing gaps in bike networks, including routes that are uncomfortable for people of all ages and abilities. This map shows examples of bike facilities along Highway 219 in Salida.

Pedestrian trip potential

Pedestrian trip potential is determined by the number of short vehicle trips one mile or less (the distance most people can walk in 20 minutes in an area). Many places with a high density of short trips are along Main Streets in or near population centers like Stockton, Modesto, and Merced. Potential to convert short driving trips to walking trips exists in small communities and rural areas as well, such as Lodi along Highway 12, and in Los Banos near Highways 152 and 165. Improving pedestrian infrastructure in these areas can encourage more walking trips.

Identifying needs

This plan identifies location-based needs, or specific locations along the SHS where infrastructure investments would most benefit people walking and biking and best achieve the goals of Toward an Active California. This section of the Story Map describes how and where those needs were identified in District 10 and how they were sorted into prioritization tiers.

Location-based needs

Caltrans evaluated data about the highway system from its own inventories, from local and regional plans, and from extensive public input to determine where gaps and barriers in walking and biking infrastructure are present. Locations were identified as having needs if they met one or more of the following criteria:

  • Main street sidewalk gaps
  • Sidewalks in fair or poor condition
  • Sidewalks along high-speed highways
  • Stressful pedestrian or bicycle crossings (accounting for absence of median islands and marked crossings, posted speed limits, and other factors)
  • Infrequent opportunities to cross under or over freeways
  • Freeway crossings requiring upgrades of various kinds to be more comfortable for people walking or biking.

This map displays location-based needs in District 10 for people walking or biking along the highway (shown as lines) or across the highway (shown as dots). Freeway crossing needs are also shown as dots.

Public Input

Many of the location-based needs were identified in local and regional plans, or are at locations that were the subject of public and agency comment. The map shown here illustrates locations with location-based needs where partner agencies or the public also identified active transportation needs.

Prioritization

Locations with needs on the State Highway System were evaluated and prioritized according to how they align with the goals of Toward an Active California. This helps assess which needs might be best suited to move into project development over time. This involved three steps:

Step 1: The SHS was split into segments of highway that approximate the scale of segments Caltrans might use to develop its improvement projects.

Step 2: Each segment was assigned a score based on its context (e.g., urban, Main Street, rural). Measures were grouped according to the goals of Toward an Active California and weighted to reflect local active transportation vision and input. Freeway crossings, which aren't included in those segments, are also scored.

Step 3: Scored segments (and freeway crossings) were ranked and sorted into tiers; Tier 1 represents the highest intensity of need.

This map shows highway segments and freeway crossings by prioritization tier, giving a relative sense of needs across the district. Active transportation needs at any given location should always be considered for incorporation into nearby projects regardless of their tier. Caltrans has access to additional details about needs at specific locations, which can be used to support project development. Click on any need to see whether that location was also identified separately by partner agencies or the public as one with active transportation needs.

Explore the data

Use the application below to explore existing conditions and needs data in greater detail. For a more detailed explanation about each layer, please refer to the Walking and Biking in District 10 Today and Needs for People Walking and Biking on Caltrans highways sections above and in the Summary Report, which is located on the District 10 page of the   Caltrans Active Transportation Plans website . 

Next steps

This Active Transportation Plan serves as the first step in implementing the policies set forth in Toward an Active California. This Plan identifies locations with needs for people walking and biking on or across the SHS. Caltrans staff, who have access to more detailed data about the needs in this plan, will identify and initiate projects that address the needs included in this plan. They will continue to fund those projects so that they can be implemented by, or in partnership with, local agencies.

Coordination with those agency partners is essential to ensure projects successfully meet active transportation needs on Caltrans roadways. Local partners and the public can contact their District 10 Associate Transportation Planner for more information about local projects in their communities, to provide input, and to coordinate on project development and implementation. Your District 10 contacts are:

Charles Carroll //  charles.carroll@dot.ca.gov 

Data Sources

Bicycle Facilities: Caltrans Active Transportation Asset Inventory Pilot, District 10 Facility Inventory, California Coastal Conservancy, OpenStreetMap

Pedestrian prohibitions: Caltrans Transportation System Network, Open Street Map

Road network: Caltrans Transportation System Network and OpenStreetMap

Surrounding land use context: Caltrans Transportation System Network, SB127 Main Streets Layer, and District 10 staff