Project Summary
California is facing a severe housing crisis. To increase housing supply, the state has passed several laws linking upzoning and streamlined development to proximity to high-quality transit service.
This project investigates the connection between transit service and state housing and zoning laws. The research catalogs and explains different definitions of qualifying transit stops in state laws and map the areas that qualify under different interpretations. It also maps areas where transit service has been added or reduced, analyzing how these changes impact zoning and streamlining eligibility. The research assesses the land uses in these areas and their potential development capacity based on base zoning and state density bonus laws. Finally, the project examines how tying transit service to land use regulations has created a perverse incentive to cut transit service in order to avoid state housing mandates.
