SB 743 and VMT Tools

Alameda CTC has developed various resources to support member agencies as they implement Senate Bill 743 requirements. Click on the drop-down bars below to learn more about SB 743 and access the vehicle miles traveled (VMT) Tools for Alameda County.

Senate Bill 743 (SB 743, Steinberg, 2013) was signed into law in September 2013 with the intent to better align congestion management with state goals for implementation of infill developments, reduction of green-house gas emissions, and improvement of public health through implementation of active transportation projects. This law changed the way that the effects of land use projects on the transportation network are analyzed within the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). SB 743 states that traffic congestion shall not be considered to have a significant impact on the environment under CEQA.

SB 743 required the Governor’s Office of Planning and Research (OPR) to identify new metrics to evaluate, analyze, and mitigate transportation impacts under CEQA. OPR identified Vehicle Miles Traveled (VMT) per capita or VMT per employee as the new metrics for analyzing the effects of land use projects on the transportation network. For transportation projects, the lead agency shall have discretion to choose the metric to use that is consistent with CEQA and other planning requirements. In December 2018, the CEQA guidelines were updated to reflect these regulatory changes. OPR released Technical Advisory, December 2018, guidance that includes recommendations on how to assess VMT, thresholds of significance, and mitigation measures. Statewide implementation of the SB 743 requirements went into effect on July 1st, 2020.

Alameda CTC led and facilitated a Regional Working Group that informed these efforts for the Bay Area, and independently provided comments to OPR on draft and final guidelines.

Alameda CTC developed the Vehicle Miles Traveled Reduction Calculator Tool (VMT Calculator Tool) to assist member agencies in their efforts to comply with the requirements of SB 743. The VMT Calculator Tool can be used to evaluate the transportation effects of land use projects in Alameda County under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA).

The VMT Calculator Tool (available for download here) was updated in September 2025 to incorporate data from the Alameda-Contra Costa (AlaCC) Travel Model. The tool itself is an Excel workbook that was modeled after the San Diego Association of Governments (SANDAG) VMT Reduction Calculator Tool and refined to reflect Alameda County conditions and add six additional VMT-reducing strategies.

More information on the VMT Calculator Tool’s design is available here:

Disclaimer: The VMT Reduction Calculator Tool and accompanying documentation are provided as a resource for member agencies for evaluating and quantifying the effects of the implementation of certain mobility management strategies as part of the development review and transportation analysis process under CEQA. Use of the tool is at the user’s discretion. Alameda CTC does not require member agencies to use the Alameda County Tool to analyze the effects of their proposed land use projects on the transportation network. Therefore, any action the user takes upon the information is strictly at the user’s risk and neither Alameda CTC, nor its employees, contractors and consultants will be liable for any loses or damages resulting from the use of these data and this tool.

Staff contact:
Shannon McCarthy
smccarthy@alamedactc.org

Alameda CTC developed the VMT Mapping Tool, an interactive webmap that displays estimates of VMT per Capita and per Employee at the Traffic Analysis Zone (TAZ) level, city level, and planning area level in Alameda County. These estimates are derived from the AlaCC Travel Model, which was developed to be consistent with Plan Bay Area 2050. AlaCC TAZ boundaries are included and available for download in the VMT Mapping Tool.

VMT Mapping Tool