For Immediate Release

Walnut Creek, CA – In an era when a changing climate may create adverse conditions that make safe evacuations necessary, the Contra Costa Transportation Authority (CCTA) successfully secured a $1.49 million California Department of Transportation (Caltrans), Division of Transportation Planning’s Sustainable Transportation Planning grant under the Climate Adaptation Planning Category to develop a new Countywide Emergency Evacuation Plan (Plan).

“CCTA’s application to develop an evacuation Plan for Contra Costa had strong support from jurisdictions throughout the County,” CCTA Chair Newell Arnerich said. “The Plan will help local agencies identify the most vulnerable communities; determine the amount of time needed to facilitate an evacuation and develop strategies to improve egress during emergencies, helping to promote sustainability for those most at-risk.”

CCTA will conduct local-level evacuation compliance assessments and a high-level evacuation route capacity, safety, and viability analysis for the county that includes the 19 cities/towns and unincorporated areas. Both evaluations are intended to comply with California SB 99 and Assembly Bill 747— state laws requiring evacuation planning in the case of wildfires and other hazards.

The Plan builds upon the development of the Contra Costa County multi-jurisdictional Local Hazard Mitigation Plan, which identified that typical climate and other hazard risks may result in multi-jurisdictional evacuations using routes that may span several cities. Many cities/towns, Contra Costa County, Contra Costa County Office of Emergency Services, East Bay Parks and Recreation District, four transit services and the Contra Costa County Fire Protection District signed letters of support for CCTA to take the evacuation planning lead.

“CCTA and our stakeholders are committed to addressing the climate-related natural
hazards that impact Contra Costa County, while developing a safety-focused and sustainable approach to emergency evacuation using our existing transportation infrastructure,” CCTA Executive Director Tim Haile said. “Developing an Evacuation Plan for Contra Costa’s diverse communities will provide the County with a set of tools to effectively manage emergency preparedness and plan for citizen evacuations in the case of wildfire, flooding or other hazardous scenarios. We are grateful for Caltrans’ support.”