Draft Blueprint aims to transform Bay Area into sustainable, affordable community with 840,000 new affordable homes by 2050

Bay Area, California – Under the lofty Plan Bay Area 2050+, the Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC) and the Association of Bay Area Governments (ABAG) have produced a forward-looking Draft Blueprint. By 2050, the nine-county area should become a lively, connected, affordable community.
Acting as a first framework, the Draft Blueprint prepares the ground for a thorough plan emphasizing post-pandemic economic recovery, environmental sustainability, and housing affordability. Among its bold ideas is the creation of 840,000 affordable homes, therefore producing over one million permanently cheap homes all around the region by 2050.
With a projected residences which would raise the total number of permanently affordable homes in the region to around one million by 2050, this project is expected to significantly improve the accessibility of lower-income households to transit services. The proposal also contains an innovative economic plan with a guaranteed monthly income meant to support family stability and economic mobility in every Bay Area home.
Analyzed using sophisticated computer models, the Blueprint assesses how likely its policies will be to meet important future targets. These include lowering reliance on single-occupancy vehicles, improving proximity to transit services, and lowering of greenhouse gas emissions. Acknowledging the plan’s commitment to sustainable urban development, significant progress includes a predicted 17 percent rise in lower-income households living within a half-mile of transit services.
With a major focus toward zero-emission transport vehicles, funding allocations stated in the Blueprint highlight maintaining and enhancing current infrastructure with respect to $382 billion of the budget. With $250 billion set aside for maintaining existing affordable housing and an extra $302 billion for building new affordable homes to meet the requirements of low-income and homeless populations, housing strategies also are robust.

Not behind are environmental and economic policies. The proposal distributes $205 billion to carry out a statewide guaranteed income program, therefore improving family financial stability. Additionally allocated $94 billion is adaptation to the difficulties presented by sea level rise, thereby safeguarding ecosystems and communities.
First discussed at the May meeting of MTC’s Policy Advisory Council, this Draft Blueprint was later reviewed at the June 14 joint meeting of the MTC Planning Committee and the ABAG Administrative Committee. Still, it points up some issues that the Final Blueprint must address, particularly with regard to lowering emissions and giving transportation top priority.
Looking forward, MTC is working with local transport agencies on transport 2050+, a parallel project to rethink public transit’s Bay Area future. Key updates on this will be published in July including the Draft Project Performance Assessment and the Transit 2050+ Draft Network, which are likely to suggest a restructured approach to transit that fits with lowered post-pandemic ridership and financial estimates.
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Focusing on obtaining feedback on the Draft Blueprint and the Transit 2050+ Draft Network, a second round of public engagement will take place in August. With multiple opportunities for community involvement scheduled both in-person and online, these meetings will be crucial in forming the Final Blueprint. Late 2024 will see the Commission and the ABAG Executive Board review the Final Blueprint, a major step toward attaining a sustainable and thriving Bay Area by 2050.