New draft vision and mission aims to make transportation planning "a force for equity"; EAC seeks input on implementation and visuals

The Interagency Transportation Equity Advisory Committee presented a first consolidated draft of a vision, mission and set of foundational principles on May 14 and asked members and agency leaders to test the language against real-world implementation.

The draft frames transportation as a tool to reverse historic harms and to expand access, protection and opportunity for communities that have been disproportionately affected by past transportation decisions. Committee staff said the document will be refined this summer with member feedback and returned for final review in the fall.

Why it matters: The vision and mission will guide how the EAC advises the California Transportation Commission (CTC), Caltrans and the California State Transportation Agency (CalSTA). Members said concise language alone is not enough: the committee must attach measurable outcomes, visuals and public-facing materials so residents can see what the statements mean in practice.

What the draft says and how the committee reacted - Core idea: Committee drafts position transportation as an instrument of equity, environmental stewardship and mobility justice. Staff described the vision in plain terms: to create a California where transportation systems equitably reflect community diversity and foster mobility, sustainability and opportunity for future generations. - Definitions: Draft materials include new terms for committee use such as "right relation" (an Indigenous-informed practice of respectful reciprocity with land and communities) and "eco-justice" (the intersection of environmental protection and social equity) to ground the language. - Member priorities: EAC members asked staff to clarify accessibility and disability-related language, to add sharper references to economic opportunity, and to avoid language that reads as abstract or performative. "What feedback that we got from staff was that the vision and mission statement needed to be concise, but that's where we can expand on many of the things that you all brought forward in the foundation principles," said member Carrie Akemi Hernandez, who co-led the drafting effort with staff.

Members also urged the document to: include explicit reference to rural and geographic differences across California; spell out what success will look like and include measurable goals; create plain-language explanations and graphics for public use; and provide a short list of priority actions the committee expects to pursue first.

Next steps and committee process Staff said the purpose of the concise draft is to provide a short, shared statement that can be supplemented by a more detailed set of foundational principles and visual assets. Staff and the member leads will incorporate feedback this summer and aim to return a revised draft for committee deliberation in September or October. The EAC also plans to align the final statement with the committee—s 2025 work plan so that the vision ties directly to the advisory opportunities the group will pursue.

Bottom line: Members welcomed the draft's ambitions but emphasized the need for two follow-up elements before adoption: (1) explicit, plain-language examples and visuals that show how the vision translates into policy and projects; and (2) a short list of measurable near-term actions the EAC can claim credit for achieving.