The City of Medical Lake council adopted a Commute Trip Reduction (CTR) intergovernmental agreement with Spokane County at its Dec. 2 meeting after a presentation from county TDM manager Leanne Yamamoto.

Yamamoto said Spokane County administers CommuteSmart and has worked with more than 93 employers regionwide. She told the council that Medical Lake’s 2024 baseline drive-alone rate is 82.3% and that the CTR plan sets a goal of a 9% reduction in drive-alone trips for Medical Lake by the plan’s 2029 end date. As a region, Spokane County’s drive-alone rate is 64.4. Yamamoto reported that the county’s CTR-related biennial state funding totals $650,200 and Medical Lake’s allocation for implementation is $20,751; Medical Lake has three affected worksites including the city, Eastern State Hospital and Lakeland Village.

Yamamoto described CTR program requirements: employer surveys every two years, annual reviews of employer CTR plans, training for site coordinators, and support for newly affected worksites. She noted the program yields benefits including congestion reduction, decreased parking demand, increased foot traffic for businesses and reduced vehicle miles traveled; she said CommuteSmart estimates removing over 8,300 trips a day across the program and saving millions of vehicle miles annually.

Councilors asked why the local school district did not appear on the list of affected employers; Yamamoto said the district had not self-identified as an affected employer and she would check. Council members also asked whether participation is required; staff said the CTR obligations stem from state law and that partnering with Spokane County allows the county to handle much of the program administration and reporting.

After discussion the council moved, seconded and voted to pass Resolution 25784 to adopt the CTR agreement.