Placentia council adopts joint active-transportation plan to improve walking, biking and school routes

The Placentia City Council unanimously adopted Resolution R2025‑03 on Jan. 14 to approve the Placentia portions of the Yorba Linda–Placentia Joint Active Transportation Plan, a multi‑agency study that lays out pedestrian, bicycle and Safe Routes to School recommendations for both cities.

Consultant Les Brown of Alta Planning and Design told the council the 18‑month plan was funded by a Caltrans Sustainable Transportation Planning Program grant and is intended to position both cities to compete for state implementation funding. "This study was funded by a Caltrans Sustainable Transportation Planning Program grant," Brown said, and the plan identifies engineering recommendations, prioritization and non‑infrastructure programming.

The plan documents an extensive public engagement effort: the project team reported about 200 comments submitted through an online interactive map, roughly 1,282 users in the virtual meeting room during the draft comment period, and about 115 comments on the draft plan that staff and consultants addressed in revisions.

Brown said the plan identifies three pedestrian priority zones (two in Placentia, one in Yorba Linda) focused on areas the state designates as disadvantaged and on key destinations such as schools, parks and retail. The plan also evaluated routes for 28 schools in the Placentia‑Yorba Linda Unified School District and recommended targeted crosswalks, curb‑ramp improvements and, where appropriate, rapid rectangular flashing beacons to improve student safety.

Public Works Director Chris Taneo and transportation staff discussed coordination with ongoing street projects. Transportation manager Kira Tao described Placentia's local share in the plan as "a little bit over 20, $3,000," and staff said they would provide scheduling and coordination details as projects move into design and construction.

Council members praised the plan's focus on safety and connectivity and voted 5–0 to adopt the resolution. The staff recommendation accompanying the item asked council to adopt the Placentia sections of the joint plan so the city can pursue implementation grants and align future capital projects with the plan's priorities.

Next steps include incorporation of the adopted recommendations into project programming and pursuing state grant opportunities to implement prioritized improvements; staff will return with coordination and budget implications as projects progress.