Title
The Norwood Mobility Plan (T15180418)
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FileID
File ID: 2026-00457
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Location
Location: District 1 and 2
Recommendation
Recommendation: Adopt a Resolution: 1) approving The Norwood Mobility Plan; and 2) amending the Streets for People Active Transportation Plan to reflect The Norwood Mobility Plan.
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Contact
Contact: Charisse Padilla, Transportation Planner, (916) 808-6788, cpadilla@cityofsacramento.org; Jennifer Donlon Wyant, Mobility and Sustainability Division Manager, (916) 808-5913, jdonlonwyant@cityofsacramento.org; Department of Public Works
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Presenter
Presenter: None
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Attachments
Attachments:
1-Description/Analysis
2-Resolution
3-Exhibit A - Norwood Mobility Plan
4-Exhibit B - Streets for People Plan Amendments
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Description/Analysis
IssueDetail
Issue Detail: In July 2024, the City of Sacramento kicked off The Norwood Mobility Project (Plan). The purpose of The Norwood Mobility Plan (The Plan) is to identify a data-driven, community-supported plan to improve safety and mobility on the Norwood Avenue corridor from Main Avenue to Arcade Creek.
The Final Draft Plan is a result of a two-year long community engagement and transportation planning process.
This is an action item to adopt a Resolution approving The Norwood Mobility Plan and amending the Streets for People Active Transportation Plan to include these bicycling and walking facilities. The timeline for the recently adopted Streets for People Plan was just ahead of The Norwood Mobility Project (Plan) efforts. Community input specifically for this corridor resulted in some recommendation changes that differed from the Streets for People Plan. The adopted Plan components will be incorporated into the Streets for People Active Transportation Plan.
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PolicyConsiderations
Policy Considerations: The project is consistent with specific Sacramento 2040 General Plan goals and policies of promoting mobility, safety and enhancing livability, sustainability, and economic vitality:
M-1. An equitable, sustainable multimodal system that provides a range of viable and healthy travel choices for users of all ages, backgrounds, and abilities.
M-1.2 User Prioritization. The City shall prioritize mobility, comfort, health, safety, and convenience for those walking, followed by those bicycling and riding transit, ahead of design and operations for those driving.
M-1.3 Healthy Transportation System Options. The City shall plan and make investments to foster a transportation system that improves the health of Sacramento residents through actions that make active transportation, nonmotorized modes, high-occupancy, and zero emission vehicles (ZEVs) viable, attractive alternatives to automobiles that use internal combustion engines.
M-1.4 Designing to Move People. In planning, designing, and managing the transportation system, the City shall prioritize person throughput to shift trips to more efficient travel modes and upgrade the performance of limited street space.
M-1.9 Equitable Processes and Outcomes. The City shall ensure that the transportation system is planned and implemented with an equitable process to achieve equitable outcomes and investments so that all neighborhoods one day will have similar levels of transportation infrastructure such as sidewalks, marked low stress crossings, and bikeways.
M-3. Streets designed and maintained as places that contribute to quality of life.
M-3.2 Street Design. The City shall ensure street design and potential redesign opportunities for existing streets minimize driver speed as appropriate within residential neighborhoods and incorporate street trees wherever possible without compromising connectivity for emergency access or people bicycling, walking, and using mobility devices.
M-4. A safer transportation system.
M-4.1 Application of Safety. The City shall design, plan, and operate streets using complete streets principles to ensure the safety and mobility of all users.
M-4.2 Safer Driving Speeds. The City shall work to maximize the safety of the transportation network by designing streets for lower driving speeds and enforcing speed limits in an unbiased manner as well as promoting safer driving behavior.
M-4.3 Vision Zero. The City shall utilize a data driven, “vision zero” approach to eliminate all traffic fatalities and severe injuries by 2027, while increasing safety, health, and equitable mobility for all.
Additionally, this is in accordance with the following Council approved plans:
Vision Zero: This plan supports the City’s Vision Zero goals to utilize a data driven, “vision zero” approach to eliminate all traffic fatalities and severe injuries by 2027, while increasing safety, health, and equitable mobility for all. This corridor is part of the City’s Vision Zero High Injury Network.
Transportation Priorities Plan (TPP): Norwood Avenue is ranked high priority in the City’s Transportation Priorities Plan (TPP), which applies community-based values, criteria, and metrics to prioritize transportation investments in the city, including: 1) improving air quality and health; 2) providing equitable investment; 3) providing access to destinations; 4) improving transportation safety; and 5) fixing and maintaining the transportation system.
Climate Action & Adaptation Plan (CAAP): This plan will support the City’s mode shift goals in the CAAP to achieve 6% active transportation mode share by 2030 and 12% by 2045, as well as support public transit improvements to achieve 11% public transit mode share by 2030 and maintain through 2045.
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EconomicImpacts
Economic Impacts: None.
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EnvironmentalConsiderations
Environmental Considerations:
California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA): The action requested is review of a citywide planning study to be used as guidance for future engineering, design, and analysis. Projects consistent with the Plan will be subject to review pursuant to the California Environmental Quality Act during the Preliminary Design and Environmental phase. The City Council will be asked to review and approve the Plan’s conceptual approach and provide general direction, an action which is covered by CEQA Guidelines Section 15262. That section provides an exemption from CEQA review for a project that involves "...only feasibility or planning studies for future actions which the...agency...has not approved, adopted or funded.”
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Sustainability
Sustainability: The plan will provide for improved active transportation support, to reduce the necessity for trips by automobile and related air pollution and greenhouse gas emissions, consistent with the goals outlined in the Climate Action and Adaptation Plan (CAAP) to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and vehicles miles traveled by increasing active mode share citywide to 6% by 2030, 12% by 2045. The Plan will also help improve access to transit, helping achieve the CAAP goal to increase public transit mode share to 11% by 2030.
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Commission/Committee Action
Commission/Committee Action: At the January 15, 2026, Active Transportation Commission meeting, the Commission passed a motion to forward a recommendation to City Council to approve The Norwood Mobility Plan.
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RationaleforRecommendation
Rationale for Recommendation: Norwood Avenue is part of the City’s Vision Zero high-injury network, corridors with the highest number of fatal and severe injury crashes in the city. It is also a priority project in the Transportation Priorities Plan. The City applied for, and was awarded, a Caltrans Sustainable Transportation Planning Grant in late 2023 and started the planning effort in Spring 2024. The action requested is to adopt a Resolution adopting The Norwood Mobility Plan. Through engagement with the community, a two-year long planning process has resulted in The Norwood mobility Plan.
The recommended improvements included in this Plan enhance the transportation safety and mobility options for all modes of transportation along the Norwood Avenue corridor. The recommendations in the Plan are captured in the attached amendment to the Streets for People Active Transportation Plan.
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FinancialConsiderations
Financial Considerations: The planning level estimated cost to implement The Norwood Mobility Plan is approximately $91,000,000, which includes conceptual design and environmental clearance, as well as final design and implementation.
Approval of The Plan does not obligate funding for the recommendations, and no funding for implementation of the Plan has been identified at this time.
No General Funds are obligated with this recommendation.
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LocalBusinessEnterprise
Local Business Enterprise (LBE): Not applicable.
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Background
Background: The planning effort began with a review of relevant adopted plans, followed by an analysis of existing operations and infrastructure. This data was supplemented with community engagement that included digital and printed surveys, virtual and in-person workshops, pop-ins at Community Association meetings and other community events.
Throughout community engagement and plan development, the following common community priorities emerged for Norwood Avenue:
• Make streets safer, especially in areas where a high number of crashes have occurred
• Add better places to cross the street, crosswalks with signals, so it is easier and safer for people walking
• Build calm, comfortable routes that help people walk, bike, or roll to get to destinations and transit safely, and
• Providing facilities that accommodate people of all ages and abilities.
The plan was created with communities on and around the Norwood Avenue corridor. Engagement included community listening and collaboration, meeting residents where they are in their neighborhoods, as well as hosting in-person and virtual workshops and interactive resources on the project website. The planning process also included frequent presentations to the City’s Active Transportation Commission.
Development of The Norwood Mobility Plan Final Draft included three distinct phases of engagement:
Phase 1: Listen & Learn- Community Vision, Goals, and Information Gathering
October - December 2024
To establish the community vision, the project team hosted in-person and virtual community workshops, as well as an interactive web map and survey (Social Pinpoint) on the project website. Staff also attended Mutual Assistance Network’s (MAN) Annual Harvest Festival at Robertson Community Center and a community workshop facilitated by Neighborhood Development Action Team (NDAT) in coordination with Hmong Youth and Parents United (HYPU).
Additionally, staff sent out notifications through the City Minute Blog and Transportation Planning monthly newsletter, as well as a presentation at Active Transportation Commission.
Phase 2: Alternatives Analysis, Recommendations, and Build Consensus
June - July 2025
In phase 2, the project team developed a set of alternative recommendations and presented them to the community for feedback. The recommendations were a result of several data analyses combined with community input the project team received during Phase I community engagement.
Engagement was led by City Staff with support from the consultant project team. This included hosting virtual and in-person community workshops, pop-ins at community association meetings and community events.
Additionally, staff sent out notifications through the City Minute Blog and Transportation Planning monthly newsletter, The Norwood Mobility Project mailing list, as well as a presentation at Active Transportation Commission.
Phase 3: Public Draft Plan Review and Comment
October - November 2025
Phase III community engagement sought to encourage community members to review the Public Draft Plan and provide feedback. Engagement efforts included an interactive document review platform (Konveio) on the project webpage where community members could review the Draft Plan and leave comments in the document. It also included City hosted in-person and virtual workshops, and pop-ins at community meetings, destinations, and events (ex. Robla Park CA meeting, HYPU Trunk or Treat Event, and MAN Harvest Festival).
Additionally, staff sent out notifications through the City Minute Blog and Transportation Planning monthly newsletter, The Norwood Mobility Project mailing list, as well as a presentation at Active Transportation Commission.
The Norwood Mobility Plan Final Draft was developed with input from area residents, community partners, Active Transportation Commission, and analysis of existing conditions data.
The Final Draft Plan features the following:
• Removing a travel lane in each direction north of Jesse Avenue and south of Harris Avenue
• New sidewalks north of Berthoud Street
• Sidewalk lighting, a landscaping buffer, as well as shade trees on the east side of the street
• Removal of on-street parking south of Bell Avenue
• A separated bikeway in each direction
• Roundabouts at Bell Ave and Silver Eagle Rd, with future evaluation of an additional roundabout at Morey Ave
• Signalized crosswalks at high demand locations and at I-80 ramp crossings
• A cantilever structure on BOTH sides of the I-80 overpass
• Future evaluation of median trees, where feasible
The Norwood Mobility Plan Final Draft is included as Attachment 3.
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