San Diego already has a legal path to create an NEV transportation plan, and outside funding may help pay for it.
This is not a blank-sheet idea. The legal framework exists, and there are real public funding programs the City could pursue for planning and implementation.
Official sources and funding links are below.
California law already gives San Diego a path to adopt a Neighborhood Electric Vehicle transportation plan.
There are also real regional and state programs that could support planning and implementation. The main question is whether San Diego will use the tools already available.
San Diego could identify priority NEV routes in beach communities and other short-trip areas where small-vehicle travel already makes practical sense.
A formal plan could address the crossings, access points, and safety changes that currently make local circulation harder than it needs to be.
The City could evaluate where NEV parking would help near beaches, parks, retail areas, recreation sites, and other common destinations.
The framework allows for practical implementation tools like signage, striping, and other visible changes that make a network easier to understand and use.
Instead of jumping immediately to a citywide buildout, San Diego could start with a focused pilot and return with results, costs, and next-step recommendations.
This could help improve short-trip links to beach communities, bayside destinations, and nearby recreation areas that residents already use every day.
Legal framework
This is the core San Diego-specific state law allowing the County of San Diego or any city in the county to adopt an NEV transportation plan by ordinance or resolution.
Could help support: Establishing the legal authority for routes, crossings, parking, access points, and related transportation planning.
Read moreStatute text
The full statutory text provides the exact transportation-plan language, including the route categories and physical improvements that may be included.
Could help support: Detailed review by city staff, media, and officials who want the full legal text rather than a summary.
Read moreFunding path
SANDAG’s TransNet Active Transportation Grant Program supports projects that improve travel choices, connectivity, and local access improvements.
Could help support: Planning work, connectivity improvements, and local transportation changes that overlap with NEV access and circulation goals.
Read moreFunding path
Caltrans Sustainable Transportation Planning Grants support local and regional multimodal transportation and land-use planning efforts.
Could help support: Studying, designing, and scoping an NEV pilot or broader access plan before major implementation spending.
Read moreFunding path
California’s Active Transportation Program supports projects that improve mobility, safety, and access for walking and biking networks.
Could help support: Overlapping safety, access, and mobility improvements when an NEV strategy is tied to broader beach-community transportation access.
Read moreRegional context
SANDAG’s TransNet program provides the broader regional context for transportation funding streams that can support active transportation and related improvements.
Could help support: Building a broader local and regional funding package instead of treating this as a one-source or all-local-budget effort.
Read moreProgram overview
The California Transportation Commission ATP overview provides additional statewide context on how the Active Transportation Program is structured and administered.
Could help support: Understanding program framing, statewide priorities, and how ATP fits into a larger transportation funding strategy.
Read moreSan Diego already has a legal path and possible funding paths. What happens next depends on whether leaders decide to act.