Anchorage climate plan adds $22K after VMT fee debate

The Anchorage Metropolitan Area Transportation Solutions Technical Advisory Committee approved $22,000 in additional work on the city's Transportation Climate Action Plan on May 7 after debate over vehicle-miles-traveled fees.

The committee approved all large changes identified in a consultant memorandum, including electric-vehicle adoption modeling and rideshare impact analysis. The motion excluded duplicative intermediate items but added language on vehicle-miles-traveled fee administration through an amendment.

The plan is a five-year update framework tied to the 2019 Anchorage Climate Action Plan, which set targets to reduce greenhouse gas emissions 40 percent below 2008 levels by 2030 and 80 percent by 2050. The climate plan is not legally binding but calls for annual progress reports and comprehensive updates every five years.

Debate centered on whether to retain vehicle-miles-traveled fees with explanation of administration and revenue use. Taylor Keegan said the goal was to make sure the paper trail is maintained in the plan and that the study is a study. The committee voted to amend the motion to add language explaining how vehicle-miles-traveled fees would be administered, what code changes might be needed, and how revenue would return to the municipality and AMATS for transit and non-motorized infrastructure. That option carried an additional $3,280 cost.

The committee also recommended increasing Transportation Improvement Program funding for the Climate Action Plan by an additional $50,000 to cover the approved changes. The plan will reframe strategies as expanding mode choices rather than reducing vehicle-miles traveled.

AMATS, as the Anchorage Metropolitan Planning Organization, guides transportation planning and federal transportation funding in the urbanized area. Assembly Member Erin Baldwin Day described AMATS as a mechanism for both local representation and local control.