COMMISSION 
AGENDA MEMORANDUM                        Item No.          8f 
ACTION ITEM                            Date of Meeting    September 14, 2021 

DATE:     August 27, 2021 
TO:        Stephen P. Metruck, Executive Director 
FROM:    Adrian Down, Environmental Program Manager, AV Environment and Sustainability 
Peter Lindsay, Operations Program Manager 
SUBJECT:  Request to Amend Agreement with the National Renewable Energy Laboratory to
Include Transportation Modeling 
Amount of this request:                 $200,000 
Total estimated project cost:                   NA 
ACTION REQUESTED 
Request Commission authorization for the Executive Director to amend the scope of an existing 
interlocal agreement (ILA) with the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) to include 
transportation modeling to support SEA's ground transportation goals and Century Agenda 
environmental goals. 
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 
The Port has an existing ILA with NREL, a not-for-profit, federally funded agency. The ILA was
approved by Commission on April 27, 2021. This action is for approval to amend this existing
agreement with NREL to add $200,000 of work to be carried out over an approximate 1-year
period. 
Airports and seaports look to NREL for decision support and actionable insights to inform their
long-term facility, infrastructure, and energy planning efforts. NREL has helped other major
transportation airports and seaports like Los Angeles World Airports, Dallas Fort Worth
International Airport, the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, and the Port of Long Beach
understand the full range of options for achieving ambitious energy-saving goals, improving
regional air quality, and optimizing the movement of people and goods. 
JUSTIFICATION 
This ILA amendment will allow the Port to work with NREL to develop transportation modeling
essential for SEA's Ground Transportation Access Plan (GTAP) and help meet the Port's Century
Agenda goals to reduce carbon emissions and objectives established in Commission's SEA ground
transportation (GT) policy directive (Policy Resolution No. 3759). 

Template revised January 10, 2019.

COMMISSION AGENDA  Action Item No. 8f                                   Page 2 of 5 
Meeting Date: September 14, 2021 
This partnership provides access to world-leading technology and transportation integration that
isn't available elsewhere. In addition, NREL explicitly does not offer its services where commercial
consultants or engineering firms can do the work. 
The Port recognizes that the Policy Resolution goal of reducing low-occupancy private vehicle
trips to the airport may require new approaches in SEA's GT operations, policies, and facilities,
all of which can influence how passengers and employees chose to get to the Airport. Ground 
transportation  initiatives  can  have  complex   tradeoffs  between   revenue   generation,
environmental performance, cost, and customer service. As a result of this complexity, NREL
expertise is warranted to understand the range of ground transportation options and their
potential impacts on Port revenue, emissions, and customer service. 
Diversity in Contracting 
Given that NREL is uniquely positioned to provide this service, we did not set aspirational goals
but will leverage NRELs expertise to evaluate equity in the transportation analyses. NREL is
committed to being a world-class leader in workforce diversity, equity, and continues to develop
numerous studies that identify equitable and economic local solutions to the climate crisis. For
example, their LA100 study demonstrates how the City of Los Angeles will meet its renewable
electricity goals with specific environmental justice actions.
DETAILS 
If approved, this ILA modification will enable the Port to develop a partnership with NREL's
Athena team. Athena specializes in using data-driven statistical modeling to help airports adapt
to transformative technologies that support ambitious energy goals. Athena has worked with
Dallas Fort Worth International Airport to develop sophisticated models of current and future
mobility requirements. 
The primary goal of this work with the Athena team is to create a model that predicts changes in
passenger behavior in response to potential changes in the Port's GT operations, policies, and
infrastructure. This model is essential for evaluating the potential implications of implementing
access fees on private vehicles accessing SEA roadways, one of the key priority strategies
identified in the GTAP report. 
The resulting passenger mode choice model will also be used to identify impacts beyond access
fees, such as: 
Analyzing the effects of potential changes to fee structures for parking or other GT
products to maximize revenue 
Helping to identify opportunities to influence passenger behavior to achieve the goals
included in Resolution 3759 and the Port's Century Agenda of limiting private vehicle
curbside use to 30% of passengers and reducing greenhouse gas emissions from all
sources, including GT, 50% by 2030. 

Template revised June 27, 2019 (Diversity in Contracting).

COMMISSION AGENDA  Action Item No. 8f                                   Page 3 of 5 
Meeting Date: September 14, 2021 
Scope of Work 
The primary goal of this project is to create a price-based, ground transportation model that can
predict SEA passengers' mode choice changes in response to changes in pricing, travel time, or
other aspects of airport trips. Passengers will be segmented into groups to account for
differences in travel behavior between resident and non-resident travelers as well as business
and leisure travelers. The model will initially be based on existing data sources, including SEA's
enplaning passenger survey, and will be updated as new information becomes available. The
model will be structured so that it can easily be updated with additional survey information in
the future if the Port choses to conduct additional passenger surveys. 
The scope will follow these general tasks and deliverables: 
(1) Data gathering and review 
(2) Model construction and testing 
(3) Develop policy evaluation tool 
(4) Analyze policy scenarios 
(5) Final report 
Schedule 
Task/Deliverable                               Date 
Commission ILA modification authorization      Q3 2021 
Data Gathering                                 Q4 2021 
Model construction and testing                 Q4 2021-Q1 2022 
Policy scenario analysis                            Q2-Q3 2022 
Final report                                        Q4 2022 
ALTERNATIVES AND IMPLICATIONS CONSIDERED 
Alternative 1  Do not support an NREL partnership. 
Cost Implications:     $0 
Pros: 
(1)   Cost savings. 
Cons: 
(1)   If this model is not constructed, the Port will not be able to preemptively evaluate
potential GT program options including access fees. This makes the risk of implementing
new or modified GT programs much greater and reduces the likelihood of success. 
(2)   The Port may miss opportunities to increase revenue that the model could identify 
(3)   Port will not meet Century Agenda or Policy Resolution 3759 goals. 
This is not the recommended alternative. 


Template revised June 27, 2019 (Diversity in Contracting).

COMMISSION AGENDA  Action Item No. 8f                                   Page 4 of 5 
Meeting Date: September 14, 2021 
Alternative 2  Work with a private consultant to construct a passenger mode choice model 
Cost Implications: $350,000 
Pros: 
(1)   Work could be completed under existing Port  contracting mechanisms,  although
additional funding would still be required. 
Cons: 
(1)   Product may not be comparable and would not utilize NREL's industry-leading expertise
and innovative research background. 
(2)   Likely higher cost than NREL alternative. 
(3)   May require delaying model construction one or more years until additional passenger
surveys can be conducted. 
This is not the recommended alternative. 
Alternative 3  Leverage the existing NREL partnership and expertise to conduct the work 
Cost Implications: $200,000 
Pros: 
(1)   This work will create a model that will analyze options for reducing vehicle trips and
greenhouse gas emissions at SEA Airport and is essential for moving forward with other
priority areas identified in GTAP. 
(2)   Supports Century Agenda and Commission Policy Resolution 3759 goals 
(3)   Potential to identify opportunities to increase non-aeronautical revenue 
Cons: 
(1)   Financial cost 
This is the recommended alternative. 
FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS 
Annual Budget Status and Source of Funds 
The 2021 budget for the addition to the ILA requested here is $75,000 and was approved as a
contingent budget request in 2021. The remaining $125,000 is requested as part of the 2022
Aviation Environment and Sustainability operating budget. The total for this project is $200,000. 
The budget for the existing, previously  approved ILA (to analyze energy and technology
alternatives for Port facilities) is $127,000 from the Energy and Sustainability Committee Fund,
and $23,000 from the Environment and Sustainability Center of Expertise operating budget, for
a total of $150,000. 
ATTACHMENTS TO THIS REQUEST 
(1) Cover page and appendices to be added to ILA 

Template revised June 27, 2019 (Diversity in Contracting).

COMMISSION AGENDA  Action Item No. 8f                                   Page 5 of 5 
Meeting Date: September 14, 2021 
(2) Existing ILA signed by Commission on April 27, 2021 
(3) Presentation 
PREVIOUS COMMISSION ACTIONS OR BRIEFINGS 
April 27, 2021  The Commission authorized the Executive Director to enter into an interlocal
agreement with NREL to analyze energy and technology alternatives for both aviation and
maritime facilities to help meet Century Agenda environmental and energy goals. 















Template revised June 27, 2019 (Diversity in Contracting).