First SANDAG discussion of 2007 RTP held

The initial discussion of the 2007 Regional Transportation Plan during a San Diego Association of Governments board meeting occurred March 23.

Because the board letter was not ready until shortly before the meeting, many SANDAG board members were not able to review the information in time for possible action and the 2007 RTP was a discussion item only. A draft revenue-constrained network will return to the SANDAG board on April 27, and the actual draft RTP will be released in June for public review with adoption of the final RTP expected in November.

The Regional Transportation Plan covers highway, transit, and other transportation items through the year 2030. It includes a revenue-constrained plan and a reasonably-expected revenue scenario; the revenue-constrained plan is required by Federal law and does not assume any anticipated future revenues while the reasonably-expected revenue scenario assumes that historical increases will continue.

The RTP had been updated in 2003, and a technical update required to comply with Federal law was approved in 2006, although that update only covered the revenue-constrained plan and the 2007 update will be more comprehensive. Currently two investment level options are being considered for the reasonably-expected revenue scenario; one would increase the investment by approximately $4 billion, including $2 billion on transit, while the other would increase investment by $10 billion, including $5 billion on transit. The enhanced transit services would be concentrated in the county’s urban core.

The update of the revenue-constrained scenario increases total capital expenditures from $15.281 billion to $18.128 billion. The Regional Transportation Plan includes private investments, one of which is the planned State Route 241 toll road from Orange County to Interstate 5 which will likely cross a portion of Camp Pendleton. The initial draft increases planned expenditures for State Route 241 in San Diego County from $500 million in the 2006 plan to $536 million in the 2007 plan.

Expenditures for the widening of State Route 76 between Melrose Drive in Oceanside and Interstate 15 are tentatively increased from $382 million in the 2006 update to $400 million in the 2007 plan. Preliminary total expenditures on highway widening, arterials, and freeway interchanges are increased from $1.835 billion to $2.504 billion. Freeway system completion expenditures in the preliminary draft would be increased from $1.903 billion to $2.156 billion, including an increase from $420 million to $914 million for regional arterials and local access freeway interchanges.

The initial plan adds three new high-occupancy vehicle and bus rapid transit connectors between freeways, changing the total amount for that category from $407 million to $661 million.

The initial revenue-constrained plan increases high-occupancy vehicle and managed lane expenditures from $4.408 billion to $6.320 billion. Transit in the revenue-constrained scenario is decreased from $6.234 billion to $5.952 billion despite the addition of $693 million for transit parking structures and increasing regional rail grade separations from $122 million to $363 million. The 2007 changes reduce vehicles for new transit services from $778 million to $280 million while the Sprinter light rail line extension from the Escondido Transit Center to North County Fair has been deleted, cutting Sprinter tracking expenditures from $580 million to $199 million.

Councilwoman Lesa Hebner, who represents Solana Beach on the SANDAG board, expressed concern about the lack of North County Transit District projects on the list. Chula Vista mayor Cheryl Cox, who represents that city on the SANDAG board, urged that additional investment be split equally between freeways and regional roads, transit, and local roads as the TransNet sales tax is divided. “Each of us would appreciate a little bit of assistance in our local streets,” Cox said.

SANDAG executive director Gary Gallegos noted that the focus of the plan was over the next five years and that the plan will be updated again before the year 2030. “We get hammered every day that we’re not doing enough for North County,” he said.