County fights for balanced transportation plan

Supervisor Jim Desmond

San Diego County 5th District

For the past months, myself along with many North and East County leaders have been reminding those in downtown that there’s more to San Diego than the Urban Core. We’ve been fighting for San Diegans all throughout the County, trying to maintain SANDAG’s promise to the voters.

As you know, voters passed a half-cent sales tax in 2004, in exchange for upgrades to and expansion of the I-5, I-8, I-15, SR 52, SR 67, SR 78 and various other freeways. SANDAG has now tried to shy away from that, instead wanting more public transit and bike lanes. Since the sales tax was implemented, they’ve spent two-thirds of the major corridor money on public transit, despite only three and a half percent of people using it.

On Friday, July 12, we reached an agreement with the SANDAG Board of Directors for a balanced transportation plan what will suit the needs of the entire county. We have prioritized highway improvements including state routes 78, 52, 67 and the 94/125 interchange.

I don’t oppose public transit, it works, but it works in more dense areas like downtown. San Diegans will always need roads and highways to get around and businesses will need to transport their goods.

There’s still a battle ahead, including where the money will come from to pay for the projects and trying to remove congestion pricing from any future plans. In the meantime, we are glad to see SANDAG’s commitment to the voters and the whole county by keeping its promise.