Transportation plan sees rough roads

Posted: Tuesday, August 7, 2012 9:53 am | Calaveras Enterprise | Posted by James  DeHaven

Calaveras County roads lack passing opportunities, adequate right-of-way and roughly $340 million in needed paving improvements, according to the county’s long-awaited Regional Transportation Plan.

Last updated in 2007, the RTP takes into account road conditions and funding needs across four state highways and more than a dozen local routes.

The county’s long term transportation model also includes assessments of current projects, anticipated county growth and projected economic development.

The Calaveras Council of Governments set aside nearly $6 million for regional transportation projects this year.

Much of that is headed for widening, straightening and other safety improvement projects meant to address concerns cited in the transportation plan, according to CCOG Executive Director Melissa Eads.

She said most of the $29.1 million going toward future projects, including planning costs on the oft-debated Wagon Trail realignment, are already funded through a combination of state and local agency dollars.

“Those are all constrained projects, they’re all funded through our existing revenue sources,” Eads said. “Wagon Trail is part of those cost estimates; it’s our No. 1 priority.”

The county’s 182 miles of stressed roadways also rank among the report’s headline numbers, thanks in large part to California’s 2007 Strategic Growth Plan, which would divert a quarter of all state road funding away from county transportation agencies by 2015.

The move would result in the loss of a primary source of highway maintenance dollars, although Eads expects some $56.9 million in local transit and administrative revenues will help offset those costs over the next few decades.

She also noted that a final RTP evaluation of local transportation funding relies on $20 million in continued sales and use tax dollars to help balance local transportation project budgets over the next 25 years.

“We need to make sure those funding levels are maintained,” Eads said. “The good news is we update (the RTP) every five years, so once we learn more about (state legislation), we can make determinations from there.”

According to the report, more than 1,000 miles of state and county roads could see a major surge in usage over the next few decades.

That would mean greater wear and tear on county roads, something the report recommends offsetting with new local revenue sources, including a potential sales tax increase.

Public Works Deputy Director Jonathan Mitchell said finding community support for new tax revenue streams has proven “challenging.”

“(Public Works’) ongoing maintenance dollars have been lower as a function of the economy,” Mitchell said. “One way to account for that is with some sort of maintenance improvement bond. We’ve done studies to try and understand whether or not there is support for that. …Overall, the polls have not been very promising.”

County residents have until September 15 to give their feedback on the latest transportation plan. CCOG hopes to have a revised draft ready for agency adoption October 3.

Read the original article here.