SAN DIEGO (KGTV) -- Friday morning, SANDAG’s board will decide how to spend $600 million throughout San Diego County between roads, public transportation and other projects.
According to a budget released by SANDAG, most of the funds will go towards transportation, not roads.
The move has some throughout the county concerned that not enough will go toward roads in need of repair.
“I'm pragmatic about it and I do worry about the fact that these tend to suck up all of the money and leave nothing left for highways,” said El Cajon Mayor Bill Wells.
The concern comes after SANDAG announced “5 Big Moves.” The project focuses on the future of public transportation.
Read all five points of the plan below:
Complete Corridors
The backbone of a complete transportation system that leverages technology, pricing, and connectivity to repurpose how both highways and local roads are used and managed. Complete Corridors would increase safety, capacity, and efficiency; provide dedicated space for high-speed transit and other pooled services; manage demand in real-time; and maximize use of existing roadways. Local roads are designed and operated to equally accommodate all users, including transit, cars, bikes, pedestrians, and commercial vehicles. Features may include dynamically managed curb space, transit amenities, bike facilities, pedestrian refuges, or smart intersection systems. Smart intersection systems would improve safety for all modes through use of sensors and alerts to vehicles and individuals, and could give transit priority treatments that make transit faster and more reliable. Wireless charging at parking facilities, intersections, and/or roadways will support future induction charging for zero-emission vehicles. Complete Corridors will provide connections to the Mobility Hubs network and infrastructure to support use of shared, on-demand Flexible Fleets.
Transit Leap
A complete network of high-capacity, high-speed, and high-frequency transit services that incorporates new transit modes and improves existing services. New high-speed services could include grade separated or tunneled services that span long segments with limited stops connecting major destinations. Potential improvements to existing transit lines include double or triple tracking, higher frequencies, dedicated lanes, and signal priorities managed through Complete Corridors. These routes will connect to Mobility Hubs and provide travelers a true alternative for traveling to work, home, and major destinations as fast or faster than driving. Transit services will feature better integration with other services for limited transfers with better timed connections, offer more individualized transit services, and transition to electric or alternative fuels to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
Mobility Hubs
Places of connectivity where a variety of travel options come together to deliver a seamless travel experience in the heart of the communities where people live, work, and play. Mobility Hubs surround high-speed transit in the Transit Leap and integrate with Complete Corridors to align with the network of smart, managed corridors. Supporting land uses that increase housing near transit and enhanced infrastructure for bikes and pedestrians will encourage more people to walk and/or bike. Flexible Fleets also are integrated and offer numerous shared mobility services that extend the reach to high-speed transit and improve access to an individual’s origin or destination. Hubs are customized based on the surrounding community’s transportation needs and include layers of features including shared mobility services, infrastructure improvements, ITS investments, and amenities.
Flexible Fleets
On-demand, shared, electric vehicles that connect to transit within a Mobility Hub and provide users a convenient travel option between Mobility Hubs along the region’s network of Complete Corridors. Micromobility fleets range from shared bikes to shuttles and are supported by infrastructure and dedicated space provided in Complete Corridors. These diverse vehicle sizes and speeds provide personalized travel options for different types of trips and environments. Fleets will use a mobile app where users can plan, book, and pay for all their transportation services in one place. As technology evolves, driverless vehicle fleets will communicate to each other and surrounding infrastructure to make safe and timely connections. This includes transporting travelers and delivering commercial and retail goods.
Next OS
The “brain” of the entire transportation system. The Next Operating System (Next OS) is an integrated platform that will make the above strategies work together by connecting users, transportation service providers, and infrastructure to orchestrate more efficient movement of people and goods. This holistic approach enables real-time data exchange for seamless multimodal travel, more accessible and cost-effective travel with a single payment and ticket, and dynamic pricing and incentives to balance network performance. This regional system manages supply and demand, drives system-wide optimization, and facilitates increased use of existing transportation systems to achieve desired goals around climate, environment, safety, and mobility.
Specifics of SANDAG’s budget include $59 million for new coaster trains, $72 million for new trolleys, $40 million for central transit hub.
Meanwhile, SANDAG says it needs to focus on public transportation to cut back on greenhouse gas emissions.
Read the full meeting agenda by clicking here.
