SANDAG seeks public comment on final version of 2025 transportation plan

Traffic on Interstate which is to get miles of new express lanes in the plan File photo by Chris Stone Times of San Diego SANDAG the regional transportation planning organization for the San Diego area is seeking society comment on the final version of its Regional Plan The agency published the plan on Friday and is seeking comment by email or at the Dec board meeting which is open to the population in person or by Zoom The goal of the Regional Plan is to make transportation more convenient equitable healthy and safe the agency explained The -page plan outlines transportation improvements throughout the San Diego Region including short- and long-term projects against a backdrop of slowing population improvement By the region is projected to grow at a slower rate of upsurge compared to previous forecasts largely due to changes in migration trends and declining birth rates the plan states Still existing housing shortages and labor domain necessities will continue to fuel demand The the bulk major short-term work according to SANDAG are five projects Adding miles of express lanes on Interstate Adding miles of bikeway to the overall infrastructure Continued improvements to the coastal train line to address resiliency replace aging infrastructure and double-track to improve performance and increase levels of amenity Adding auxiliary lanes for Northbound State Course southbound State Track and eastbound State Journey Over the longer term the plan includes new routes and upgrades to existing routes more frequent transit rips over longer hours more rural transit and a complete framework of managed lanes to improve traffic flow The plan also supports a cleaner ecosystem by providing options for people to shift to lower-emission expedition modes It meets a state requirement for per capita emissions reduction by Spending from through is expected to total billion with just under half on transit and bulk of the balance on roads Funding comes from the half-cent TransNet sales tax and matching funds from the state and federal leadership SANDAG is required by law to update the regional plan every four years based on current records and planning assumptions