Measure A: The Right Choice to Repair San Diego
I am voting for Measure A, and I think you should as well. Here’s why.
Measure A: The Right Choice to Repair San Diego
I am voting for Measure A, and I think you should as well. Here’s why.
It takes me too long to get to and from work every day, or anywhere else, for that matter. Right now, San Diego County drivers spend, on average, 42 hours per year stuck in traffic. To reduce the gridlock, Measure A funds critical improvements to San Diego County’s transportation infrastructure. In other words, it will provide better roads and highways and more transit options like trolleys, trains and buses (with more frequent service). For us East County residents, that will include improvements to SR 67, SR 125, SR 54, I-8 and SR 94. In other parts of the region, it will include new carpool lanes, trolley lines, Rapid bus service and bike lanes.
Work will begin right away to implement improvements. If you live in Santee, you know like I do that SR 52 can’t accommodate all of the people who need to use it to get around. To improve circulation for people traveling between East County and the rest of the region, we need to widen the highway. If Measure A passes, the design work for these SR 52 improvements will begin in March 2017 – just four short months from now. But, without Measure A, we could be waiting decades for these improvements.
It will help prevent wildfires and improve evacuation routes. These days, it seems like these days we’re constantly at risk for a wildfire. Measure A will help save lives and prevent wildfires. It will also provide funding to repair and straighten our backcountry roads to improve access and evacuation routes.
We have a lot to lose. The average cost of Measure A for San Diego County residents will be 12 cents. Yes, you read that right, 12 cents. Right now, deteriorating roads cost San Diego drivers nearly $2,000 per year in wear and tear, accidents, lost time and wasted fuel. In other words, by spending 12 cents, you can save up to $2,000. Talk about a smart investment.
It’s a tried and true method to Keep San Diego Moving. A road repair measure isn’t anything new for us in San Diego County. In fact, we’ve approved two similar transportation infrastructure improvement measures, in 1988 and 2008, respectively. These measures helped fund all of the improvements along the I-15 corridor and along SR 163. They also helped fund the construction of the trolley system and provided each city and the County with funds for local road repairs and improvements.
Everyone’s doing it. Contrary to popular belief, we’re not the only region in California proposing a transportation funding measure – far from it. Statewide, there are about a dozen transportation measures appearing on ballots this November. That’s because, while the feds and the state used to cover nearly 100 percent of the costs for our highways, today they only pay around 40 percent. Local residents are left to come up with the rest of the necessary funding, if we want to get things done.
It’s funding that Sacramento can’t take away. Measure A will generate nearly $18 billion in funding – guaranteed to stay in San Diego County, not Sacramento – to make urgent critical repairs to our transportation infrastructure.
The bottom line is that Measure A is the right choice for San Diego County. I hope you’ll join me and vote in favor of Measure A to Repair San Diego!
Jack Dale is the Vice Mayor of the City of Santee. He represents the city on the board of the San Diego Association of Governments (SANDAG), where he has worked diligently on the construction and ultimate completion of State Route 52 through Santee.
Jack Dale
Vice Mayor
City of Santee
