A dozen people turned out Saturday in Hollister to hear about and comment on plans to improve San Benito County roadways, including a proposed sales tax.
The meeting of the Council of San Benito County Governments (COG) was held at the county Board of Supervisors Chambers. It began with a summary of the San Benito Regional Transportation Plan 2018-2040 (RTP) by COG Executive Director Mary Gilbert.
The transportation plan looks at the county’s needs through 2040. In the next 22 years, Gilbert said, the county will see a shortfall of about $1.8 billion needed to fulfill all transportation needs. Projected revenues between this year and 2040 is estimated to amount to $1.2 billion.
The biggest needs, she said, is for roads and the regional highway system. Those costs are estimated at $583,827 million (32 percent) for local roads and more than $1 billion for highways (58 percent).
Included in the shortfall is $66.8 million for public transit (4 percent); $31.6 million for active transportation (2 percent); $10.1 million for transportation demand management and transportation system management (0.6 percent) and $68.2 million for other undefined costs (4 percent).
The need for improvements is driven by existing traffic problems and projected growth in the county. The plan estimates that employment will grow by 22 percent (3,913 jobs) over the next 25 years in the county, and projects continuing job growth in Santa Clara, Santa Cruz and Monterey counties. The plan also estimates that 48.9 percent of the county’s workforce will be traveling outside the county to their jobs. That compares to over 60% today.
Housing will see a 31 percent increase, the plan predicts, for an increase of 5,693 housing units by 2040. The city of Hollister estimates 3.4 individuals per home or 19,373 increase in population over the next 22 years.
A first draft of the transportation spending plan is expected to be presented to the COG on Feb. 16.
A proposed 1 percent sales tax, Gilbert said, would raise about $500 million for transportation over 30 years. The county is planning to put the tax measure on the November ballot. The measure will require a two-thirds vote by county voters to pass.
If passed, the measure would have a citizens’ oversight committee and be subject to an audit.
The transportation spending measure is expected to be written by late May, then presented to the county and cities by June for approval. The deadline to get the measure on the November ballot is August.
In the last 10 years, highway expansion has been slowed by federal, state and local financial constraints, Gilbert explained. Since 2014 improvements have helped close gaps and congestion points in the county’s transportation network.
Among the improvements are funding to widen State Route 156, set to begin in 2019, and a study identifying improvements for State Route 25.
State Route 25 is a bottleneck for San Benito County commuters and has seen many traffic fatalities, including one that took the lives of seven people.
Just how congested the highway is was illustrated by COG Chairman Jaime De La Cruz. A San Benito County resident who repaired De La Cruz’ car at a San Jose shop told De La Cruz that he leaves the county at 4:30 a.m. and does not get home until 8:30 p.m.
Gilbert said Caltrans has plans for streamlined signal controls on 25. Also, Santa Clara County is cooperating with San Benito County for construction of a new interchange.
Caltrans has proposed a two-phase widening of State Route 25. The first phase calls for a new four-lane highway from San Felipe Road in Hollister to Hudner Lane, north of State Route 156 in San Benito County. The second phase will construct an 11.2 mile widening project from San Felipe Road to State Route 125 at US 101 in Gilroy.
The cost of both projects is estimated at $241.7 million.
COG member and Hollister Mayor Ignacio Velazquez commutes to Redwood City for work. Regarding State Route 25 improvements, he said: “I don’t want to see a band aid [approach]. We need a plan that will take care of this county for the next 40 years.”
Velazquez said the need to improve roads is imperative if the county is going to add more housing and good paying jobs. He said the first thing businesses considering moving to San Benito County ask is the condition of the roads. He noted that transportation infrastructure is a problem throughout the United States.
Hamdy Abbass, who founded the group Stay Alive on 25, said the goal should be widening the highway to four lanes. “We need to educate the public how important it is,” he said. “The public has to take ownership. Don’t do any band aids. It is beyond that and needs fixing.”
COG member Anthony Botelho said the transportation plan must include the entire county. “I just want people to understand it can’t be all about 25. It’s a countywide issue.”
Botelho said state and federal governments need to take more responsibility in fixing the county transportation system. “Our county roads have gone beyond the pothole filling. The only thing that’s saved us this year is no rain,” he said.
Resident Steve Rosati said he’s kind of on the fence regarding a sales tax increase to fund transportation improvements. He said people need to ask lawmakers in Sacramento where all the taxpayer money is going. “Our roads are not being kept up,” he said.
Rosati said the sales tax ballot issue must be very clear in order to sell it to the voters.
Hollister resident Julio Rodriguez urged officials to use social media to promote the sales tax measure.
“In my opinion,” said resident Stacey McGrady, “I think the state has the money to fix every road and school in California. This is a bigger issue than just San Benito County.”
COG member Jim Gillio said the public must be involved in the ballot measure.
“We need the public to develop this measure,” he said. “It has to be grassroots. We really need this coming from you folks.”
Gillio said a concise, clear transportation expenditure plan is needed and the measure must stick to the list of improvements.
Telephone and internet surveys regarding the plan are also expected to be done.
“If we lose [the measure] this time, there’s going to be a lot of people moving to Nevada and Arizona,” said COG member Tony Boch.
“This is going to be real hard to pass,” Botelho said. “This is really complex. We need to do it right.”
Velazquez said Saturday’s meeting was the beginning of discussions on the plan and that there would be more to come. Veronica Lezama with COG provided the following dates for public input on San Benito County transportation:
Feb. 13 – Jovenes de Antano 1:00 p.m. – 2:30 p.m.
Feb. 14 – Vertigo Coffee in San Juan Bautista 2:00 p.m. – 3:30 p.m.
Feb 15. – Board of Supervisors Chambers 3:00 p.m. – 3:30 p.m.
The San Benito Regional Transportation Plan RTP 2018-2040 can be read at the Council of San Benito County Governments website.
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