{"id":247815,"date":"2014-09-26T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2014-09-26T07:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sdnews.com\/bumpy-rides-thinning-wallets\/"},"modified":"2014-09-26T00:00:00","modified_gmt":"2014-09-26T07:00:00","slug":"bumpy-rides-thinning-wallets","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/bumpy-rides-thinning-wallets\/","title":{"rendered":"Bumpy rides thinning wallets"},"content":{"rendered":"

Transit agency warns of unseen costs caused by San Diego roads<\/strong><\/p>\n

Por Dave Schwab<\/p>\n

The average San Diego driver loses nearly $1,900 annually as a result of driving on roads that are congested, deteriorated or lack sufficient safety features.<\/p>\n

That was the distressing news coming out of a Sept. 11 news conference at Caltrans San Diego headquarters near Old Town.<\/p>\n

What\u2019s encouraging, according to local public and transportation officials who discussed a report on road conditions released by TRIP, a national transportation research nonprofit, is that there\u2019s still time to improve substandard state thoroughfares.<\/p>\n

\"trip2web\"<\/a>
TRIP executive director Will Wilkins outlines the unseen costs of San Diego\u2019s worn roads.
(Photo by Dave Schwab)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u201cThe main message is fix the highways,\u201d said Will Wilkins, TRIP executive director, who added that inadequate roadway conditions \u201ccost the state\u2019s residents approximately $44 billion a year due to congestion-related delays, higher vehicle operating costs and traffic crashes.\u201d<\/p>\n

Former mayor Jerry Sanders, now the president and CEO of the San Diego Chamber of Commerce, was also present to speak about the importance of improving local roadways.<\/p>\n

\u201cInsufficient and deteriorating transportation systems are a strain on the local economy and this report from TRIP underscores just how much this impacts the San Diego area and our workforce,\u201d said Sanders.<\/p>\n

\u201cOur region has a large population, is a tourist destination, a trade corridor and we generate a tremendous amount of traffic,\u201d noted Laurie Berman, director of Caltrans District 11 which covers San Diego and Imperial counties. \u201cMaintenance of our highway system is an ongoing battle.\u201d<\/p>\n

Wilkins added that according to the latest Federal Highway Administration data, \u201cmore than half of the major urban roads in the San Diego metro area are in poor condition,\u201d which he said results in \u201c37 hours of delay annually for the average motorist.\u201d<\/p>\n

Warning that poor road conditions \u201ccost our workforce and businesses thousands of dollars each year,\u201d Sanders said he and a group of business leaders just returned from Washington, D.C. where they discussed transportation and infrastructure. \u201cInvesting in efficient and safe roadways is a sound investment in the growth and development of the local economy and jobs,\u201d Sanders continued. \u201cIt\u2019s essential that local, state and federal funding be made available to improve the [road] conditions.\u201d<\/p>\n

One out of every 10 miles driven in the U.S. is in California, Berman said. She added the state is pursuing a \u201cfix-it-first policy\u201d with road repairs, noting \u201cevery dollar spent on preventative pavement maintenance saves taxpayers $11 on future pavement repairs.\u201d<\/p>\n

The funding picture must change in order for California to remain proactive in properly maintaining its aging highway system, Berman said.<\/p>\n

\u201cMost of California\u2019s highways are more than half a century old,\u201d she said. \u201cWith declining revenue from gas taxes, California needs a stable source of funding to maintain our transportation infrastructure.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"trip1web\"<\/a>
Laurie Berman of Caltrans calls for proactive care of San Diego\u2019s roadways. \u00a0(Photo by Dave Schwab)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

TRIP is supported by a coalition of manufacturing, insurance, construction, labor and engineering organizations, said Wilkins adding, \u201cWe advocate for greater investment in our surface transportation system.\u201d<\/p>\n

Wilkins said improving California\u2019s transportation infrastructure will require a \u201cbalanced approach making strategic investments in additional roadways, transit and non-motorized access.\u201d<\/p>\n

Wilkins added the efficiency of California\u2019s surface transportation system is also \u201ccritical to the health of the state\u2019s economy.\u201d<\/p>\n

TRIP\u2019s executive director warned that \u201cneeded improvements to the state\u2019s transportation system is seriously threatened by the ongoing lack of adequate federal revenue,\u201d as well as \u201ccontinued uncertainty about the future level of surface transportation funding.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cTo allow California to move forward with many needed transportation projects will require Congress authorizing a well-funded, long-term surface transportation program so that state and local government can rely on continued federal investment in the nation\u2019s transportation system to continue to support future economic growth and the quality of life in the state,\u201d Wilkins concluded.<\/p>\n

To learn more about TRIP and to find the study on San Diego\u2019s roadways, visit tripnet.org<\/a>.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Transit agency warns of unseen costs caused by San Diego roads By Dave Schwab The average San Diego driver loses nearly $1,900 annually as a result of driving on roads that are congested, deteriorated or lack sufficient safety features. That was the distressing news coming out of a Sept. 11 news conference at Caltrans San […]<\/p>","protected":false},"author":726,"featured_media":247816,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"11555","_seopress_titles_title":"Bumpy rides thinning wallets","_seopress_titles_desc":"","_seopress_robots_index":"","jnews-multi-image_gallery":[],"jnews_single_post":[],"jnews_primary_category":[],"jnews_social_meta":[],"jnews_override_counter":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[11547,11551,11555],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-247815","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-features","category-news","category-uptown-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/247815","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/726"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=247815"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/247815\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/247816"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=247815"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=247815"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=247815"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}