Traffic Management

By Al Vargas

Every weekday, nearly half of El Dorado Co residents migrate down the hill to their jobs. With the growth that has taken place and the explosive growth that is coming, no single factor has the potential to degrade the quality of life for El Dorado Co. residents that traffic congestion. The key to managing traffic congestion is transportation planning through mass transit. I offer a plan of short, near, and long-term measures

My vision for an efficient mass transit system involves short and long-term actions:

SHORT-TERM ACTIONS

• Collect adequate traffic impact fees to pay for infrastructure to accommodate new residents.
• Reduce bus fares by providing fair share of the sales tax revenues to the commuter service.
• Tap into County capital improvement funds to purchase new buses and subsidize service.
• Improve commuter bus service by expanding parking at Park and Rides, providing for punctual bus service, and expanding service to downtown Sac and high employment areas in Sac.

With gasoline prices at the current level and which are predicted to remain at this level, creates an opportunity to expand the commuter bus service system. This requires that bus service be expanded beyond downtown Sacramento to other high density employment areas in Sacramento. It also requires that the bus service be efficient and reasonably priced.

There are two sources of revenues for bus service in El Dorado Co, fares and a share of the sales tax revenues. Most services in El Dorado Co. such as the in-county bus routes, the Dial a Ride, etc. only contribute 5 to 7% of their revenues from fares. The Sacramento commuter service contributes 66%. The current transit board raised fares to match the highest fares in the region, which was Folsom at the time. The Folsom commuter service no longer exists leaving El Dorado Transit as the highest fares in the region. El Dorado Transit monthly commuter pass is $144. Compare that with Roseville and Yolo which are $55 and $60, respectively.

NEAR AND LONG-TERM

• Work on a regional basis to obtain infrastructure bond funding for light rail service to Bidwell and Highway 50 and to add a third rail for express service.
• Work on a regional basis to bring a heavier rail system and integrate it with the light rail system.

Invested dollar for dollar, a rail system is more cost-effective at transporting commuters than highway lanes. We only need to look to other areas that have relied primarily on highways to see were that has gotten them (Los Angeles, Houston, etc.).