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Santa Barbara County, CA November 4, 2008 Election
Smart Voter

Transportation

By Margaret Connell

Candidate for Council Member; City of Goleta

This information is provided by the candidate
Addressing Traffic Congestion, and reducing the number of people driving alone
The cost of gas is leading many commuters to seek alternatives to driving alone. While the proposed addition of a lane between Santa Barbara and the Rincon is necessary, adding more and more lanes to the freeway is not the answer to traffic congestion. Santa Barbara County Area Government (SBCAG) is sponsoring many alternatives to driving alone, including a website: trafficsolutions.info, which helps people find others in their neighborhoods that want to car pool. Commuter buses from North County and Ventura take many cars off the road and ridership is increasing. If a commuter train schedule can be arranged, that would take care of even more commuters from the south. Flextime and telecommuting are all part of the solution along with employer-sponsored vans. I support all these initiatives. They are mostly funded through SBCAG through Measure D, the half-cent sales tax. I support Measure A, on the November ballot, to continue these programs.

Keeping roads and intersections pedestrian and bicycle friendly is an important goal. We need to resist pressure ever to widen intersections. The General Plan includes two overpasses without freeway connections that would greatly alleviate traffic at some of the more impacted intersections on Goleta. There is $7 million included in Measure A for this purpose, but it is not sufficient. Further funding will have to be found from other sources - state or federal funds or perhaps a local bond issue.

Additionally, new housing built close to work sites, shopping and transportation corridors, as proposed along the Hollister corridor, will enable more people to get out of their cars and walk, bike, or take the bus.

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