SCAG APPROVES 2002 DRAFT REGIONAL TRANSPORTATION IMPROVEMENT PROGRAM

Southern California Assocation of Governments approve the Regional Transportation Improvement Program after 30 days of public comment.

SCAG APPROVES 2002 DRAFT REGIONAL TRANSPORTATION IMPROVEMENT PROGRAM

   LOS ANGELES, CA. -- The Southern California Association of Governments (SCAG) approved the 2002 Regional Transportation Improvement Program (RTIP) after a 30-day period of public review and comment. The RTIP is the the blueprint for all major transportation projects in the six-county Southern California region.

The 2002 RTIP calls for spending approximately $24.7 billion on transportation projects within the next six fiscal years (2002/03 -- 2007/08). It includes thousands of transportation projects, including highway and road improvements, rail and bus facilities, high occupancy vehicles (HOV) lanes, signal synchronization, intersection improvements, and other key projects throughout Southern California.

In developing the 2002 RTIP, SCAG worked closely with the county transportation commissions (i.e., Los Angeles Metropolitan Transportation Authority, Orange County Transportation Authority, Riverside County Transportation Commission, San Bernardino Associated Governments, etc.) and other government agencies.

The county transportation commissions propose projects for their respective counties and then forward their list of projects to SCAG. SCAG accumulates the projects a single regional program, which is then analyzed to ensure it conforms to state and federal requirements, including air quality standards.

Among the major transportation priorities included in the 2002 RTIP are:
Los Angeles County:   Light rail system on the Eastside Transit corridor; Rapid bus on the mid-city/Wilshire and San Fernando Valley East-West transit corridor; bus and rail preventive maintenance.

Orange County:    New mixed flow and HOV lanes on I-5 Freeway; HOV lanes on State Route (SR) 22 Freeway; Crown Valley widening; improvements at I-5 Freeway Camino Capistrano choke point

Ventura County:   SR-101 Freeway extension on existing auxiliary lanes in both directions between the Ventura County line and
Hampshire Road; SR-23 Freeway widening from four to six lanes in Thousand Oaks and Moorpark from Highway 118 to Highway 101; improvements to SR-23/101 freeway interchange

Riverside County:   New Metrolink station at North Main in Corona; HOV lanes on the SR-60 Freeway; new interchange on the SR-91 Freeway at Green River

San Bernardino County:    New HOV lanes on the I-215, I-210, and SR-30 Freeways; widening of the I-15 Freeway; development of a new east/west high desert expressway from the I-15 to the Los Angeles County line

Imperial County:   Development of 4-Lane Expressways near Calexico from SR-98 to SR-8 Freeways, near El Centro from Ross Road to SR-78 and in and near Brawley from Baughman to Mead Road

During the past three decades, SCAG has evolved into the largest regional planning organization in the United States, functioning as the Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) for six counties: Imperial, Los Angeles, Orange, San Bernardino, Riverside and Ventura. The Southern California region encompasses a population exceeding 16 million people in an area of more than 38,000 square miles. As the designated MPO, SCAG is mandated by the federal government to research and develop plans for transportation, growth management, hazardous waste management, water resources, and air quality.

For more information about the work of the Southern California Association of Governments, visit the SCAG website at www.scag.ca.gov or contact George McQuade 323-314-0306.

               # # #