Time For Toll Road Opponents to Face Facts and Not Use Fuzzy Math

By State Assemblyman Mike Duvall (R-Yorba Linda)

On Monday, the United States Secretary of Commerce will hear an appeal regarding the proposed completion of SR-241 from Rancho Santa Margarita to the I-5 South of San Clemente.  Opponents of the toll road have been vocal, but rarely accurate in their arguments.  Their questionable theories have been used to assert that the toll road isn't needed, isn't supported by the public, and isn't in their image of the local surf spot.   Their arguments simply cannot and do not withstand the overwhelming evidence to the contrary.

According to the 2007 Urban Mobility Report produced by the Texas Transportation Institute, commuters currently waste up to $174 million a year in lost time and increased fuel costs because of growing congestion on the I-5.  The report further states that reducing congestion will have a positive impact on annual fuel costs for motorists and improved productivity, with less time spent commuting and individual commuters being able to save from $500 to $1,000 in fuel costs each year. In addition, even small changes in commuting speeds will result in reduced carbon dioxide emissions, volatile organic compounds, and particulates.

Aside from the traffic mitigation, several studies have found that claims made by the toll road opponents that the SR-241 completion will affect the surf and watershed are chock full of inaccuracies. According to a leading researcher at the Scripps Institute of Oceanography, the SR-241 completion will have no impact on surfing conditions.  This finding parallels recent conclusions drawn by a San Diego State University Civil and Environmental Engineering professor that the toll road has no impact on the surf. What's more, the claims of major watershed erosion have also been nullified by an independent peer review of the proposed plan.  Extensive mitigation and planning by the TCA will ensure there is limited - if any - change in the flow of sediment after the toll road is completed by controlling runoff from the surface of the road and preventing increased erosion.

While there is vocal opposition, a majority of Orange County residents support the toll road.  According to a survey by the opponents of the SR-241 completion, only 36% of those surveyed opposed the proposal.  What's more, the San Diego Union-Tribune, the Orange County Register, and the Long Beach Press Telegram have all endorsed the toll road completion. 

As a former member of the Transportation Corridor Agency (TCA) and the Orange County Transportation Authority and the current Vice Chairman of the California State Assembly Transportation Committee, I know first-hand the painstaking review process before a road site is selected. TCA has not taken this process lightly.  They have spent years reviewing the terrain, the potential impact on existing homes, the best location for mitigating traffic, and the impact on wildlife before selecting this route.  TCA has conducted study, after study, after study to ensure that sound science guides their process.  After reviewing all of the facts, there is only one solution - we must complete SR-241.