SB1 Op Ed 1
Earlier this year, the Legislature passed and the Governor signed Senate Bill 1 (SB1) which will soon begin funding critical projects in XXXX County/City to improve our local streets and roads, bridges, and increase mobility options through walking, biking, and transit infrastructure. I/We are pleased to share with you the full list of projects at this link. But I we also wanted to share a partial list with you here. These are just a few of the projects that we will be working on, soon, thanks to SB1:
- Main street repaving project
- 10th street bridge safety project
- etc
The funds from SB1 essentially double the amount of money dedicated to improving transportation infrastructure in XXX County/City. The list at the link above was compiled as part of the transparency and accountability measures required by SB1. Local governments will track SB 1 dollars and report to the Legislature and public how they are being used to ensure they are improving our existing infrastructure with a focus on the community’s priorities.
SB1 will provide investments to make significant improvements to the State’s highway system throughout California, including several in our region. The full list of state projects can be found here (
For us locally, SB1 will provide more than $XXX Million in local construction in (list of cities) and the unincorporated areas of XXXX County. This means we will start making some real progress on the backlog of deferred maintenance and other improvements that have been waiting far too long because we didn’t have a steady stream of funding needed to get the job done.
Our staffs at the city and county level have done good work so far, compiling the list, prioritizing projects, and laying the groundwork to begin construction soon. As elected officials, we are pledging to you, our constituents, that we will provide the oversight and direction to ensure these new funds are spent efficiently and as intended, improving the local transportation infrastructure.
The average motorist pays more than $750 a year in added repair costs for their vehicle, just because of the poor condition of our roads.Improving our roads and bridges will make them safer for drivers, pedestrians and cyclists, and, in the long run, could even reduce the overall cost of driving. This was the right idea at the right time to foster improvements to our state and local transportation network. We can’t wait to see the construction begin, putting people to work to improve the roads we use every day!
SB1 Op Ed 2
The economy in our region has been growing for several years now, but for many people, jobs and wages have not kept pace. That’s one of the reasons we are pleased that our local governments are planning now for the construction projects in our region that will break ground soon thanks to new funding provided by SB1. The bill passed earlier this year by the state legislature and signed by the Governor will soon begin helping to fix and maintain our local streets, roads and bridges. The full list of projects, available at this link, includes many that are long overdue, including:
- (list 3-4 projects)
- Project
- Project
Thefull list has been compiled as part of the transparency and accountability requirements that are part of SB1. We are happy to comply with those requirements, to ensure the funds from SB1 are being spent as intended, fixing our local streets and roads, improving bridges and making it safer for drivers, pedestrians, and cyclists to get where they need to go in our region.
There is also a State component to SB1. Cal-Trans has a list of projects they will be pursuing to improve the highways and state roads that link our region to the rest of the state. Better, safer roads and bridges were the main reasons for SB1, but you can’t ignore the impact it will have on our economy. Including state and local projects, more than $XXXX will be spent in our region from SB1. The work will create jobs, help keep the local economic engine turning and improve our transportation system.
And we can sure use the improvements. The average driver already pays more than $60 a month more to fix their car, just due to poor road conditions. That’s about $750a year. As we begin to improve road conditions in our region, that additional maintenance cost should come down.
SB1 is an equitable solution to the rising cost of fixing our streets, roads, bridges and highways. Nobody likes potholes, rusting bridges, and unsafe intersections. We were pleased to support SB1 when it was still working its way through the Legislature. We are still supportive now, as we get ready to put the new funds to use.This will help pay for road maintenance and other repairs our region has needed for a longtime.
SB1 OpEd 3
As local elected officials, the most important thing we can do is try to ensure the safety and well-being of the citizens we represent. Sometimes that means supporting law enforcement and other first responders. But today we are writing about making our local streets, roads, and bridges safer and more efficient for drivers, pedestrians and cyclists.
Passed by the Legislature and signed by the Governor earlier this year, SB1 will soon begin providing $XXXX a year in funding to improve the local transportation infrastructure in XXXX City/County. From fixing potholes to making sure our bridges are safe, SB1 will allow us to start catching up on a significant backlog of deferred maintenance.
There is a State component to SB1, too. CalTrans also has a list of projects for the state highways we all rely on. Including state and local funding, SB1 will provide more than $XXXX to XXXX county just in 2018. The State and each local jurisdiction compiled lists of projects and prioritized them. (Links to lists) We should soon see construction beginning on these projects, and the end result will be safer, smoother highways, roads and bridges for all of us.
The project lists are an important component of SB1. Local governments up and down the state are compiling these lists as part of the transparency and reporting requirements in the law. They were included to ensure that the new revenue is spent on transportation projects—not diverted to some other use. As your local elected officials, part of our job is to ensure that is the case, and we are pledging to you that this new revenue will be spent as required by the law.
There are some real economic benefits to SB1, too. Drivers in California pay an average of $750 a year more in car repairs because of potholes and other hazardous road conditions. That’s over $60 a month. As we begin completing SB1 improvement projects, that additional cost should come down. And the construction projects will mean more jobs and economic activity in our region, too.
In short, SB1 means better, safer roads, reduced car repair bills, and much-needed jobs and economic activity for our region and the state. That seems like a good idea to us.