The last blog shared information about transportation issues facing our nation. However, we didn’t really delve into how funding decisions made by state and federal agencies affect our local transportation projects. There are big impacts, since local projects are predominantly funded from those larger “pots” of money.

A large portion of the funds for transportation projects comes from the federal government. The feds distribute those funds to state Departments of Transportation, which in turn disburse funds to local jurisdictions. That means individual States have a big say in which projects are funded and completed using federal money.

And that can lead to competition between state and local projects. Both states and local jurisdictions have their own transportation programs and both have claims to federal funds. But because there is never enough money to fund all of the projects that are planned, there are times when local projects don’t receive full funding. It is times like these, when money is tight at all levels, when local projects may suffer because State projects take precedence.

The Connector is in an interesting situation in terms of all of these funding decisions because it doesn’t really fall into a formal project “category.” As a large local capital project, it’s somewhat of an anomaly. There may be local projects that are a fraction of the size of the Connector, and state projects that are comparable in size, but there are almost no similar 35-mile local facilities.

Many large capital projects like the Connector are state projects that have a built-in force behind them, funding them and moving them forward. Because the Connector is a local project, it doesn’t have the high level of visibility that a state project would have with those making State funding decisions. That’s fine to a certain extent, since the majority of the initial project funding comes from local taxes, but presents challenges when we have to battle it out for higher-level funding. It means we have to be more creative to find the funding to complete the project—and that can be a very important challenge.

]]> http://connectorjpa.net/2009/07/local-impacts-of-state-and-federal-funding-decisions/feed/ 0 http://connectorjpa.net/2009/05/how-the-connector-will-benefit-goods-movement/ http://connectorjpa.net/2009/05/how-the-connector-will-benefit-goods-movement/#comments Wed, 27 May 2009 16:58:37 +0000 tomthedirector http://tomthedirector.wordpress.com/?p=71 ]]>

One of my recent entries focused on personal movement. This time, I’d like to share information about how the Connector can provide another form of freedom: goods movement.

Our society practically dictates a high standard of living. People want the best of everything, but they also want a bargain. There are many ways companies can provide us with goods at reasonable prices—use “lean” manufacturing, reduce advertising costs, and use efficient transportation to get goods into our hands.

Goods are frequently moved using trucks and large freight haulers, as one way to meet our expectations for availability of those goods at an affordable price. Once purchased from a store, we generally transport those goods in our cars. It’s difficult to go grocery shopping and then ride a bicycle with your bags. It would be nearly impossible to buy a refrigerator and take it on a bus or light rail. There will be trips where we head to the bakery on our bike to pick up a loaf of bread or attend special events using public transit, but we still rely on our cars (and the trucks and freight haulers) to regularly move the goods we need for our daily lives.

South Sacramento County currently has no facility to efficiently move goods from manufacturing to distribution to storefront. Sure, there are existing highways, arterial roads and neighborhood roads…but that means some truck traffic is mixing with school buses and local trips on roads that weren’t meant for that level of traffic.

The Connector will provide a needed link to make goods movement more efficient and (hopefully) cost-effective. By offering another option for local car travel, it will reduce congestion on freeways and improve the efficiency of truck-based transportation. The Connector will also allow people another option when purchasing something at the outlets in Folsom and driving home to Rancho Cordova, or reduce the delivery cost of an appliance or home accessory purchased in El Dorado Hills and delivered to Elk Grove. Regional movement of goods should be improved overall, and that benefits everyone.

The weather is heating up and so are we! The Connector team, which includes me, our engineering team, environmental team and public outreach team, has been getting out of the office and talking with various business and community groups over the past couple of months. We want to share information and answer questions so everyone who is interested in the project can participate in the process.

For instance, we’re hosting a series of community workshops in both the Sheldon/Wilton and El Dorado Hills communities. Our first meetings were held in April and May at the Katherine L. Albiani Middle School in Elk Grove and the Rolling Hills Middle School in El Dorado Hills. Meeting attendees were asked to think about two question topics and then participate in a group discussion:

- What do you like about your community today? What do you want to see preserved in your community?
- In general, how do you prefer to see the accommodation of regional growth, local growth and travel demand addressed in your community (e.g. expanding existing corridors, creating new corridors, enhancing alternatives modes, etc.)?

We compiled lists of the responses and posted them on the Connector web site (www.connectorjpa.net). Responses ranged from preserving quiet and preserving a rural quality of life to encouraging transit options and separating local traffic from through traffic. We’ve held a second meeting for Sheldon/Wilton and have the second El Dorado Hills meeting scheduled in June. Check the calendar on the web site for more details.

We’ve also presented to the Leadership Groups at both the Elk Grove and Rancho Cordova Chambers of Commerce; to Bicycle Advocates of Rancho Cordova; to the Lincoln Village Neighborhood Association; to regional business leaders; and to large landowners in Rancho Cordova and El Dorado Hills. And we participated in the Fab 50 showcase event to share information with the business community located along the Highway 50 Corridor.

Thanks to everyone who has and who will participate in the Connector process. We’ll be out in the community more this summer and fall, with more opportunities for people to provide input into the process through scoping meetings. Contact us at info@connectorjpa.net if you’re interested in a presentation for your group. ]]> http://connectorjpa.net/2009/05/the-connector-in-the-community/feed/ 0 http://connectorjpa.net/2009/04/the-challenges-and-opportunities-of-the-connector/ http://connectorjpa.net/2009/04/the-challenges-and-opportunities-of-the-connector/#comments Wed, 01 Apr 2009 21:58:10 +0000 admin http://connectorjpa.net/?p=609 Any large infrastructure project like the Connector presents both challenges and opportunities. One of the keys to a successful project is determining how to address the challenges and make the most of the opportunities.

Sometimes bringing the challenges and opportunities together is just a matter of using some imagination. On the Watt Avenue Improvement Project I led for the Sacramento County Department of Transportation, bike paths presented a challenge. Instead of trying to constrain the paths to fit the design, we thought about what the paths could be. Because of that extra effort and imagination, the paths became one of the most prominent and best features of the redesigned bridge.

The Connector presents a unique set of challenges and an exciting set of opportunities. It’s no easy task to bring together five jurisdictions, each with their own vision of the project, and come to a consensus on what’s best for everyone. We may find that there is no solution that meets the specific needs of each of those entities, which means we need to look at the greater good of the community.

The opportunity that comes with this challenge is that we can show how we as a region can join together and make the project, which is a concept at this point, a reality. I am occasionally teased for saying this, but I firmly believe the Connector is more than a transportation project – it can change the face of Sacramento and change the way people view Sacramento. We can make the Connector a signature project for our region. It won’t be as iconic as the Gateway Arch in St. Louis or the Golden Gate Bridge, but we may be able to say we did something that hadn’t been done before: we built a roadway project that is broadly recognized as a milestone, a real asset to mobility of the area, and a demonstration of our regional community’s ability to come together and serve a common purpose.

More to come in future entries.