For our March dinner meeting we were fortunate to be joined by the North Region members of the Calmentor program. Calmentor is a program supported by Caltrans’ Division of Engineering Services in partnership with ACEC to promote small business contracting with the State of California. (Use the following link for more program info: http://www.dot.ca.gov/hq/esc/calmentor_program/index.htm)
Our program consisted of a distinguished panel of guests discussing the defeat of Prop 6 (intended to repeal Senate Bill 1, the Road Repair and Accountability Act of 2017), the current status of projects and future projects planned for SB1 funding. The panelists included:
- Andy Alvarado, Division Chief, Caltrans North Region Construction
- Mark Lonergan, Chief Operating Officer, Regional Transit
- Luke McNeel-Caird, Deputy Executive Director, Placer County Transportation Planning Agency
- Lucinda Willcox, Program Manager, City of Sacramento, Department of Public Works.
The moderators were:
- Brad Diede, Executive Director, ACEC-CA
- Mark Rayback, Vice President, Wood Rodgers
Each panelist gave a short presentation and then fielded questions presented by our moderators as well as the ACEC and Calmentor members in attendance. Some highlights from the presentations were:
Approximately $54B in transportation improvements will be constructed over the next 10 years. About 50% of these will be Caltrans projects and ~50% will be local agency projects.
By 2027, Caltrans will repair or replace: 17,000 miles of pavement; 55,000 culverts or drains; 7,700 signals, signs and sensors; and 500 bridges.
Regional Transit (RT) will be using SB1 funding to replace its fleet of 220 buses and start the transition to zero emission vehicles. RT will also be acquiring low floor trains to increase accessibility.
The zero emission vehicles and low floor trains will require RT to upgrade its infrastructure to add charging stations and improve its existing 50+ light rail stations.
Other RT planning projects include: possible light rail extensions to Elk Grove, Sacramento International Airport and West Sacramento; Micro Transit Service; Outreach initiatives
Placer County Transportation Planning Agency (PCTPA) will be ramping up efforts to increase the number of round trips served by the Capitol Corridor rail line currently operating between Auburn and Downtown Sacramento.
PCTPA is also working on:
- Coordination of the Regional Bike Trail System between Placer and Sacramento Counties
- Completion of the Highway 49 Sidewalk Gap Closure Project
- Phase 1 of I-80/SR 65 Interchange and widening of SR 65
- Potential creation of a South Placer Transportation Sales Tax District
Ms. Willcox reminded us that the City of Sacramento (City), while not growing outward much, is over 175 years old and has a significant amount of infrastructure in continual need of maintenance and repair.
The City’s “Transportation Trends and Priorities” are:
- Scarcity of funding
- Safety
- Disruptive technology
- TNCs, AVs, EVs, Micro-transit, Shared rideables
- Greenhouse gas reductions
- Accommodate infill and redevelopment
- Incorporate other means of travel
- Rethink transportation priorities
City initiatives and projects include:
- Vision Zero
- Philosophy that all traffic accidents are preventable incidents
- High Injury Network (HIN) identified where 79% of all crashes occur on just 14% of Sacramento roadways
- Identify improvements along the Top 5 Corridors and 20 schools along the HIN that can be implemented quickly
- Complete Streets projects
- Future Major Projects: I Street Bridge Replacement; Richards/I-5 Interchange reconstruction; New 14th Avenue Extension
If you would like the link to view the panelists PowerPoint presentations, please contact Debbie LoCicero at:
