Carmel Valley to Solana Beach & Hwy 56 corridor bus line considered for region's wish list
You probably won't see a rapid bus line along the Highway 56 corridor overnight.
But on Friday, plans for a $70 million line connecting Sabre Springs with Solana Beach inched forward, gaining a recommendation from a regional transportation committee.
The catch is, the bus line was recommended for addition only to the region's unfunded transportation plan or "wish list."
An article in the North County Times on Thursday incorrectly reported that the bus line was to be considered for inclusion in the 2050 Regional Transportation Plan, a nearly $200 billion plan transportation officials not only want but say there is money for.
Jerome Stocks, chairman of the San Diego Association of Governments, the agency that plans the region's transportation projects, said Friday's endorsement of the bus line is still significant.
SANDAG's board of directors will decide later whether the bus line should actually join the wish list.
"If it's not on the wish list, then it doesn't exist (for future consideration). That's why it's important to be on the list," Stocks explained after SANDAG's Transportation Committee met in downtown San Diego.
Also on Friday, the committee endorsed a proposal to speed up by three years plans to connect car-pool lanes from Interstate 15 to Highway 78 in Escondido. That decision, if approved by the board, would become part of the funded transportation plan.
Car-pool lanes, or possibly toll lanes, are planned down the middle of Highway 78 from Oceanside to Escondido by 2020. Car-pool lanes are nearly complete along I-15 from Escondido to Miramar.
The 2050 RTP is in line for a final board vote on Oct. 28.
