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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Thursday, May 18, 2017
Contact: Jeff Corless 714.676.8878
Official Statement from F/ETCA Chairman Ed Sachs Regarding San Clemente City Council’s Pending Action to Create Non-Technical View Simulations of Conceptual Traffic Relief Ideas
[Irvine, CA] – THURSDAY AFTERNOON – Foothill Eastern Transportation Corridor Agency Board Chairman Ed Sachs issued the following statement regarding the San Clemente City Council’s consideration of hiring consultants to draw visual simulations of traffic relief solution concepts proposed by the public prior to technical study. On Tuesday, May 16, 2017, Item 9A entitled “Professional Services Agreement Task Order to Develop Visual Simulations of Potential Toll Road Alignments” was placed on the San Clemente City Council Meeting Agenda. Item 9A proposed allotting $27,500 towards hiring three consultants to create visual simulations of two toll road alignments concepts with no technical information.
“The City of San Clemente prematurely opposed many of the public’s traffic relief solution ideas before formal study has even begun. Now, in a peculiar move the San Clemente City Council is considering hastily spending taxpayer money on consultants for developing visuals of road concepts that haven’t even been designed yet. South Orange County residents should be suspect of the San Clemente Council’s motives and lack of objectivity in their proposed make-believe visuals.” – Hon. Ed Sachs, Foothill/Eastern Transportation Corridor Agency Board Chairman
In 2015, a community ascertainment study identified high levels of agreement amongst stakeholders in the South Orange County region that there is a worsening traffic problem they expect their elected officials to fix.
Stakeholders broadly agree: 1) There is excessive north and south bound I-5 traffic during the morning and evening commute times, on weekends, and whenever there is an accident or incident that impacts the I-5 freeway; 2) Severe congestion is impacting quality of life for South Orange County families, residents, business owners, and commuters, and; 3) They expect their elected officials to facilitate a fair, transparent and inclusive outreach process for solving this worsening traffic problem.
In response to those concerns, transportation leaders facilitated in-person forums and online outreach to solicit solution ideas from the public in coordination with the region’s local elected officials, cities, County of Orange, Orange County Transportation Authority, and Caltrans. Through this outreach, eighteen (18) conceptual ideas have been proposed by the public through the public forums and online. These ideas will be analyzed through the legally required technical environmental review processes.
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