Jane Parker on Transportation

Jane Parker is a leader who brings a proactive focus to planning and a collaborative, pragmatic approach to problem solving. Her service on county-wide boards and as a senior executive at nonprofit organizations gives her the expertise and perspective we need to make smart budget decisions and make Monterey County strong today, tomorrow, and well into the future.

Our roads are in trouble. Traffic service levels, mandated by the existing General Plan to be at “C” or better, have been at levels “D” and “F” in key areas of the county for several years. Further, the Transportation Agency for Monterey County (TAMC), the multi-jurisdictional agency charged with regional transportation planning, coordination and implementation, projects a $1.5 BILLION shortfall for road improvement and maintenance over the next 20 years. This is of particular concern in a county that relies on the efficient transportation of agricultural produce and tourists for its economic vitality.

The Challenges: We have arrived at this situation, in substantial part, through poor land-use planning. Large residential developments and the cumulative impacts of many smaller developments in the unincorporated area, often far away from jobs, shopping and services have put tremendous strains on our transportation systems. At the same time, state and federal funding cut-backs have made financing transportation, both new capital investments and maintenance more difficult. In addition, inadequate development impact fees have exacerbated the problem.

TAMC is proposing a regional development fee and a sales tax measure to help address the shortfall. The regional development fee is greatly needed and long over due. The case for the sales tax to leverage State and Federal matching funds is also compelling, but it is important that the ballot measure identifies the right set of projects to ensure that they are not growth-inducing and reflect the priorities that will address what is in the best interest of the entire community.

My Approach: I believe the Board of Supervisors must work with TAMC to:

• Ensure that a responsible County General Plan and a Regional Development Impact Fee are both established before the voters are asked to tax themselves.
• Prioritize new road projects to be funded by the sales tax by their impact on safety.
• Focus on more efficient and environmentally friendly transportation options such as bus rapid transit to connect workers to their jobs.
• Ensure a high priority for maintenance and repair of existing roads, and shift remaining transportation resources to create light rail and bus services.
• Once a sales tax is passed, establish a mechanism for the agricultural industry to contribute a greater share to regional impacts to transportation.
• Re-establish regular city-county meetings to ensure planning-oriented communication between jurisdictions to reach regional agreements.
• Explore and implement innovative approaches to transportation. These might include establishing agricultural support zoning within cities, establishing agriculture corridors on highways, establishing a wine train for tourists in the Salinas Valley, establishing bus service for agricultural workers, purchasing rights of way for rail and trolley transport and hiking or biking trails, and creating transportation hubs where travelers and commuters can transfer from one transportation mode to another.

Our transportation challenges are significant, but with strong leadership they are not insurmountable. As a Supervisor, I will provide that leadership.