The push to extend the state Route 241 toll road 17 miles from inland Orange County to Interstate 5 in north San Diego County is imperiled by a relentlessly misleading campaign by Trestles Beach surfers and their environmental allies. But the roadway got some crucial help this week when Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger ended his silence and urged the California Coastal Commission to approve the extension.
Schwarzenegger didn't just make the standard argument for the project: that it is crucial to reducing the gridlock on I-5 in south Orange County, which is used by 130,000-plus motorists a day. He touted it on environmental grounds, saying the resulting reduction in traffic congestion between San Diego County and Los Angeles, Orange County and the Inland Empire would curb air pollution.
The governor, who personally checked out the extension route, also said the project fit with his vision of a greatly improved state infrastructure, helping “to keep California strong and prosperous.” This is a crucial point. Gridlock isn't just a commuter nightmare. It's an economic drag.
Schwarzenegger also praised the project's backer – the Transportation Corridor Agencies – for promising $100 million in mitigation work, including improvements to San Onofre State Beach park that the cash-strapped state can't afford.
We think the governor makes a powerful case and hope he sways the Coastal Commission when it considers the project at its Feb. 6 meeting in Oceanside.
Unfortunately, the commission staff – living up to its militant-green reputation – opposes the project. Other more impartial agencies concluded that the promised mitigation would sharply reduce risks to the environment and endangered species, and that there would be no effect on the surf at Trestles.
But, then, honesty has never been a priority for opponents. They have strived to create the impression the road extension would actually bisect the beach at San Onofre instead of coming no closer than the present freeway. They also argue that extending the 241 from Rancho Santa Margarita to the Basilone Road exit of I-5 would trigger disastrous growth in southeastern Orange County.
The truth is that growth is inevitable and already under way, thanks to the availability of large parcels of undeveloped land.
Blocking the toll-road extension wouldn't block this development. It would just hurt the quality of life of those who live there or those who could benefit from a more direct Inland Empire-San Diego link or from reduced traffic on much of the Orange County portion of I-5 and on the state Route 91 and state Route 55 freeways, which link Riverside County to I-5.
In other words, millions of people would benefit from the toll-road extension. The beneficiaries if the extension is blocked: a few hundred Trestles surfers who like the status quo because it keeps their out-of-the-way surf spot remote and insular. This should not be a difficult decision for the Coastal Commission. In a rational world, it wouldn't be.
