House expected to pass bill with $9 million for SLO County — including Hwy. 1 bike path
A landmark infrastructure plan expected to pass the U.S. House of Representatives this week contains $20 million for three transportation projects in San Luis Obispo and Santa Barbara counties — including a long-stalled bike path connecting Morro Bay and Cayucos.
Central Coast Congressman Salud Carbajal’s Office said in a news release Monday that the direct funding for the local priority projects was secured within the Invest in America Act, a component of the Biden administration’s American Jobs Plan.
If passed, the $20 million from the Invest in America Act would fund three major projects on the Central Coast.
A total of $11 million would go to the Santa Barbara County Association of Governments to fund the Highway 101 Multimodal Corridor Project. That funding would be used for improvements to Highway 101 between Santa Barbara and Montecito and enhancements to adjacent local streets, including the Cabrillo Boulevard Bicycle and Pedestrian Improvement Project.
In addition, $5 million would go to the San Luis Obispo Regional Transit Authority for the purchase of 11 battery-electric buses to replace diesel-powered buses in San Luis Obispo.
And $4 million would go to the San Luis Obispo County Council of Governments to build a non-motorized multi-use path along Highway 1, connecting the communities of Morro Bay and Cayucos.
The path along Highway 1 has been in the works for more than a decade.
County planners proposed the path in 2010. The project at the time called for two and a half miles of bike and pedestrian paths from Cloisters Park in Morro Bay to the site of the then-planned Norma Rose Dog Park in Cayucos.
The project at the time was to consist of existing roads within Morro Bay and Cayucos as well as a new path solely for cyclists and hikers that would connect the two communities, running from Yerba Buena Street in Morro Bay to Studio Drive in Cayucos.
But funding has long stalled the project.
According to his office, Carbajal also successfully fought to include his Small Transit Communities Modernization Act in the package.
The bill will directly benefit the Santa Barbara Metropolitan Transit District by establishing a 3-year phase out, as opposed to a hard stop, in critical funding to help the transit district prepare for the future, according to a news release.
“I am proud to have secured vital resources to improve quality of life for every resident on the Central Coast, including funding for three key local infrastructure projects that were included in the bill,” Carbajal said in a news release. “In addition to these direct funds, several pieces of legislation I authored to protect public safety, support local infrastructure projects, and preserve transit options, have been included.”
Pete Rodgers, executive director of the San Luis Obispo County Council of Governments, praised the local allocations, namely the replacement of diesel buses, in a news release June 10.
“The Invest in America Act is forward thinking and provides financial resources to ensure this region’s mobility choices meet the needs of the next generation of travelers,” Rodgers said. “Replacing conventional public transit coaches with zero-emission buses will put San Luis Obispo County on the map as a leader in innovative clean transit solutions.”
Carbajal was scheduled to join U.S. Reps. Ted Lieu (D-Santa Monica) and other Democratic lawmakers for a Zoom press conference Tuesday night to promote the Invest in America Act.
The bill passed out of committee June 10 and is expected to pass in a vote on the House floor this week.
Democrats say the plan will create well-paying jobs rebuilding roads, bridges, transit, rail and wastewater and drinking water infrastructure.
Carbajal, a three-term California congressman, won re-election in 2020. He represents California’s 24th congressional district, which encompasses San Luis Obispo and Santa Barbara counties as well as part of northern Ventura County.
This story was originally published June 29, 2021 at 2:29 PM.
