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TRIP funds might only provide a short ride
Thomas' 'gift,' city's match not nearly enough for all projects
| Saturday, Mar 3 2007 8:35 PM
Last Updated: Saturday, Mar 3 2007 8:40 PM
Former Congressman Bill Thomas' final pork-barrel gift to his hometown has been hailed as transportation salvation for Bakersfield.
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It is a pale hope.
Bakersfield is slated to get $630 million in freeway money that Thomas slipped into a 2005 federal funding bill.
It is supposed to help widen Rosedale Highway, fund a freeway loop around downtown Bakersfield, build an expressway along 7th Standard Road, construct a freeway extension for Highway 178, improve 24th Street and build a north-south freeway along Bakersfield's west side.
In 2005, in an agreement with Caltrans, the city of Bakersfield committed itself to finish that list of work by 2012. Now, a year and a half later, city officials acknowledge they won't be able to meet that aggressive timeline.
"It's still our intent to start all projects by 2012," said Raul Rojas, the city's public works director. But he acknowledges the original intent was to finish the work by 2012.
Rojas said starting the projects is the toughest part of completing them.
The Thomas money was never intended to pay the full cost of the projects. But the city was responsible for finding the rest of the funds.
Sky-rocketing construction costs are expected to shrink the amount of progress the Thomas Road Improvement Program can make.
Bakersfield's transportation needs are estimated at $2 billion over the next 20 years.
The city and the county of Kern have saved $42.5 million out of traffic impact fees raised during the past 15 years. They need about $60 million more just to pay the required city "match" for the Thomas money.
And that doesn't account for the $120 million shortfall in funding for the Westside Parkway -- which can't be funded by TRIP money.
Traffic impact fees have jumped from $1,179 a home to $6,826 a home in the last 15 years.
That higher fee isn't expected to contribute more than $396 million to the city's $2 billion in the next 20 years, unless the fee is increased.
The state, logically, would be another source of freeway funds.
But other than some bond money, the state hasn't given Kern County road construction money since 2000.
And KernCOG Executive Director Ron Brummett said it isn't certain that Kern County will get much money -- if any -- in the future.
Brummett said the city's ability to fund road projects is inadequate.
"We're probably at 40 or 45 percent of (the money) we need to fund (road) capacity for the next 20 years," he said.
Small increases in traffic impact fees won't make a difference.
A half-cent sales tax to support transportation would have brought in $484 million to Bakersfield over 20 years. That would've only helped. But Measure I -- backed by $711,000 in developer cash -- failed by a 10 percent margin.
Thomas said the city must develop a plan to address the problems.
When you add up all the numbers the math gets very bleak.
Bakersfield will need to build at least $2 billion in new freeways and expressways in the next 20 years.
But we can only count on bringing in $1.2 billion in funding.