Traffic moves on Highway 50 in West Sacramento during the official opening of the landmark Sycamore Trail pedestrian and cyclist overpass on Thursday, May 29.
HECTOR AMEZCUA
hamezcua@sacbee.com
The city of West Sacramento could loan $14 million to a tolling authority as formal plans for expanding lanes across the Sacramento region begin to take shape.
The Capital Area Regional Tolling Authority is a joint powers authority between the Sacramento Area Council of Governments, the Yolo Transportation District and Caltrans. The agencies together are responsible for constructing a new toll road from Davis to West Sacramento.
Revenue from drivers will begin flowing to the tolling authority in 2028, according to a West Sacramento staff report scheduled to be heard at Wednesday’s City Council meeting.
But before receiving this money, the tolling authority needs to gather start-up funds to hire an executive director and consultants; establish a toll system and a customer service center; and conduct an outreach campaign, according to the staff report. The Sacramento Area Council of Governments also loaned $2.6 million to cover two years for the tolling authority.
The request to West Sacramento comes as the tolling authority examines tolls across the region. New express lanes could be built on Interstate 5, from the airport to downtown Sacramento and toll lanes in the Highway 65 in Placer County, according to the Capital Area Regional Tolling Authority.
West Sacramento could draw money from its Measure V revenue, passed in 2008 as a one-quarter cent tax. The money will be paid back across a 10-year period, according to a staff report.
Money from the toll would be put back into local projects. The tolling authority asked other Yolo County cities for a loan, but budget constraints and “other factors” limited other jurisdictions’ involvement, according to the staff report.
The West Sacramento City Council will also consider adding the Placer County Transportation Planning Agency and the El Dorado County Transportation Commission as voting members to the tolling authority.
The tolls lanes in Yolo County are scheduled to be complete next year, with the collection of money beginning in 2028 and fully ramping up costs in 2030, according to the staff report.
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Ishani Desai is a government watchdog reporter for The Sacramento Bee. She previously covered crime and courts for The Bakersfield Californian.