Surfers and Environuts Kill Much-Needed Toll Road

There's pretty much only one way to get from Orange County and Los Angeles to San Diego, and that's Interstate 5. It runs a short distance from my house and is very convenient...when it's moving, and increasingly, it's not moving. They've rebuilt much of the freeway and interchanges, but traffic continues to increase. Thanks to the local geography and Camp Pendleton on Orange County's southern border, there aren't a lot of other places where a second route to San Diego can go.

Some years ago a new toll road was built in East County and the long-term plan was to extend it 16 miles down to the coast where it would connect to I-5 below San Clemente. It's a tremendously smart idea to finish that road and give commuters another option, but thanks to surfers and environuts, the toll road is once again delayed:

A day after their stinging defeat before the California Coastal Commission, Orange County toll road officials announced they will appeal the decision.

After 12 hours of public testimony and debate Wednesday, commissioners decided by an 8-2 vote that extending the Foothill South tollway through San Onofre State Beach would violate environmental laws designed to regulate development along 1,100 miles of California coastline.

Officials with the Transportation Corridor Agencies, which has spent years and tens of millions of dollars planning the Foothill South, say they are also considering a new route for the six-lane highway.

"The news was disappointing," said Lance MacLean, chairman of the TCA. "At the board's next meeting, we will brainstorm our options, which may include moving the route" of the highway.

South Orange County residents are well know for excessive NIMBYism. When we had the chance to get a much-needed airport at the old El Toro Marine Base, the voters decided to turn it into a giant park instead. Now, as traffic snarls on the only major freeway through South County, they work against a very logical extension of the toll road which would greatly help traffic flow and reduce the amount of time polluting cars are sitting still on the freeway. It was in that traffic last May almost within sight of my house that three kids in one family were wiped out when traffic stopped but a truck didn't.

Geez.