VTA Helps San Benito County
VTA Helps San Benito County
Editor,
Recently, your newspaper published a letter to the editor assailing San Benito County officials for supporting the Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority’s bid to receive state infrastructure bond funding for work to widen U.S. Highway 101 between Monterey Road and State Route 129 and improve the interchange of 101 and State Route 25.
In our view the partnership and coordination between San Benito and Santa Clara counties is vital to securing transportation improvements benefiting both counties and the entire region.
Beginning in summer 2006, VTA has been working closely with the San Benito County Council of Governments to coordinate planning of highway improvements that may otherwise have received little attention at the regional or state level.
To dispel the notion that VTA will not share in the costs for improvements in the area it is important to note that VTA provided 100 percent of the $800,000 cost to complete a Southern Gateway Study that outlined the significant challenges facing the two counties along critical inter-county routes like 101, 25 and 152, challenges that both counties agreed were top priorities for future investment.
In late 2006, VTA completed $26.2 million in improvements along SR 152 and later this month VTA will break ground on the 152/156 flyover improvements for a cost of $36 million. In addition, VTA will be using local funds continue the progress on the 101 widening project and the State Route 25 interchange improvements while San Benito and VTA seek future funding on this project.
To date, VTA has invested $1 million on the project’s design and engineering and expects to go to its board to request funding to move the project to the next phase in May. VTA is also supporting work to widen 25 with $2.3 million and expects to begin conceptual alignment analysis on a proposal to realign 152.
San Benito County residents will benefit directly from much of the more than $70 million in improvements that VTA is bringing to this effort.
The partnership between VTA and San Benito County strengthens our ability to seek regional, state and federal funding for these projects because it is clear that both parties are in agreement about the needs for transportation in this area and the means to address them. We look forward to continued success as we complete these greatly needed improvements.
Michael T. Burns, general manager
Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority
Airport Pays Its Own Way
Editor,
In a March 14 letter to the editor (“Why Should City Subsidize Airport for Non-Residents?”), a reader asks why the city subsidizes out of county pilots. City residents and the City of Hollister do not subsidize pilots from outside or from within the city or county, nor do they support the cost of maintenance or staff at the airport.
All revenue is raised by the airport from hangar rents, tie down fees, landing fees, possessor interest taxes, FFA and CalTrans Aeronautics grants (which come from aviation fuel taxes), and any other fees raised by airport users. These funds go into the Airport Enterprise Fund.
Airports are required to pay for themselves, to be self supporting.
Ruth Erickson
Hollister
