Frequently Asked Questions

1. What is TransNet?

TransNet is this region’s ½-penny sales tax dedicated to transportation improvements. Money generated from this tax helps pay for highway, transit, and local street improvements throughout the region.

2. What is SANDAG?

SANDAG, the San Diego Association of Governments, is the region’s planning and transportation agency responsible for major highway, transit, and other infrastructure projects. SANDAG is governed by mayors, council members, and supervisors from each of this region’s 18 Cities and County government.

3. What is the duration and amount of tax?

Original program: 1988 – 2008 = $3.3 billion Extension program: 2008 – 2048 = $14 billion

4. What has the existing TransNet program accomplished?

The program has delivered more than 60 miles of new or widened highways; 35 miles of new trolley service; 65 miles of Coaster and Sprinter rail service; services to improve and maintain hundreds of local streets and roads; the construction of regional bicycle projects; expanded bus and dial-a-ride services; discount passes for seniors, disabled passengers, and students.

5. Why do we need to pay this tax?

The tax provides the financial backbone to help San Diegans pay for critically needed transportation improvements. Our local dollars attract additional funding by being matched by state and federal dollars to improve the region’s transportation system.

6. What’s the role of the Independent Taxpayer Oversight Committee?

To provide independent audits to analyze how TransNet dollars are being spent, to conduct performance reviews to determine how well the projects being implemented are meeting the objective of reducing traffic congestion, and to provide recommendations on how to improve the TransNet program’s performance over time.

Last Updated: June 16, 2008

TransNet FAQ

The Oversight Committee is made up of seven members with demonstrated expertise in engineering, architecture, municipal finance, real estate, construction management, environmental sciences, and large-scale private sector organization management selected through an open, public solicitation process. An independent Oversight Committee with this set of skills and experience will play a valuable role in ensuring that all voter mandates are carried out and in constantly looking for opportunities to improve and enhance the overall performance of the TransNet program.

7. But why do I have to pay a sales tax for transportation; don’t I already pay at the gas

pump?

At the gas pump you pay about 36¢ per gallon in gas taxes which go to federal and state governments. Most of those funds are returned to San Diego. However, these state and federal funds are insufficient to meet the region’s needs for transportation infrastructure improvements. Further, as a per gallon tax, the revenue does not increase with increasing gas prices. We need a local transportation funding source to match these state and federal funds and to fund additional local transportation improvements. All TransNet dollars are generated locally and spent locally.

8. Why do I need to pay a transportation sales tax?

We need a dedicated, local funding source for our transportation system. TransNet helps to leverage federal and state funding to pay for critically needed transportation projects.

9. How does TransNet benefit me?

If you drive on the streets and freeways, take the bus, trolley, or Coaster, or ride your bike, chances are your TransNet dollars helped to fund these projects. If you are a senior, disabled or youth transit rider, your monthly transit pass price has been significantly reduced by TransNet.

10. Do other counties have a transportation tax?

Yes. Most urban counties have a dedicated sales tax for transportation. A total of sixteen counties around the state, including Los Angeles, Santa Clara, San Francisco, Sacramento, Riverside, and San Bernardino have a transportation sales tax. The total transportation sales taxes in these counties ranges from 1/2% to 1%. For example, Los Angeles has a 1 % sales tax dedicated to transit service.

11. How much goes to SANDAG for administration?

By law, no more than 1% of revenues generated go to SANDAG to administer the program. SANDAG Directors use at least 99% of the funding to implement the transportation projects and programs included in the ballot proposition.

12. Where does the TransNet money go?

Nearly all of the money is spent in the urbanized western third of the county where most residents live and work, and where most of the traffic congestion occurs.

Last Updated: June 16, 2008

2

TransNet FAQ

13. What are Managed Lanes?

Managed Lanes are new freeway lanes within existing freeways. These new lanes are equipped with state-of-the-art technology, like moveable barriers, which could be shifted back and forth to add lanes in one direction or another as a way to respond to changing traffic conditions. The lanes would be open to transit, vanpools, carpools, and single-occupant autos with a toll as is currently done on the I-15 express lanes.

14. What are High Occupancy Vehicle Lanes?

High Occupancy Vehicle Lanes are exclusive lanes dedicated to vehicles that carry more than one occupant such as carpools, vanpools, and buses. State law allows motorcycles and emergency vehicles to use HOV lanes as well. HOV lanes typically provide higher operating speeds than a general purpose lane, especially during rush hours.

15. What are Reversible Lanes?

Reversible Lanes change directions each day. One or more lanes may be designed to be reversible so that additional lane(s) is/are provided in the congested direction of travel in the morning and then reversed to serve traffic in the opposite direction in the afternoon.

16. What is BRT (Bus Rapid Transit)?

Bus Rapid Transit provides high-speed transit connections across the region, using freeway, HOV, or Managed Lanes, and priority transit access along major surface streets. With service frequencies and passenger amenities similar to the trolley, BRT offers competitive travel times with cars, especially during commuter rush hours.

17. Who decides what to do with the funds?

The SANDAG Board of Directors decide based on the locally adopted Regional Transportation Plan (RTP), which is updated every three years.

18. Why are so much of the TransNet sales tax extension dollars going to fund public

transportation operations?

The RTP outlines the development of a high-performing transit system that TransNet funds will support. The original TransNet sales tax helped fund trolley extensions from downtown San Diego to Old Town, through Mission Valley to connect with the existing East Line trolley in La Mesa, and from El Cajon to Santee. TransNet also helped fund the Coaster commuter rail from Oceanside to downtown San Diego, and the Sprinter rail construction from Oceanside via Vista, San Marcos, and on to Escondido. The TransNet Extension will help pay for the ongoing operation and further expansion of the rail and bus services which have been put into operation since the original TransNet received voter approval 20 years ago. Research indicates the importance of frequent transit service, and

Last Updated: June 16, 2008

3

TransNet FAQ

thus, less waiting time. The TransNet Extension will help fund a more robust transit network with more frequent services. In addition, the TransNet Extension will fund the operating cost of the new express Bus Rapid Transit services and rail improvements proposed in the new measure. With state and federal funding focused on capital projects, the use of local TransNet funds for operations is critical if the region’s transit system is to expand to serve a growing region. The TransNet Extension also will provide the funding needed to continue the reduced-price monthly transit passes for seniors, disabled, and youth.

19. How do you come up with the TransNet projects?

The projects listed in the both ballot measures were drawn from the Regional Transportation Plan which is developed through years of detailed planning studies and an extensive input and evaluation process that includes residents, businesses, environmental and community leaders as well as elected officials from the 18 cities and county government. In addition, extensive public surveys and focus groups were used to select the highest priority projects out of the Regional Transportation Plan.

20. Can SANDAG eliminate a transportation improvement project?

Yes. The TransNet program provides flexibility in case of changing technology, priorities, or other factors during the 40 year program. However, a major project change would require an extraordinary 2/3 vote from the SANDAG Board.

Other changes would require a vote of the people – such as

a change in the sales tax amount a change in the duration of program a change in the independent taxpayer oversight committee a change in the environmental mitigation program a change in the requirements for private developer funding contributions

21. Who is my SANDAG representative? Isn’t SANDAG just a bunch of appointed officials?

Your SANDAG representative is a mayor or councilmember from the city in which you live, or if you live in an unincorporated community, your representative is a member of the County of San Diego Board of Supervisors. The current SANDAG Board of Directors is listed at www.sandag.org. All voting members of the Board of Directors are elected officials representing the interests of their local community and the region as a whole at the SANDAG meetings. The SANDAG voting procedures include a weighted vote by population ensuring that your representative’s vote is commensurate with the population of your community.

Last Updated: June 16, 2008

4

TransNet FAQ

Last Updated: June 16, 2008

5

22. Why does the TransNet Extension required a $2,000 fee for new home development? Residents have told us that they want new growth to pay its fair share. The fee would be imposed by each city and the county government. $2,000 is the minimum to help fund the construction of local roads that connect cities so drivers don’t have to clog a section of freeway to get from one city to another. Many of these short trips are generated by residents. The $2,000 fee collected from new housing units is expected to provide sufficient revenue to fund the needed improvements to our regional arterial system and reduce traffic congestion on our highways.

23. Where can I get more information about TransNet projects?

Visit www.KeepSanDiegoMoving.com

# # #

ProjectTotal Cost

(in millions) TransNetState/Federal/

OtherCompletion

Date

I-15 Bus Rapid Transit (Escondido to Downtown/Sorrento)

330 220 110 2014

Regional Bikeways (Phase 1) 9 1 8 2014

Mid-City Rapid Bus (SDSU to Downtown via El Cajon Blvd)

44 22 22 2014

Trolley Blue and Orange Line Upgrades 583 142 441 2014

I-805 HOV Lanes - South (Palomar St. to SR 94)

202 94 108 2014

South Line Rail Upgrades 148 14 134 2015

Coastal Rail Double Tracking (Phase 1) 106 48 58 2015

South Bay Bus Rapid Transit (Otay to Downtown)

100 96 4 2015

SR 76 Widening (Mission to I-15) 202 57 145 2015

I-805 HOV Lanes - North (SR 52 to I-5)

250 40 210 2015

Coastal Rail Double Tracking (Phase 2) 189 115 74 2017

Mid-Coast Light Rail 1,704 862 842 2018

I-5 North Coast HOV Lanes (Manchester to SR 78)

493 335 158 2018

401

B S

treet • Suite 8

00

San D

iego, CA

92101

(619) 699

-190

0

sandag.orgK

eepSanDiegoM

oving.comfacebook.com

/SAND

AGregion

twitter.com

/SAND

AG

TransNet Early Action Projects July 2013

TransNet Projects Underway

NOTE: Costs are escalated to year of expenditure as approved by the SANDAG Board in the Fiscal Year 2013 Budget. Funding and completion dates could change based on future budget allocations. TransNet dollars help SANDAG obtain matching state and federal transportation funds.

Local Streets, Bikeways& Walkable Communities

2013 Update

Convention Center Trolley Station

Carlsbad 9.8 million

Chula Vista 19.1 million

Coronado 2.1 milion

Del Mar 0.8 million

El Cajon 8.4 million

Encinitas 6.0 million

Escondido 12.4 million

Imperial Beach 2.6 milion

La Mesa 5.5 million

Lemon Grove 2.5 milion

National City 4.9 million

Oceanside 16.5 million

Poway 5.5 million

San Diego 113.3 million

San Marcos 7.2 million

Santee 5.2 million

Solana Beach 1.6 million

Vista 8.1 million

County of San Diego 53.1 million

Biking and Walking 20.2 million

Local Funding Streets & Roads To Date

NOTE: TransNet extension funds allocated as of December 2012.

193

3 7/13

Countyof

San Diego

Camp Pendleton

SR 76: Widen highway

SR 52: Widen and extend highway

Mid-Coast: Transit: Old Town-UCSD Transit: UTC SuperLoop I-5/I-8 West to North Connector I-5/Genesee Ave Interchange

I-15: HOV/Express Lanes Transit: Escondido-Downtown Transit: Escondido-Sorrento Valley

I-805: HOV/Express Lanes Transit: Otay-Downtown Transit: Otay-Sorrento Valley

North Coast: I-5 HOV/Express Lanes Coastal rail double-tracking

SPRINTER: Oceanside-Escondido light rail

Blue and Orange Line Trolley: Low-floor vehicles Station upgrades

Mid-City: Transit: Downtown-SDSU

Goods Movement: South Line rail upgrades SR 905 SR 94 / SR 125: South to East Connector

1

7

4

4

4

9

8

8

5

2 2

10

108

3

5

3

6

11

Highway Projects

Completed

Under Construction

Preliminary Engineering

Transit Projects

Completed

Under Construction

Preliminary Engineering

Light Rail Line

TransNet, the local half-cent sales tax for transportation projects, is a major success

story. It has financed numerous highways and local roads throughout San Diego County and

expanded the regional transit system with new Trolley and commuter rail lines.

This annual update highlights work completed in 2012 through July 2013, and it reports on the status of ongoing

major projects funded all or in part by TransNet and the TransNet extension.

Keeps San Diego MovingFulfilling the TransNet promiseTransNet is the driving force for improving transportation infrastructure in the San Diego region. The local half-cent sales tax pays for upgrades to our streets, highways, and transit systems, as well as environmental protection.

The extension of TransNet, approved by San Diego County voters in 2004, runs from 2008 to 2048. It is expected to raise $14 billion for important upgrades – such as adding high occupancy vehicle lanes and transit facilities – to Interstates 5, 8, 15, and 805, as well as State Routes 52, 54, 56, 67, 76, 78, 94, 125, and 905.

The TransNet extension also funds local roads, bike and pedestrian paths, smart growth projects, and habitat preservation, as well as new Rapid bus lines and rail service expansion.

The extension took effect when the original TransNet program ended in 2008, after 20 years of remarkable success. Instituted in 1988, the original TransNet raised $3.3 billion to upgrade the region’s highways (SR 52, 54, 56, 76, 78, and 125); improve more than 800 local roads; extend the San Diego Trolley and commuter rail lines; and create bike paths and walkable communities.

Expanding our transit networkSix of 11 transit projects included in the TransNet extension are in construction or finished. These projects represent more than $1 billion in investment.

Trolley Renewal, a $660-million project to revamp the San Diego Trolley system and expand freight capacity by 2015, is more than 50 percent complete. Sixty-five new low-floor vehicles are being added to the fleet. With the bayside stations rebuilt, Metropolitan Transit System (MTS) extended low-floor service through Downtown San Diego on the Green Line in September 2012. With renovation of the downtown stations completed in mid-2013, reconstruction of the Blue Line stations is expected to begin in August 2013. Freight capacity improvements are underway as well.

Progress also continues to be made on the Mid-Coast Corridor Transit Project to extend the Trolley from Old Town to University City. The draft environmental impact report for this project was released in May 2013.

Meanwhile, construction is in full swing along the I-15 to upgrade and build transit stations to support faster, more comfortable, and more reliable bus services. Two freeway-based Rapid bus lines are expected to go into service in 2014: the I-15 Escondido to Downtown San Diego route and the I-15 Escondido to Sorrento Mesa/UTC/UC San Diego route. Also scheduled to go into service in 2014 is Mid-City Rapid, which will run on arterials between San Diego State University and downtown. Construction for the Mid-City Rapid service began in mid-2013. A fourth Rapid bus line connecting the Otay Mesa border crossing with downtown is in development.

In the UTC/UC San Diego area, SuperLoop expanded to communities east of Genesee Avenue in June 2012, adding additional stops along Executive, Judicial, and Nobel drives. Thirteen new SuperLoop stations were completed in March 2013, and four more stations at UC San Diego and Scripps Memorial Hospital are expected to be done by fall 2013.

Along the LOSSAN (Los Angeles-San Diego-San Luis Obispo) coastal rail corridor between Oceanside and Downtown San Diego, construction is ongoing to increase both passenger and freight capacity by adding a second main line track. To date, half of the rail corridor has been double tracked, with an additional 19 projects in engineering or under construction. Other improvements in development include bridge and track replacements, new station platforms, and pedestrian rail undercrossings. In February 2013, one of four planned crossings opened in Encinitas, making it safer and easier to reach Swami’s Beach.

TransNet revenues also fund transit operations and discounted transit passes for seniors, youth, and persons with disabilities. In Fiscal Year 2012, MTS and North County Transit District (NCTD) received $35.7 million for operations.

Improving our highway networkTransNet funding, leveraged with state and federal resources, has made it possible to add capacity, flexibility, and innovations to our highway network.

Inland commuters are spending much less time stuck in traffic after the full length of the I-15 Express Lanes opened in January 2012. The Express Lanes, which extend for 20 miles from SR 163 in San Diego to SR 78 in Escondido, are free for carpools, vanpools, buses, permitted clean-air vehicles, and motorcycles. They also are available for solo drivers who pay a fee via the FasTrak® tolling system – with the funds going to support operations and transit service in the corridor.

In July 2012, SR 905 fully opened to traffic, connecting the Otay Mesa Port of Entry – the only commercial crossing between San Diego and Tijuana – to the rest of the highway system. The new highway has eased the flow of crossborder trade and truck traffic.

In October 2012, SR 76 was widened from two to four lanes between Melrose Drive in Oceanside and South Mission Road in Bonsall. The final segment of the SR 76 project, stretching all the way to I-15, began construction in October 2012 and is expected to be completed in winter 2015.

In November 2012, congestion relief came to inland North County when the rebuilt Nordahl Road Bridge over SR 78 opened just in time for the holiday shopping season. The bridge serves as a vital link between San Marcos and Escondido, improving access to the new Palomar Medical Center and helping to relieve a frustrating bottleneck along SR 78.

In the South Bay, motorists saw progress in the form of across-the-board toll cuts on the South Bay Expressway/SR 125 toll road. SANDAG reduced tolls by up to 40 percent effective June 30, 2012.

In addition, motorists can look forward to the opening of new carpool lanes on the I-805 between East Palomar Street in Chula Vista to SR 94 in San Diego in fall 2013. Construction began in June 2012.

Improving local roads, promoting smart growth, increasing walking and bikingSince taking effect in 2008, the TransNet extension has raised about $285 million for the region’s 18 cities and the County of San Diego to fix, maintain, and expand local streets. As with the original TransNet, the extension program allocates local road revenue to each jurisdiction using a formula based on population and road miles.

To date, $20.5 million has been raised for the TransNet Smart Growth Incentive Program. The funds are used to provide grants to municipalities for compact, transit-oriented development. Thanks to a smart growth grant, the Maple Street Pedestrian Plaza in Escondido’s historic downtown was completed in fall 2012.

Another $20.2 million also has been collected for the TransNet Bicycle, Pedestrian, and Neighborhood Safety Program. This program made it possible to open a new segment of the Bayshore Bikeway in Chula Vista and a bike/pedestrian bridge over Rose Creek in Mission Bay in the first quarter of 2012.

Habitat conservationThe TransNet extension created the Environmental Mitigation Program (EMP) to protect, preserve, and restore native habitats as offsets to disturbance caused by transportation projects. Since 2008, about $100 million has been spent to conserve more than 3,300 acres of open space countywide for mitigation purposes.

In June 2012, SANDAG and the U.S. Department of the Interior, with help from The Nature Conservancy, bought the 1,905-acre Hidden Valley property in East County. It is the single largest acquisition completed under the EMP to date.

The EMP goes beyond traditional mitigation by buying land early, at lower prices, and in larger parcels to comprehensively satisfy environmental requirements. Over the 40-year life of TransNet, mitigation costs under a traditional project-by-project approach would cost an estimated $850 million. Under the EMP, an estimated $200 million could be saved. These savings, in turn, will be applied to conservation.

Public accountability and financial managementSANDAG has a track record of administering TransNet revenues prudently. In May 2012, the agency took advantage of favorable market conditions to sell $420.5 million in fixed-rate, tax-exempt bonds at an all-in total interest cost of 3.71 percent, investing the funds in high-priority projects and refunding variable-rate bonds.

The TransNet Independent Taxpayer Oversight Committee (ITOC) conducts fiscal and compliance audits every year and a performance audit every three years. The first performance audit was released in 2009, followed by a second in 2012.

In addition, the TransNet Dashboard, an interactive web tool, gives the public timely information on how TransNet dollars are spent. This tool is a key element of KeepSanDiegoMoving.com — the region’s window to in-depth data on the TransNet program, including project descriptions, construction schedules, public meeting notices, maps, and news releases.

Encinitas pedestrian rail undercrossing (at Santa Fe Drive) – 2013 • I-15 Bus Rapid Transit (Del Lago and Rancho Bernardo station upgrades) – 2013 • SR 905 (east of I-805 to Britannia Avenue) – 2012 • SuperLoop (expanded to east of Genesee Avenue) –

2012 • SR 76 (Melrose Drive to East Mission Road) – 2012 • Nordahl Road Bridge Replacement – 2012 • I-15 Express Lanes (Centre City Parkway to SR 78) – 2012 • Trolley Renewal (Green Line extended to Downtown San Diego) – 2012 • I-15 Express Lanes

(SR 163 to SR 56) – 2011 • SR 125 Toll Road/South Bay Expressway Acquisition – 2011 • I-805 Auxiliary Lanes at E Street – 2011 • SR 52 (SR 125 to SR 67) – 2011 • SR 905 (Siempre Viva Road to Britannia Boulevard) – 2010 • I-15 Express Lanes

(SR 56 to Escondido) – 2009/2010 • I-5 / Lomas Santa Fe Interchange and Carpool Lanes – 2009 • SuperLoop – 2009 • SR 52 Auxiliary Lanes – 2008 • SPRINTER Rail Line from Oceanside to Escondido – 2008 • Mission Valley East Trolley Extension – 2007

• SR 54 “Gap” and “Connector” – 2007 • SR 125 Fanita – 2004 • SR 125 Sweetwater – 2003 • SR 76 West (Foussat Road to Jeffries Ranch Road) – 1998 • Mission Valley West Trolley – 1997 • Trolley from Downtown San Diego to Old Town – 1996

• Trolley from El Cajon to Santee – 1995 • COASTER Commuter Rail from Oceanside to Downtown San Diego – 1995 • SR 52 (I-15 to SR 125) – 1994 / 1998 / 2009 • SR 56 Improvements – 1993 / 1996 / 2005 • SR 54 Improvements – 1993 / 1996 •

SR 78 (I-5 to I-15) – 1992 / 2006 • Poway Road/Scripps-Poway Parkway – 1991 / 1997 • Discount transit passes for seniors, youth, and persons with disabilities. • Maintenance, repair, and construction of local roads • Local street widening and traffic signals at

busy intersections • Special transportation services for seniors and persons with disabilities • Bicycle and pedestrian improvements

TransNet Success Stories

Member AgenciesThe Cities of:

Carlsbad

Chula Vista

Coronado

Del Mar

El Cajon

Encinitas

Escondido

Imperial Beach

La Mesa

Lemon Grove

National City

Oceanside

Poway

San Diego

San Marcos

Santee

Solana Beach

Vista

County Of San Diego

Advisory MembersImperial County

California Department of Transportation

Metropolitan Transit System

North County Transit District

U.S. Department of Defense

San Diego Unified Port District

San Diego County Water Authority

Southern California Tribal Chairmen’s Association

Mexico