Chiesa, Perea, Walsh: “Fix Our Roads!”
Valley Supervisors and Speaker Atkins at Press Conference
Several Central Valley County Supervisors participated in a
Fresno County press conference conducted by Assembly Speaker
Toni Atkins—the third in her series of events to draw attention
to the poor condition of many roads, highways and bridges in
California. The issue is becoming critical as the Legislature
nears the September 11 end-of-session deadline with no visible
sign of a deal to increase revenue for transportation
infrastructure.
CSAC President and Stanislaus County Supervisor Vito Chiesa
participated in the press conference. “Some of the roads in
Stanislaus County are literally crumbling under my tires, and the
Seventh Street Bridge in Modesto needs basic maintenance so badly
is no longer safe for heavy trucks and busses,” said Supervisor
Chiesa. “Reforms and accountability measures are needed to
ensure taxpayer dollars are going toward transportation, but it
is an indisputable fact that we need new revenues to address the
severe maintenance backlog of our local streets and roads. I urge
lawmakers from both sides of the aisle in Sacramento to find a
workable solution.”
In many Central Valley locations, heavy truck traffic has been
hard on rural roads and Valley County budgets that were squeezed
by the recession are just now beginning to recover. Merced County
Supervisor Hub Walsh and Fresno County Supervisor Henry Perea
also participated in the press conference, punctuating the
condition of roads in the Central Valley and urging the
legislature to act. “This isn’t a Democrat or Republican issue,”
said Supervisor Walsh. “This is a ‘Do we fix our roads or not?’
issue. And I know the longer we wait to fix them, the more it’s
going to cost. So what are we waiting for?”
CSAC is part of a growing coalition of local governments,
business organization, labor and transportation experts calling
on the legislature to act on this issue, and to incorporate seven
principles into the final product. The special session on
transportation that Governor Brown called earlier this year could
be extended beyond the current session deadline, but indications
so far have been that the legislature is unwilling to do so. The
pressure is on to get something done in the next two weeks!