Lake Tahoe could receive $4M to $6M to plan transportation if President Bush signs a highway correction bill the U.S. Senate adopted Thursday.
Technical corrections to the Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users (SAFETEA-LU), signed into law in 2005, will free up about $1 billion in projects which, in turn, produce more than 40,000 jobs at no additional cost.
Of that $1 billion nationally, $55 million is coming to Nevada, and $4 million to $6 million would go directly to the Lake Tahoe Metropolitan Planning Organization, a part of the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency that focuses on planning transportation around the lake. Currently the TMPO has received up from $200,000 for the past 10 years.
Under the corrected bill, the organization will receive one half of 1 percent of funds from the Federal Highway Program to carry out planning, environmental reviews and preliminary engineering for critical projects for the restoration and protection of the Lake Tahoe Basin.
“This new interpretation will allow for these funds to go toward the project delivery process and move projects forward toward implementation,” said Nick Haven, a transportation team leader for TRPA.
Haven pinpointed a few projects that have been delayed because of funding concerns that might now move forward. They include:
• Realigning the Highway 50 loop at south Stateline, Nev. to make the area more pedestrian-friendly.
• Realigning Highway 89 in Tahoe City to address congestion and renovation issues with the Fanny Bridge.
Haven said the environmental analysis and study and preliminary engineering of these kinds of projects can cost millions of dollars, a cost for which the new bill can help pay.
Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev., helped secure the approval of the bill through the Senate. He said the bill was a major step forward for transportation planning and environmental protection in the Lake Tahoe Basin.
“There are so many things to be done,” Reid said in a phone interview. “This is a big deal for Lake Tahoe. There are a wide range of projects that need this money to move forward.”
While federal and state dollars have previously been allocated toward Lake Tahoe, this money will be specifically used for planning and project implementation, Reid said.