TCA – Spinning the 241
by Dale Tyler

I recently found a bright-yellow piece hanging from my doorknob. It was titled “Let's Complete the 241.” The paragraph that followed was made up of so many outright lies and half-truths that I could hardly believe the lengths they would go to try, once again, to pull a fast one on the people of Orange County.

Let's dissect what they said in their advertisement. “The I-5 is the only major artery in and out of South O.C.” They start with a truth, but leave one thing unsaid – that the I-5 is and will remain the only way to San Diego County, even if they get their way. Remember this, as it bears on falsehoods they claim later.

Next they say “When the 5's going nowhere, neither are we.” This is clearly false. There are parallel routes all the way from south of San Clemente up through the El Toro Y. Streets like Moulton Parkway, Marguerite and PCH all provide ways for people to travel north and south, even if the I-5 was completely blocked. .Another major arterial, La Pata is due to be completed soon, and this will provide even more parallel capacity. The 241 is simply not needed, especially south of the 74/Cow Camp Road.

They say “And traffic's only going to get worse.” Of course traffic will increase, and this will mean added delay unless the I-5 is expanded as proposed in the OCTA Major Investment Study. The 241 will do little to relieve the additional traffic, because it does not go where most people want to drive to. How many actual trips will occur between Riverside and San Clemente? Very few.

Next they say “Today driving from San Clemente to Mission Viejo takes about 20 minutes. Soon it'll be an hour.” First, one has to guess about the endpoints of that hypothetical trip. The fact they were not more specific lets them claim almost any numbers. However, I have seen no traffic study that would support the claim that a trip that takes 20 minutes now will triple to 60 minutes “soon.” This is typical TCA propaganda. Throw out figures with little or no factual support and see if people believe you.

Next “But if we finish what we started, the same drive will take 16 minutes on the 241 and only 25 minutes on the I-5!” If one assumes that they are driving to the 241 and Los Alisos in far eastern Mission Viejo, on the way to Riverside, they might be correct about the 16-minute trip. However, as stated above, that's a trip few wish to make. Not zero, mind you, but an insignificant percentage of total trips. The TCA uses plausible data about a very small number of trips to try and fool you that the average trip would be improved. Further, they try and claim credit for reducing delay on the I-5 when they have opposed any expansion of the I-5, because it would take drivers off their toll road.

Next “Plus provide a crucial alternate route.” The 241 does not provide any significant alternate routes that are not already covered by the major arterials mentioned above. In addition, it would not help at all if a tsunami or other disaster struck the San Onofre power plant or I-5 as it goes through Camp Pendleton. This is because the 241 joins the I-5 in the San Onofre area, and it can't fix the huge bottleneck in southbound traffic at all. Only San Diego County can improve the I-5 in that area.

It should be clear the TCA is up to its old tricks. Their existing toll roads have nearly gone bankrupt due to lack of traffic. They promised us that the taxpayers of OC would get the toll roads free and clear when the bonds were paid off. With this extension, they will get to collect tolls from us for another 30 years and will delay keeping their promise until this new boondoggle is paid off. In addition, the TCA has consistently opposed building new freeways and widening existing ones to relieve traffic delays. The TCA cares about only one thing – lining their pockets at our expense. Contact the OCTA and your City Councils to tell them how you feel. NO on the 241 extension.