The San Bernardino County Transportation Authority (SBCTA) approved the construction of toll lanes on the I-10 Freeway last week.
The SBCTA voted to build a 33-mile toll lane project at an estimated cost of $1.8 billion, which would run from the Los Angeles County line to Redlands. This marks the first time that toll lanes would be implemented in San Bernardino County.
The I-10 Freeway is a major critical transportation corridor used by more than 263,000 vehicles and more than 20,000 trucks every day, creating the need for the toll lanes, according to SBCTA.
Over the past four decades, the county’s population has tripled to 2.1 million. By 2035 the number of residents is expected to increase by 30%, and by 2060 it could go up by 60%. With this growth, daily traffic is expected to increase to 350,000 vehicles by 2045, according to an SBCTA report.
A similar idea of creating toll lanes is being considered for the I-15 Freeway, which has a daily vehicle traffic average of about 223,000. Truck traffic is projected to continue growing by 2% to 2.5% per year. Authorities are looking at 33-mile Express Lanes in each direction of I-15 between S.R. 60 in Riverside County and U.S. Rte. 395 in the High Desert.
The I-10 Freeway toll lanes project will be constructed in two phases, with the first phase planned to start late next year. Opening of the first phase is scheduled by 2022, and the corridor should be completed by mid-2024.
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Story & image source: Fontana Herald News
