Ban on O.C. Tollway Is Removed From Budget

Environmentalists and legislators gathered on the steps of the state Capitol on Monday to decry the Legislature’s decision to remove language from California’s proposed budget that would have prevented construction of a toll road through San Onofre State Beach.

“This highway would essentially destroy one of the few remaining stretches of coastal wild land and would send a poor message that encroaching on parks is acceptable,” Assemblyman Pedro Nava (D-Santa Barbara) said in a statement released by the Sierra Club, which helped organize the protest.

“It would be like putting a highway in the middle of Yosemite,” added Assemblywoman Lois Wolk (D-Davis).

In an effort to relieve congestion in southern Orange County, the 16-mile Foothill South tollway extension would begin at Oso Parkway in Rancho Santa Margarita and slice through San Onofre State Beach before connecting with Interstate 5 at Basilone Road, in San Diego County. Critics fear it would damage the popular Trestles surfing area.

County officials have approved the $875-million project, but state and federal agencies also must approve it.

The state attorney general’s office and environmentalists have filed lawsuits challenging the plan’s environmental review. Nava and others last month inserted language in the state budget prohibiting the Foothill/Eastern Transportation Corridor Agency from building the road.

On Saturday, the Budget Conference Committee, made up of senators and Assembly members, voted 6 to 0 to strike the language from the budget.

“It’s good news,” said Clare Vargas, a spokeswoman for Foothill/Eastern. “We know it’s not the end, but we felt that this was an obvious attempt to hijack the state budget process to stop this important infrastructure project that will do a lot to relieve traffic between Orange and San Diego counties.”

Brittany McKee, a spokeswoman for the Sierra Club, agreed that the battle was far from over. “While we’re disappointed, we’re not entirely surprised,” he said. “We’re not finished with our work. Even if we’re not in the budget this time, we will be around for as long as it takes. Toll roads do not belong in our state parks.”