San Diego

Concerns Raised About SANDAG Project on East Palomar in Chula Vista

Residents of one Chula Vista neighborhood are concerned about plans to expand a transit line through their neighborhood.

The main concern focuses on safety for those children attending Hedenkamp Elementary School and anyone visiting Horizon Park.

The 21-mile South Bay Rapid Transit Line will stretch from the U.S.-Mexico border to downtown San Diego. The bus line will ease congestion along busy streets, community planners say.

Construction on the $113 million project began early 2016.

Some neighbors say the original route didn’t include East Palomar Road. They say the buses were supposed to go from Paseo Ranchero onto Telegraph Canyon Road.

β€œThey've indicated that this plan has been in the works for 15-20-30 years, that may be true but not this plan,” said resident Ida Spector adding she would like to see planners stick to the original route. β€œOr take the bus south onto Olympic Parkway, where we have had studies that show that not only is it faster but it is safer."

Critics say adding another two lanes of vehicle traffic down the middle of East Palomar will eliminate the tree-lined buffer zones between the street and the sidewalk.

Jim Linthicum, Director of Mobility for SANDAG, said there have been many community meetings explaining the route and the plan.

"I can tell you that this project had over the years an unprecedented amount of public outreach, from SANDAG from the city of Chula Vista to try to get this right because it is going through the heart of the community so we want to make sure everyone knows about it," he said.

SANDAG will hold a public meeting on the project on Wednesday beginning at 6 p.m. at Hendenkamp Elementary.

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