156 Toll Road Study and Appendices - Transportation Agency for ...

The Route 156 West Corridor Project Approval and Environmental Document (PA&ED) wascompleted by Caltrans at the end of January 2013. Approximately $44 million (year-of-accrual)of state and federal funding is allocated to this project at this time, including the costs for thecompleted PA&ED. There is a significant funding gap to complete the Route 156 West CorridorProject up to $225 million (in year-of-expenditure dollars, for Phase 1 and 2.What implications does tolling have to the projectschedule and budget?The current Route 156 West Corridor Phase 1 project schedule assumes that Plans Specificationsand Estimates (PS&E) will begin in the beginning of year 2013, resulting in a bid package beingcompleted by December 2015. If funded, construction would be performed from the middleof year 2016 through year 2019. However, with a Route 156 West Corridor Phase 1 fundinggap of up to $65 million, it is unknown when the Highway 156 improvements would actuallybe constructed.This "sketch-level" analysis, a high-level investigation into the revenue potential, is the first step todetermine if the Highway 156 toll road project is financially feasible. The implementation of atoll road would require additional analysis and studies to be completed including a SupplementalEnvironmental Document, as well as an Investment Grade Traffic and Revenue Study. Publicinvolvement/outreach will be an integral part of the study process and would be used to keepthe public informed and measure local support. The additional studies and public involvementare anticipated to have some impacts to the overall project schedule. Table 2, Modified Route156 West Corridor Schedule (Phase 1 Only) demonstrates the modifications to the projectschedule as a consequence of advancing Highway 156 as a toll facility.The modified schedule demonstrates that PS&E will begin in the beginning of year 2015, resultingin a bid package being completed by December 2017. Construction would be performed fromthe middle of year 2018 to the end of year 2020.The project capital costs must be adjusted based on the modified schedule to determine howmuch capital cost is required to be paid for by tolls. Assuming the standard Caltrans inflationrates of 3.5% and 5% for construction and right of way, respectively, the construction cost forRoute 156 West Corridor Phase 1 is anticipated to be $70M in year-of-expenditure dollars.STATE ROUTE 156 Tolling Traffic and Revenue Study [ 5 ]