Highway 101 Road Project

CALTRANS BEGINS PLANNING FOR THE HIGHWAY 101 HIGH OCCUPANCY VEHICLE PROJECT
The Highway 101 HOV Project proposes to add one high occupancy vehicle (HOV) lane in each direction on US 101 from 0.44 mile south of Carpinteria Creek in the City of Carpinteria to Sycamore Creek in the City of Santa Barbara, a distance of 10.3 miles.  Caltrans District 5 is the lead agency for the project and SBCAG is the primary project sponsor.  Other project partners are the City of Santa Barbara, County of Santa Barbara, and City of Carpinteria.  The project is funded with Measure A regional sales tax funds, as well as other state and federal funding sources.

Caltrans intends to construct the project within the existing State road right-of-way.  Through Montecito, the project would include modifications to the Hot Springs/Cabrillo/101 interchange to eliminate the fast lane ramps.  Several alternatives for the resulting reconfiguration are being examined.  The San Ysidro interchange and south bound onramp are not proposed to be altered.  The fast lane ramps at Sheffield Road are proposed to be eliminated and replaced with slow lane ramps.

Before project construction can begin, the project must undergo environmental review and permit processes.  At this point, Caltrans is preparing a draft environmental document that will discuss the environmental impacts associated with the project and several project alternatives.  Release of a draft document for public review and comment is expected in the winter of 2011-2012. 

After the close of the public comment period on the environmental document, Caltrans must respond to the comments received and make changes to the document where necessary.  They will then publish a final environmental document that will then serve to inform decision making at the State and local levels.  Approval of a development plan for the portions of the project in the County and in the Coastal Zone will necessitate a hearing before both the Montecito Planning Commission and County Planning Commission.  Portions of the project within the cities will go before their decision makers.  SBCAG estimates that this process will continue into 2015, followed by project construction in 4-5 phases as allowed by funding sources.

READ MORE
http://www.dot.ca.gov/dist05/projects/sb_101hov/index.html
Montecito Journal Article, November 17, 2011 describing events of November 2011 Caltrans Community Meetings