Faced with a scathing staff report and negative public opinion, the sponsor of the Foothill toll road, the Orange County Transportation Corridor Agency (TCA), delayed a scheduled October hearing at the California Coastal Commission.



The proposed toll road would close 2/3rds of San Onofre State Beach in northern San Diego County and have devastating impacts on endangered species. The Coastal Commission was to consider an application for consistency with the federal Coastal Zone Management Act, but the staff report concluded that, "It's difficult to imagine a more environmentally damaging alternative location . . . No measures exist that would enable the proposed alignment to be found consistent with the California Coastal Act." 

EHL and other groups submitted extensive comments that backed up this conclusion, including scientific information on the arroyo toad, Pacific pocket mouse, and California gnatcatcher, and a study on transportation alternatives by the nationally recognized firm Smart Mobility. This report shows that Interstate 5 can be improved without the large takings of private property used as scare tactics by TCA.

In other developments, a poll showed that 2/3rds of voters turn against the toll road once they know it would run through a state park, and both the Los Angeles Times and the San Diego North County Times editorialized against the project. Finally, the Cities of San Diego and Solana Beach joined many other cities in support of the park.

EHL will continue to play an active role in the Coalition to Save San Onofre, which you can join at: http://www.savesanonofre.com/.