Traffic in San Diego
Traffic in San Diego. Courtesy San Diego

The San Diego Association of Governments approved its program budget for fiscal year 2025 Friday, allocating $1.3 billion to fund more than 200 hundred projects across the county.

SANDAG also unveiled a new interactive map for locals to track and explore projects in their neighborhoods.

“This budget serves as the blueprint for SANDAG to prioritize projects that emphasize equity and inclusion,” said SANDAG and San Diego County Board of Supervisors Chair Nora Vargas in a statement. “This budget has something for everyone. Whether it’s enhanced transit, major improvements to ease congestion or more bike paths, we’re working to ensure that everyone can have equitable access to our beautiful region,”

The budget includes:

  • $683.2 million for TransNet Major Corridors, the Goods Movement Program, the Regional Bikeway Program, and other transit and capital improvements
  • $217.1 million to be passed through to local governments for streets and roads
  • $80.9 million for regional planning projects and programs
  • $79.9 million for regional operations

There will also be funding to continue projects and programs already in place, such as:

Youth Opportunity Pass: The pilot program that provides free, unlimited transit rides for people age 18 and under is being extended for another year. It has provided more than 11 million rides countywide since its launch.

Airport Transit Connection: Technical analysis and public outreach will be completed to identify the locally preferred alternative for a direct transit link to the airport. This funding will go toward completing the environmental phase and begin design work.

LOSSAN: The Del Mar Bluffs stabilization project to protect the rail corridor from coastal erosion will begin at the same time the LOSSAN Rail Realignment project begins the environmental phase, to ultimately relocate the tracks off the bluffs by 2035.

Blue Line Improvements: Studies are underway for various improvements to the Blue Line Trolley, including community-oriented development around two stops which will speed up trip times and increase access for transit riders. SANDAG is also actively planning near-term solutions like more Rapid buses to serve people traveling north and south on this route.

Purple Line: SANDAG is also exploring the best way to build this new transit line through two studies. The first looks at types of trains and possible routes for the National City to Sorrento Mesa section. The second examines ways to improve all major transit lines from South County to San Diego. SANDAG is also planning a temporary Rapid bus route to serve passengers traveling between these neighborhoods.

TransNet Major Corridors: Roadway projects include improvements to SR 67, SR 52, I-15/SR 78 Connectors, SR 78/I-5 Express Lanes Connectors, and I-5 HOV lanes extending to Oceanside. Transit projects include Blue Line railway signal improvements, Palomar Street rail grade separation, several double-tracking projects, and the implementation of six new Rapid bus projects.

Regional Bicycle Network: SANDAG has 16 bike projects in progress, with 3 under construction: Border to Bayshore, Bayshore Bikeway Barrio Logan, and the Pershing Bikeway. In FY 2025, SANDAG plans to break ground on Imperial Avenue Bikeway; Inland Rail Trail Phase 3; Uptown Bikeways: Eastern Hillcrest, Washington Street, and Mission Valley; North Park/Mid-City Bikeways: Orange Avenue and University Avenue; and the Central Avenue Bikeway.

Toll Operations: The transition to a new back-office system is on track to be completed in 2025 and will include regular vendor and internal assessments, a quality assurance and quality control plan, and operational and customer service improvements. Internal policies will also include regular and proactive reporting to the SANDAG Board as well as transparent communication with the public. 

More information about the SANDAG program budget can be found here.