Voters approve transportation measures

Central Coast voters are on their way toward approving two tax measures aimed at improving area roadways and traffic safety.

Santa Cruz County’s Measure D received 52,414 Yes votes (67.12 percent of the votes cast) according to totals released Wednesday morning. The half-cent local sales tax required approval by 66.67 percent of the voters to pass.

Monterey County’s Measure X was also headed toward victory with 48,010 (67.36 percent) votes in favor. The 3/8 percent sales tax required 66.67 percent to pass.

The numbers for both races reflect semi-final results. County elections offices have 30 days to count additional mail-in and provisional ballots.

Monterey’s Measure X would add a 3/8 percent sales tax over 30 years to raise $20 million dollars a year (along with state and federal matching funds) to pay for safety improvements to roads and highways, to repair potholes, maintain streets and roads, reduce traffic congestion, improve transportation for senior, young people, and people with disabilities, and make walking and biking safer.

Santa Cruz County’s Measure D is expected to generate approximately $17 million a year. Funds would be used to improve streets and highways, safety projects to encourage children to walk and bicycle to school, Highway 9 corridor safety improvements, the Highway 17 wildlife undercrossing, new bicycle-pedestrian crossings over Highway 1, transit to prevent additional service cuts, increases in paratransit to serve seniors and people with disabilities, construction and maintenance of the Coastal Rail Trail, and an analysis of transit options for the rail corridor.