The California Transportation Commission awarded the Santa Barbara County Association of Governments and Caltrans $132.4 million in funding for the U.S. Multimodal Corridor Project on June 28.
The money will go toward the completion of the Highway 101 carpool lanes in Montecito and part of the Santa Barbara section to the Hermosillo off-ramp, along with electric buses, improvements to coastal access, charging stations for zero-emission vehicles and contactless card readers for the Coastal Express.
The award is part of a state investment of $2 billion from the 2021 federal Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act and the Road Repair and Accountability Act (Senate Bill 1) grant programs. It makes the Santa Barbara U.S. 101 Multimodal Corridor the second-highest funded project to receive Senate Bill 1 program funding in California.
“The extraordinary $132.4 million award is only a testament to the Highway 101 project’s caliber but is a recognition of the tremendous impact that U.S. 101 has between Ventura and Santa Barbara Counties in our region – a gateway to Southern and Northern California,” said Lompoc Mayor Jenelle Osborne and chair of the Santa Barbara County Association of Governments Board of Directors.
The entirety of the Highway 101 Carpinteria to Santa Barbara project has cost $945 million. Senate Bill 1 invested a total of $316 million into the U.S. 101 corridor so far.
“I am excited to see Highway 101 take these crucial steps towards being completed and becoming a model for zero-emission transportation on the Central Coast and throughout the state,” said Senator Monique Limón of the 19th District.
Still, the state, Santa Barbara County Association of Governments and Caltrans District 5 are working towards securing the $145 million the project needs to fund the remaining construction at Sycamore Creek in Santa Barbara.
