The first commenter argues:
Why on earth do we have a gasoline sales tax of 14 cents/gallon, a state dedicated (lol!!) excise tax of 18 cents per gallon and a federal excise tax of 19 cents per gallon which is supposed to PAY for the roadway system, when people like you are allowed to build toll roads?
The state simply does not have the money to build all of the roads needed for our population. Building toll roads is an innovative solution because it does not require tax dollars and those who use the road, pay for it.
And concerning the environment:
The 241 will be similar to State Highway 56, which connects I-5 and I-15 in San Diego County. State 56 has taken a huge traffic burden out of residential neighborhoods and jammed feeder roads. It also was routed through coastal canyons and habitats. The design included tunnels and other features to allow local species to move between different habitats and food and water sources. State 56 merges with I-5 near a famous beach, Torrey Pines State Beach and Torrey Pines State Reserve.
As with the 241, highway designers took great care to design drainage and retention systems to reduce run-off in the area during rainstorms and protect the water quality downstream. All of these advanced design features worked for State 56. The environment and beaches are protected. The 241 uses even more advanced design concepts, including protecting the environment from runoff on a stretch of I-5 by San Onofre and Trestles that isn’t currently protected.
State 52, which connects inland San Diego County to I-5 at La Jolla, is another example of the positive impact a well-designed highway can have. It has helped improve commuting and also access to the coast.
-TOM MARGRO