HomeMy WebLinkAbout1/9/2024 Public Comment, NelsonRE: Higuera Streets Complete Criticisms 0109 24 Gene Nelson, Ph.D.
This is an extension of my previous comments on December 5 and December 19, 2023.
1. Any projected decrease in rush-hour traffic queue lengths at the Madonna - Higuera - South
Street intersection would be the result of motorists detouring to alternate routes which are
already congested with rush-hour traffic. Many of us relocated to SLO to escape rush-hour
congestion in either southern California or the San Francisco Bay area. It would be a misuse of
$ 9 million in taxpayer funds to increase rather than decreasing congestion on important SLO
circulation elements.
2. Mathematicians and engineers use a technique of approaching limits to understand dynamic
systems. Let's set Vehicle Miles Traveled in SLO to zero. Here are some of the real -world
consequences: Local commerce would grind to a halt. There would be a minuscule diminution of
regional demand for gasoline, yielding a barely -detectable decrease in gas prices in southern
California. The change in regional emissions would not be detectable as motorists drive a bit
more elsewhere. The idea of decreasing SLO VMTs having any benefit is based only on wishful
thinking.
The money should be repurposed to widen South Higuera to five lanes instead of creating more
rush-hour congestion.