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This weekly bulletin contains the latest news and information of interest to the asphalt pavement industry in California. Please feel free to distribute this newsletter to others who may be interested in asphalt pavements.

A proposed ballot measure that, if passed, could have generated $3 billion for transportation, will not go before voters in 2014, transportation advocates announced last week.

  

"We'll continue to work with stakeholders, the Legislature, the administration and the public to identify and implement a solution to

Will Kempton

our transportation infrastructure problems," Will Kempton, a former Caltrans director who now heads the group Transportation California, told the Sacramento Bee newspaper.

  

The proposal, also backed by the California Alliance for Jobs, would have taken a phased approach to increase vehicle license fees. The current fee is .65 percent of a vehicle's value. It would increase by .25 percent a year for four years until it reached 1.65 percent. Proponents say changing the way transportation is financed is essential because the current gas tax was never indexed for inflation and has lost approximately half of its value over the past 20 years. Compounding the problem, the recession reduced vehicle miles driven, and the popularity of high-mileage cars has caused funds to maintain roads to dwindle.

 

Proponents filed language with the state Attorney General's office Nov. 18 seeking the official wording that would be on a ballot measure that could go before voters in November of 2014. The groups got the official wording back from the Secretary of State and conducted opinion surveys with voters but concluded the time was not right to begin the expensive and time-consuming signature-gathering process to qualify the measure for the ballot.

 

Taking the case for adequate transportation funding to voters is just part of a broad-based campaign supported by the construction industry, transportation system users and others to call attention to the state's crumbling infrastructure. At the same time, industry and agencies are working together to make current dollars go farther through specification updates, new technology and implementing of best practices.

 

The condition of the state's transportation infrastructure remains dire, according to a national assessment released recently by the TRIP road information group. The study found some of the roughest roads are located in the urbanized areas of California, and estimated that the added cost to California drivers for driving on those roads to be up to $800 per year in repair and other costs.

 

Kempton, in a speech last month to CalAPA's annual dinner meeting in Los Angeles, and in an interview in this month's CalAPA magazine, California Asphalt, noted that transportation advocates are moving forward with several other initiatives to boost road funding in California in the short-term until a long-term funding solution is found.

The next Southern California contractor's dinner will be held Tuesday, Feb. 11 in Pico Rivera. A "small-business expo" will be the featured presentation.

Dave Johnsen with Roadtec (left) and Lori Cisneros with Consolidated Industrial Services at a recent contractors dinner.

  

The event, which is open to all CalAPA members and their guests, begins at %:30 p.m. and will take place at the Dal Rae Restaurant, 9023 E. Washington Blvd. in Pico Rivera.

  

Also on the evening program is a "technical tidbit" from Steve Marvin of LaBelle-Marvin, and an insurance update from Steve Cota from Patriot Risk & Insurance. The "member of the month" will be Lori Cisneros with Consolidated Industrial Services.

  

Pre-registration for the event is required, and must be done via the CalAPA website. Click HERE to sign up. Direct questions to Sophie You of CalAPA at (916) 791-5044.

  

concluding that the 118-year-old department is "out of step" and in need of modernization.

  

The independent review was conducted by the Smart State Transportation Initiative at the University of Wisconsin. More than 100 people were interviewed for the report, including several representatives from CalAPA.

  

"This report describes significant challenges that built up for decades  at Caltrans and we are committed to facing those challenges proactively and taking action to deliver a modern transportation system that Californians deserve," Kelly said in a statement released Jan. 30.

 

The 101-page report goes out of its way to emphasize that the problems at Caltrans have been many years, or even decades, in the making.

 

"Partly because of its own actions or lack thereof, but also because of how it has been treated by stakeholders, Caltrans today is significantly out of step with best practice in the transportation field and with the state of California's policy expectations," the report states. "It is in need of modernization-both in the way it sees its job and how it approaches that job-and of a culture change that will foster needed adaptation and innovation."

 

In a meeting with CalAPA representatives last month, Kelly said the report would be used to help the department refine its mission and look for opportunities for improvement.

 

To read the full report, click HERE.

The CalAPA Los Angeles Area Technical Committee meeting will take place on Wednesday, Feb. 5 from 9:30 a.m to noon in Santa Ana and feature a presentation on a new system for classifying chemicals.

  

The meeting will be held at the Orange County RDMD Conference Room, 1152 Fruit Street in Santa Ana. All CalAPA members and any agency personnel are welcome to attend.

  

The meeting will feature a special presentation by Kathy Hubbard with CalAPA member firm Alta Environmental on the new Globally Harmonized System of Classification and Labeling of Chemicals (GHS), which will be replacing the familiar MSDS sheets common at asphalt plants and workplaces.

  

Other technical topics will be covered that are of interest to the asphalt pavement industry and agency personnel. For more information, contact Jim St Martin at (949) 933-3905. 

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