WEST SACRAMENTO, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--With billions of dollars worth of overdue road repairs in the pipeline thanks to the passage of SB1, asphalt industry and agency personnel will gather April 25-26 in Ontario for an annual pavement conference suddenly focused on getting all the work done quickly, efficiently and safely.
California Transportation Commission Chairwoman Fran Inman will be the keynote speaker at the Spring Asphalt Pavement Conference & Equipment Expo, which will take place at the Doubletree Hotel, 222 N. Vineyard Ave. in Ontario. The CTC recently approved an additional $7 billion in state road maintenance projects as a result of the passage last year of SB1, the Road Repair & Accountability Act of 2017. The bill, which contained the first increase in the state’s fuel tax since 1994, will generate an estimated $50 billion over a decade to help pay for repairs to California’s crumbling network of streets and highways, which studies have shown are among the roughest in the nation.
In the past, the challenge of repairing aging roads with dwindling dollars was a grim topic of discussion at the annual event that has drawn hundreds of attendees from around the state. But this year the mood is expected to be more optimistic, with public works officials tackling a large backlog of transportation improvement projects across the region. Meanwhile, primary voters on June 5 will be asked to consider Proposition 69, a ballot measure that would protect the new transportation dollars generated by SB1 and ensure that they can only be used for their intended purpose.
The conference will also focus on local roads, with a presentation by Mary Reyes, Principal Engineer, Los Angeles County Department of Public Works, as well as other technical and educational presentations. New technology and new equipment will also be on display.
The conference begins at 1 p.m. on Wednesday, April 25, and concludes at noon on Thursday, April 26. For more information about the conference, visit the CalAPA website – www.calapa.net – or call Sophie You at (916) 791-5044.