All Aboard! The Elk Grove City Council is on a New Track and It’s Gonna Cost Us

Mass transit projects in California have historically been plagued with funding problems, cost overruns, and overall public ambivalence. However, the City of Elk Grove through its transit partner, Sacramento Regional Transit District (SacRT) has now begun a focused effort on gathering public input on extending light rail and rapid bus service within Elk Grove.

While light rail service to Elk Grove had historically been poo-poohed by past City Councils, the current Council realizes that there are some real advantages to be had, and they are moving full speed ahead to formulate a plan–one that will require money – lotsa money. Brace yourself, I believe they are coming for our wallets.

SacRT is funded by a combination of sales tax revenue, federal and state grants, and various other fees. Measure A was passed by Sacramento County voters in 1988 and raised the sales tax ½ cent for transportation projects. An extension of Measure A was approved in 2004 and will expire in 2039.

Measure B was passed by Sacramento County voters in 2016 and raised the sales tax by an additional ½ cent for light rail extension, road/transit maintenance, and other highway improvements. That sales tax measure will expire in 2047.

A new 40-year transportation sales tax measure in 2022 was soundly defeated by voters, much to the chagrin of land developers who were looking for ways to channel tax dollars into new road construction to help support their planned developments. But voters essentially wanted to see any new tax money fix and maintain the neglected road system that already existed. A second developer-led attempt to resurrect that Measure was quietly withdrawn last year.

So now we hear the Elk Grove City Council beating the drums and holding public workshops to extend light rail and rapid bus into the city, unfortunately long after they had rejected light rail and watched the SacRT money flow instead to Rancho Cordova, Folsom, and eventually to the airport. This change of heart is noteworthy on two fronts – who will benefit from this and how it will be paid for.

A large percentage of Elk Grove residents work for various Federal, State, and County agencies in downtown Sacramento, and with the broad phasing out of work-from-home arrangements, these residents are now forced to commute downtown once again. In one prior survey, the Sacramento Bee estimated that 78% of the commuters travel alone by vehicle for the 30-45 minute daily commute. Then once they arrive, the commuters must attempt to find (and usually pay) for a much-coveted parking spot.

Rapid bus and light rail in Elk Grove would alleviate congestion along I-5 and Hwy 99 and would undoubtedly be supported by downtown commuters. Home builders would also love to market their new subdivisions as being easily accessible to light rail and rapid bus (much like Delta Shores homes are being marketed).

Now we come to the hard part–how will this major undertaking be paid for? Elk Grove currently competes with the other cities and the County for limited transportation funds. Besides, the light rail funds have already been earmarked for extension through Natomas and the airport. But wait, Elk Grove has a solution!

Not to be written off as a day late and a dollar short, I am convinced that the Elk Grove City Council is quietly working to propose a City-wide transportation sales tax measure that will expedite and fund light rail and rapid bus to the City. Not only that, but I wouldn’t be surprised to see the Whitelock interchange and the troubled ACE train station included in that sales tax measure.

The Measure E one percent sales tax increase was passed by Elk Grove voters in 2022 and was promoted as the “Safety and Quality of Life” measure. Now that we are safe and have a quality of life, let’s transport that happiness! Traffic congestion, created in large part by the City Council’s granting of traffic exceptions to the developers (i.e. CEQA Overriding Considerations), could actually work in their favor to help get the measure passed. The developers would love to feature smiling commuters on an ACE train, light rail car, or smooth bus in their brochures!

Just as the zoo outreach project prioritized fancy renderings and happy animals, the City’s transportation outreach program appears to be skirting the primary issue of whether residents even want this service and how it will be paid for. Instead, we are given choices of station locations on a map and a leading survey that leads us down a one-way track (pun intended).

All aboard!