Ramona Expressway could see safety boost
Panel sets aside $50M to examine ways to make route safer in light of Nueveo residents' concerns
The Ramona Expressway, a two-lane highway notorious for fatal accidents, could be getting some relief.
Residents of Nuevo recently raised concerns about deaths on the expressway. Concerns also arose at a Riverside County Transportation Commission subcommittee meeting last week when members discussed the Mid-County Parkway project, which is a 16-mile corridor planned between San Jacinto and Perris.
The committee agreed to set aside nearly $50 million from the parkway project to improve safety on the expressway, commission Deputy Executive Director John Standiford said.
“There are significant safety concerns to the east along Ramona Expressway,” commission Executive Director Anne Mayer said at the meeting. “And, from my perspective, that should be the No. 1 priority to make sure we’re addressing safety concerns as a main focus of the efforts that we have.”
Members of the panel will work on a plan to determine what specific safety measures would be put in place, Standiford said.
Residents won’t see any changes until the project and funds are approved by the commission’s board around July, or, at the latest, September, Standiford said.
“The one thing that won’t change is the commitment to Ramona,” Standiford said.
The Ramona Expressway has had numerous accidents and fatalities, including at least four fatal accidents in the past three months.
Marshall Locke and other residents of the Nuevo area have asked for expressway safety improvements.
“The Nuevo Lake community sees this as a welcomed development, however we want to see the funds exclusively going to improvements on the Ramona Expressway,” Locke said.
By Monserrat Solis msolis@scng.com