Five transportation projects in Riverside County will receive a total $11.5 million in state funds for further development, it was announced Thursday.
The Southern California Association of Governments — SCAG — Regional Council awarded the money, which was made available under a $237 million California Department of Transportation Housing & Development award disbursed to agencies statewide, according to officials.
The largest allocation in the county is a $3 million grant for the Riverside County Transportation Commission’s Core Capacity Innovative Transit Study, which will evaluate transit improvement opportunities on Interstates 15 and 215.
Roughly $2.8 million has been earmarked for the Riverside Transit Agency’s GoMicro Microtransit Pilot Program Extension, which is focused on on-demand transportation opportunities in the Hemet and San Jacinto valleys.
The Riverside County Transportation & Land Management Agency’s Vehicle Miles Traveled Program will receive $2 million. The program focuses on developing “transportation evaluation metrics” to gauge the Coachella Valley’s infrastructure needs.
Another $2 million is going to the Coachella Rail Station Feasibility Study, centered on the prospective development of a “multimodal transit-supportive rail station district in Coachella,” according to SCAG.
The last program slated for funds is the Coachella Valley Link Connectors Analysis, which will receive $1.7 million. The CV Link envisions “multimodal transportation that connects various cities, tribal nations and unincorporated areas in the (eastern county) region,” SCAG said.