PLANT 42 ROUTE TO BE WIDER HOUSE TRANSPORTATION BILL OKS PROJECT FUNDS.

Byline: Jim Skeen Staff Writer

PALMDALE - The House of Representatives passed a transportation funding bill that includes $4 million for a project to improve access to Air Force Plant 42 by widening a 3.3-mile section of Rancho Vista Boulevard.

The 6-year, $275 billion bill, called the Transportation Equity Act - A Legacy for Users, includes funding for widening Rancho Vista Boulevard (Avenue P) to six lanes from Fairway Drive to 30th Street East.

Palmdale officials want to widen the road to improve access to Air Force Plant 42, which provides more than 6,500 jobs.

``We get a lot of congestion in the morning and late afternoon,'' said Mayor Jim Ledford. ``This project is necessary to relieve that congestion.''

The plan is to expand the road from two lanes in each direction to three lanes in each direction with a median. The work would also include bike paths on both sides of the road.

Intersections would be striped with left-turn pockets and, where necessary, widened for right-turn lanes as well.

Palmdale officials want to relieve rush-hour traffic congestion and to better position Plant 42 for future aerospace projects.

``The Avenue P expansion project will address a severe bottleneck on a major artery serving defense contractors and Air Force Plant 42, where the Global Hawk unmanned aerial vehicle is being manufactured,'' Rep. Howard P. ``Buck'' McKeon, R-Santa Clarita, said in the request for the project funding. ``Enhanced signalization, widening the highway and a grade separation component where it crosses the rail line will significantly relieve the current problem and aid in the effort to improve homeland security.''

In December, the city awarded a $344,000 contract to Lim and Nascimento Engineering Corp., the same firm overseeing the Avenue S corridor widening, for preliminary engineering for the Rancho Vista Boulevard project.

Early estimates put the project cost at $39.5 million.

``We think this is a good first step,'' Ledford said of the federal bill.

The timetable for the project will depend on when the city can secure funding. The work will likely be done in phases, with the most critical area being the intersection with Sierra Highway.

A widened Rancho Vista Boulevard will aid in attracting a company to Site 9, the former B-1B bomber assembly plant at 30th Street East, city officials said.

The city of Los Angeles, which owns Site 9, wants to attract an aircraft company to that location. The site was recently used as a soundstage for the filming of a Steven Spielberg movie.

Jim Skeen, [phone]

james.skeen(at)dailynews.com

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Proposed widening to 6 lanes

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