Commission approves master and operating agreements for 241–91 express connector; TCA to fund project

The Riverside County Transportation Commission approved the master and operating agreements for the 241–91 Express Connector project, a tolled single-lane-per-direction connector between the 241 toll facility and the 91 express lanes. Transportation Corridor Agencies (TCA) will fully fund the $524,000,000 project, and TCA agreed to reimburse RCTC for certain prior costs and to pay closure fees and other operational expenses identified in the agreements.

David Thomas, Toll Project Delivery Director, presented the agreements and described the connector, related capacity additions on the 91 eastbound express lanes and the overlapping ECOP eastbound-lane project. "This project constructs a direct connector. It's a single lane in each direction between the 241 toll facility and the 91 express lanes in the median. This is a separate tolled facility, so the connector itself will have its own tolled price," Thomas said.

Thomas told commissioners the project is intended to reduce long queues on the 241 (up to four miles in peak periods), reduce weaving on the 91, and produce corridor travel-time and air-quality benefits. The presentation outlined two related projects: the eastbound lane addition (the "ELC" change order that added capacity on the 91 eastbound for about $7.4…