Toll road appeal to take a year By Dave Downey North County Times February 14, 2008 A federal official said it could be a long wait, almost a year, until the U.S. Secretary of Commerce rules on the appeal for the proposed San Onofre toll road that was rejected soundly last week by the California Coastal Commission. Because the last four miles of the highway would cross federal land -- the Camp Pendleton Marine Corps Base -- the project proponent, the Foothill/Eastern Transportation Corridor Agency, was able to appeal the denial to the Secretary of Commerce. Spokesman Anson Franklin said Wednesday that the commerce secretary has 325 days, or nearly a year, to weigh the arguments and render a decision on an appeal. Franklin said decisions typically take that long. The transportation agency wants to build a 16-mile extension of the Highway 241 toll road, running south from Rancho Santa Margarita to Interstate 5 near the San Diego-Orange county line. Four miles of the highway would run on San Onofre State Beach, which sits on a sliver of Camp Pendleton. Copyright 1999-2008, California Coastal Coalition Phone: (760) 944-3564