SAN RAFAEL -- Marin County's Board of Supervisors Tuesday unanimously approved placing on the November ballot a half-cent sale tax hike to finance $331 million in local transportation improvements over 20 years.

All 11 Marin cities and towns endorsed the measure.

Fifty-five percent of the revenue would go to local bus transit, 26.5 percent to fix local roads, bikeways and sidewalks, 11 percent would ease congestion and provide safe routes to schools and 7.5 percent would close the car pool lane gap on U.S. Highway 101 through San Rafael and Central Marin.

The tax hike would raise the Marin sales tax from 7.25 percent to 7.5 percent and cost the average county resident $80 a year.

Sonoma County's Board of Supervisors also approved a quarter-cent sales tax hike to pay for $470 million in local transportation improvements. The board is scheduled to vote next week to put it on the November ballot.

Solano County officials are proposing a half-cent local sales tax hike measure that would raise $1.4 billion over 30 years. Napa County's Board of Supervisors rejected a sales tax hike to pay for that county's transportation needs.

A plan to raise the sales tax to pay for a commuter rail line between Sonoma and Marin counties is being proposed for the November 2006 ballot.