Transbay Blog
South Bay
First Bay Area HOT lane opens for business
The Bay Area’s first high-occupancy toll (HOT) lane, or “express lane,” opens today on southbound Interstate 680 over the Sunol Grade, between Highways 84 and 237 — a 14-mile stretch of freeway that includes 11 miles in Alameda County and 3 miles in Santa Clara County. Carpools and high-occupancy vehicles on this segment of freeway … Continue reading
Record of Decision issued for BART to San Jose
BART to San Jose has advanced one step forward in the New Starts process. The Federal Transit Administration has now issued a Record of Decision (ROD) for the BART extension, which marks federal approval of the project’s environmental impact statement. The ROD only covers the initial phase between Warm Springs and Berryessa, including two new … Continue reading
“It would be a circus”
In light of the need to accommodate more housing in the Bay Area’s inner ring cities, this blog does not condone the cries of neighbors who protest height and density, simply to safeguard their parking spots or preserve their personal views. But at the same time, it cannot condone the rubber stamping of every project … Continue reading
It was the best of times, it was the worst of times
Last week was a week of contrasts for the commuter rail line that connects San Francisco to the Peninsula and South Bay. At the start of the week, Caltrain was poised to certify an environmental impact report, thus formally approving and adopting its electrification project. This would be a big milestone, as it would finally … Continue reading
Peninsula Investments
It’s funny how things sometimes turn out. In terms of funding, BART has long been the Bay Area’s favorite son. Year after year, BART is allocated a major piece of the region’s transit funding pie, a piece that is disproportionately large for the number of people it moves. Meanwhile: slow, antiquated, dirty, screechy Caltrain has … Continue reading
Bridges Tame the Valley’s Freeway-Laden Landscape
Mary Avenue Bridge; courtesy of LERA. So many freeways and expressways crisscross the auto-oriented sprawl of Silicon Valley, and they contribute to a physical environment that is inhospitable, forming actual and pyschological barriers to those who attempt to get around on foot or a bicycle. But pedestrians and bicyclists alike will be able to enjoy … Continue reading
Shifting Funds, Shifty Priorities
First, A Few Numbers (and Acronyms) Regular readers may recall our previous discussion of Transportation 2035, the latest update to MTC’s ongoing efforts on the Regional Transportation Plan. Earlier this year, we wrote a special feature that describes the multifaceted plan, fleshing out how MTC has proposed to allocate $226 billion of local, state, and … Continue reading
Preliminary Injunction Against Warm Springs Denied
This morning, Judge Frank Roesch (of Alameda County Superior Court) heard arguments in the Lewis v. Metropolitan Transportation Commission case we discussed two weeks ago. The petitioners (former BART directors Lewis and Nakadegawa, and TRANSDEF) sought a preliminary injunction of MTC’s and ACTIA’s total allocation of about $315 million to the BART extension to Warm … Continue reading
Lawsuit Challenges the Warm Springs Funding Swap
BART announced in February 2009 that it was moving forward on a $225 million contract to construct the subway portion of its planned extension to Warm Springs, which will tunnel under Central Park in Fremont. The 5.4-mile extension south of the existing Fremont terminal station will be the first stage of BART to Silicon Valley. … Continue reading
The March to Berryessa
Although the underlying objective of BART to Silicon Valley may have been to furnish Diridon and Downtown San Jose with new gleaming subway stations, the Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority is currently setting its sight only as far as Berryessa Station in East San Jose: about two miles short of where the tracks are planned … Continue reading
Subscribe
Links
If you are interested in California water issues, you may want to check out my other blog on that topic.
Copyright © 2007-2021 Transbay Blog.
Transbay Blog 