Silicon Valley Leadership Group Applauds New Highway Project Funding Recommendations; Urges California Transportation Commission to Fund Four Key Area Projects

The Silicon Valley Leadership Group today applauded revised recommendations for key regional highway improvements and urged the California Transportation Commission to fund three important projects in Santa Clara County and one in San Mateo County at its meeting Wednesday in Irvine, Calif.

The Leadership Group sent a letter to the commission last week urging reconsideration of three projects the commission staff had not recommended for approval. Today, the staff revised its recommendations to add two of of the projects cited in the Leadership Group letter.

"We are very pleased that the commission staff has added projects it previously had not recommended, including two cited in our letter last week," said Laura Stuchinsky, director of transportation and land use for the Leadership Group. "This is an important step in getting these key projects approved for Silicon Valley."

The four projects the commission staff is now recommending for approval are:

I-880, HOV lanes from Highway 237 to U.S. 101 in Santa Clara County; staff is recommending approval of $71.6 million.
U.S. 101, widening from Yerba Buena to I-280/I-680; staff is recommending approval of $30 million.
U.S. 101, auxiliary lanes from Route 85 to Embarcadero; staff recommendation is for $84.9 million.
U.S. 101, auxiliary lanes from Embarcadero to Marsh Road (San Mateo County); staff recommendation is for $60 million.

Carl Guardino, CEO of the Leadership Group, was appointed earlier this month to a four-year term on the state transportation commission, beginning March 1.