Silicon Valley Leadership Group Hails CTC Approval of Key Highway Improvement Projects

The Silicon Valley Leadership Group today praised the California Transportation Commission's approval of $246.5 million in key highway improvement projects for Santa Clara and San Mateo Counties.

"The unanimous vote for projects we have vigorously supported is a great start up the onramp toward easing traffic congestion and saving both lives and time for people in Silicon Valley," said Carl Guardino, CEO of the Leadership Group. "We still have a long road ahead and will continue to work on behalf of our member companies and all Silicon Valley workers and residents toward the approval of further highway improvements that are vital to our community."

The transportation panel approved three projects in Santa Clara County and one in San Mateo County:

Extension of carpool lanes on I-880 between Highway 237 and 101 ($71.6 million)
Widening of U.S. 101 from Yerba Buena to I-280/I-680 ($30 million)
Auxiliary lanes on U.S. 101 between Embarcadero Road and Highway 85 ($84.9 million)
Auxiliary lanes on U.S. 101 between Marsh Road and Embarcadero Road in San Mateo County ($60 million)

The commission did not approve two other key projects in Santa Clara County - widening U.S. 101 between Monterey Road and Highway 25 south of Gilroy, with related improvements to the 101/25 interchange, and improvements to the I-880/I-280 interchange at Stevens Creek Boulevard and Winchester in San Jose.

"We are disappointed that the commission chose not to approve those projects at this time, but we realize there are numerous communities vying for limited state highway dollars," said Guardino. "Meanwhile, it is our goal to leverage the funds available to Silicon Valley to their maximum effectiveness until all the improvements can be approved." Guardino begins a four-year term on the commission tomorrow.