Santa Clara County Transportation Digest

After more than 20 years of steady growth, Palo Alto has seen a recent reduction in the number of students biking to campus. Now, city and school officials are looking to restore momentum to the Safe Routes to School program.

San Jose Mineta International Airport is seeing passenger numbers that are close to pre-COVID levels for the first time since the start of the pandemic. The airport is making great strides to accommodate all who wish to travel by air.

The area in East San Jose around Story Road and Keyes Street is about to be transformed from a danger zone to a safe corridor with a new influx of cash.

A bipartisan congressional group from Nevada and California is asking the Biden administration to fast-track federal funds for a private company to build a high-speed rail line between Las Vegas and the Los Angeles area.

Politicians must contend with a multibillion-dollar budget deficit, but they also face demands from leaders of vital health care and transit services for more money to solve their fiscal woes.

Santa Clara County residents could soon ride on the region's first bicycle superhighway. Valley Transportation Authority could approve construction of a 10-mile stretch of bike lanes between San Jose and Santa Clara as soon as next month.

Caltrain’s cumulative operating deficit may exceed half a billion dollars over the next decade without significant changes in ridership, funding and other factors, according to a new financial outlook report.

In the year 2030, a woman walks from her apartment in downtown San Jose to Diridon Station, where she zips toward San Jose Mineta International Airport. This is the future imagined by proponents of the airport connector.

The San Jose City Council voted unanimously to waive more than $1 million in fees and marketing dollars for Spirit Airlines as the company takes off at San Jose Mineta International Airport.

Caltrans recently authorized fixes on a stretch of El Camino Real that runs through Los Altos. Residents hope the work will resolve the potholes and other road hazard issues.

Up to 60% of 2030 models and two-thirds of 2032 models sold nationwide would be zero-emissions—less aggressive than California’s mandate.

Transit agencies in California are struggling to avoid a “fiscal cliff”—and to persuade riders to return after the COVID pandemic. Advocates and legislators are seeking more state aid, but there are no simple solutions.

Caltrain plans to repair damage to the embankment that holds up the bridge that connects Menlo Park and Palo Alto after recent storms undermined the soil below.

Temporary closures are scheduled to begin March 30 for Highway 101 and 17. An old freeway overcrossing will be removed from 101, while 17 will be closed to remove fallen trees and debris from recent storms.

Santa Clara County Valley Transportation Authority will be audited by the state as one lawmaker looks to change up how it's run.

Communities with high concentrations of electric cars are affluent, college-educated and at least 75% white and Asian—revealing a barrier to electrifying the state’s entire fleet.

A court ruling that upheld much of a 2020 gig-worker initiative also struck down a part that labor advocates say could lead to legislation for driver unionization.

The Federal Aviation Administration won't allow the Palo Alto City Council to address issues a the Palo Alto Airport.

The Biden administration included a major gift to the Bay Area in its federal budget proposal: $500 million to build BART through San Jose.

The latest report from the California High-Speed Rail Authority projects costs for the initial segment at $35 billion, which exceeds secured funding by $10 billion. Other segments are likely to see higher projected costs.

The boom in electric-powered bicycling is reducing car travel, lowering carbon emissions and introducing homebodies to the great outdoors. But the activity is on a collision course with an equally cherished environmental ideal: peace and quiet.

Public transit is a lifeline for low-income Californians, and the key to realizing reduced carbon emissions. But the state’s major public transit agencies are facing myriad issues and are looking to state lawmakers for a solution.

The Bay Area Rapid Transit System is embarking on a new plan to make riders feel safer, more than doubling the number of police officers on dedicated foot patrols.

The Mountain View City Council is considering some tweaks to its 72-hour parking rule, which prohibits parking in the same spot for more than three days.

Jolted to action by local bicyclists and a federal grant, the Palo Alto City Council will advance a “safe systems” plan aimed at curbing collisions on city streets.

A portion of South Murphy Avenue in downtown Sunnyvale is one step closer to being permanently closed to vehicle traffic after the council voted Feb. 7 to convert the area into a pedestrian mall.

Residents are seeing their daily trips between work and home extended by more than 17 minutes each day because of rush-hour traffic—nearly 7 minutes in the morning and more than 10 in the evening.

Cupertino is implementing its first pedestrian scramble at the intersection of Bubb and McClellan roads beginning Jan. 23.

The Sunnyvale Department of Public Safety will increase patrols throughout the community and provide other traffic safety programs to help reduce the number of serious injuries and deaths on roads.

The grace period for timed parking in San Jose is over, and the city will begin ticketing violators again.

Two bridge toll assistance programs are set to go into effect in early 2023, offering free crossings for eligible military veterans and a penalty waiver for low-income residents.

Santa Clara residents will need permits again to park in overcrowded areas, including neighborhoods near the Alameda, Levi's Stadium and Rivermark Plaza. The city stopped enforcing permit requirements during the pandemic due to city staffing issues.