Santa Clara County Transportation Digest

State Sen. Josh Becker has introduced a bill that would require Bay Area transit agencies to coordinate their fare structures and schedules. “Riding transit in our region can be a disjointed and unreliable experience,” Becker said.

A single candle burned last week at an intersection in South San Jose to memorialize two of the latest casualties in the largest run of traffic deaths the Bay Area has seen in years. Eight people died on San Jose’s roads in just the first three weeks of 2022.

Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority has filed a lawsuit to acquire a downtown San Jose parcel that is currently retail and housing. It is allegedly needed to expand BART operations.

El Camino Real was once set to be a grand boulevard. Why has it turned into a hodgepodge of varying businesses and architecture instead?

Bay Area bridge tolls are increasing to $7, but the fines for violating are being reduced as things are adjusted for the new year.

San Jose's Charcot Avenue extension project has been halted after the Valley Transportation Agency pulled its funding. The pause comes after outrage from residents over the controversial project.

Palo Alto has been trying for two decades to join the SFO Community Roundtable, and prospects finally looked good over the summer. However, the city has been denied once again.

Valley Transportation Authority is currently seeking new advisory committee members. Applicants must be at least 18 years old and live in Santa Clara County.

Palo Alto is the latest to jump into the micro-transit trend as it prepares to offer an on-demand shuttle service.

While the city of Los Gatos has discussed having an e-scooter program in the past, the time never felt quite right—until now. Shared mobility is coming to Los Gatos.

A new children’s play area is now open at Mineta International Airport. It is called the Zoom Zone, thanks to its sponsorship from Zoom, and was designed by the San Jose Children’s Discovery Museum.

Mountain View is working to resolve parking issues, especially in busy areas like Castro Street. Solutions include paid parking areas and stronger enforcement.

The big infrastructure bill passed by the House could mean another $5.8 billion over five years in new federal dollars to California. The bill will help fix highways and bridges, and it provides funding for programs to make communities more pedestrian and cyclist-friendly.

The city of Milpitas recently released an updated version of its Transit Area Specific Plan, which was first created in 2008. The updated plans include transforming the Great Mall and the area around the BART station.

Traveling with children is never easy, and Mineta Airport is sending help in the form of its new Zoom Zone—an interactive area designed especially for kids.

The Federal Transit Administration sent a letter to Valley Transit Authority announcing that the BART expansion project has been approved for $2 billion in expedited funds.

BART will extend its hours for riders celebrating Halloween and attending the Outside Lands festival. The modified three-line special will run hourly after 9 p.m.

Bay Area Rapid Transit is the latest company to require COVID-19 vaccines for its employees. Workers have until Dec. 13 to provide proof of vaccination.

A new rapid bus line, known as the Rapid 568, will travel from Gilroy to San Jose every 30 minutes on weekdays. It replaces the Express 168, which ran only four times per day and required a higher fare.

Thanks to buildings being built beyond height recommendations, San Jose International Airport and its airlines are now losing money. FAA guidelines dictate that fewer passengers may fly per plane when surrounding buildings grow too tall.

Highway deaths declined in 2020, according to a new report. The decline is related to less traveling due to the pandemic.

New barriers have been installed at Monterey Road and Curtner Avenue, considered to be one of the most perilous hit-and-run areas in San Jose.

The Gilroy City Council and the Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority held a meeting Sept. 14 to discuss the Gilroy Transit Center, which serves bus lines for VTA, San Benito County Express, and Monterey-Salinas Transit. The VTA proposes to use roughly half of the property for a housing project.

In 2023, the crumbling Monterey Road between Highway 101 and Luchessa Avenue is expected to be reconstructed, as is the heavily truck-traveled Luchessa and adjacent Automall Parkway.

Sebastian Thrun plans sometime in the next six months to be the first passenger to ride in Heaviside, the autonomous electric aircraft being developed by Kitty Hawk, his Palo Alto company, which is financed by Google billionaire Larry Page.

After being eliminated from the schedule due to COVID-19, Southwest Airlines’ San Jose-Reno flights will resume seven days a week.

A study by libertarian think tank Reason Foundation projects that 31 cities could generate as much as $131 billion through leasing their airports. Cities could then use the money to pay down debt or invest in other infrastructure.

Light rail service first resumed on Sunday for a 49ers football game at Levi's Stadium, but Monday, Aug. 30, marks a more substantial return.

Around 150 people gathered Aug. 21 to name Barack Obama Boulevard, a 4,300-foot stretch at the busy confluence of the SAP Center, Google's upcoming Downtown West development and the Diridon Station.

Santa Clara County has joined with a coalition of community groups, represented by Earthjustice, to file a petition​ calling on the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to eliminate lead pollution from aircraft throughout the United States.

Drivers and pedestrians were startled by flashing lights warning them to stop for light rail trains rolling along Silicon Valley routes—but with no passengers. The VTA was running tests in preparation for restoring passenger service this week.

The cities of Palo Alto, Mountain View and Sunnyvale have struck a deal for splitting the $700 million that they are entitled to under Measure B for grade separation projects on Caltrain rail crossings.