They say “good things often come in threes,” and that has certainly been true for the long-desired BART extension to Silicon Valley – with three pieces of great news in the past few weeks.
First, on June 24, the federal government announced that the first segment of the 16 mile BART extension met environmental clearance. This 10-mile segment will take the line from Fremont to Milpitas and Berryessa in North San Jose and serve more than 46,000 daily riders by 2030. It will also create thousands of private sector jobs to engineer, design and build the extension.
Second, on June 30, the California Transportation Commission – on which I serve – approved an additional $40 million in state funds towards the extension. Even in tough economic times, the BART extension is viewed as a critical transportation link for Silicon Valley and the Bay Area.
Third, the BART extension remains extremely popular with the voters and taxpayers who will pay for it. In the most recent independent poll, conducted a few weeks ago, 75 percent of Santa Clara County taxpayers support the project, with only 20 percent in opposition.
Thanks to the visionary voters of Santa Clara County, BART to Silicon Valley remains – on track.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Carl, thank you for updating us with the terrific news on the progress of the BART to Silicon Valley extension - also known as the Silicon Valley Rapid Transit corridor.
ReplyDeleteThis passenger rail project remains essential to enable Silicon Valley's future economic growth, international leadership and competitiveness, enhanced mobility, and massive reduction of carbon emmissions to name a few of the many benefits it will bring to our region.
We again extend our genuine thanks to you and to your SVLG staff for multiple and tireless campaigns that have and will enable this monumentally significant project to ultimately materialize.
--Ed Mendence