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City Beat
Expressway and other projects to get state funding
State funding is also on the way for Highway 85 and 87 interchange
By Steven Raphael
Over the next 20 years, an estimated $3.7 billion in sales tax revenue will be spent to improve transportation in the Santa Clara Valley, according to the Valley Transportation Plan 2020. Improvements to freeways, gateways, county expressways and local streets, as well as transit, bicycle and pedestrian programs have been planned.
Almaden Expressway is in line to get a portion of that funding. Willow Glen streets will also get funding for improvements, although when that will happen has not yet been determined.
According to Jeff Davis, administrator of the Santa Clara County Measure B Transportation Improvement Project, some of the money will be spent on determining what further improvements are necessary. An additional $85 million has been reserved to make these improvements.
"Certainly... Almaden would qualify for that," Davis said.
According to VPT Project Manager Carolyn Gonot, Almaden Expressway will have to wait in line for its study behind San Tomas Expressway. San Tomas will get the lion's share for improvements.
Furthermore, Gonot said that a portion of the plan's funds will be allocated for improvements on city streets, including pothole management and traffic signal coordination.
"We are also looking at concentrated neighborhoods like Willow Glen and Japantown to help with bike paths ... and pedestrian facilities," she said.
Part of the $3.7 billion will be used to complete the light-rail extension to downtown Campbell. An additional $15 million has been drawn from other sources to allow a rail extension to Winchester Boulevard. This is expected to be finished around 2004.
Other transportation improvements will come from a transportation package recently approved by Gov. Gray Davis.
The package provides approximately $7 billion for 119 transportation-related capital improvement projects from the Governor's Traffic Congestion Relief Plan, as well as 39 new projects that were added by the legislature.
One of those projects will be connector ramps at the Highway 85/87 interchange that were not completed when the freeways were built.
Other projects include extending BART from Fremont to downtown San Jose, widening Highway 101 to eight lanes between south San Jose and Morgan Hill, and various improvements to Highway 101 between Highway 87 and Trimble Road.
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Willow Glen, California Since 1992
