United States

Grand Plans to Unclog Highway 101 in Silicon Valley

How many hours do you plan to spend in traffic in a week?

There are plans to reduce your commute time and it includes changing some lanes on U.S. Highway 101 in Silicon Valley.

Caltrans, the San Mateo County Transportation Authority and other agencies are set to discuss a plan Thursday to link "managed lanes" on U.S. Highway 101 in Santa Clara County to new ones in San Mateo County.

Possibilities includes converting existing carpool (HOV) lanes to express lanes and adding new express lanes on U.S. 101 between Whipple Road and the I-380 interchange in San Mateo County. It could also include reconstructing ramp connections to U.S. 101 and installing electronic toll collection.

A number of major Silicon Valley employers, including Facebook, Genentech and Stanford University are pushing for more carpools, public transit and other mechanisms to get more cars off Highway 101 and I-280, the Silicon Valley Business Journal reported.

The purpose of the meeting, according to a Facebook page dedicated to the managed lane project, will be to discuss the scope of issues to be addressed in the draft environmental document, range of alternatives under consideration and the potential environmental effects of potential modifications within the corridor. The community is invited to submit questions, concerns and advice to: Yolanda Rivas, Caltrans Office of Environmental Analysis, P.O. Box 23660, Oakland, CA, 94623-0660; e-mail: sm101scoping@dot.ca.gov.

The deadline is Nov. 18. Thursday’s meeting is being held from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. at San Mateo City Hall, 330 W. 20th Ave.

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