The grant brings the project closer to reality, but delays and cost overruns are putting a completion date more than a decade away.
The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) will contribute over $5 billion to a project that will bring a Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) line to Santa Clara, California, reports Joseph Geha for KQED.
Officials from the Silicon Valley city celebrated the announcement, which will contribute significantly to the estimated $12.7 billion cost of the project. “VTA’s origins estimate, in 2014, pegged the cost at $4.7 billion and aimed for a completion date in 2026. As recently as spring 2022, VTA still touted a $6.9 billion estimate before facing multiple schedule delays and ballooning cost increases to the current figure.”
The project has been in the works for close to three decades and is scheduled for completion in 2037. Much of the track will run underground. “As currently planned, the project will extend BART from its current end of the line at Berryessa Station in North San José and will run west to create four new stations: 28th Street/Little Portugal near East San José, Downtown San José, Diridon Station and Santa Clara.”
Read the full story: Feds Commit $5.1 Billion to South Bay BART Extension
Change of Plans: Transit Funding Priorities Shift in the Silicon Valley
Santa Clara County cities rebel against the agency's proposed plan to spend most of the Measure B funds on a Silicon Valley BART extension.
New South Bay BART Stations See Disappointing Ridership
Introduced during the pandemic in an area where many residents now work remotely, the new stations have failed to attract new commuters.
BART San Jose Extension Faces Delays and Ballooning Costs
The extension to downtown is a complex and ambitious project facing many challenges and questions about feasibility.
Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.
California plans to bury El Niño’s downpour
If the state plays its cards right, it may be able to store a billion acre-feet of El Niño’s water in aquifers.
Desperate measures: Advocates weigh draining Lake Powell to fill Colorado River
Draining the reservoir could reduce evaporation losses by a couple hundred thousand acre-feet.
LA residents may be allowed to paint their own crosswalks
Councilwoman Katy Yaroslavsky put out a motion instructing the Los Angeles Department of Public Transportation to study the feasibility of allowing volunteers to paint crosswalks.
Dallas moves to overhaul its zoning code
The city's zoning reform will allow more multi-family and mixed-use developments.
Not in my parking spot: LA renters oppose ADU development in their garages
Some tenants advocates say taking away residents’ parking spaces harms senior citizens and people with disabilities who rely on their cars to navigate the city.
FREE Course: Walkable City 1: Why Walkability?
After describing his path towards focusing on walkability as the essence of good planning, Jeff Speck marches through his five principal reasons for making more walkable places.
Reinventing Malls: Planning Alchemy—Turning Gray Fields Into Gold
The course focuses on the opportunities and imperatives that shape reinvention of mall sites.
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