Ribbon Cutting for the State Route 84 Expressway Segment 1 Widening, latest in series of corridor improvements, was held on October 27 in Livermore.
On October 27, 2014 at 10am, Alameda County Transportation Commission (Alameda CTC), with partners the California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) and the Cities of Dublin, Livermore and Pleasanton cut the celebratory ribbon on the northern section of the State Route 84 Expressway project. This major widening project improves capacity and local traffic circulation, eases congestion and provides increased safety in the area for pedestrian and bicycle access.
SR-84 is a major time-saver for local traffic and for commuters between the Central Valley and Silicon Valley, and with this widening project, SR-84 (Isabel Avenue) reaches expressway standards of 55 mile-per-hour drive speeds. The investments in SR-84 will continue to reduce traffic congestion, improve safety, and reduce air pollution.
“These investments benefit Tri-Valley residents and Bay Area commuters alike,” says Supervisor Scott Haggerty, Chair of the Alameda CTC. “A healthy economy depends on a reliable transportation system and it is in our best interests to see that people and products move safely and efficiently throughout Alameda County. These projects help us meet that goal.”
The expressway widening project is the third of five in a series of projects to improve SR-84. The first four projects, beginning with the 580/Isabel Avenue Interchange completed in March 2012, are funded by a combination of local Measure B, state and federal funds. If voters approve the Alameda County 2014 Transportation Expenditure Plan in November 2014 (through its supporting ballot measure BB), the final segment of SR-84 will be funded, completing the entire corridor between Interstate 580 in Livermore and Interstate 680 in Sunol.
Since 1986, when local voter-approved transportation funding began in Alameda County with the passage of the original Measure B, more than $1.6 billion worth of transportation capital improvements have been made in the Tri-Valley, including I-580/I-680 interchange improvements and carpool lanes, and the first Express Lanes in the Bay Area on southbound I-680, providing congestion relief and reliable travel times through the Sunol grade. $562 million of the county’s own half-cent sales tax allowed Alameda County to leverage another $1.1 billion in federal, state, regional, and local funds. That’s nearly a three-to-one return on the taxpayers’ investment!
