The Alameda County Transportation Commission (Alameda CTC), along with its partner the California Department of Transportation (Caltrans), celebrated the start of construction on Phase 1 of the Interstate 80 (I-80)/Gilman Street Interchange Improvement project during this afternoon’s virtual groundbreaking ceremony. The City of Berkeley and all that are impacted traveling through and around the I-80/Gilman Street interchange are thrilled to see construction on this project begin.

The I-80/Gilman Street Interchange Improvement project addresses one of the most dangerous interchanges in the Bay Area where bicyclists, pedestrians and vehicles intersect. Project modifications will improve navigation and traffic operations on Gilman Street between West Frontage Road and 2nd Street through the I-80 interchange so that congestion is reduced, queues are shortened and merging and turn conflicts are minimized. Additionally, it will close the gap in local and regional bicycle facilities through the I-80/Gilman Street interchange, and provide access for bicyclists and pedestrians traveling between the Bay Trail and North Berkeley both with a new pedestrian and bicycle overcrossing and safety improvements at street level through the interchange.

“Alameda County voters asked for more safety and greater accessibility, and we listened and we delivered,” said Alameda CTC Executive Director Tess Lengyel.

Many thanks were offered by Caltrans, Alameda CTC and partner agencies to the public for their patience as we work to improve transportation systems within Alameda County, enabling us to provide safety, jobs, affordable access and sustainable transportation.

For detailed information on this effort, see the press release or the project webpages at Caltrans and/or Alameda CTC.