The Alameda County Transportation Commission (Alameda CTC), in cooperation with the California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) and the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), environmentally cleared the construction of an express lane on northbound Interstate 680 (I-680) from the State Route 237 (SR-237) interchange in Santa Clara County to north of the State Route 84 (SR-84) interchange in Alameda County. The project was split into two phases to expedite the delivery. Phase 1, from SR-262 to SR-84, broke ground in April 2018 and included reconfiguration of the access configuration of the southbound express lane to allow drivers to enter and exit more freely. Both the new northbound and converted southbound express lane opened to high-occupancy vehicle (HOV) traffic in October 2020. On March 31, 2023, tolling resumed on the southbound express lane and began on the northbound express lane.

• Widening the freeway to accommodate the express lane together with several auxiliary lanes to facilitate the smooth and safe transition of traffic between local streets and the freeway between interchanges.
• Adding a new 9-mile express lane and associated improvements between Auto Mall Parkway and SR-84, providing congestion relief in the corridor.
• Upgrading the I-680 Southbound Express Lane access configuration from controlled access to a near continuous access configuration.
• Modification of bridge crossings.
• Construction of retaining walls to accommodate the widening.
• Repaving the full project limits.

For total project cost and phase information, see the project Fact Sheets tab.