San Jose, CA ----  A plan to relieve traffic congestion at one of the worst commute bottlenecks in San Jose was announced today by Mayor Ron Gonzales in partnership with the Valley Transportation Authority and Caltrans.

Standing on the Virginia Street bridge over Route 87 at Interstate 280 with representatives of VTA and the Silicon Valley Manufacturing Group, the mayor called the interchange one of the most frustrating commutes in San Jose.

“Every evening, commuters face delays of a half hour or more to get past a few miles of freeway through the heart of San Jose,” Gonzales said.  “That’s time taken away from parents trying to get home to their families.”

Last week, the VTA board of directors took a significant step toward solution of this traffic mess by earmarking $11 million to start engineering and environmental studies for new lanes, ramps, and systems to help traffic flow through the interchange.

This step was based cooperative efforts in recent months by Caltrans, VTA, and the City of San José to identify practical ways to move traffic through this interchange.

 “It is a clear signal to San Jose commuters and to highway planners in Sacramento that we are ready to move to fix one of the worst commute headaches in the heart of San Jose,” the mayor said. “We will solve this traffic mess.”

Mayor Gonzales currently also serves as the chair of the VTA board of directors.

The proposed addition of new merge lanes from Interstate 280 to southbound Route 87 signals the start of a joint VTA/Caltrans effort to ensure the overall project will result in a comprehensive solution for a more efficient interchange with the least disruption to traffic.

“Smooth and efficient traffic flow is vital to the Route 87/Interstate 280 interchange in downtown San Jose,” said Robert Baxter, Caltrans deputy district director. “Caltrans is working in partnership with the City of San Jose and the Valley Transportation Authority to identify solutions to easing congestion here.”

The congestion relief project is estimated to $18 million. Last week, the VTA Board programmed $11 million in reserve State Transportation Improvement Program funds to Highway 87 improvements.

“When it comes to wasting time in traffic, few corridors are worse than the Highway 87 hourglass,” said Carl Guardino, President & CEO, Silicon Valley Manufacturing Group. “Mayor Gonzales is to be commended for wasting no time in working to get this traffic tie-up corrected.”

The mayor, VTA, and local business and community groups will continue to work with the state to secure the funding needed to complete the project.  The goal is have the project ready for construction by 2004, depending on the availability of funding.

VTA and Caltrans already have projects planned to add commuter lanes on Route 87 both south and north of Interstate 280 and to correct road settling. The 280/87 interchange project would be incorporated in the current planned improvements to create a more comprehensive solution.

“With the road improvements already in the pipeline to make Highway 87 better, we have an opportunity to build a comprehensive solution so that San Jose commuters can spend less time on the road and more time with their families,” Mayor Gonzales said.