The Comprehensive County Expressway Planning Study was undertaken to provide a long-term plan for the improvement and maintenance of the County Expressway System. The study took two years to complete and culminated in the development of the Implementation Plan. The Implementation Plan provides a basis for and guides the investment of money and resources in the expressways. A collaborative planning process was used during the study to ensure the local cities and their residents would support the plan's recommendations.
The plan:
- Forecasts conditions and evaluates need over a 30-year timeframe to be compatible with other regional planning documents and to provide a long-term perspective on expressway system needs.
- Recognizes that each expressway has its own unique character, function, and community relationship.
- Identifies capital improvement project needs ranging from short sidewalk segments to extensive expressway segment improvements to freeway interchange construction.
- Identifies maintenance and operational improvement needs varying from signal coordination expansion to enhanced street sweeping intervals to infrastructure replacement.
- Provides immediately useful information by including recommendations for improvements to signal timing plans and modifications to high-occupancy vehicle (HOV) lane operations, and by recommending design guidelines for bicycle accommodation on the expressways.
- Relates project benefits and potential for delivery to priorities expressed through a tier structure, with the highest priority Tier1A roadway projects expected to be funded through existing revenue sources.
- Proposes a funding strategy to achieve plan implementation.
- Considers roadway improvement needs in South County, where Gilroy is constructing Santa Teresa Boulevard to expressway standards.
The expressways were designed to relieve local streets and supplement the freeway system. There are:
expressways, 5 of which have HOV lanes
- 62 centerline miles of expressway, traveling through 11 cities
- 134 signalized intersections
- 150,000 feet of existing soundwalls
- 1.5 million vehicles trip on expressways daily
- 55% of Santa Clara County residents using an expressway daily (based on 2001 telephone survey)
|
