The much-needed makeover of the junction of highways 152 and 156
has taken a big step forward. But even when completed, the
realignment will result in more of a Band-Aid than a real cure for
our region’s transportation ills.
The much-needed makeover of the junction of highways 152 and 156 has taken a big step forward. But even when completed, the realignment will result in more of a Band-Aid than a real cure for our region’s transportation ills.
The Federal Highway Administration has signed off on the project, which involves building a flyover ramp that will carry traffic headed east toward Pacheco Pass on Highway 152 over the top of Hollister-bound motorists making the left turn onto Highway 156. The project is budgeted for $36 million and local officials have begun accepting construction bids.
“It’s primarily a safety improvement, eliminating the unsafe left-hand turn between the two highways,” said Jayne Kunz, spokeswoman for the Valley Transportation Authority. The new ramp is also expected to smooth the flow of traffic through the junction, enabling traffic from Highway 156 to more easily merge onto Highway 152, preventing the long backups that now occur behind vehicles waiting to turn left onto Highway 156 and eliminating dangers caused by well-intentioned motorists on Highway 152 who stop to allow the left-hand turns onto 156.
Certainly, all of that adds up to a big improvement at this particular junction of two important highways and it has been a long time coming. The flyover project was promised in 1996, but various holdups delayed approval until three years ago. Then, in 2005, the state refused to fund the project, stalling it until the Metropolitan Transportation Commission came through with $11.5 million in federal money. But it continued to idle until the Federal Highway Administration’s recent OK.
Our hope now is that transportation planners and those who control the highway improvement purse strings at the local, regional, state and federal levels will focus on finding and funding a big-picture solution to the problems of moving traffic through San Benito County and southern Santa Clara County between U.S. Highway 101 and Interstate 5.
At present, state highways 152, 156 and 25 all are clogged with a dangerous mix of big-rig truck traffic, commuter traffic and farm traffic. All are primarily two-lane roads. All will be carrying more traffic as the region continues to grow and we’ll see more problems like the one we’re preparing to fix at the junction of highways 152 and 156.
A so-called “three-in-one” highway plan that would collect much of the truck and commuter traffic now carried by the three existing east-west highways onto a new, wider and safer roadway could be the answer. But in spite of its obvious appeal, it’s uncertain whether the three-in-one highway could ever be built, at least given present economic and political realities.
Fixing our transportation problems won’t be easy or cheap. But moving people and products safely and efficiently through this region has to be a high priority.
