PRESS RELEASE: “VTA should switch BART route to follow highways to North San Jose”

SAN JOSE, CA – In light of the Valley Transportation Authority being poised to consider cost-saving alternatives to its BART extension to Santa Clara, BART Director Zakhary Mallett released an opinion article in the San Jose Mercury News on November 24 that articulates his long-standing criticisms of the project.

A sample of the opinion piece follows. For the full story, visit the San Jose Mercury News.

“The BART to San Jose project, including the selected alignment for the extension, has always been about local politics rather than what is in the best interest of the traveling public. Now, with the financial soundness of the second phase of the project being questioned by federal agencies, the Valley Transportation Authority (VTA) is considering scrapping two stations from the project to save $1.3 billion.

While this move may well constitute betrayal to local communities who have planned for the service, it will also result in the project failing to meet its stated goals and is further demonstrative of the project's value being questionable to begin with…”