Category: Advocacy

Our (and other) transit advocacy efforts in Silicon Valley.

Coming Soon – Our Measure B Stance

by  • 

At this time, our group is still discussing our stance on VTA’s Measure B – a 1/2-cent transportation sales tax proposal on the November 8 ballot.  This discussion is taking place on our email list and our Facebook page.

To help you decide whether or not you should support or oppose Measure B, here is the full ballot text of Measure B, as VTA sent it to the County Registrar.  In addition, here are the Attachments A thru D mentioning the proposed projects in the ballot measure.

Also, here are details on where your money on prior VTA transportation sales taxes went.  This Mountain View Voice article from 2014 shows how nearly 80% of the $4.2 billion of your money from the last two ballot measures (2000 and 2008) went to the BART extension to Berryessa in San Jose.  In addition, this Palo Alto Daily Post article from 2014 details how VTA’s spending of your money affected Caltrain and, to an extent, bus service throughout Santa Clara County, since 2000.  For your reference, here’s the ballot text for 2000 Measure A and 2008 Measure B.  For balance, here’s VTA’s “report card” of projects built with your tax money from 2000 Measure A.  (A separate article on how your money was spent from 2000 Measure A is upcoming.)

The Mercury News has already endorsed Measure B.  Here’s a counterpoint on why to vote against Measure B.

Based on the information given above, would you support or oppose Measure B? Our Measure B stance – and why that stance will be taken – will be announced this week.

Eugene Bradley
Founder, Silicon Valley Transit Users

 

VTA “Strategic Plan Update” Meeting On Wednesday

by  • 

Long-term planning or ballot measure publicity stunt?  This question will be answered on Wednesday in San Jose, as the Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority (VTA) has a “Strategic Plan update” meeting in room B106 at its River Oaks headquarters.

VTA’s headquarters are at 3331 N. First Street in San Jose.  It’s served by the 58 bus line and is at River Oaks light rail station.

Read the VTA Strategic Plan (10.9MB Adobe Acrobat PDF) here.

One thing that stands out in the plan so far: how VTA running transit (bus and light rail) service while building toll lane/highway “improvement” projects contradict one another.  Is VTA supposed to help get people “out of their cars and onto transit” or is VTA supposed to keep people in their cars?  VTA is one of the few agencies in the nation where road building and transit providing are performed by the same agency.

What do YOU think about VTA’s Strategic Plan update? What would you have VTA do differently to make it more efficient and beneficial to every Santa Clara County resident?

I’ll be at this meeting on Wednesday.  See you there.

Eugene Bradley
Founder, Silicon Valley Transit Users

Bus Crashes On Both Coasts

by  • 

Photo courtesy nj.com

Early Friday morning, two New Jersey Transit buses crashed into each other in downtown Newark, NJ. Two people – including the driver of one of the buses – died as a result of the crash.  Seven bus passengers are in critical condition at a nearby hospital.

According to the Associated Press (AP), investigators are determining whether the bus driver killed in the crash ran a red light.  The same AP report mentioned that the intersection the bus crash occurred was one of the first in New Jersey to feature surveillance cameras that caught red light violators. That surveillance camera program was discontinued in 2014 amid controversy.

Later on Friday, in downtown Palo Alto, a Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority (VTA) bus jumped the curb and hit some newspaper racks after making a right turn.  While Palo Alto Online reported that no one was , it is rather interesting to note that the driver was allowed to continue the route on another bus.  This is something worth asking VTA, I have never heard of this practice after an incident involving a bus and passengers.

On behalf of the Silicon Valley Transit Users, our condolences go out to the hurt and perished in the Newark bus crash.

Let’s all be careful when riding – and driving the buses and trains…

Eugene Bradley
Founder, Silicon Valley Transit Users

WATCH: VTA “Next Network” Meeting In San Jose

by  • 

For the second time in a decade, VTA is redesigning its bus network. Its goal is to make transit “more usable and cost effective, and to maximize connections with BART.”

Tonight at 6pm, VTA staff will have a presentation at San Jose City Hall detailing its proposed bus network restructuring plan.

The in-person meeting details are below, followed by the live stream that will play at the top of the page starting at 6pm SHARP. Details on how to get to San Jose City Hall are below.

San Jose City Hall (Rooms 118-120)
200 East Santa Clara Street, San Jose, CA, 95113

Light Rail and many VTA bus lines like the 22, 23, 522 Rapid, 64, 66 and 68 stop within a 2-block walk of San Jose City Hall.

What do YOU think about VTA’s bus network restructuring proposal? Please comment below.

See you at San Jose City Hall at 6pm tonight.

Eugene Bradley
Founder, Silicon Valley Transit Users

WATCH: Envision Silicon Valley Meeting in Santa Clara

by  • 

As a reminder: our group will be meeting VTA in Santa Clara, where they will detail their proposed transit sales tax measure.  That meeting will take place at 7pm at the Locatelli Student Activity Center at Santa Clara University, 500 El Camino Real, in Santa Clara. Here are transit directions to Santa Clara University, served by several rail lines and several VTA bus lines.

Can’t make it to Santa Clara tonight? VTA will also live-stream video via YouTube. The live stream starts at 7pm SHARP.

See you tonight!

Eugene Bradley
Founder, Silicon Valley Transit Users