This week CalTrans announced that it has fast tracked funding for 30 bridges on California’s most important freight corridors under the new infrastructure funding from Senate Bill 1.

 

To read the full article from Caltrans, click here.  

The routes include freight-critical junctures on Interstate 80 in Northern California and on I-5 in Southern California.  The bridges authorized include 12 in the Bay Area allowing for greater access to the Port of Oakland, and 18 in Southern California most of which are located on a heavily impacted region of Los Angeles on I-5.

The projects, which will cost $737 million, will repair and modernize older bridges, many of which trucks have to be routed around because they don’t meet safety standards.  These detours result in lost revenues, higher costs and increased greenhouse gas emissions.  Thanks to this money, trucking companies will begin seeing improvements on moving freight around the state.

CTA supported SB 1 after negotiations to ensure that money was spent on fix-it first projects, with an emphasis on freight movement and has been engaged  with CalTrans and the California Transportation Commission (CTC) to ensure that this is the case. This first round of funding continues to show California’s commitment to improving freight and goods movement around the state as it makes good on the promises from SB 1.