City officials have approved a $2.4 million bid to start
building a bridge that will connect east Gilroy’s big box stores
and shopping outlets.
Gilroy – City officials have approved a $2.4 million bid to start building a bridge that will connect east Gilroy’s big box stores and shopping outlets.
The contract awarded Monday night to Galeb Paving, of Saratoga, will pay for dirt grading on the north and south sides of Llagas Creek in preparation for the eventual Camino Arroyo Bridge across the waterway.
The funds will also finance the installation of street lamps, stops signs and other improvements along the Sixth Street corridor that runs west from the bridge into downtown Gilroy.
Officials expect increased traffic along the corridor with the projected opening of the bridge in November 2008.
The Camino Arroyo bridge has been hailed as a boon for shoppers and residents alike, offering a chance to unclog traffic arteries and highway ramps leading to shopping hubs on the north and south sides of the city. Currently, most shoppers wind their way through downtown Gilroy or hop onto U.S. Highway 101 when traveling between the Gilroy Premium Outlets, off Leavesley Road, and the big box stores off Highway 152.
“This bridge makes a huge difference in circulation on the east side,” said City Transportation Engineer Don Dey. “Traffic that wants to flow between the outlets and big box retail no longer has to go on the freeway, so they can use this local corridor.
Bus service will be greatly enhanced since they kind of dead-end on both sides right now. And for pedestrian and bicycle circulation, this will be an improvement. This is a huge positive change for all transportation modes in and around the area.”
While some are concerned about increased traffic along Sixth Street, traffic studies suggest the direct link will help reduce traffic by 10 percent at the notoriously congested interchange of highways 101 and 152, which connects shoppers to the Wal-Mart Supercenter and other nearby big box retailers.
Construction on the first phase is expected to begin in August and wrap up by October. The second phase of the project will go out to bid this fall, with construction scheduled to start in the spring. The total project is expected to cost $12 million.
Officials are also designing a 10th Street bridge that will span Uvas Creek, just west of Gilroy High School. The bridge, which will connect to the 1,693 Glen Loma Ranch project slated to rise in the next decade, is expected to be complete by 2012.
