I’ve noticed lots of construction on area on-ramps, and recently used both the Masten and San Martin to 101 ramps, now that they’re open again, and a short carpool lane has been added and I’ve seen new carpool stoplights on other ramps. Is that what’s being done to all the ramps? If so, why? Because San Martin has such an incredible volume of traffic on those on-ramps? Ridiculous. Our money could be spent in a much more relevant and efficient way.
Red Phone:
As all tech-savvy investigators go to the Internet for answers, Red Phone is no different.
On the official Caltrans website, Red Phone found the “101 Traffic Operating Systems and Ramp Metering Project.” Beginning last June, Caltrans initiated the installation of metering lights, traffic operating systems, closed circuit TV cameras and the widening of ramps in Santa Clara County along U.S. 101 in both directions from San Benito County line to the SR-85/U.S. 101 interchange. The new construction work will improve traffic through the corridor, which includes San Martin, and the real-time electronic monitoring will provide better response times for emergency responders for emergencies along the highway.
Red Phone also contacted Bernard Walik, public information officer of Caltrans Santa Clara County about the lights on the ramps.
“All on-ramps between Monterey Road and SR-85/U.S. 101 will have metering lights,” Walik said, adding that the lights are adjusted to regulate the flow of vehicles onto highways to help the flow of traffic.
According to Walik, traffic studies were performed with interesting results. He said that during peak morning rush hour, about 4,300 vehicles per hour (VPH) were counted near the San Martin interchange in the northbound direction, while during the afternoon rush hour, 6,750 VPH were counted southbound.
The project required the collaboration of Caltrans and the cities along the corridor, and is funded by the California Metropolitan Transportation Commission, which launched the Freeway Performance Initiative (FPI) in 2007. The program’s goal is to squeeze more capacity out of existing roadways through technology.
“Metering lights have been in Caltrans District 4 since the 1970s,” Walik said. “We have currently 459 ramps with metering lights in the SF Bay Area. Metering has shown to reduce congestion and improve travel time on the freeway mainline.”
“On past metering jobs, we have seen one minute to 19 minutes reductions,” Walik continued. “We will have more concrete data in spring 2015 (after the project has been completed).”
