CASA DE FRUTA
– The frustrating and sometimes deadly
”
Don Pacheco Y
”
intersection of state highways 152 and 156 could be tamed by
2008 if state and federal money comes through for a $35-million
bridge project.
Valley Transportation Authority officials unveiled two possible
bridge options at a public meeting Wednesday night at Casa de
Fruta, a private recreation and lodging complex just west of the
intersection on 152.
By PETER CROWLEY & KOLLIN KOSMICKI
Staff Writers
CASA DE FRUTA – The frustrating and sometimes deadly “Don Pacheco Y” intersection of state highways 152 and 156 could be tamed by 2008 if state and federal money comes through for a $35-million bridge project.
Valley Transportation Authority officials unveiled two possible bridge options at a public meeting Wednesday night at Casa de Fruta, a private recreation and lodging complex just west of the intersection on 152. One idea has the bridge being the eastbound 152 lane; in the other it would be the left-turn lane from 152 west to 156 south.
By separating these traffic flows, either proposal would eliminate a key conflict at the Y in recent years. During heavy traffic, motorists heading east on 152 (from Gilroy toward Los Banos) often stop at the intersection – although they have no stop or yield sign – to let stacked-up westbound 152 traffic turn left onto 156 south. This can cause eastbound cars and trucks to back up all the way to Gilroy – nearly 10 miles.
“We’re trying to improve a fairly nasty intersection,” John Ristow, a VTA highway planner who is leading the project, said at the public meeting.
VTA officials emphasized that the current bridge ideas are very preliminary and could be altered by Caltrans and Federal Highway Administration review, not to mention lengthy environmental and design processes.
The VTA has already allocated $10 million in state funds toward the project and would seek the rest in future state and federal highway monies. Construction is projected to begin in 2006 and end in 2008.
At peak times – nights and weekends – an average of 4,100 vehicles pass through the Pacheco Y every hour, according to Caltrans data. The daily average is 53,000 vehicles. Highway 152 is popular because it is one of the few connections between the coastal region and the Central Valley; there’s no other for 50 miles north or 30 miles south.
The fatality rate at the Pacheco Y is twice the state average for highways, Natalina Bernardi of BKF Engineers said at the public meeting. According to the California Highway Patrol, there have been seven auto collisions at the Pacheco Y so far this year – none fatal – and 28 wrecks since January 2000 – two fatal.
Both VTA proposals would eliminate the left turn option from Highway 156 north toward 152 west and Gilroy. This turn averages only seven cars per hour during peak times, according to VTA officials. In the future, anyone driving in that direction will probably have to turn around at the Casa de Fruta parkway and re-connect with Highway 152 going in the opposite direction. Most drivers going from Hollister to Gilroy take the more-direct state Highway 25.
There is no plan at this time to expand either 152 (west of the intersection) or 156 (south of it) from two lanes to four, according to Ristow. Route 152 is already four lanes east of the Y.
About 60 people attended the meeting Wednesday at Casa de Fruta, presented by Ristow and other VTA officials.
The infamous crossroads, while undoubtedly dangerous, is one piece of a much larger puzzle to improve highway conditions in San Benito and southern Santa Clara counties, according to VTA officials. Some residents attending the Wednesday forum continually queried officials about the “big picture.”
Many attendees said they remained wary of how state budget developments might impact the project.
VTA officials expressed the desire to build a project that can hold up for at least a couple of decades since, according to them, a desired eight-lane highway in the area is decades from fruition.
“This is going to be our baby for the next 20 years,” Ristow said.
The next time the VTA is expected to open the project to public input is at least 14 months down the road, after environmental-review processes are finished.
While the Pacheco Y may cause gridlock, it is not the most dangerous intersection on Highway 152. There have been almost twice as many wrecks – 13 – so far this year at 152’s intersection with Lover’s Lane, less than three miles west of the Y.
