Concern rises over new express lanes

The initiative is in the environmental and preliminary design phase, a multiyear effort that is expected to be completed by the middle or end of 2026.

But the project has been controversial almost since the beginning. Transit advocates and some elected officials have expressed concern that the TA will not have the data to determine whether the current express lanes have improved congestion — one of the primary goals the agency touted for the project. In fact, some have suggested congestion has only increased, particularly for those in the nonexpress lanes.

Jackie Speier, TA board member and San Mateo County supervisor, said she was concerned about the county spending $10 million during this early stage before a decision is even solidified.

“With all the needs in this county right now, with all these grade separations that have inadequate funding, to move forward with this is something, I think, we should pause and think about,” she said.

Staff and other board members have pointed out the funding is already allocated for highway-specific projects and that most of the $10 million has already been spent.

“We want to see the data. I want to see what the potential impacts could be in South San Francisco, in that neighborhood which would be close to the freeway. Would there be an increase in carbon emissions, in [vehicle miles traveled]?” Mark Nagales, TA board member and South San Francisco councilmember, said. “I want to give our staff and the TA the appropriate time to do the necessary background and research and data collection to make a determination.”

Because the express lanes have now been open for officially two years, Dan Lieberman, TA spokesperson, said via email that the agency will start “comparing the lane performance from the prior year” and are in the process of “reviewing available data and scoping a study with additional metrics.”

The agency has said that extending the express lanes north of Interstate 380 could also incentivize carpooling, though it’s unclear whether that’s been realized on the current express lanes. Because drivers self-report how many passengers are in their cars, TA staff have said the number of carpoolers is likely inflated. During a recent Citizens Advisory Committee meeting, Lacy Vong, policy program manager for the San Mateo County Express Lanes Joint Powers Authority, said there is “no data source” that can improve verification and that the number of people who are misdeclaring is likely “pretty high.”

During the meeting, TA Chair Carlos Romero said he’d like to move forward with the preliminary phase.

“This is, to say the least, somewhat of a controversial project because it is freeway widening,” Romero said. “The reason I think it makes sense to continue with the analysis is that perhaps the option of doing this is a nonhighway expansion project — that is, converting an existing lane into a toll lane — could indeed make sense given we are about $7 million into this project.”

Initial estimates on the total construction costs for the express lanes expansion could range from $250 million to $350 million.