Horses and buggies have passed under the rail lines that were first built in San Mateo's North Central nearly a century ago. Now Caltrain says the bridges are due for an upgrade, but local residents say modernizing them could usher in a new era of traffic noise and congestion.
Currently, trucks and large vehicles that pass through the neighborhood frequently hit or get stuck under the low bridges, all of which are at least two feet short of the 15-foot clearance that has become the standard for such bridges.
The lowest bridge, at Tilton Avenue, only reaches about eight feet high, a Caltrain representative told the Public Works Commission last night at a study session to review the plan.
But raising the clearance on the four lines at Poplar, Santa Inez, Mount Diablo and Tilton avenues might be swinging the door open for more commercial trucks to pass through the residential neighborhood, said North Central resident Mark Bartos.
The widening of the roads under the bridges might also exacerbate speeding through the neighborhood, he said.
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