Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority Laying the Foundation for Economic Growth:FOUR DECADES OF TRANSPORTATIONINVESTMENT IN SANTA CLARA COUNTY

1986-1995 1996-2005 2006-Present

The Early Years: County Transit Growing by Leaps and Bounds1976-1985

1976-1985 1996-2005 2006-Present

Strengthening the County’s Transportation Backbone1986-1995

1976-1985 1986-1995 2006-Present

VTA Hits Its Stride1996-2005

1976-1985 1986-1995 1996-2005

Leveraging Emerging Technology to Maximize Infrastructure Investment2006-Present

1976

x =

=

1984

x =10

Years

+

Often it is said we must explore the past

to understand the present, and to shape

the future. In this four-part series, we

will reflect on how Santa Clara County’s

transportation network was created

over the last 40 years with thoughtful

planning, broad-based collaboration, and

a solid investment of your tax dollars.

We hope that this series will provide

county residents and the businesses that

we serve with a deeper appreciation for

where we have been, as well as a clearer

vision for where we are headed.

The late 80’s and early 90’s saw numerous technolo-

gy advances, not the least of which was the birth of

the World Wide Web. The proliferation of personal com-

puters and growing use of the internet made connections

with business, friends, and family fast and convenient. As

Silicon Valley was busy connecting the world electroni-

cally, VTA was building the transportation infrastructure

necessary to keep employees, equipment, and products

moving. VTA was expanding its transportation network,

building a mass transit system crisscrossing the growing

urbanized area.

By 1987, the County received over $253 million from the

federal government to fund the County’s first light rail

line. Construction officially commenced with the ground-

breaking for the light rail maintenance facility, followed

by construction of the first segment of in-street track.

The initial track, which spanned 1.5 miles, was essential for

testing the light rail vehicles as they were delivered. Addi-

tional tracks were installed north of downtown San Jose in

December 1987.

By June 1988, the two-mile stretch of tracks through revital-

ized downtown San Jose opened for service. The entire 21-

mile light rail line opened on April 21, 1991. The County now

had its first completed light rail line, connecting the suburban

neighborhoods of south San Jose through downtown, and

north to the industrial areas of Silicon Valley.

A significant change for County Transit occurred on January 1,

1995, when the organization was

combined with the Congestion

Management Agency (CMA),

charged with the additional

(continued on next page)

County’s first light rail line was underway with 50 cars and an initial 1.5 miles of track to test the trains, 1987

1986-1995

Counties may place a sales tax measure for transportation purposes on the ballot for

voter approval. With federal and state funding historically being insufficient to meet

all of California’s mobility needs, local sales tax revenues have provided more than

50 percent of new capital funding for the state’s transportation infrastructure over

the last several decades. Counties representing more than 85 percent of the state’s

population currently have in place local sales taxes for transportation purposes. Most

of these taxes are temporary in nature and will expire if they are not renewed by the

voters. Currently, Santa Clara County has three local transportation sales taxes in

place - one is permanent and two are temporary.

County employees at Guadalupe Division, 1987

Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority3331 N. First Street, San Jose, CA 95134

Administration (408) 321-5555

Customer Service (408) 321-2300 vta.org

Local Funding Sources

County’s first light rail vehicle in service, 1986

1602-0572

1994 Transit District Board of Supervisors: Dianne McKenna,Michael Honda, Rod Diridon, Zoe Lofgren, and Ron Gonzales

87

17

237

85

85

85

262

237

9

82

82

82

101

101

101

101

101

680

680

880

880

280

280

280

280

Los Altos Hills

Campbell

San Jose

Milpitas

Cupertino

Sunnyvale

Saratoga

Monte Sereno

Mountain View

Alviso

Los Altos

Woodside

Atherton

Redwood City

SantaClara

Portola Valley

Los Gatos

Palo Alto

Los Altos Hills

Campbell

San Jose

Milpitas

Cupertino

Sunnyvale

Saratoga

Monte Sereno

Mountain View

Alviso

Los Altos

Woodside

Atherton

Redwood City

SantaClara

Portola Valley

Los Gatos

Palo Alto

MorganHill

SOUTH COUNTY

Gilroy

LEGEND:VTA LRTPassenger RailHighway 17 Express

1986• Light rail maintenance facility is

complete.

1987• Tracks are installed north of San Jose.

1988• Two miles of light rail track are built

through downtown San Jose.

1989• Highway 17 Express begins service in the

wake of the Loma Prieta Earthquake.

1991• The Caltrain Peninsula Corridor Joint

Powers Board (JPB) is created, including one member from VTA.

• with 50 cars and an initial track of 1.5 miles to test the trains.

April 21, 1991• 21 miles of light rail open for service.

December 1991• Capitol Corridor Intercity Rail Service begins.

January 1995• VTA is designated as the Congestion

Management Agency.

GUADALUPE DIVISION:

to San Francisco

to Sacramento

to Santa Cruz to Gilroy

IBM

SAP CENTER ADOBE HEADQUARTERS

SANTA CLARA CONVENTION CENTER

YAHOO

SAN JOSE CONVENTION CENTER

CITY HALL/PERFORMING ARTS CENTER

MorganHill

SOUTH COUNTY

Gilroy

SanMartin

Santa Clara County Transportation, 1986-1995

(continued)

responsibility for planning and constructing highway, bike,

and pedestrian infrastructure within the county. Consoli-

dating responsibility for these planning and development

efforts allows for greater coordination, as well as maximiz-

es the efficiency and performance of the entire transpor-

tation network. The signing of a new joint powers agree-

ment by the County of Santa Clara and the 15 cities in the

county combined the Santa Clara County Transit District

with the CMA. This action coincided with the effective

date of new legislation, which reconstituted the Board of

Directors, an event that has commonly been referred to as

the “separation” of the Transit District from the County.

With the creation of this new organization, the composition

of the Board of Directors changed from five directors,

all County Supervisors, to 12 directors consisting of:

two County Supervisors, five City of San Jose council

members, and five city council members selected

from the remaining 14 cities in the County. The Board

became responsible for setting policy on multi-modal,

countywide transportation planning and the integration of

transportation and land use planning as well as for transit

operations. For the first time, this gave a single policy

board the unique opportunity to make and implement

transportation policy over all of Santa Clara County. The

new Board made it possible to take a regional approach

to transit and land use planning issues. Recognizing the

change that occurred in 1995, the new name of “Santa

Clara Valley Transportation Authority” (VTA) was adopted

in January 1996 and in December of that year, a new

corporate identity was created for the Santa Clara Valley

Transportation Authority.

Source: Association of Bay Area Governments (www.abag.ca.gov)

1970

2,000,000

1,500,000

1,000,000

500,000

0

1980

Santa Clara County Demographics

Population Jobs

1970 1980

Source: Association of Bay Area Governments (www.abag.ca.gov)

Santa Clara County Demographics

1990

Population Jobs

2,000,000

1,500,000

1,000,000

500,000

0

1970 1980

Source: Association of Bay Area Governments (www.abag.ca.gov)

Santa Clara County Demographics

1990

Population Jobs

2,000,000

1,500,000

1,000,000

500,000

0

2000

1970 1980

Source: Association of Bay Area Governments (www.abag.ca.gov)

Santa Clara County Demographics

1990

Population Jobs

2,000,000

1,500,000

1,000,000

500,000

0

2000 2010

1986County’s first light rail line is underwaywith 50 cars and an initial track of 1.5miles to test the trains.

1989Highway 17 Express begins service in the wake of the Loma Prieta earthquake.

December 1991Capitol Corridor Intercity Rail Service begins.

January 1995VTA designated as the Congestion Management Agency.

Light rail maintenance facility completed in 1986

Twenty-one miles of light rail opened for service on April 21, 1991

Two miles of track were built through downtown San Jose, 1988

Expanded Roles and Responsibilities

The Highway Revenue Act of 1956 established the Highway Trust

Fund to provide a dedicated source of revenues for transportation.

The Highway Trust Fund is intended to be a “pay-as-you-go”

system that uses receipts from excise taxes to fund federal surface

transportation programs. In 1983, the Highway Trust Fund was

divided into the Highway Account and the Mass Transit Account.

Over the years, Congress has enacted multi-year legislation

authorizing federal spending for surface transportation programs

from the Trust Fund.

Highway Trust Fund