In 1994, a new freeway (CA-85) opened in Silicon Valley, connecting Mountain View with South San Jose. Because Highway 85 is less than a mile from my house, it had a major effect on my life: without moving, I suddenly lived much closer to cities to the north (such as Palo Alto) and the south (Gilroy).
Every day when I commute to work, I drive on Highway 85, which ends by funnelling into US 101. But just as you merge from 85 to 101, you must contend with a major exit ramp: Shoreline Blvd., which feeds a 16-plex movie theater, a 15,000-seat concert venue, and many local businesses, including Google. The result is lots of weaving traffic and a ramp that's backed up at all hours.
Last Friday a multi-year, multi-hundred-million-dollar project resulted in the opening of several new ramps that attempt to fix this mess. Traffic that wants to get from Highway 85 to Shoreline Blvd. (like me) can now bypass 101 entirely. Cars that need to go from 85 to 101 get their own lane, without having to weave and merge.
The first time I took the new exit, on opening day last Friday, I cackled maniacally as I zoomed along. And so far, so good: the new ramp has been wide open every time I've used it.
UPDATE: Here's a lovely PDF that shows what's going on: 85 interchange
Being a hockey fan, thought you and your readers might find this interesting! Regards!
Posted by: Charles Tucker | Friday, February 10, 2006 at 12:12 AM
hey,
you're SUPPOSED to be posting about 24 hours of t.v. (i.m. conversation about it here: http://b1-66ersworld.blogspot.com/2006/02/conversation-with-special-k-preamble.html).
since you refuse, i'm going to comment spam your blog with an attempt i'm involved in to build the world's longest poem:
http://bigpoem.blogspot.com/
damn,
b1
Posted by: b1-66er | Saturday, February 11, 2006 at 01:13 PM