This article has been republished with permission from SplashPad News.
Wendy Silvani attended the May 16 and May 23 Listening Sessions sponsored by Caltrans to solicit feedback on whether to lift the truck ban on I-580, which has been in effect since the highway was built in the 1960s. Here’s her review of the presentations and the community feedback.
Vehicles over 4.5 tons have been barred from the 8.7-mile stretch of I-580 between Grand Avenue and San Leandro since the freeway opened in the 1960s. The restriction followed a 1951 Oakland truck ban on MacArthur Boulevard and was reaffirmed in 1968, 1972, and 1990. In 2000, Oakland, San Leandro, Berkeley, Emeryville, and Alameda asked the state to codify the ban in the California Vehicle Code, making it permanent…