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The loop cometh

Posted on by rparr

This loop’s for you

Those words were said in jest at a meeting Thursday to update folks on the Route 238 Corridor Improvement Project through Mission Boulevard and downtown, but they are a reminder that love it or hate it, the one-way traffic loop through downtown Hayward is coming soon.

At the meeting Thursday, city project manager Kevin Briggs said the loop will be put in place in March, though he did not yet have an exact date. A big unknown is when the massive signal bridges that will span Foothill will arrive. Deliverers of the bridges, which are being fabricated to order in Utah, have to get permits to drive the wide structures down roads in several states. Stay tuned.

Hayward staff members have been saying “spring” for when roadwork will be finished, but remember, spring is through late June. The delays have not been intentional; some have been weather, some have been the result of digging up streets and finding unexpected things underground (Hayward downtown is really old and maps aren’t always accurate; some have been because some water and gas lines were not set deep enough. Talking with city officials, it seems they would like for this to be finished ASAP.

Paving on south Mission is supposed to finish next week, so with any luck, traffic will improve in that area. And city staff members are aware that traffic is slow; Briggs was stuck on Mission Thursday trying to get to his meeting at City Hall.

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  • Teresa Conti

    Good! I am glad he was stuck. I have been stuck for three dang years. Today I had to drive half way around Hayward to get somewhere again because of the tie up. It shouldn’t be possible to drive half way around Hayward and save time, but it is. Ughhhhhh!

  • Michael Moore

    If Briggs is a Hayward resident I would feel some compassion for him. On the other hand I fear that he is not. Does anyone know? I actually am looking forward to the Loop. It will make the trip a lot easier.

  • Teresa Conti

    Briggs is not my friend. I wrote to him about an issue with site vision due to the new trees planted near the shopping plaza with Food Source. He referred me to engineering say the work on the project was finished! I sent a copy of his email and mine to Ms. Fran, city manager. Shortly there after, I received an email from Briggs stating that a plan was in place to solve the issue and to let him know if it didn’t work. I suspect he lives in Pleasanton.

  • Michael Moore

    Teresa, I do thank you for the follow up and information. I think you are right. I have always contendeded that the staff and elected folks who operate the city should have to live in the city that they work in and represent. The high salaries that we taxpayers shell out for top talent and then the folks are not residents and not spending that salary in our town. That this continues is a terrible thing I think. If we really want to impact Hayward, its schools and the infrastructure we should require all of our civil servants to live in Hayward.

  • Mr. Briggs was coming from the Route 238 Corridor Improvement office at Mission and Carlos Bee boulevards north to City Hall.

  • Michael Moore

    Rebecca, I wanted to say thank you for your continual posting of items to comment upon.

  • Teresa Conti

    I am still thinking about the loop. I guess the maze having less choices will be safer once everyone learns how to drive the route. Not looking forward to the break-in period. So if I have it right a pivotal point of the loop is A Street. Mission Blvd from the maze will all run in one direction – to San Leandro until A Street. After A on Mission, I guess you can go both ways. Then the darn thing runs up A until it hits Foothill at which time one can go left towards the freeway or right down Foothill which will go in one direction to the maze and Mission out to Cal State and such. If you want to loop back to D St and such you have to go beyond the maze and make a turn some where on Mission. I don’t think Wendy’s is going to be too happy in March. I don’t think this is really a loop, its more of a bypass. Are not loops sort of a circle?

  • Teresa Conti

    So, if I want to get to the Daily Review, I have to drive down Mission Blvd to A Street, go up to Foothill and down toward the loop to get there? Wow! This thing should really set all of my GPS systems screaming as well. Recalculate! Recalculate! Maybe going down B will be an option in some cases. I will need a map to get around in my own downtown!