{"id":269889,"date":"2026-04-16T00:14:10","date_gmt":"2026-04-16T00:14:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/269889\/"},"modified":"2026-04-16T00:14:10","modified_gmt":"2026-04-16T00:14:10","slug":"san-jose-lays-out-transit-funding-wishes-ahead-of-regional-vote-east-bay-times","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/269889\/","title":{"rendered":"San Jose lays out transit funding wishes ahead of regional vote \u2013 East Bay Times"},"content":{"rendered":"

As Bay Area transit agencies face the threat of major service cuts, San Jose is staking\u00a0out its funding priorities for the Valley Transportation Authority ahead of a November 2026 regional ballot measure<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The plan \u2014 approved unanimously by the San Jose City Council Tuesday \u2014 recommends directing $264 million in projected annual revenue authorized under Senate Bill 63 into three key areas:\u00a0service improvements, major construction projects and repairing bus-heavy roads.<\/p>\n

Last October, Gov. Gavin Newsom signed Senate Bill 63, authorizing a regional transit sales tax measure on the November 2026 ballot.<\/p>\n

If approved, the measure would fund Caltrain<\/a>, BART, Muni, AC Transit and other systems across Alameda, Contra Costa, San Francisco, San Mateo and Santa Clara counties. It would levy a half-cent sales tax in most counties and a full cent in San Francisco. The Metropolitan Transportation Commission estimates the measure could generate about $1 billion annually over 14 years.<\/p>\n

Like most Bay Area transit agencies, the VTA \u2013 although reporting a rebound in ridership \u2013 is projecting multi-million dollar deficits in the coming years, a hangover from pandemic-era ridership losses.<\/p>\n

Across the region, agencies including BART<\/a> and Caltrain have warned of potential station closures and steep cuts to service frequency without new revenue. The VTA has avoided cuts for now, but joined the regional ballot measure effort last year<\/a> to stave off deeper reductions down the line.<\/p>\n

The city wants to direct the largest share \u2014 50% \u2014 to target day-to-day service improvements: upgraded transit stations, cleaner and safer vehicles, more frequent routes, signal technology that gives buses priority at green lights, and discounted or free transit passes for young riders.<\/p>\n

Councilmember Pamela Campos said transit infrastructure in her district remains inadequate.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn my district, which Monterey Highway runs along, there\u2019s a bus stop that does not have shelter and very little sidewalk,\u201d she said. \u201cAnd I have seen people waiting on the Caltrain train tracks to get some shade as they wait for the bus.\u201d<\/p>\n

Another 30% would fund major construction projects, including the redevelopment of Diridon Station, a new rail link to Mineta San Jos\u00e9 International Airport, and upgrades to the light rail and Caltrain systems.<\/p>\n

The smallest slice, 20%, would go toward repaving streets that carry heavy bus traffic. Officials say buses wear down roads far faster than cars, and current road repair funding is set to expire in 2028.<\/p>\n

The priorities are recommendations only and, although made by San Jose, cover the full VTA service area across Santa Clara County. The agency plans to consult other local governments in the coming months before any funding framework is finalized. The VTA board draws its members from cities and\u00a0across Santa Clara County, with San Jose holding at least five of 12 voting seats.<\/p>\n

Councilmember Peter Ortiz, who represents East San Jose, said his district is the most transit-dependent in the county and should \u201csee the greatest benefit\u201d from any new funding.<\/p>\n

\u201cThese dollars can go further, supporting more activity along our corridors, strengthening our small business community and making our neighborhoods more connected,\u201d Ortiz said. \u201cWhen we invest in transit for the communities that rely on it the most, we\u2019re investing in workforce access \u2014 local small businesses gain access to customers, to workers, and to the overall vitality of these neighborhoods.\u201d<\/p>\n

But Ortiz also raised pointed concerns about whether VTA could win over voters, criticizing the agency\u2019s outreach in his district as \u201cunsatisfactory.\u201d<\/p>\n

He alleged that VTA has canceled public meetings, that his office has struggled to get basic updates from the agency, and that construction along the Capitol Expressway corridor \u2014 happening overnight, he said, with inadequate dust mitigation \u2014 has frustrated residents.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s hot in District 5. They\u2019re not able to close their windows because of the heat, and there\u2019s not proper dust mitigation,\u201d Ortiz said. \u201cI have to practically yell and cc everybody and the VTA board to get updates, and that\u2019s not acceptable.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ortiz warned the friction could cost the measure votes<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cGood luck getting votes from District 5 residents \u2014 good luck \u2014 because they\u2019re unhappy with VTA,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

VTA defended its work in East San Jose, saying in a statement that the agency is committed to the communities it serves and is working to deliver the Eastridge to BART Regional Connector project on schedule.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe take neighbors\u2019 concerns seriously and are finalizing an improved program to address impacts, similar to the support provided to local businesses, ensuring community voices are reflected as the project moves forward,\u201d a spokesperson told this news organization in an email Wednesday.<\/p>\n

A coalition of transit and advocacy groups \u2014 including Seamless Bay Area, the Transbay Coalition, and Public Advocates \u2014 urged the City Council to direct at least 80% of the funding toward service improvements and transit priority investments. In a letter submitted the day before the vote, the groups noted that VTA runs far less service per resident \u2014 just 1.1 service hours per year \u2014 than almost any comparable transit agency in the country.<\/p>\n

Adina Levin, Seamless Bay Area\u2019s executive director, said the gap was exactly why the council should direct even more than 50% toward service improvements.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a unique opportunity for increasing ridership,\u201d Levin said. \u201cOver time there are a lot of different funding sources for capital, and it is historically more difficult to fund basic service.\u201d<\/p>\n

She credited VTA\u2019s recent strategic planning work, but said the agency\u2019s own data shows service levels have barely budged since 2001.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe admire VTA\u2019s work in recent years in developing those valuable and important strategies,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Monica Mallon, a San Jose-based advocate who has tracked public transit issues for about a decade, supported the plan and called its emphasis on service spending a significant shift \u2014 a sign of how much attitudes toward public transportation have changed in recent years.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt is just incredible to see how attitudes have changed on service and how our leaders are prioritizing investments that will impact riders and residents right now,\u201d Mallon said. \u201cNot having flexibility has hurt us quite a lot. We should learn from our past mistakes and do better.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"As Bay Area transit agencies face the threat of major service cuts, San Jose is staking\u00a0out its funding…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":269890,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[29],"tags":[117398,117404,58396,117403,117396,117401,117399,88,5500,90,89,117395,117400,117397,110244,117402,35505,5539],"class_list":["post-269889","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-san-jose","tag-2026-ballot-measure","tag-bay-area-transit-crisis","tag-bay-area-transit-funding","tag-capital-expressway","tag-connect-bay-area","tag-diridon-station","tag-regional-transit-tax","tag-san-jose","tag-san-jose-city-council","tag-san-jose-headlines","tag-san-jose-news","tag-san-jose-transit","tag-santa-clara-county-transit","tag-sb-63","tag-senate-bill-63","tag-transit-service-improvements","tag-valley-transportation-authority","tag-vta"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/269889","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=269889"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/269889\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/269890"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=269889"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=269889"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=269889"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}