For the first time at 11:30 a.m. Thursday, motorists drove the
new Highway 25 bypass, ending decades of planning and 24 months of
construction.
HOLLISTER
For the first time at 11:30 a.m. Thursday, motorists drove the new Highway 25 bypass, ending decades of planning and 24 months of construction.
The new bypass’ construction was overseen by the Council of San Benito County Governments, and contractor Graniterock-Pavex built the $44 million roadway.
It extends east from the Bolsa-San Felipe Road intersection about a quarter of a mile, then runs south crossing Santa Ana Road, Meridian Street and Hillcrest Road. From there, the bypass becomes a six-lane roadway and connects with Airline Highway at the Sunnyslope Tres Pinos Road intersection.
The bypass project long has been a project of interest for San Benito County and Hollister residents. Council of San Benito County Government’s Transportation Planning Manager Mary Dinkuhn noted how the whole project came to life with the passing of the Measure A sales tax in 1989.
“The bypass was one of the projects to be completed,” Dinkuhn said.
In 1994, the wheels of the project began to move again with the initial reports, such as traffic and environmental studies.
“We kicked off the project initiation to get the project rolling,” Dinkuhn said.
It then slowed again in the late 1990s when the federal government gave money to the project. Dinkuhn said that by receiving those dollars, there were specific requirements that had to be followed.
“We received federal money, and that required a federal environment document process that slowed the whole thing down,” Dinkuhn said.
But once the agency finished all the environmental and design mandates, construction began on the road in May 2007 and less than two years later, the bypass was completed.
Although the bypass is physically complete, there is still some work to be done before the project is 100 percent finished. Dinkuhn said COG will be working with Caltrans to ensure that the old Highway 25 through town – or San Benito Street – is signed over to the City of Hollister. The state has owned and operated San Benito Street but is expected to turn it over.
Supervisor Pat Loe, who was on the original Measure A committee, also spoke positively about the bypass opening.
“I think its wonderful,” she said. “It’s been 20 years, and just to finally see the final project completed is a great accomplishment. There were so many people that worked so hard on it.”
One of the primary intentions of the project was to move traffic congestion off of San Benito Street and make it more pedestrian friendly.
Drapoel/Teezerz owner Deborah Wood said a lot of business owners are now concerned, however, about losing the traffic that formerly ran through town, but she thinks it will be a good thing for her establishment.
“I’m not worried about it and I think it will be a definite plus for us, at least for my type of business,” Wood said. “It might affect us but we are a destination downtown.”
Jerry Muenzer, owner of Muenzer’s Cyclery and Sports Center, said that although it has been just a couple of days, the bypass has not reduced the amount of cars going through downtown.
“We’re very excited about the bypass opening up,” said Muenzer, chairman of the Hollister Downtown Association board. “There hasn’t been much of a decrease in the amount of traffic.”
He is also optimistic about the opportunities the bypass might bring.
“The Hollister Downtown Association has been behind the bypass,” Muenzer said. “Getting Caltrans off San Benito Street will do good things.”
Not all the talk about the bypass has been positive. Hollister resident Paul Martin said his take on the road is “to bypass the bypass.” Even with the completion of the bypass, he said drivers have continued to speed on Clearview Road, where he lives. Martin added that he just saw someone going 50 mph on his street.
“I think people are going to avoid it, to tell you the truth,” Martin said. “We were told the bypass would eliminate that (speeding), that it would cut down on traffic by 40 percent. It isn’t going to that if the speed limit’s 35 mph.”
City engineering official Dave Rubcic, who is assigned to traffic, said his office was not in charge of establishing the speed limit but immediately guessed that there were complaints regarding the speed limit.
“Typically, this is what happens. People will drive fast on a nice, new flat road,” Rubcic said. “People just don’t watch their speedometer, and the next thing you know is that you are exceeding the speed limit.”
On the first day that it opened, Hollister police and the California Highway Patrol handed out a total of 12 citations and gave out numerous verbal warnings during traffic stops on the bypass.
“It’s a new road and people have the inclination to speed,” Hollister Police Capt. Bob Brooks said. “This is an education process.”
According to the COG Web site, the speed limit is in compliance with the state’s design standards for this type of roadway. The road is an “urban arterial,” which requires a lesser speed limit than a highway or expressway. Dinkuhn declined to comment on the speed limit on the bypass other than to say it is in compliance with state standards.
Even with the issues regarding speeding, the bypass opens up the possibility of businesses and industry expansion on the west side of town, Loe said.
“I think that being able to move traffic around to that side of town is just very positive,” she said. “It opens a up a whole new corridor for commercial (business) and industry.”
Wood, the downtown merchant, also pointed to benefits the bypass brings. She noted that a pedestrian-friendly downtown is better for events, promotions and business in general
“Overall, we need the bypass because we need to re-establish downtown as a pedestrian-friendly area.”
