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State lawmakers include money for local Caltrain grade separations in their plan

(San Mateo Daily Journal) - Just one day after a press conference with local officials and state Sen. Josh Becker calling for the restoration of state funds for the dangerous Broadway Caltrain crossing grade separation in Burlingame, a joint legislative budget agreement seemed to do just that.




The city of Burlingame might be getting $70 million from the state to help build new railroad crossing infrastructure at Broadway, a budget item that was previously cut.

At issue is what's called a grade separation, which is a road that goes over or runs under a railway to avoid hazards.

On Wednesday, the California Legislature agreed on a revision that puts the project back in the state's budget. The Burlingame project is one of seven selected by the California State Transportation Agency for transit improvements.




BURLINGAME, Calif. (KGO) -- Leaders are calling a Burlingame railroad crossing at Broadway and California the most dangerous in the state and they want funding secured to improve it.

Caltrain tells ABC7 there have been 13 collisions there since 2016. Two of them have been deadly.

California State Senator Josh Becker (D - Menlo Park) and Burlingame leaders gathered at the crossing Tuesday with a plea for Governor Gavin Newsom.

They want money to improve safety at railroad crossings put back in the governor's proposed budget.




$70M in state funding for Burlingame grade separation not included in most recent budget

Plans to fix the most dangerous train crossing in California — Burlingame’s Broadway intersection — are up in the air as $70 million in state funding for a grade separation was not included in a May state budget revision. 




BURLINGAME, Calif. (KRON) — Along the Peninsula, elected officials in San Mateo and Santa Clara counties are pushing the state to help pay for safety improvements at Caltrain crossings. A $744 million plan is in the works to improve dangerous rail crossings in Burlingame, Palo Alto and Mountain View.

The projects are reliant in part on state funding. However, as of right now, the legislature has taken that money away.




(NBC Bay Area) Calls are growing to fund a proposed bridge at what's considered to be one of California's most dangerous train intersections -- the Caltrain crossing on Broadway in Burlingame.

The Burlingame crossing is the highest priority project statewide among 10,000 graded crossings identified by the California Public Utilities Commission.

Leading the push for the $70 million upgrade is state Sen. Josh Becker.

Read more and watch story here




BURLINGAME, Calif. (KTVU) - State lawmakers are trying to secure funding to make Caltrain crossings along the Peninsula safer. 

The train crossing near the intersection of California Drive and Broadway in Burlingame is the most dangerous crossing in California.

The tracks are sandwiched between two traffic lights. So if cars are sitting at a red light, the back-up can leave cars stuck on the tracks. 

Over the last decade, there have been 22 accidents where a train hit a car at this crossing. 




(Redwood City Pulse) - On May 21, the state Senate approved legislation allowing entities such as schools, apartments, shopping centers and farms to consume their self-generated solar energy and save on utility costs, according to a press release. The bill now heads to the state Assembly for consideration.

SB 1374, which was authored by state Sen. Josh Becker, D-Menlo Park, would give utility customers with multiple meters the ability to be fairly compensated for their solar generation.