North Canyons Parkway and Dublin Boulevard may be connected in the upcoming years. Alameda County, the city of Dublin and the city of Livermore have pursued an extension for decades now, since 1984.
The proposed extension is about 1.5 miles long and would connect Dublin Boulevard where it currently ends on Fallon Road to the intersection of North Canyons Parkway and Doolan Road. The extension would have four to six lanes, two or three on each side of the median. It would also have the basic essentials or qualities a city street has, including street lighting, bike lanes and possible traffic signals.
Dublin’s share is $111.1 million of the $166.1 million planning cost estimate. The final design work of the project was expected to start back in early 2019.
I support this project for multiple reasons. From the benefits for Bay Area commuters to LPC, I believe it will benefit many groups of people.
The three-way intersection of Doolan Road and North Canyons Parkway. This is the east end of the proposed extension for Dublin Boulevard.
Tri-Valley Wheels
Drivers who work for the Tri-Valley bus that serves Las Positas will be able to avoid Interstate 580 as this project would provide a new way to go directly to Dublin. Plans potentially include bus stops as part of this extension, but there is nothing specific as of right now.
Bay Area and LPC Commuters
There seem to be millions of people who travel on Interstate 580 as it is the main freeway for people from Central Valley to come to the Bay Area and vice versa. In 2017, the last year traffic counts are available, over 220,000 cars per day traveled I-580, and over 14,000 cars per day traveled on Dublin Blvd. We know that fortunately, we have alternate routes to take when traffic on the Altamont Pass is backed up. We have Isabel Avenue to go to South Bay if we feel like it will be a faster route. What about an alternate route around Interstate 580 when traffic is backed up somewhere in or between Dublin and Livermore?
That’s another good thing about this project: It will be a good “frontage road” for commuters if Interstate 580 is backed up. If you’re among the students or employees at LPC who live in Dublin or need to go somewhere in North Dublin, this project will be helpful. If you ever had to go from Canyons Parkway to Airway Boulevard, to Interstate 580, to Fallon Road or further down I-580, this road extension may be useful or less stressful for you.
This extension means people can travel all the way to Livermore from Dublin while they are looking over to see the conditions of the freeway. From San Ramon Road to Murrieta Boulevard, if you use this street as an alternate route, you may be able to see whether the freeway is backed up. Unlike Stoneridge Road/Jack London Boulevard, drivers will have a view of the freeway for miles.
They won’t have to stop at Fallon Road and take Jack London Boulevard or deal with the traffic on Interstate 580 and then maybe take Isabel Ave to go onto Portola Avenue. They can avoid the freeway all the way to First Street at most, where Portola Avenue ends.
The final design was anticipated in April 2021, and the beginning of construction is still to be determined. It will likely happen in a few years, and I believe it will be fairly beneficial for commuters and the communities.
Gibran Beydoun is a staff writer for The Express. Follow him @Gibran580MSCM.
