The City of Santa Clara is thrilled to announce that the City of Santa Clara and City of Cupertino have been awarded nearly $8.5 million in State grant funding to expand the Via-Cupertino On-Demand Shuttle service into Santa Clara using a fleet of zero-emission vehicles.
Announced on July 7, 2022, the grant funding is part of the Transit and Intercity Rail Capital Program (TIRCP) issued by the California State Transportation Agency (CalSTA). The program aims to expand transit and intercity rail service while reducing greenhouse gas emissions.
“This is just a wonderful partnership with the City of Cupertino to bring more transit options to those in our community who need it most,” says Mayor Lisa M. Gillmor. “As our City transit becomes more interconnected to the region, it’s important we’re reaching the underserved first, and also looking to the future with more energy efficient, environmentally friendly public transit.”
Over the next 5 years, the service expansion will focus on offering improved connections between local Caltrain, Amtrak and VTA stations to job centers and other destinations such as Kaiser Santa Clara while providing increased transit access for disadvantaged communities, high poverty zones, and senior populations.
According to the project summary, the first phase will include first mile/last mile (FMLM) transit access to the transit hubs and will immediately include zero-emission service. It will also expand the shuttle fleet from 9 vehicles to 12 by the end of the second year of service.
“Residents in Cupertino and Santa Clara will be able to request on-demand trips to and from locations within the zone as well as to and from multiple points of interest outside of the zone including Sunnyvale Caltrain station; Kaiser Santa Clara; Rancho San Antonio; Mountain View Caltrain Station; Lawrence Caltrain Station; Santa Clara Caltrain Station; Amtrak Great America Station; and various VTA Light Rail Stations,” reads the proposal.
The second phase will launch in 2026. It will expand the area covered in Santa Clara and add four more vehicles to the fleet.
The entire project is expected to begin in 2023 and take five years to complete.
