San Mateo and San Francisco County Transportation Leaders,

We are writing to ask you to stop spending taxpayer money on widening our largest highways. Highway widening is a waste of money as it doesn't reduce congestion and it increases traffic, potholes, air pollution, climate change, and competition for public transit. Instead, please prioritize taxpayer transportation funding for filling potholes, making our streets safer, and making public transit more convenient, cleaner, safer, and more affordable.

History has shown that widening highways does not improve congestion. Instead, it encourages more people to drive, leading to even more traffic and potholes - induced demand is real. Our roads are already riddled with potholes; why wouldn't we fix existing roads before building more?

In addition, widening 101 and 280 will have a catastrophic impact on the environment, public health, and public transit:

- More air pollution - Wider highways means more cars on the road and more pollution in the lower income and diverse neighborhoods adjacent to the highway. As a result, people of color in these areas have increased rates of childhood asthma and shorter life expectancies.  

- More greenhouse gas emissions -  Transportation is the #1 source of GHG emissions in the Bay Area. 101 and 280 are the busiest roads in SM & SF Counties. Adding more cars to the road is climate suicide.

-  More traffic violence - Drivers are killing pedestrians and people on bikes at an alarming rate. More people driving on 101 and 280 means more drivers racing to the highway on streets in front of our homes, parks, and schools. Again, the tragedy will be most common in lower income and diverse neighborhoods adjacent to the highways.  

-  More financial struggles for Caltrain and BART - Encouraging more people to drive will mean fewer riders and revenue for Caltrain and BART, which are already in financial trouble. Taxpayers just spent $2.5 billion to make Caltrain faster. Why are we competing against themselves by incentivizing driving on the same corridor as Caltrain?

Please vote against costly and ineffective highway widenings and instead fix our existing roads, make our streets safer, and support and prioritize public transportation. Thank you.