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Oakland’s I-980 Freeway Might Get Torn Down

Thanks to a new bill, the short 2-mile freeway that splits Oakland might finally be removed
By - posted 5/12/2021 No Comment

Thanks to SFGate for sharing the news that the Oakland’s controversial I-980 freeway that divides the city could be removed, thanks to a new infrastructure bill.

The 2 mile highway, built in 1985, was originally planned as the eastern approach to the San Francisco Bay Southern Crossing, a second Bay Bridge that would connect Oakland and San Francisco, but it was never built. Instead, the short freeway divides Oakland, cutting off West Oakland from downtown.

Local leaders are hopeful the removal of the I-980 freeway will help “reconnect and revitalize areas harmed by the construction,” noted Senator Alex Padilla.

The I-980 freeway wouldn’t be the first Bay Area freeway to be removed. Two despised San Francisco freeways faced a similar fate, but for different reasons. The elevated double-decker Embarcadero Freeway and the Hayes Valley section of the Central Freeway were both removed after damage caused by the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake.