ConnectOakland is a bold vision to reconnect Oakland neighborhoods into the fabric of the City and reposition Oakland as the transportation hub for the Bay Area region. At the heart of ConnectOakland is the transformation of the Interstate 980 freeway into a boulevard. Similar to the relocation of the Cypress Freeway after the Loma Prieta earthquake, the transformation of I-980 will reintegrate West Oakland and its residents back into the fabric of the City of Oakland and mend an enduring wound that severed – both literally and figuratively – one of Oakland’s most historic neighborhoods from the City as a whole. The transformation of I-980 will also create new public land for housing, jobs, and open space, and can serve as a catalyst for future transportation connections throughout the region.
The ConnectOakland Vision explores one possibility of how to transform the existing I-980 Right-of-Way (ROW) into a new, vibrant, transit-oriented corridor while also serving as a natural multi-modal connection hub for BART, Caltrain and even High-Speed Rail (HSR). This vision uses the most current knowledge of the I-980 ROW, the surrounding neighborhood conditions, the future transportation needs of the Bay Area, and leverages Oakland’s central location within that system. The vision is meant to be a starting point — to begin discussion of how to ameliorate a long-standing blemish of the past and create a new patch of urban fabric that can be a game-changer for the future.
The team has met with, and continues to meet with, key professionals, stakeholders, and community leaders to learn as much as possible about how this project can best achieve its goals. As new information is gathered, the ConnectOakland team will work collaboratively to further refine the concept into an actionable plan.