I remember now how I believe this "truck route" designation happened. Several years ago Menlo Park and Stanford contracted for the expansion of the Sand Hill Road and the right hand turn from Alpine to Junipero Serra. When construction commenced the entire section of Santa Cruz Ave between Alpine and Sand Hill was closed off for a whole year and everyone on Alpine had to detour through Stanford Campus or I-280 to get anywhere. At the same time Stanford was reconstructing the Red Barn facility on Junipero Serra and doing other major construction. Their trucks could not get to I-280 via Sand Hill so they deluged Alpine Road with their semis. This was never changed after the cantilevered section was installed and the road was opened.
Truck traffic, (especially the double semis and those carrying hazardous materials to and from Stanford) on Alpine is extremely hazardous to other vehicles, bicycles and pedestrians. Trucks need about the length of a football field to stop even when going at a relatively slow speed. Alpine is a undivided, two lane road with blind corners. The trucks cannot see cars stopped in the road to make turns. They veer into the bike lanes and some of them have such difficulty negotiating the left turn from Junipero Serra to Alpine that they sometimes go over the brick "island" supporting the traffic light. It is truly frightening to be in the lane by the traffic light when a big semi is trying to negotiate that turn.
Another problem is that many of these trucks are loaded with gases and chemicals for Stanford and for SLAC (via its back gate) that are labeled "FLAMMABLE." These trucks race through a densely populated area where there are only 3 escape routes (Stowe, Bishop, and Snecker) should an evacuation be needed and all of these have very limited access to Alpine.
Most of these trucks are diesel. The smell is often overwhelming and in the morning the windows of my car are black with pollution. The main beneficiary of the truck designation is Stanford, since their trucks make better time racing down Alpine where there is no law enforcement. It also benefits the construction companies since they are often paid for the speed of transit. All of this is to the detriment of the hundreds of residents in Stanford Weekend Acres and the cyclists that ride the route.
WHAT DOES IT TAKE TO GET THIS TRUCK DESIGNATION CHANGED? SAND HILL IS APPROPRIATE FOR A TRUCK ROUTE, ALPINE IS NOT. ONE PERSON HAS ALREADY BEEN KILLED BY A BIG TRUCK. HOW MANY MORE FATALITIES OR CATASTROPHES ARE NEEDED FOR COMMON SENSE TO PREVAIL.
