Public comment deadline for Hwy 25 environmental study approaching

Editor’s note: This article was updated to include comment from Caltrans. Last updated Dec. 30 at 12 p.m.

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Dec. 31 is the deadline to submit a public comment regarding the scope of an environmental report that is being conducted by Caltrans for the Hwy 25 improvement project. Comments can be submitted until 5 p.m.

Heidi Crawford with Caltrans said the agency has received 36 comments regarding the project since the public-comment phase was opened on Nov. 8. 

The environmental report will analyze the project’s impact on biological and cultural resources, traffic and land use. The process dates back to at least late 2022, when Caltrans sent a letter to some property owners requesting access to conduct field surveys of soil and plants. 

The Hwy 25 improvement project consists of replacing the two-lane 11-mile stretch between Hollister and the Hwy 101/25 interchange in order to shorten commute times and reduce traffic. 

The project could involve one of six solutions: a four-lane expressway, a three-lane expressway, a 2-lane expressway, a 2-lane transit way, a one-lane reversible transit way, or a commuter rail service.

In 2016, Caltrans adopted a route alignment that is south of the existing highway and shifts to the north side near Shore Road. It also includes building an overpass at the Highway 25/156 interchange. 

Caltrans installed a $14.6 million roundabout at that location in 2024 to address collisions, despite objections from the community and directors of the Council of San Benito County Governments (COG)—which serves as the regional transportation agency. Many requested that Caltrans build or partially fund the overpass. 

At a Nov. 19 meeting held by Caltrans in Hollister, Binu Abraham, COG’s executive director, said the project did not move forward in 2016 because of lack of funding. In 2018, county voters approved Measure G, a 1% sales tax to fund local transportation projects. It was estimated that it would raise $242 million for the Hwy 25 project. 

Prime ag land will be lost

Many farmers are concerned over the agricultural land that would be lost if Caltrans proceeds with its current planned route.

“We want safety and good roads too, but we are not willing to give up our property rights,” Joe Tonascia said at the Nov. 19 meeting.

Tonascia and other farmers told Caltrans representatives that they have not been included in the discussion and that the state only holds meetings to say they took community input.

When asked multiple times if the route was definitive, Caltrans’ David Silberberger said the department can take a step back to reanalyze the route, but that would increase costs and stall the project.

“Those taking care of the land are the ones being penalized,” another farmer said at the meeting.  

The existing highway and adopted route are surrounded by land designated as prime agricultural land and farmland of statewide importance.

Prime farmland is defined by the U.S. Department of Agriculture as “land that has the best combination of physical and chemical characteristics for producing food, feed, forage, fiber and oilseed crops.”

Farmland of statewide importance is defined as “tracts of land that have been designated for agriculture by state law.”

According to the project website, Caltrans plans to complete the environmental studies in Spring 2027, complete right-of-way acquisition and design in 2029, and begin construction in 2030. The construction is expected to last two years. 

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