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Atherton Drive going from Main to west of Wellington
ATHERTON3-12-24-09
Bicyclists and pedestrians ultimately will be able to use sidewalks and bicycle lanes to go from Main Street to the neighborhoods north of Woodward Avenue when Atherton Drive’s missing segment is put in place. - photo by HIME ROMERO

Sometime in 2010 you’ll be able to drive on Atherton Drive from Woodward Avenue just west of Moffat Boulevard to Union Road.

Design work has started on the missing link from South Main Street to the current terminus west of Wellington Avenue. The $2.9 million project is being jump started by a $900,000 grant from President Obama’s American Recovery Act. The balance of the money has been collected on new construction to fund major infrastructure.

The city is also making a pitch for federal stimulus funds to get the other missing segment of Atherton Drive built between Union Road and Airport Way.

If successful, Atherton Drive - the first four-lane road south of Highway 120 Bypass – would be completed from Woodward Avenue near the Union Pacific Railroad tracks to a point west of Airport Way.

It is expected to stimulate potential commercial and office type development along its corridor as the north side of Atherton Drive offers Highway 120 Bypass exposure with three freeway interchanges within a two-mile stretch.

The city is also receiving $586,200 in American Recovery and Reinvestment Act money from the Department of Energy to replace the city’s existing street lights with high-efficiency induction lamps.

Once they are in place, the new lights will save the general fund $150,000 in annual PG&E costs. Factor in three anticipated PG&E rate increases over the next 10 months and that leaves enough savings to pay the salary and benefits of one police officer each year.

Manteca is receiving at least $5.6 million in federal stimulus funds with efforts underway to secure even more.

Other money flowing to Manteca as part of President Obama’s American Recovery Act includes:

•$957,000 to pay for the rehabilitation of portions of nine streets. Much of the work has already been completed.
•$1.4 million to hire four additional police officers for three years.
•$1.3 million in transit funds including $380,000 to go toward environmental studies for the proposed transit station at Moffat at Main, $100,000 for an additional fixed route bus, $130,00 for the lease of the new Manteca Transit facility, and $40,000 for marketing, branding and signage.

That comes to $83.58 for every one of Manteca’s 67,000 residents.