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Freeway Service Patrol Adds 65+ Miles To Its Bay Area Coverage

CONTACT:

Reka Goode
510/464-7706

Marjorie Blackwell
510/464-7884

OAKLAND, Calif., June 7, 1999...The white tow trucks of the Freeway Service Patrol (FSP) will soon be seen in more corners of the Bay Area, extending the program's existing reach and adding new highways to the safety network.

Starting July 1, 1999, the roving tow truck service – administered by the Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC) Service Authority for Freeways and Expressways (SAFE) – will increase the number of patrolled roadway segments or beats, from 22 to 28, adding more than 65 miles to its coverage, for a total of 330 miles regionwide. The new beats will be phased in over the first two weeks of July, and all six will be fully operational by July 12.

Seven more tow trucks will help the existing fleet of 52 tow trucks and four pickup trucks (plus four back-up trucks) patrol the most congested freeways of the Bay Area, primarily during peak commute hours. With the FSP on the scene, the flow of traffic should improve and polluting emissions be reduced, as disabled vehicles, debris and other safety hazards are moved out of highway lanes.

Three out of the six new beats are in or cross into Alameda County – two will extend the existing coverage on Interstate 580 from Foothill Road in Dublin north all the way to Harrison Street in Oakland. On Interstate 680, tow trucks will continue north from U.S. 101 in San Jose to the Warm Springs area of Alameda County, connecting at either end with existing beats.

In Contra Costa County, the FSP will begin patrolling State Route 4 for the first time, in the stretch from I-680 in Concord east to Antioch, while in the North Bay, coverage of U.S. 101 will be extended from State Route 37 in Marin County north to Petaluma.

At the southernmost limits of current FSP service, a portion of Santa Cruz County's State Route 1 will be added to the network, from its junction with State Route 9 to State Park Drive.

Operated jointly by MTC SAFE, the California Highway Patrol (CHP) and Caltrans, the FSP program is paid for by a variety of federal, state and local funds, including part of a $1-per-vehicle annual registration fee assessed to Bay Area motorists. For the new beats, funding will be provided by the federal Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality Improvement Program as well as the state Local Assistance Program. The Santa Cruz beat will be funded by the Santa Cruz County Regional Transportation Commission.

FSP drivers attempt to get stalled autos running within a few minutes by providing basic services free of charge such as changing a tire, jump-starting a battery, taping hoses or providing a gallon of fuel. If that doesn't work, the vehicle is towed to the nearest CHP-identified location off the freeway at no cost to the owner. FSP drivers stop an average of 8,000 times a month to clear accidents, assist stranded motorists, remove dangerous road debris, tag abandoned vehicles and otherwise help to make the region's freeways safer and less congested.

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Note to editors: For a map and detailed listing of all 28 FSP beats, check MTC's Web site at <http://www.mtc.ca.gov/planning/fsp/fspmap.htm>.

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