Lawsuit Halts Niles Canyon Road Widening Project
FREMONT (CBS / AP) -- A judge has told the California Department of Transportation to stop construction on a project to widen a highway linking Fremont to Sunol until a lawsuit filed by an environmental group is resolved.
An Alameda County Superior Court Judge Frank Roesch on Thursday allowed a lawsuit filed by the Alameda Creek Alliance to proceed, issuing a preliminary injunction stopping planned construction to widen Highway 84 through Niles Canyon.
Caltrans has been planning to widen the two-lane, scenic roadway for more than a decade. The agency says the project is needed to increase safety.
The alliance sued on June 7, alleging Caltrans had not prepared an adequate environmental impact report. They argue the project will negatively impact the creek's steelhead trout, red-legged frog and other creatures.
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