State Route 87 (SR 87), known as the Guadalupe Freeway or referred to by the locals as Highway 87, is a north–south state highway in San Jose, California, United States. Before being upgraded to a freeway, it was Guadalupe Parkway (and some signs still refer to it that way).

For most of its length, especially in Downtown San Jose, the highway follows the course of the Guadalupe River. Its southern terminus is at SR 85, and its northern terminus is at U.S. Route 101 (US 101) just north of San Jose International Airport. Unusually, it crosses over Interstate 880 (I-880) without an interchange.<!--it's not the only - see I-5 and SR 261-->

Route description

thumb|left|SR 87 intersecting with [[Interstate 280 (California)|I-280 in Downtown San Jose]]

thumb|left|The Taylor Street [[single-point urban interchange, just south of San Jose International Airport]]

thumb|left|SR 87 looking north towards downtown San Jose from [[Communications Hill in 2006. VTA light rail runs between the northbound and southbound lanes; the freeway was under construction to add an additional lane in both directions.]]

The route is almost entirely within the city of San Jose, California. A very small portion between the Curtner Avenue exit and the Capitol Expressway Auto Mall exit is in unincorporated Santa Clara County.

SR 87 initially had 2 lanes in each direction for its entire length. Carpool lanes were added north of Taylor Street in 2005 and the remainder of the freeway in 2007.

SR 87 begins at SR 85 in southern San Jose. VTA light-rails run parallel to this freeway from SR 85 to I-280. After intersecting CR G21, SR 87 runs through a small pass in Communications Hill. SR 87 intersects I-280 in southwestern Downtown San Jose, then runs parallel to the western border of Downtown San Jose. SR 87 then runs east of the Mineta San Jose International Airport before terminating at US 101 in northwestern San Jose. This route is unconstructed from US 101 to SR 237 in Santa Clara, legislatively defined to run north from US 101 through suburban San Jose and Santa Clara, terminating at SR 237, as this route is defined as (a) Route 85 in the vicinity of Santa Teresa Boulevard to Route 101 in the vicinity of Guadalupe River and (b) San Jose easterly of Route 101 to Route 237.

SR 87 is part of the California Freeway and Expressway System, and is part of the National Highway System, a network of highways that are considered essential to the country's economy, defense, and mobility by the Federal Highway Administration. In 2014, SR 87 had an annual average daily traffic (AADT) of 88,000 at US 101, and 176,000 between I-280 and CR G8, the latter of which was the highest AADT for the highway.

I-880 overcrossing

thumb|right|A view of [[Interstate 880 (California)|I-880 and the SR 87 overpass from a plane arriving at SJC]]

Unusually, SR 87 crosses above I-880 without an interchange. This is the only spot in California where two freeways cross without any connecting ramps. The north end of this path is at Willow Street (north of the Alma Street exit). The south end is at the 87-85 interchange.

Along this route, the path runs along the east side of the freeway. The path diverges from the freeway for near Capitol Expressway, running along city streets near the highway. To make this connection in the northbound direction, travel north on Narvaez Avenue.

The path diverges again from the freeway for near Curtner Avenue running along city streets near the highway.

The right-of-way for SR&nbsp;87 south of I-280 includes two tracks for the Blue Line of the VTA light rail system. Stations are accessible from the streets via staircases and elevators. Beyond 87's terminus, the line continues southeastward in the median of SR 85.

SR 87, as once defined legislatively, would have extended from its current northern terminus, skirting the edge of San Francisco Bay as the Bayfront Freeway to San Francisco. This would have provided an eastern bypass to US 101 along the Peninsula (US 101 itself being originally a bypass to El Camino Real along the Peninsula). The route would have ended at SR 480 (the Embarcadero Freeway) practically underneath the Bay Bridge, and it would also have connected to the approaches of the unconstructed San Francisco Bay Southern Crossing. Along with SR 61, a similar project on the eastern shore of the Bay, this portion of SR 87 was abandoned due to local opposition to the project that would have destroyed a nearly pristine wildlife habitat. In 1980, the route was truncated to end at SR 237.

Future

The high-occupancy vehicle (HOV) lanes on SR 87 are proposed to be converted into high-occupancy toll lanes. Caltrans' post-25 year concept also proposes an additional express lane in each direction.

Exit list

See also

References

  • Eric Buchanan's Highway Photo Page: 87 Guadalupe Parkway (project history and historical images)
  • California Highways – State Route 87
  • California @ AARoads – California 87