Come 2017, getting around San Francisco will get a lot easier and more pleasant. The city is in the process of building an enormous transportation terminal in the heart of its downtown.
Designed by architecture firm Pelli Clarke Pelli, the "Transbay Transit Center," which broke ground in 2010, has a $4.2 billion price tag. According to the Transbay Joint Powers Authority (TJPA), it will create 125,000 jobs and generate $140 billion in gross regional product and personal income through 2030.
The first phase of the project, to build the terminal, is fully funded and underway. So far, it is on schedule and on budget, and set for completion in 2017. The second phase will extend the commuter rail line, Caltrain, by about a mile, to connect it with the terminal and bring travelers into the heart of downtown San Francisco.
Once completed, the Transbay Transit Center will serve tens of thousands of people every day, and connect 11 different transit systems, including bus, subway, and commuter rail. Eventually, it will serve as the northern terminus for California's high-speed rail network, which is under construction.
The TJPA and Pelli Clarke Pelli call it the "Grand Central Terminal of the West."
It's in the heart of downtown San Francisco, near the Bay Bridge.
The grand entrance is "in the spirit" of NYC's Grand Central and London's Victoria Station.
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