Traffic and safety project to close Eastshore Highway in Berkeley through September

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:12:32 GMT

An expansive safety and traffic project will close the Eastshore Highway, a frontage road running alongside the I-80 corridor through Berkeley, between Gilman Street and Harrison Street beginning Monday, July 24 at 7 a.m.Caltrans said the road is expected to reopen in September.The shutdown is due to a construction project on a roundabout at the I-80 Gilman interchange, a notoriously congested section of the Berkeley road system.According to Caltrans, the project will improve safety and traffic in the area by adding two roundabouts, a new bicycle/pedestrian overcrossing and bicycle facilities. It will also create a dedicated two-way bike lane from the highway to Fourth Street along Gilman Street.There will be no pedestrian access on the Eastshore Highway during the construction.To accommodate traffic, Caltrans said it will open Second Street north of Gilman to two way traffic. Sidewalks will also remain open on Second Street.Related ArticlesTransportation | Me & My Ca...

Tourists flee Rhodes wildfires in Greece’s largest-ever evacuation

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:12:32 GMT

(CNN) — A large wildfire tearing through the Greek island of Rhodes forced thousands of tourists to flee their hotels in what Greek officials said was the largest evacuation effort in the country’s history.Those caught up in the blaze described chaotic and frightening scenes, with some having to leave on foot or find their own transport after being told to leave.The wildfire in the central and south part of Rhodes – a hugely popular island for holidaymakers – has been burning since Tuesday. It is the largest of a number of blazes in Greece, which is sweltering due to a heat wave that experts say is likely to become the country’s longest on record.Amy Leyden, a British tourist in Rhodes, said she was told to leave her hotel immediately or her and her family “would not make it.”“It was just terrifying,” she told Sky News. “We’ve got our 11-year-old daughter with us and we were walking down the road at two o’clock in the morning and the fire was catching up with us.”Cedric Guisset, a B...

Report shows widening gap between Latino and White students who graduate college

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:12:32 GMT

At first, Los Angeles area resident Melissa Becerra Amador didn’t know if she would go to college. But through her peers and mentors, she started to realize the value of having a degree.Now, the Cal State Northridge graduate is pursuing a master’s degree in education. Amador believes that representation in higher education helps her and other students feel a sense of belonging.But a new report shows that, across the U.S., the gap between Latino and White, non-Hispanic students who complete their college degree has widened over the last four years, in part because of the coronavirus pandemic and resulting economic hardships.The analysis was done through Excelencia in Education, a Washington D.C.-based nonprofit whose mission is to accelerate Latino student success in higher education.While more Latinos students are enrolled in schools overall, graduation rates have seen “little progress” over the last few years, researchers said.Graduates during the commencement ceremony for Californ...

Corte Madera moves toward single-use foodware ordinance

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:12:32 GMT

Corte Madera officials have moved a step closer to adopting a reusable foodware ordinance.The Corte Madera Town Council directed the municipal staff on Tuesday to develop a modified version of the county ordinance that was adopted last year. Marin cities and towns have been asked to approve ordinances modeled on the county regulations.The county’s ordinance, which applies to unincorporated areas, takes effect Nov. 10. It requires reusable foodware such as plates, bowls and utensils for dine-in food service.Town Council members originally said they sought to ensure that an ordinance would not overburden businesses following the pandemic. They acknowledged some of the unique concerns of business owners whose models sometimes relied on nonreusable foodware.The town’s emerging ordinance will define what is compliant non-reusable foodware to include products certified by the Biodegradable Products Institute and other third-party compostable products. The foodware must be free of chemical...

Woodstock, N.Y., board lacks votes to pay town bills

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:12:32 GMT

WOODSTOCK, N.Y. – Municipal bills are not expected to be paid this month after two Town Board members abstained from voting to show their displeasure over the limited time available to review the expenses.Board members Maria-Elena Conte and Bennet Ratcliff declined to vote during a meeting Tuesday and later said the bills had not been available until just a few hours before the session.“There is no ordinary routine,” Ratcliff said. “The agenda is supposed to come out days in advance. It’s now coming out at 1 p.m.”Without Conte and Ratcliff combined with the absence of Councilwoman Laura Ricci the Town Board was one vote short of the majority needed to pay the bills. Supervisor Bill McKenna and Councilman Reginald Earls voted in favor of making the payments.McKenna said concern over the short period of time for reviewing bills came as a surprise.“Both of these members have been on the board for a year-and-a-half now and not once have they ever mentioned a need for more time,” he said...

Is traffic speed really still enforced by aircraft in California?

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:12:32 GMT

(NEXSTAR) - You probably grew up spotting the signs from the backseat of your car on family road trips: "Speed enforced by aircraft." As a kid, the idea may have sounded high-tech and intimidating. As an adult, it probably seems more costly and impractical. So do the patrols still happen?The short answer is yes, some units across the country say they still patrol by aircraft, but technological improvements and cost considerations have limited air enforcement. The California Highway Patrol recently explained how their unit works, in an effort to dispel anyone who may have thought a helicopter was about to touch down on the highway next to them. "CHP fixed-wing airplanes will partner with CHP ground units. Several patrol cars will be staged at a specific location along the right-hand shoulder of the freeway waiting for communication from CHP Air. The aircraft uses markings along the right-hand shoulder to mark and measure distance. After factoring in a math equation, which determines ...

Jimmy Garoppolo cleared to open training camp with the Raiders, AP source says

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:12:32 GMT

HENDERSON, Nev. (AP) — Quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo passed a physical on his injured left foot and will begin training camp with the Las Vegas Raiders, a person with knowledge of the situation told The Associated Press on Sunday.The person spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity because no announcement has been made.Training camp opens Wednesday.Garoppolo did not participate in organized team activities because of the foot injury, but coach Josh McDaniels expressed confidence from the beginning the newly signed quarterback would be ready for camp.“We’re always going to err at this time of the year on being smart,” McDaniels said at the time. “We don’t play a football game for 3 1/2 months, so try to rush (players) out there in May, it’s a poor decision.”Garoppolo signed a three-year, $72.75 million free-agent contract on March 17. His deal was announced a day later than others because of concerns about the foot. He reportedly signed a waiver rather than take a physical, which gave ...

Danish rider Jonas Vingegaard wins the Tour de France for 2nd straight year

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:12:32 GMT

PARIS (AP) — Danish rider Jonas Vingegaard has won the Tour de France for a second straight year as cycling’s most storied race finished Sunday on the famed Champs-Élysées.With a huge lead built up over main rival Tadej Pogačar, the 2020 and 2021 winner, Vingegaard knew the victory was effectively his again before the largely ceremonial stage at the end of the 110th edition of the Tour.Vingegaard drank champagne with his Jumbo-Visma teammates as they lined up together and posed for photos on the way to Paris.It had been a three-week slog over 3,405 kilometers (2,116 miles) with eight mountain stages across five mountain ranges. Vingegaard seized control of the race over two stages in the Alps.Little had separated the two rivals until Vingegaard finished a time trial 1 minute, 38 seconds ahead of Pogačar on Tuesday, then followed up the next day by finishing the toughest mountain stage of the race almost 6 minutes ahead of his exhausted rival.“I’m dead,” Pogačar said.The Slovenian ri...

Tour de France Winners

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:12:32 GMT

2023 — Jonas Vingegaard, Denmark2022 — Jonas Vingegaard, Denmark2021 — Tadej Pogacar, Slovenia2020 — Tadej Pogacar, Slovenia2019 — Egan Bernal, Colombia2018 — Geraint Thomas, Britain2017 — Chris Froome, Britain2016 — Chris Froome, Britain2015 — Chris Froome, Britain2014 — Vincenzo Nibali, Italy2013 — Chris Froome, Britain2012 — Bradley Wiggins, Britain2011 — Cadel Evans, Australia2010 — x-Andy Schleck, Luxembourg2009 — Alberto Contador, Spain2008 — Carlos Sastre, Spain2007 — Alberto Contador, Spain2006 — y-Oscar Pereiro, Spain2005 — z-Lance Armstrong, United States2004 — z-Lance Armstrong, United States2003 — z-Lance Armstrong, United States2002 — z-Lance Armstrong, United States2001 — z-Lance Armstrong, United States2000 — z-Lance Armstrong, United States1999 — z-Lance Armstrong, United States1998 — Marco Pantani, Italy1997 — Jan Ullrich, Germany1996 — Bjarne Riis, Denmark1995 — Miguel Indurain, Spain1994 — Miguel Indurain, Spain1993 — Miguel Indurain, Spain1992 — Miguel Indurain, ...