San Jose BART Extension: Officials Recommend Approval For $900 Million In Funding (VIDEOS)

WATCH: HUGE News For BART

On Tuesday, the United States Department of Transportation recommended approval for $900 million in funding for the Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority, making construction on the San Jose BART extension a near certain reality as early as this spring.

The Department of Transportation submitted its recommendation to Congress Tuesday for a 60-day review, but according to the Mercury News, the review process is "a mere formality."

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"Everything is in place," said SCVTA spokeswoman Brandi Childress to the San Francisco Chronicle. "We're literally 60 days away. We're looking at groundbreaking in April."

Pending approval, the long-awaited extension will begin at the Warm Springs station (currently under construction) in Fremont and reach ten miles into East San Jose. Two new stations are planned including one in Milpitas near the Great Mall and another in the Berryessa neighborhood at the end of the line. The extension could be completed by late 2016.

The project will cost an estimated $2.3 billion total, with much of the funding supported by a voter-approved sales tax in Santa Clara County. The project will provide thousands of Bay Area construction jobs, and once complete, will provide a direct route to the South Bay and Silicon Valley.

Watch ABC's video about the approval in the video below. Then, check out the plans for the new Milpitas and Barryessa stations in BART's conceptual video:

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