On March 12, 2012, the Federal Transit Administration awarded $900 million in federal assistance to the Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority (VTA) to extend BART service south into Silicon Valley. The new line will extend ten miles from the existing terminus at Fremont to Berryessa and is scheduled to open in 2016.  Kaplan Kirsch & Rockwell assisted VTA in negotiating the acquisition of the necessary right-of-way and obtaining the formal abandonment of freight operations on the line.