The 10-mile, $2.3 billion Bay Area Rapid Transit Silicon Valley Berryessa Extension project is on track to be completed by December, according to Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority. Test trains are expected to start running through the Milpitas BART Station this summer.

The station, the newest gateway into the city near the corner of Montague Expressway and East Capitol Avenue adjacent to the Great Mall, is 96.5 percent complete, according to VTA spokeswoman Stacey Ross.

She added the station is expected to be open and running by late December, six months ahead of the original schedule.

When asked if VTA, which is building the new station and handing off its operation to BART once complete, is anticipating any of the issues that caused delays in the opening of the Warm Springs/South Fremont BART station, Linh Hoang, VTA spokeswoman, said in an email “VTA’s original forecasted project delivery schedule is June 2018 — we are tracking ahead of schedule.”

As far as ongoing work is concerned, Ross said work on the station’s roof and the roof and side screens of the pedestrian overcrossing between the BART station building and the Montague Light Rail Station had been completed. She added three skylights had also been installed in the roof of the station to allow natural light into the concourse and the below ground passenger boarding area.

Ross said the BART station agent booth and fare collection devices, the lighting and public announcement system that will hang from the ceiling along the boarding platform, platform level artwork and four elevators (two per track) were still being installed.

“We’ve made significant progress in the last several months and we are 96 percent complete. We are working on the finishing touches and the interior work,” Ross said. She added it was “exciting” to be so close to completing the first phase of the BART extension to the South Bay, something that’s been “30 years in coming.”

Ross said next steps include completing the bus transit center, which will have 15 bus bays and dedicated bus only lanes onto Capitol Avenue. Work is also being done to complete the L-shaped ancillary building under the pedestrian overcrossing, which will house indoor bike storage and a break room for transit employees.

Additionally, testing of the station’s mechanical, electrical and communications system including the closed circuit TV, lighting, elevators and escalators, will begin soon, Ross said.

The 1,200 space parking garage, which is owned and will be operated by VTA and open to BART, light rail and bus patrons, was completed in March. The garage has 24 electric vehicle spots with the option of 96 more in the future, Ross said.

She added the station and garage will offer more than a parking space and place to catch transportation.

The plaza area on the south side of the garage, which has service connections to accommodate 10 food trucks, has been completed. Additionally, 6,000 square feet of ground retail space at the Milpitas station will be divided into three to four spots, Ross said.

“VTA has just begun the process to select retailers. For the retail space, we are hiring a real estate broker to market the space and expect to begin marketing in May,” Hoang said. “We are looking for a mix of food and service tenants to meet the needs of transit patrons and are seeking high quality local and regional tenants. For the food truck bays, we are working with Moveable Feast and Off the Grid to set up special and ongoing events to have food trucks at the site.”

Ross said her transit agency will be working as the station is completed to transition operations to BART.

“The goal is to make the transition from BART to VTA as seamless as possible. There are dozens of options that people will have to get around Santa Clara County more quickly,” Ross said of getting commuters from BART trains to VTA service.

Alicia Trost, a BART spokeswoman, said her transit agency will ramp up to hire 162 positions, funded by and dedicated for the Berryessa extension. She added BART is estimating it will cost $27.5 million to provide service at the new stations.

“Most of these positions have not been filled yet. They are phased in hiring, all the positions needed to operate and service the BART,” Trost said.

She added VTA will reimburse BART for the cost for staffing the two new stations.