Title
Adopt a Resolution Approving Project Concept Designs for the East Bay Greenway Multimodal Project (Phase I) led by the Alameda County Transportation Commission
Staffreport
COUNCIL PRIORITY
• Infrastructure
• Sustainability & Resiliency
• Community Engagement and Outreach
• Race and Equity Initiatives
• Community & Business Development
SUMMARY AND RECOMMENDATIONS
The Alameda County Transportation Commission (Alameda CTC) is the project sponsor and implementing agency for the East Bay Greenway (EBGW) Multimodal Project Phase 1 (Project). The Project is a near-term phase of the EBGW Project, and the project concept and approach was approved by the Alameda CTC in December 2021.
City and Alameda CTC staff recommend approval of a Resolution approving the Project concept; supporting Alameda CTC filing of a Categorical Exemption for the Project in San Leandro in accordance with the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA); and advancing development of construction plans.
BACKGROUND
The EBGW Multimodal Phase I Project is a 16-mile corridor between the Lake Merritt BART station in Oakland and the South Hayward BART station in Hayward, traversing the cities of San Leandro, Hayward, and unincorporated Alameda County areas of Ashland and Cherryland. The Project would implement Class I and Class IV bicycle facilities to the extent feasible and multimodal improvements along the E. 14th Street/Mission Boulevard corridor as well as on connecting roadways to BART stations, including Fairmont Drive, A Street, and Tennyson Road. The near-term implementation would provide a continuous bicycle facility suitable for all ages and abilities, and would incorporate multimodal safety, transit, and placemaking elements. The Project can be constructed in 3-5 years, dependent on funding for the construction phase.
The goals of the Project are to:
• Provide safe, Class I or Class IV (to the extent feasible) options for biking for all ages and abilities
• Improve safety by physically separating bicyclists from high speed, high volume vehicular traffic to the extent feasible
• Create a continuous north/south bike facility connecting seven BART stations
• Create more opportunities for pedestrians and people with disabilities to cross the street safely by implementing high visibility crosswalks and pedestrian beacons as well as implementation of directional curb ramps, when feasible
• Improve transit reliability and multimodal access to regional transit, schools, downtown areas, and major activity centers
• Improve multimodal access to BART stations
• Reduce greenhouse gas emissions
The Project implementation strategy includes the following elements:
• High-quality pedestrian facilities and bicycle facilities for all ages and abilities: The Project proposes implementation of Class I and Class IV (to the extent feasible) bicycle facilities along major streets. In San Leandro, improvements are proposed along San Leandro Boulevard and East 14th Street, as well as on the streets connecting to the BART stations such as Fairmont Drive. Intersection crossings will also be improved with shorter and safer crosswalks. Whenever feasible on major intersections, the design includes protected intersection or dedicated intersection elements for bicyclists consistent with National Association of City Transportation Officials (NACTO) Urban Bikeway Design guidance.
• Transit reliability and access: The Project is considering targeted rapid bus infrastructure that will improve access to transit, reliability, and reduce delays at bus stops. The improvements potentially include transit islands, installation of Transit Signal Priority (TSP), and queue jumps where buses enter/leave the corridor to access BART stations.
• Placemaking to support economic development: The Project proposes to support economic development opportunities and enhance existing neighborhoods through complementary design elements that would expand pedestrian space, support urban greening elements, increase public use of the street, increase visual identity, and create opportunities for activating adjacent properties, such as surface parking and vacant lots. The Project also evaluates available parking and curb management to support multimodal treatments and business activity. The placemaking element goal is to create a cohesive, visual identity for the corridor while also highlighting the unique character of specific districts.
PUBLIC OUTREACH
Since January 2022, Alameda CTC staff has been coordinating with member agency stakeholders to develop a public outreach plan which includes City committees, local businesses, and other stakeholders to obtain feedback on multimodal transportation needs as well as to obtain input on the concept designs. This work builds on outreach done in previous years for the EBGW and E. 14th Street/Mission Boulevard Multimodal project.
During the months of February through April, Alameda CTC conducted direct business and community outreach, and coordinated public outreach events with City staff for its Bancroft Avenue and Williams Street Bikeway projects. The coordinated outreach effort helped communicate that regional and local planning efforts share the same goals of improving safety through multimodal projects, closing gaps in the bicycle network and complementing east-west and north-south connections across the City. Alameda CTC presented a Project update on upcoming public outreach to the City Council Facilities and Transportation Committee on March 2nd and to the San Leandro Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Committee on March 9th. Public outreach included five popup events (in coordination with City of San Leandro Crosstown Corridors) that were held at the following locations:
• Bay Fair Farmers Market on February 26th
• San Leandro BART station on March 3rd
• John Muir Middle School on March 12th
• Downtown Farmer’s Market Ribbon Cutting Ceremony on April 6th
• San Leandro High School on April 16th
Interested individuals from the pop-up events and door-to-door outreach were encouraged to participate in two San Leandro focus groups in April; one for Bike/Pedestrians/Transit users on April 18th and the other for Business Owners on April 21st.
In San Leandro between April 4th and April 15th, staff conducted additional outreach consisting of an in person, Door-to-Door Business survey along E. 14th Street from San Leandro Boulevard to Bay Fair Drive. The in-person outreach focused on how businesses use street parking and loading/unloading needs. In addition, a mailer was sent to residential areas adjacent to the Project inviting comments through a comment form that was available on the Alameda CTC’s project website during the first two weeks in June.
The community and business survey outreach conducted to date found strong support for the Project in general, particularly for:
• Consideration of the inclusion of urban landscape and maintenance
• Inclusion of bike and pedestrian safety features for traffic signals
• Decreasing vehicular speeds on E. 14th Street
• Consideration of business loading and short-term parking needs
• Creation of more opportunities for pedestrians to safely cross E. 14th St.
Alameda CTC staff returned to the City Council Facilities and Transportation Committee on May 4th to present the outcome of the public outreach and the design elements of the concept Project. The Committee members expressed strong support for the Project and asked for a map that shows more details on the parking that will be eliminated on E. 14th Street (see Attachment B).
Other opportunities for engagement outside San Leandro included an information item to Alameda CTC’s Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Committee in late April, and to the Alameda CTC Paratransit Advisory and Planning Committee (PAPCO) in June, as well as to AC Transit’s Accessibility Advisory Committee on May 10th and to the AC Transit Service Review Advisory Committee on June 7th. Outreach to these bodies was done with the purpose of obtaining feedback on paratransit and people with disabilities travel needs. These groups were interested in the following:
• Safe bike facilities
• Implementation of directional curb ramps
• Implementation of detectable surfaces between mode of transportation right of way
• Safer crosswalks with detectable striping for the visually impaired
The public outreach conducted for the project guided the final refinements to the cross sections and layouts of the concept plan presented for Council approval (see Attachment C).
Design Elements Considered for the Project
Alameda CTC staff has been engaging with local and state agencies along the project corridor to develop a single concept to advance into subsequent environmental and design phases. In San Leandro, the Alameda CTC project team has coordinated with City staff in developing several design options for the implementation of a Class IV bike facility, based on factors such as:
• Availability of street parking spaces
• Predictability for all roadway users
• More direct and better access for cyclists
• Desire to have minimum number of conflict points.
Based on those factors, a cross section with a one-way Class IV facility on each side of the street is the option that offers the most benefits as detailed below.
To maximize safety, minimize parking impacts, and add bicycle facilities, the proposed cross section reduces the width of the travel lanes to 11 feet for inside lanes and 12 feet for the outside lanes along E. 14th Street; along San Leandro Boulevard, travel lane width is reduced to 11 feet. The Project includes high-visibility pedestrian crosswalks and protected intersections that separate users of each mode of transportation (i.e., pedestrians, bicycles, buses, and automobiles) at these critical locations. In addition, the Project includes bus boarding islands and will evaluate transit signal priority and queue jumps at key intersections to improve transit operations, reliability, and access to BART stations. Refer to Attachment C: Project Concept Typical Plans.
While the Project is expected to improve safety and accommodate all users of the street along San Leandro Boulevard and E. 14th Street, there will be tradeoffs that will impact on-street parking. To understand the parking impacts of the Project, the Project team conducted a parking utilization and parking inventory survey. The survey was conducted in November 2021 on two weekdays and two Saturdays for three different time frames during the day (morning, midday, and evening). Results of the parking inventory and utilization survey vary by block, but in general, parking in most areas did not reach the critical threshold (indicated by an occupancy of 85% or higher). The parking study revealed that there are more parking spots on the east side of the street and preserving parking on that side allows the Project to keep the most street parking spaces. The results of the parking inventory and utilization survey paired with public outreach helped identify the parking impacts and aided in refining the Project’s cross sections and layout (see Attachment D).
The Project team also conducted a speed survey along the corridor (see Attachment E). The results of the survey show that current speeds increase in segments where the roadway widens. Faster automobile speeds increase the severity of pedestrian and bike injuries. The Project design features, including decreased lane widths, visual separations such as intersection bulb outs, and signal coordination along the corridor, should reduce average speeds overall. The Project team is working closely with AC Transit to ensure that these safety countermeasures do not negatively impact transit operations along the corridor.
Lastly, the Project team worked with the City of San Leandro staff on the identification of innovative placemaking elements, such as pedestrian plazas, parklets, and public art that have the potential to support local businesses. Some of these improvements could be implemented with the proposed transportation projects, while others are improvements that could be implemented as redevelopment occurs along the corridor.
Current Agency Policies
• Maintain and enhance San Leandro’s infrastructure.
• Support and implement programs, activities and strengthen communication that enhances the quality of life and wellness, celebrates the arts and diversity, and promotes civic pride.
Committee Review and Actions
• March 2, 2022 - Presentation to the City Council Facilities and Transportation Committee
Applicable General Plan Policies
• Policy T-2: Design and operate streets to be safe, attractive, and accessible for all transportation users whether they are pedestrians, bicyclists, transit riders or motorists, regardless of age or ability.
• Policy T-2.1 Complete Streets Serving All Users and Modes. Create and maintain “complete” streets that provide safe, comfortable, and convenient travel through a comprehensive, integrated transportation network that serves all users.
• Policy T-3.1 Citywide Bikeway System. Develop and maintain a bikeway system that meets the need of both utilitarian and recreational users, reduces vehicle trips, and connect residential neighborhoods to employment and shopping areas, BART stations, schools, recreational facilities and other destinations throughout San Leandro and nearby communities.
• Policy T-3.2 Funding. Maximize the City’s eligibility for funding for bicycle and pedestrian improvements, and aggressively pursue such funding to complete desired projects.
• Policy T-3.3 Designing for Multiple User Groups. Recognize the dual needs of experienced cyclists relying on bicycles for commute trips and daily travel and less experienced cyclists using bicycles principally for recreation. Where needed, develop facilities designed to serve each user group, with recreational routes primarily using low-volume streets and off-street bike paths
Environmental Review
Environmental review of the project is being undertaken by Alameda CTC Staff.
Board/Commission Review and Actions
• March 9, 2022 - Presentation to the Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Committee
Summary of Public Outreach Efforts
• Bay Fair Farmers Market on February 26th
• San Leandro BART station on March 3rd
• John Muir Middle School on March 12th
• Downtown Farmer’s Market Ribbon Cutting Ceremony on April 6th
• San Leandro High School on April 16th
Fiscal Impacts
This Council action has no fiscal impacts to the City budget.
ATTACHMENT(S)
Attachment(s) to Staff Report
• Attachment A: Resolution
• Attachment B: Summary of Public Outreach
• Attachment C: Project Concept Typical Plans
• Attachment D: Parking and Occupancy
• Attachment E: Speed Survey
• Attachment F: Presentation
PREPARED BY: Sheila Marquises, Director, Engineering and Transportation Department