REPORT TO COUNCIL
SUBJECT
Title
Adopt a Resolution to Authorize the Filing of Fiscal Year 2019/20 Transportation Development Act (TDA) Article 3 Application for the Design and Implementation of Pedestrian and Bicycle Safety Improvements at the Intersection of Fremont Avenue and Manet Drive/Bobwhite Avenue
Report
BACKGROUND
TDA Article 3 is a source of funds created by state legislation and processed through the Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority (VTA) and Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC) that annually returns sales tax revenues to local agencies earmarked for bicycle and pedestrian projects.
In FY 2019/20, $172,712 is guaranteed to the City for eligible projects.
Projects eligible to utilize this funding source must meet the following criteria:
1. The project shall fit within one of these eligible project types:
• Construction and/or engineering of a bicycle or pedestrian capital project.
• Maintenance of a multi-purpose path, which is closed to motorized traffic.
• Bicycle safety education project (no more than 5% of county total).
• Development of a comprehensive bicycle or pedestrian facilities plan (allocations to a claimant for this purpose may not be made more than once every five years).
• Restriping Class II bicycle lanes.
2. Environmental clearance is required for construction projects only.
3. Potential projects must have been reviewed by the City's Bicycle and Pedestrian
Advisory Commission (BPAC).
4. Bicycle projects funded by TDA Article 3 funds must comply the VTA Bicycle
Technical Guidelines as adopted on December 13, 2012.
5. Have an authorizing resolution (Attachment 1).
6. The project must be ready to implement within one year of the application cycle.
The BPAC considered FY 2019/20 TDA candidate projects at its February 21, 2019 meeting (Attachment 2 - Excerpt of February 21, 2019 BPAC meeting minutes) and March 21, 2019 meeting (Attachment 3 - Excerpt of March 21, 2019 BPAC meeting minutes). At the March 21, 2019 meeting, BPAC voted 6-0 in favor of two of staff’s recommended projects, with one commissioner absent.
EXISTING POLICY
General Plan, Chapter 3, Land Use and Transportation Element:
• Goal A: Coordinated Regional and Local Planning - Protect the quality of life, the natural environment, and property investment, preserve home rule, secure fair share funding, and provide leadership in the region.
• Goal B: Environmentally Sustainable Land Use and Transportation Planning and Development - Support the sustainable vision by incorporating sustainable features into land use and transportation decisions and practices.
• Goal C: An Effective Multimodal Transportation System - Offer the community a variety of transportation modes for local travel that are also integrated with the regional transportation system and land use pattern. Favor accommodation of alternative modes to the automobile as a means to enhance efficient transit use, bicycling, and walking and corresponding benefits to the environment, person-throughput, and qualitative improvements to the transportation system environment.
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW
The action being considered does not constitute a “project” within the meaning of the California Environmental Quality Act (“CEQA”) pursuant to CEQA Guidelines section 15378(a) as it has no potential for resulting in either a direct physical change in the environment, or a reasonably foreseeable indirect physical change in the environment.
DISCUSSION
The determination of candidate TDA Article 3 projects for FY 2019/20 is based on the review of TDA eligibility requirements, consideration of the Pedestrian Safety and Opportunities Study, Bicycle Capital Improvement Program, Bicycle Plan, Comprehensive School Traffic Study, resident requests, and BPAC’s and staff's knowledge of bicycle and pedestrian facility safety priority needs in the City. Staff and the BPAC have identified the following seven (7) candidate TDA Article 3 projects:
Project #1. Upgrade Off-Street Pathways
Description: Upgrade off-street paths with improvements such as removal of barriers, installation of curb ramps, and installation of no parking zones near the entrance to the off-street paths. The off-street path locations include:
• Bicycle Pedestrian Bridge on The Dalles Avenue over SR 85 - Staff finds that the bridge is not compliant with current ADA standards. In addition, a regulatory sign was installed at the entrance of the bridge to direct bicyclists to walk their bikes.
• Bicycle Pedestrian Bridge east of Fair Oaks Avenue over US 101 - Staff finds that the bridge is not complaint with current ADA standards. In addition, a regulatory sign was installed at the entrance of the bridge to direct bicyclists to walk their bikes.
• Bicycle Pedestrian Path on the east end of Evelyn Avenue between Reed Avenue and Cassia Way - Staff finds that the path width is not built to Caltrans Highway Design Manual Class I Bikeway Path standards.
• Bicycle Pedestrian Path between SR 85 and Bernardo Avenue north of Homestead Road - This pathway is outside of City of Sunnyvale’s jurisdiction. In addition, this location is currently under evaluation in the Homestead Road Corridor Study led by Santa Clara County.
Approximate Cost: $4.0 to $10.0 M
Project #2. Americans with Disability Act (ADA) Compliant Curb Ramp Installations
Description: Installation of ADA compliant curb ramps at the following intersections based on public request and BPAC’s request:
• Syracuse Drive and Kelsey Drive (two ramps).
• Leota Avenue and Noriega Avenue (two ramps).
• Clarence Avenue and Sara Avenue (four ramps).
• Bayview Avenue and McKinley Avenue (two ramps).
• Peach Avenue/ Heatherstone Avenue and Hanover Avenue (two ramps).
• Angel Avenue at Sunnyvale Caltrain Station - There is no designated pedestrian or bicycle path within the Sunnyvale Caltrain Station parking lot, therefore the installation of a ramp will not lead to any bicycle/pedestrian facility connecting to the Caltrain pedestrian path.
Approximate Cost: $195,000 ($13,000/ramp)
Project #3. Installation of pedestrian crossing on California Avenue at Pajaro Avenue
Description: Installation of an enhanced pedestrian crossing and an advance crossing beacon on the west leg of California Avenue at Pajaro Avenue.
Approximate Cost: $150,000
Project #4. Java Drive “Road Diet” (Lane Removal) - Matching Grant Funds
Description: The project includes installation of 5,000 linear feet of bicycle facilities (each side of the road) via a road diet on Java Drive (removal of one lane). The project also includes bicycle detection at five (5) signalized intersections and pavement color treatments, when warranted. The total cost of the project is $632,911, of which $500,000 would be funded by the One Bay Area Grant (OBAG) program and a required matching contribution of $132,911 by the City.
Approximate Cost: $132,911
Project #5. Active Transportation Plan (ATP) Project Contingencies
Description: Funding to be used for project contingencies that includes additional analysis of existing community conditions such as bicycle level of service on the City’s roadway network, additional data collection for identifying key bicycle and pedestrian activity centers, and development of density maps for safe routes to school plan.
Approximate Cost: $170,000
Project #6. Green Bicycle Pavement Markings
Description: Installation of green bicycle pavement markings at up to five (5) intersections. Marking would be installed if the selected locations meet the City’s Green Bike Lane Design Standards.
Approximate Cost: $170,000
Project #7. Pedestrian and Bicycle Safety Improvements at the intersection of Fremont Avenue and Manet Drive/Bobwhite Avenue
Description: Design and implementation of the following possible pedestrian and bicycle safety improvements at the intersection of Fremont Avenue and Manet Drive/Bobwhite Avenue:
• Curb extension on the northwest corner with bi-directional ADA compliant curb ramps.
• Installation of high visibility crosswalks.
• Installation of countdown pedestrian signals.
• Replace 8” vehicle signal heads with 12” vehicle signal heads to improve visibility.
Approximate Cost: $300,000
BPAC’s recommendation for the use of the TDA Article 3 grant funds is for the following two projects, in the order of preference (Attachment 3 - Excerpt from BPAC March 21, 2019 meeting minutes):
Project #1. Upgrade off-street paths with improvements such as removal of barriers, installation of curb ramps, and installation of no parking zones near the entrance to the off-street paths.
Project #7. Design and implementation of pedestrian and bicycle safety improvements at the intersection of Fremont Avenue and Manet Drive/Bobwhite Avenue.
BPAC voted in favor of their recommendation for use of TDA Article 3 grant funds 6-0, with one commissioner absent.
Although BPAC’s top preference for the use of the TDA Article 3 grant funds is for Project # 1 - to upgrade off-street paths, two of the locations (the Bicycle Pedestrian Bridge on The Dalles Avenue over SR 85 and the one east of Fair Oaks Avenue over US 101) would remain non-ADA compliant due to the existing slope on the bridge. In order for these two facilities to be fully ADA compliant, the entire bridge would need to be retrofitted and/or replaced to allow for an ADA compliant ramp slope ratio, and the design and construction cost would be approximately $4.0 to $10.0 million. For the Bicycle Pedestrian Path on the east end of Evelyn Avenue between Reed Avenue and Cassia Way, the width is not built to Caltrans Highway Designed Manual Class 1 Bikeway Path standards, and there are existing residential units on either side of the path, the proposed improvement would not be feasible due to right-of-way constraints. For Bicycle Pedestrian Path between SR 85 and Bernardo Avenue north of Homestead Road, Staff does not recommend the use of TDA Article 3 grant funds for this location since this pathway is outside of City of Sunnyvale’s jurisdiction, and that this location is currently under evaluation in the Homestead Road Corridor Study led by Santa Clara County.
Staff’s recommended use of the TDA Article 3 grant funds is for Project #7 (BPAC’s Priority 2 Project) - to design and implement pedestrian and bicycle safety improvements at the intersection of Fremont Avenue and Manet Drive/Bobwhite Avenue. The project would be implemented over two fiscal years. The FY 2019/20 funds would be utilized for design and environmental clearance of the project. Remaining funds would be combined with TDA Article 3 FY 2020/21 funds to construct the project.
FISCAL IMPACT
No fiscal impact to submit an application for TDA Article 3 grant funds. TDA Article 3 is a program that reimburses cities for the incurred costs of selected projects. No local matching funds are required for Guarantee Fund projects. The VTA estimates the City will receive funds in the amount of $172,712 from the City Guarantee Fund apportionment for Fiscal Year 2019/20. New revenue constitutes a positive fiscal impact.
The estimated cost to complete the project is $300,000. Implementation of the project would occur over a two-year period, with FY 2019/20 funds used for design and environmental clearance. Remainder FY 2019/20 funds will be combined with FY 2020/21 TDA Article 3 funds to construct the project in the second year.
PUBLIC CONTACT
Public contact was made by posting the Council agenda on the City's official-notice bulletin board outside City Hall, at the Sunnyvale Senior Center, Community Center and Department of Public Safety; and by making the agenda and report available at the Sunnyvale Public Library, the Office of the City Clerk and on the City's website.
The BPAC also held a public hearing on this item at its February 21, 2019 and March 21, 2019 meetings (Attachment 2 and 3 respectively).
RECOMMENDATION
Recommendation
Adopt a resolution authorizing the filing of Fiscal Year 2019/20 Transportation Development Act Article 3 application requesting MTC for an allocation of $172,712 for FY 2019/20 to be used for the design and implementation of pedestrian and bicycle safety improvements at the intersection of Fremont Avenue and Manet Drive/Bobwhite Avenue.
In recent years, there were two pedestrian fatalities that occurred at this intersection. Residents have repeatedly expressed safety concerns at this location due to the recent fatalities. The Sunnyvale Community Center is located north of the intersection, Stockmeir Elementary School is located south of the intersection, and Fremont High School is located west of the intersection. Elders, children and teenagers often cross at this intersection to travel to their destination. The safety improvements as recommended at this intersection are consistent with the City’s forthcoming Vision Zero Plan.
Staff
Prepared by: Lillian Tsang, Principal Transportation Engineer
Reviewed by: Shahid Abbas, Transportation and Traffic Manager
Reviewed by: Chip Taylor, Director, Public Works
Reviewed by: Jaqui Guzmán, Deputy City Manager
Approved by: Kent Steffens, City Manager
ATTACHMENTS
1. Resolution Approving FY 2019/20 TDA Article 3 Application
2. Excerpt from the BPAC meeting minutes of February 21, 2019
3. Excerpt from the BPAC Draft meeting minutes of March 21, 2019