San Pablo Avenue Corridor Project 1
ALAMEDA COUNTY TRANSPORTATION COMMISSION
San Pablo Avenue
Multimodal Corridor Project
Emeryville City Council
March 15, 2022
San Pablo Avenue Corridor Project 2
San Pablo Corridor Project
➢ Enhance safety for all travel modes
➢ Improve comfort and quality of trips for all users
➢ Support a strong local economy and efficiently accommodate growth along the corridor while respecting local contexts
➢ Promote equitable transportation and design solutions for diverse communities throughout corridor San Pablo Avenue Corridor Project 3
Phase 1 Engagement: Survey Results
Bus lanes on SPA
(A & B)
Bike Lanes on SPA
(A & C)
Existing
Conditions
City % % %
Oakland 78% 66% 4%
Emeryville 70% 50% 6%
Berkeley 55% 39% 26%
Albany 45% 29% 32%
Contra Costa Co. 43-47% 32-36% 28-36%
Question: Which of the options would you prefer for San Pablo Avenue? Please select one. * Source: Phase 1 Online survey – Spring-Summer 2019
San Pablo Avenue Corridor Project 4
San Pablo Avenue Phase 2 Project Overview
San Pablo Avenue Corridor Project 5
Emeryville Project Overview
(also includes Oakland and southern Berkeley)
• Convert outside traffic lane in each direction to a side-running dedicated bus lane ➢ Between 20th and Ashby Avenue
• Pedestrian safety enhancements
Proposed Typical Mid-Block Cross-section
• Convert parking lane to a
protected bike facility
➢ Between 16th and Heinz Ave
➢ Special considerations are
needed at right-turn locations
and in areas where loading
needs cannot be met off San
Pablo
San Pablo Avenue Corridor Project 6
Project Map
San Pablo Avenue Corridor Project 7
Design Parameters
Goal: Expedite delivery to address safety, efficiency and placemaking in near-term (deliver in 3-5 years)
• Utilize a streamlined Caltrans review and approvals process • Minimize curb, median and landscaping modifications
• Balance demands on right-of-way
➢ Design the most protected bus and bicycle facilities possible on San Pablo ➢ Accommodate continued access to existing businesses, residences, and other corridor uses, including ADA accessibility
➢ Meet corridor circulation needs, including for bus and truck circulation, and minimize diversion to other streets
San Pablo Avenue Corridor Project 8
Near-Term Bus/Bike Design
San Pablo Avenue Corridor Project 9
Design Issues Overview
• Constraints at intersections
Right turns shared with buses;
rights shared with bike lane at
limited locations to preserve
bus performance
➢ Key intersections:
40th Street
Adeline/MacArthur
• Targeted, Limited-Location
Loading Zones, bikes share with
buses in most cases
• Paratransit/ADA access must
be accommodated
• Hybrid bus stop spacing, ~1/3
mile; bikes go on sidewalk
behind bus stop (remove stop
at 47th)
For near-term project feasibility, need to balance right-ofway demands with minimizing curb and median changes San Pablo Avenue Corridor Project 10
Right Turn Designs
Typical Design - Where possible autos will make
right turns from bus lane - Should not degrade bus reliability in locations where turn volumes
and ped volumes are
medium/low
- In locations with high right turn
volumes, need vehicles out of
bus lane to preserve bus
performance
San Pablo Avenue Corridor Project 11
Right Turn Designs
Alternative Treatments for Consideration
• Right turning vehicles share with bike
➢ One potential Emeryville location: Adeline
- Prohibit right turns with alternate routes
- E.g. Northbound to 40th Street
- Explored other ideas suggested by active
transportation stakeholders, but all have
major tradeoffs for transit, peds, diversions
San Pablo Avenue Corridor Project 12
Parking and Loading Conditions
• 135 parking spaces on SPA in Emeryville
➢ Few loading spaces on San Pablo Ave (no yellow/white, 7 green) • Most trucks double-park, loading occurs throughout day • Occupancy is low
➢ On San Pablo: 43% occupancy (weekday mid-day and evening 2021) ➢ Side Streets: 56-65% (depending on time of day/week)
➢ Some very localized block segments with higher utilization ➢ Peak parking demand down in 2021 compared to 2017 (up to 25% lower) • Vast majority of parcels front a side-street and/or have off-street parking
San Pablo Avenue Corridor Project 13
Storefront Outreach
• Door-to-door outreach to all storefronts Dec 9-21, 2021 and Jan 3-21, 2022
• Walked entire corridor in Oakland & Emeryville
• 82 surveys completed
• Dropped flyers at other addresses and attempted phone calls/emails where possible
Emeryville
Occupied storefronts 45
Completed surveys 21
Percentage 47%
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Storefront Survey Results
Emeryville
A 43%
B 38%
C 19%
Total
surveyed 21
A: Supportive - Business does not object to
moving loading/parking.
B: Mixed - Business has concerns with moving
loading/ parking, but based on survey we
think workable solution is possible.
C: Opposed - Business does not agree with
plans to move loading/parking, and we
agree that there aren’t any good options.
San Pablo Avenue Corridor Project 15
Storefront Outreach Key Takeaways
• Almost all locations appear to survey team to have a
loading/parking solution, but more engagement and detailed design needed to refine solution details
• Key challenges include:
➢ Distance and convenience for deliveries, likelihood that deliveries happen on SPA anyway
➢ Safety, security, encampments, and residential parking on side streets ➢ Many potentially workable solutions have caveats that would need to be worked out case-by-case
San Pablo Avenue Corridor Project 16
Criteria for designating loading zones
on San Pablo
• Emeryville criteria: Mid-block, commercial parcel, no off-street lot, includes 2 block faces (12%) in Emeryville
➢ 43rd-45th east side
➢ Adeline to 40th east side
• All “C” (no solution) locations from outreach are on these blocks • Final decisions on loading zones will be made during preliminary engineering in summer 2022, will consider factors including:
➢ Side-street loading zone is too far away
➢ Limitation on side street truck circulation due to truck type or street design/width ➢ Off-street lot inadequate for loading activities
➢ Personal safety and security concerns on side-streets San Pablo Avenue Corridor Project 17
Parking/Loading Designs
• For Consideration
• Small segment shared bus/bike lane
• Working with active transportation
stakeholders and AC Transit and
Caltrans on alternative designs, but
options limited
San Pablo Avenue Corridor Project 18
Design Issues Summary
• Bike lane will provide significant benefit, but will include some mixing zones
• Bus lane will provide significant benefit but there will be some encroachment in the lane; robust enforcement will be needed • Hybrid stop spacing is required to minimize bus/bike mixing • Moving parking/loading off San Pablo feasible at most locations; some targeted loading zones needed; will continue to work with storefronts to address concerns
• Need design to address paratransit/ADA access needs
San Pablo Avenue Corridor Project 19
Transit & Traffic: Preliminary Results
• Transit travel time reliability improves by over 50%
• Increase in congestion/diversions greatest at 40th Street; systemwide impact • Macarthur, Alcatraz also congestion hot spots
AM Peak Period PM Peak Period
Travel Time Comparison, Build vs No Build (%)
72R -10% to -20% -15% to -20%
Auto +3% to +5% +5% to +10%
Diversion Percentage (with one left turn pocket at 40th Street) Albany/Berkeley 3% 3%
Oakland/Emeryville 15%-30% 20%-30%
Planning for dual left
turn lane at 40th to
reduce diversion
San Pablo Avenue Corridor Project 20
Racial Equity Analysis
• AC Transit ridership is 75% people of color and 71% low income • Diverse, low-income corridor, compared to rest of
Oakland/Emeryville:
➢ Residents use transit, walking, and biking more
➢ Population is lower income and more transit reliant
• Proposed project improvements were developed in response to clear desire from community for safety and transit improvements ➢ Extensive community engagement included diverse stakeholders with racial equity, transit rider, and disability-focused outreach San Pablo Avenue Corridor Project 21
Phase 2 Project Engagement
• One-on-one storefront engagement
• Community organization presentations and partnerships • Active Transportation Working Group
• City, AC Transit, EBP advisory committees
➢ AC Transit Accessibility Advisory Committee
➢ East Bay Paratransit Service Review Advisory Committee ➢ City Transportation Commissions, BPACs, etc.
• Additional outreach during design, construction, evaluation San Pablo Avenue Corridor Project 22
Next Steps: Project Roadmap
• March 2022: Recommend project to advance to ensure
eligibility for funding opportunities
• Spring/Summer 2022: Apply for construction funding
• Summer 2022: Advance preliminary engineering including targeted outreach on design issues
• 2022-23: Caltrans approvals, environmental review, final design
• Goal: Deliver project in 3-5 years (pending full funding) San Pablo Avenue Corridor Project 23
Recommendation
• Convert outside traffic lane in each direction to a side-running dedicated bus lane ➢ Between 20th and Ashby Avenue
• Pedestrian safety enhancements
Proposed Typical Mid-Block Cross-section
• Convert parking lane to a
protected bike facility
➢ Between 16th and Heinz Ave
➢ Special considerations are
needed at right-turn locations
and in areas where loading
needs cannot be met off San
Pablo
San Pablo Avenue Corridor Project 24
Discussion