DATE:
July 1, 2025
TO:
LaTanya Bellow, City Manager
FROM:
Mohamed Alaoui, Public Works Director
SUBJECT:
Resolution Of The City Council Of The City Of Emeryville Adopting The Local Roadway Safety Plan (LRSP) Recommendation
Staff recommends that the City Council adopt the above-entitled resolution.
Background
The City of Emeryville is advancing its Local Roadway Safety Plan (LRSP) to proactively address traffic safety challenges, reduce fatal and severe injury collisions, and align with state and federal safety objectives. This effort stems from federal requirements under California’s Strategic Highway Safety Plan (SHSP), which mandates a coordinated approach to improving roadway safety through engineering, enforcement, education, and emergency response. However, the LRSP also serves a critical local need: positioning Emeryville to compete for state and federal funding, including the Highway Safety Improvement Program (HSIP) and the federal Safe Streets and Roads for All (SS4A) grant program.
In 2023, the City secured a grant from the California Transportation Commission (CTC) to develop its LRSP, with completion required by 2025. This grant underscores the urgency of finalizing a plan that not only meets safety goals but also ensures eligibility for future infrastructure funding. Without an approved LRSP, the City would be ineligible to apply for State grants such as HSIP Cycle 13 and beyond, as well as Federal grants such as SS4A implementation grants Discussion
Local Roadway Safety Plan
The City of Emeryville, located in Alameda County with a population of approximately 13,000, benefits from significant transportation infrastructure, including Interstate-80 and various bus services connecting to Oakland, San Francisco, and beyond. The City fosters multimodal transport options, featuring the free Emery-Go-Round shuttle, which links residents to regional rail services. Emeryville's planning initiatives, encapsulated in the General Plan and the Active Transportation Plan, prioritize equitable and sustainable development with an emphasis on safety, walkability, and reduced automobile dependency. Additionally, these plans will be enhanced by the LRSP to improve traffic safety resource allocation and decision-making.
The LRSP adopts a Safe System Approach, reflecting the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Vision Zero principles, which prioritize eliminating traffic fatalities and serious injuries by acknowledging human vulnerability and shared responsibility among road users, designers, and policymakers. This approach integrates six principles: rejecting death/serious injury as acceptable outcomes, accommodating human error, designing for human vulnerability, shared responsibility, proactive risk mitigation, and system redundancy. The LRSP also aligns with the City’s Complete Streets Policy, ensuring equitable access for pedestrians, cyclists, transit users, and drivers of all ages and abilities.
Emeryville’s plan emphasizes data-driven solutions tailored to local needs, including analysis of collision trends, traffic patterns, and input from stakeholders. It focuses on the “Five E’s” of traffic safety—Education, Enforcement, Engineering, Emergency Response, and Emerging Technologies—to address risks for all road users. Examples range from low-cost improvements (e.g., enhanced crosswalks and signage) to long-term infrastructure projects, such as protected bike lanes or signal upgrades. The LRSP prioritizes rapid deployment of low-cost safety improvements through the City’s operating budget or sustainable streetscapes project. High-cost projects will be evaluated for inclusion in the City’s 5-Year Capital Improvement Program (CIP).
Collision History Summary
Over the past five years, the City has experienced an average of 77 collisions per year, including 2.0 that have resulted in fatal or serious injuries. The LRSP sets forth a comprehensive framework to identify, prioritize, and pursue improvements that mitigate these dangers and enhance road safety. By analyzing traffic and collision data alongside Caltrans and FHWA guidelines, the LRSP aims to identify key opportunities for safety enhancements on local roadways. Safe infrastructure systems help prevent fatal and severe injury collisions.
With a total of 385 collisions recorded over the past five years, including concerning incidents involving vulnerable users—20 pedestrian collisions and 27 bicycle collisions, the LRSP is particularly focused on safeguarding those at higher risk. Through targeted actions and collaborative efforts, the city aims to enhance roadway safety and protect its community members effectively. This plan not only demonstrates the City’s commitment to safety but also positions Emeryville for future funding opportunities, thus reinforcing its readiness to address ongoing and emerging safety challenges in the local roadway system.
Countermeasure Identification and Selection
The LRSP is a strategic framework aimed at enhancing safety on local roads by identifying, analyzing, and prioritizing improvements to reduce fatalities and severe injuries, aligning with the U.S. Department of Transportation's mission. It supports initiatives like the SHSP, backed by grants from the HSIP and SS4A. The plan advocates countermeasures such as reducing speed limits and implementing infrastructure changes for pedestrians and cyclists. The countermeasure identification process involved resources such as the HSIP Analyzer Manual and the Crash Modification Factors Clearinghouse, along with a review of twenty-eight proven safety countermeasures provided by the Federal Highway Administration.
The LRSP includes ongoing City projects addressing safety concerns through both low-cost and high-cost treatments. It proposes additional countermeasures classified by collisions near intersections and mid-block locations, highlighting primary causes of accidents that include unsafe speed and improper turning. Countermeasure toolkits were developed to serve as a comprehensive resource for future interventions as funding permits.
The countermeasures were categorized into the following programs:
Signal Timing Program
Daylighting Program
Pedestrian Improvements Program
Signal Upgrade Program
Frontage Road Safety Improvements
Signing and Striping Program
Corridor Spot Improvements
Program Prioritization
To allocate limited funds effectively, the projects were evaluated based on readiness, cost-effectiveness, collision severity, and their potential to reduce accidents. Collaborating with City staff, Iteris categorized projects by implementation timeframe: short term (2-5 years), mid-term (5-10 years), and long-term (over 10 years). The analysis factors in the benefits of reduced fatalities and crashes, referencing the U.S. Department of Transportation's Benefit-Cost Analysis Guidance. Near-term projects, such as the Daylighting Program and Pedestrian Improvements, are prioritized for their lower costs and complexities. Mid-term projects, while generally more expensive and complex, offer additional benefits not directly assessed here. Long-term projects were not identified but will require ongoing evaluation of the effectiveness of implemented measures for future prioritization. The table that follows presents these programs along with criteria for prioritization, indicated by color coding from yellow (lower priority) to green (higher priority).
Next Steps
Over the next five years, Emeryville will utilize its LRSP as a dynamic framework to enhance road safety, revising objectives as necessary. While significant long-term projects will be managed through the Capital Improvement Program (CIP), emphasis will be placed on low-cost safety enhancements that can be quickly implemented. The City's success in this endeavor will rely on securing funding from various sources, including the HSIP, ATP, CMAQ, Sustainable Transportation grants, stimulus funds, and the CIP. Moreover, the City will assess the effectiveness of the measures implemented to inform future safety initiatives, reaffirming its dedication to transportation safety.
Fiscal Impact
There is no fiscal impact. Items within the Local Roadway Safety Plan will be incorporated as part of the existing Capital Improvement Program (CIP). The LRSP enables the City to obtain funding from sources like HSIP, ATP, CMAQ, Sustainable Transportation grants, stimulus funds, and the CIP.
Staff Communication with the Public
The Local Roadway Safety Plan was discussed at the May 2025 Transportation and Sustainability Committee and at the June 2025 Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Committee.
Conflict of Interest
None.
Conclusion
Staff recommends that the City Council adopt the above-entitled resolution.
PREPARED BY: Ryan O’Connell, Senior Civil Engineer
Approved and Forwarded to the
City Council of the City of Emeryville:
LaTanya Bellow, City Manager
Attachments
Draft Resolution
Exhibit A – Local Roadway Safety Plan (LRSP)
Adoption of Local Roadway Safety Plan
City Council Meeting | July 1, 2025
City of Emeryville
CALIFORNIA
MEMORANDUM