City Council
Staff Report
From: City Manager
Report Type: CONSENT CALENDAR
Lead Department: Transportation
Meeting Date: August 10, 2026
Report #:2607-6522
TITLE
Adopt a Resolution Making Required Findings in Support of Acceptance of Funding from Vehicle Registration Fee-Intelligent Transportation Systems (VRF-ITS) Cycle 5 Grant Program; and amendment of the FY 2027 Budget in the Capital Improvement Fund. CEQA Status – Categorically Exempt (CEQA Guidelines section 15301b Existing Facilities).
RECOMMENDATION
Staff recommends that Council:
1. Adopt a Resolution making required findings in support of the City’s application and award for VRF-ITS Cycle 5 funds in the amount of $500,000 for the Embarcadero Road Traffic Signal Operations and ITS Upgrade Project.
2. Approve and Authorize the City Manager or their designee to execute a Funding Agreement with the Valley Transportation Authority (VTA) to accept a $500,000 grant as part of the 2010 Measure B Vehicle Registration Fee (VRF) Countywide Program Cycle Five.
3. Amend the Fiscal Year Budget Appropriation for the Capital Improvement Fund (requires a 2/3 vote) to:
a. Increase the Traffic Signal and Intelligent Transportation Systems project (PL-05030) in the amount of $500,000; and
b. Increase revenue from Other Agencies (2010 Measure B Vehicle Registration Fees Cycle 5 in PL-05030) in the amount of $500,000.
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Embarcadero Road between U.S. 101 and Palo Alto High School/Town & Country intersection 700 feet east of El Camino Real in Palo Alto is a residential arterial that serves both local and regional traffic. This roadway segment consists of eight signalized intersections with aging traffic signal hardware. This project will replace the older traffic signal cabinets, implement video detection and accessible pedestrian signals, and implement Automated Traffic Signal
Performance Measures (ATSPM) to develop optimal signal operations. This VRF-ITS grant award would provide $500,000 of the $697,000 project cost.
BACKGROUND
On November 13, 2017, City Council adopted the 2030 Comprehensive Plan, which identified Embarcadero Road as one of the City’s primary community gateways and residential arterials (Policy T-4.4) and directed staff to prioritize safety particularly for school children in street modifications (Policies T-3.14 and T-6.1) and improve traffic flow when feasible (Policy T-2.1).
On June 2, 2025, Council approved the City of Palo Alto’s Safe Streets 4 All Safety Action Plan, which also identified Embarcadero Road as part of the City’s High Injury Network and a Safety Focus Area.
Embarcadero Road between U.S. 101 and Palo Alto High School/Town & Country intersection has a very high number of pedestrian and bicycle crossings by students. The roadway directly abuts three school campuses: Palo Alto High School, Castilleja Girls School, and Walter Hayes Elementary School, and is located within the catchment area for students accessing Greene Middle School and Duveneck Elementary School.
The Embarcadero Road corridor has been identified as a segment within the City’s signal network with aging infrastructure in need of substantial updates including new signal optimization, updated detection, and pedestrian accessibility upgrades. The City of Palo Alto is responsible for maintaining, updating, and operating the traffic signals at eight intersections along this corridor. Traffic signals along the corridor were previously updated between 2004 and 2018, with several cabinets and detection systems updated since then due to failures or collisions that resulted in damaged equipment. As a result, the signal equipment throughout the corridor consists of cabinets and related hardware from varying generations of equipment standards. Included with this project will be an update of corridor optimization and coordinate.
The traffic signals along Embarcadero were last optimized along Embarcadero Road in 2017.
ANALYSIS
The Embarcadero Road Traffic Signal Operations and ITS Upgrade Project would replace the cabinets at five intersections, update vehicle and bicycle detection at four intersections, and add accessible pedestrian signal (APS) push buttons at six locations; bringing the hardware used along the corridor to consistent and current standards. It would also optimize coordination to reduce delays and introduce automated traffic signal performance measures (ATSPM) to allow for advanced metrics and analytics related to signal operations and safety issues such as identifying locations with high red-light violations.
The total anticipated cost for the Embarcadero Road Traffic Signal Operations and ITS Upgrade Project is $696,000. The grant award would provide approximately $500,000 for contractor labor, procurement and installation of project elements and City Staff time for anticipated for project development, procurement and project implementation. City staff hours, development of as-built plans, and other costs in excess of a potential award amount would be considered as part of the City’s contribution toward the total project costs. There is no local match requirement associated with the VRF grant award.
This project is one of seven projects selected out of 16 project applications from various agencies as part of the Santa Clara County VRF-ITS Cycle 5 funding program.
FISCAL/RESOURCE IMPACT
To fully fund this improvement, staff recommends including the VRF-ITS grant in the Embarcadero Road ITS and Traffic Signal Upgrade project as part of the City’s Traffic Signal and Intelligent Transportation Systems PL-05030, FY 2027 Adopted Budget appropriation of $2.4 million. The awarded VRF grant will reimburse the City $500,000 of the estimated $697,000 project cost with the remaining cap to be funded by CIP funds. Staff will continue to pursue additional funding opportunities to minimize the use of CIP funds.
STAKEHOLDER ENGAGEMENT
City staff will provide updates on this project through City Communications channels such as the Transportation Connect newsletter, social media platforms, and the City/Schools Transportation Safety Committee, which represents a partnership between City staff, school district staff and PTSA leaders.
Staff will also continue to coordinate and provide required updates with Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority, which administers the VRF-ITS grant funding program. City Staff applied for this grant and participated in the programs scoring, selection, and approval for six other projects considered as part of this program.
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW
The Embarcadero Road Traffic Signal and ITS update project is categorically exempt under CEQA Categorical Exemption Section 15301: Existing Facilities. This Class 1 exemption consists of the operation, repair, maintenance, permitting, leasing, licensing, or minor alteration of existing public or private structures, facilities, mechanical equipment, or topographical features, involving negligible or no expansion of existing or former use.
ATTACHMENTS
Attachment A: VRF-ITS Cycle 5- Award Notification Letter APPROVED BY:
Ria Hutabarat Lo, Chief Transportation Official