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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMINUTES - 10062009 - C.06RECOMMENDATION(S): APPROVE AND AUTHORIZE the Public Works Director, or designee, to submit to Caltrans Local Assistance the Highway Safety Improvement Program (HSIP) grant applications for safety projects being considered along Alhambra Valley Road, Marsh Creek Road and Camino Tassajara, East, Central, and South County areas. Project No. 0676-6P1032 FISCAL IMPACT: There is no impact to the County General Fund. BACKGROUND: Applying for and obtaining grants allows the County to construct more improvements than would be possible without obtaining these grants. Public Works staff presented the list of candidate projects to the Transportation, Water and Infrastructure Committee on September 21, 2009. The Committee supported the applications and requested that staff present this item to the Board as a consent item. APPROVE OTHER RECOMMENDATION OF CNTY ADMINISTRATOR RECOMMENDATION OF BOARD COMMITTEE Action of Board On: 10/06/2009 APPROVED AS RECOMMENDED OTHER Clerks Notes: VOTE OF SUPERVISORS AYE:John Gioia, District I Supervisor Gayle B. Uilkema, District II Supervisor Mary N. Piepho, District III Supervisor Susan A. Bonilla, District IV Supervisor Federal D. Glover, District V Supervisor Contact: Jenna Caldwell, (925) 313-2020 I hereby certify that this is a true and correct copy of an action taken and entered on the minutes of the Board of Supervisors on the date shown. ATTESTED: October 6, 2009 David J. Twa, County Administrator and Clerk of the Board of Supervisors By: EMY L. SHARP, Deputy cc: C. 6 To:Board of Supervisors From:Julia R. Bueren, Public Works Director/Chief Engineer Date:October 6, 2009 Contra Costa County Subject:Highway Safety Improvement Program Grant Applications for Projects being Considered Along Alhambra Valley Road, Marsh Creek Road and Camino Tassajara. The Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users (SAFETEA-LU) created the Highway Safety Improvement BACKGROUND: (CONT'D) Program (HSIP); this is the third cycle of the HSIP. For a project to be eligible for HSIP funding a specific safety problem must be identified for correction and the project must correct or substantially improve the condition. HSIP funds are available for expenditure on any highway safety improvement project on any local agency public road, bicycle or pedestrian pathway or trail. There are two HSIP funding categories: “Safety Index” and “Work Type”. Safety Index projects will receive approximately 50 to 70 percent of the available HSIP funds; Work Type projects will receive approximately 30 to 50 percent. Safety Index Projects: Projects may qualify for HSIP funding based on a calculated Safety Index (SI). Caltrans Headquarter staff will calculate the SI for all applications competing under this category, and will then prioritize projects statewide by the Safety Index. The formula Caltrans will use to calculate a projects’ Safety Index takes into account the number of collisions, the scope of the proposed improvement project, the average daily traffic (ADT), the total project cost and the length of the improved project, along with a variety of factors that are predetermined. The formula makes no distinction between fatal and injury collisions and instead groups them into one category. If a project submitted as a Safety Index project fails to get funded under the Safety Index category, it will automatically be moved into the Work Type category and re-compete for funding within that category. Public Works is submitting all projects under the Safety Index category. This will allow our projects to compete in both categories. Work Type Improvement Projects: The Work Type category is used to fund projects that cannot be quantified by a SI due to the lack of data. Projects providing evidence of collision history or collision potential will compete better than projects that do not. All projects submitted by Public Works will include collision history. Examples of current eligible Work Type construction and operational improvements may include, but are not limited to, the following list: • Traffic signs • Sight distance improvement • Upgrade median barrier • Pavement markings and delineation • New median barrier • Widen or improve shoulder • Remove obstacles • Flatten side slopes • Upgrade traffic signals • Realign roadway • New traffic signals • An intersection safety improvement • New or upgrade guardrail • Traffic channelization For the two previous cycles of HSIP, the Public Works Department submitted five safety improvement projects each round. For Cycle 1, none of the projects submitted received funding. For Cycle 2, one project was chosen to receive the maximum $900,000 in funding: Deer Valley Road Safety Improvement Project – south of Chadbourne Road. To determine projects to submit for this cycle, Public Works utilized the Crossroads database program, which obtains data from the California Statewide Integrated Traffic Records System (SWITRS), to obtain reports which indicated the road segments and intersections with the highest number of collisions. Staff used these prioritized lists to evaluate potential safety improvement projects that would substantially improve the existing conditions. Upon review of the list, it was noted that many of the locations indicated in the reports have had improvements recently implemented or have improvements scheduled to occur in the very near future. Staff then reviewed projects that are currently underway to determine if there were projects that would compete well for the HSIP funds and where additional funding would relieve a burden on local funds. Public Works recommends submitting five project applications for this HSIP funding cycle. Four of the recommended projects are currently underway. These four projects have received federal funding from the High Risk Rural Road (HR3) program to cover a portion of the project costs. The remaining project cost is currently being bridged with funding from local sources, such as Proposition 1B and gas tax revenues. The fifth project we are recommending is in the planning phase and has additional funding available through developer mitigation fees. The first four projects, listed as 1 through 4 below, were chosen for several reasons. First, upon evaluating the collision history and other criteria which is considered in the HSIP evaluation, it was determined that these projects would compete well. Second, the design and environmental processes for these projects are substantially underway, scoring well for project readiness. Third, if staff were to apply for HSIP funds for a new, unfunded project, at a time when disbursement of our local funds from the state is uncertain, it could result in the County having several underfunded projects without the financial ability to construct any of them. Staff's proposed concept to apply for HSIP funds to achieve full funding for current projects would assure project completion and also free-up local funds for other projects throughout the County. The fifth project, along Camino Tassajara, would close an existing paved shoulder gap. This would provide additional safety for both motorists and bicyclists. This project was chosen not only because it is expected to compete well in the Safety Index category, but it also has sufficient funding available through sources outside gas tax, such as Area of Benefit revenues, to cover the full project cost. Leveraging the Area of Benefit revenues with grant funding sources optimizes the fees that the County has collected through the developer traffic mitigation fees and follows through with the intent of the Area of Benefit program. The five projects Public Works proposes to submit applications for are described below. These are not listed in any particular priority order. 1. Alhambra Valley Road Safety Improvement Project east of Bear Creek Road Location: This project is located in western Contra Costa County along Alhambra Valley Road near the intersection with Bear Creek Road. Supervisorial District 2. Project Description: This road is a narrow two-lane road with tight turning radii through rough terrain and has very little shoulder area for drivers to recover when vehicles veer off the road or cross the centerline. This project would realign a series of curves and widen each travel lane to 12 feet of pavement, widen the shoulders to a minimum 4 feet of pavement, place a minimum 3 feet of shoulder backing, relocate utility poles, install guard railing and construct retaining wall, if necessary, eliminate roadside obstacles, improve/install highway signage, and improve/install pavement markings. This project would also include storm drainage improvements to accommodate the roadway drainage and satisfy Regional Water Quality Control Board's C.3 requirements. These improvements would bring this section of road up to County standards for two-lane rural roads. This project has received a High Risk Rural Road (HR3) grant for $810,000. Cost Estimate: $1,600,000 Project Benefits: This project will improve the roadway conditions and safety by realigning the curves, widening the traveled way, shoulders, and shoulder backing. Improved sight distance at the curve will increase drivers’ reaction time and help avoid head-on collisions or driving off the roadway. The additional pavement width will also help to accommodate both cyclists and motorists and help enable both to safely use this roadway. 2. Alhambra Valley Road Safety Improvements Project east of Castro Ranch Road Location: This project is located in western Contra Costa County along Alhambra Valley Road east of Castro Ranch Road. Supervisorial District 1 & 2. Project Description: This road is a narrow two-lane road with tight turning radii through rough terrain and has very little shoulder area for drivers to recover when vehicles veer off the road or cross the centerline. This project would widen each travel lane to 12 feet of pavement, widen the shoulders to a minimum 4 feet of pavement, place a minimum 3 feet of shoulder backing, relocate utility poles, install guard railing, construct retaining wall, eliminate roadside obstacles, improve/install highway signage, and improve/install pavement markings. This project would also include storm drainage improvements to accommodate the roadway drainage and satisfy Regional Water Quality Control Board's C.3 requirements. These improvements would bring this section of road up to County standards for two-lane rural roads. This project has received a High Risk Rural Road (HR3) grant for $900,000. Cost Estimate: $1,850,000 Project Benefits: This project will improve the roadway conditions and safety by widening the traveled way, shoulders, and shoulder backing. Improved sight distance at the curve will increase drivers’ reaction time and help avoid head-on collisions or driving off the roadway. The additional pavement width will also help to accommodate both cyclists and motorists and help enable both to safely use this roadway. 3. Marsh Creek Road Safety Improvement Project between Russelmann Park Road and Morgan Territory Road Location: This project is located in eastern Contra Costa County along Marsh Creek Road between Russelmann Park Road and Morgan Territory Road. Supervisorial District 3 & 4. Project Description: This road is a narrow two-lane road with tight turning radii through rough terrain and has very little shoulder area for drivers to recover when vehicles veer off the road or cross the centerline. This project would widen the travel lanes to 12 feet of pavement, widen the shoulders to a minimum 4 feet of pavement, place a minimum 3 feet of shoulder backing, relocate utility poles, install guard railing, construct retaining wall, eliminate roadside obstacles, improve/install highway signage, and improve/install pavement markings. This project would also include storm drainage improvements to accommodate the roadway drainage and satisfy Regional Water Quality Control Board's C.3 requirements. These improvements would bring this section of road up to County standards for two-lane rural roads. This project has received a High Risk Rural Road (HR3) grant for $810,000. Cost Estimate: $2,410,000 Project Benefits: This project will improve the roadway conditions and safety by widening the traveled way, shoulders, and shoulder backing. Improved sight distance at the curve will increase drivers’ reaction time and help avoid head-on collisions or driving off the roadway. The additional pavement width will also help to accommodate both cyclists and motorists and help enable both to safely use this roadway. 4. Marsh Creek Road Safety Improvements Project near Lydia Lane Location: This project is located in Eastern Contra Costa County along Marsh Creek Road near Lydia Lane between Deer Valley Road and Camino Diablo. Supervisorial District 3. Project description: This road is a narrow two-lane road with tight turning radius through rough terrain and has very little shoulder area for drivers to recover when vehicles veer off the road or cross the centerline. This project would widen each travel lane to 12 feet of pavement, widen the shoulders to a minimum 4 feet of pavement, place a minimum 3 feet of shoulder backing, relocate utility poles, install guard railing, construct retaining wall, eliminate roadside obstacles, improve/install highway signage, and improve/install pavement markings. This project would also include storm drainage improvements to accommodate the roadway drainage and satisfy Regional Water Quality Control Board's C.3 requirements. These improvements would bring this section of road up to County standards for two-lane rural roads. This project has received a High Risk Rural Road (HR3) grant for $900,000. Cost Estimate: $2,644,000 Project Benefits: This project will improve the roadway conditions and safety by widening the traveled way, shoulders, and shoulder backing. Improved sight distance at the curve will increase drivers’ reaction time and help avoid head-on collisions or driving off the roadway. The additional pavement width will also help to accommodate both cyclists and motorists and help enable both to safely use this roadway. 5. Camino Tassajara Safety Improvement Project Location: This project is located in southern Contra Costa County from just east of the County limit line to Finley Road. Supervisorial District 3. Project Description: This road is a narrow two-lane road and has sections with very little shoulder area for drivers to recover when vehicles veer off the road or cross the centerline. This project would widen each travel lane to 12 feet of pavement, widen the shoulders to a minimum of 4 feet of pavement, place a minimum 3 feet of shoulder backing, relocate utility poles, eliminate roadside obstacles, improve/install highway signage, and improve/install pavement markings. This project would also include storm drainage improvements to accommodate the roadway drainage and satisfy Regional Water Quality Control Board's C.3 requirements. These improvements would bring this section of road up to County standards for two-lane rural roads. Cost Estimate: $1,000,000 Project Benefits: This project will improve the roadway conditions and safety by widening the traveled way, shoulders, and shoulder backing. These improvements will provide paved shoulders which will fill a gap in shoulder area along Camino Tassajara. The additional pavement width will also help to accommodate both cyclists and motorists and help enable both to safely use this roadway. CONSEQUENCE OF NEGATIVE ACTION: Failure to approve the submittal of this application will eliminate a potential funding source. CHILDREN'S IMPACT STATEMENT: