PREPARED BY: STAN HAKES DATE OF MEETING: 12/18/2023
SUBJECT:
TITLE
CONSIDER ADOPTING A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SAN PABLO ADOPTING THE CITY OF SAN PABLO LOCAL ROADWAY SAFETY PLAN
CEQA: The Local Roadway Safety Plan (LRSP) is exempt from environmental review pursuant to CEQA Guidelines Section 15061(b)(3), the common-sense exemption, “where it can be seen with certainty that there is no possibility that the activity in question may have a significant effect on the environment”. The Local Roadway Safety Plan consists of information and recommendations. It identifies, prioritizes, and analyzes roadway safety improvements on the City of San Pablo’s intersections and roadway segments, and provides proposed countermeasures to ultimately reduce collisions in the City’s high collision locations. The Plan does not approve a capital project plan, nor does it approve funding, permits or any other approval for specific or general capital projects within the San Pablo City limits. Future capital projects consistent with the recommendations of the LRSP may require future CEQA analysis to address any effects on the environment.
Label
CITY MANAGER RECOMMENDATION
Recommendation
Adopt Resolution
Body
WORKPLAN statements
Improve Public Safety - 510.1 Traffic Safety Program (Improve Traffic and Pedestrian safety through enforcement, outreach and environmental design) is a Major Policy Goal in the Fiscal Year 2023-25 Council Priority Workplan effective May 1, 2023.
BACKGROUND
The City of San Pablo (City) is committed to prioritizing safety and decreasing/ eliminating the amount of traffic related deaths and serious injuries on City streets. This Local Roadway Safety Plan (LRSP) proactively evaluates collision data and infrastructure needs throughout the City to identify the proven countermeasures that can be implemented through the current and future Capital Improvement Plan (CIP).
The LRSP identifies four (4) emphasis areas:
• High Collision Intersections
• High Collision Roadway Segments
• Rear End Collisions Due to Unsafe Speeds
• Sideswipe Collisions Due to Improper Turning
Countermeasures are recommended based on the five (5) E’s of Traffic Safety:
• Education
• Engineering
• Enforcement
• Emergency Medical Services
• Emerging Technologies
In 2019, Caltrans announced that an LRSP will be required for all local agencies who wish to apply for Highway Safety Improvement Program (HSIP) funds. An LRSP is a plan that lays out the local agency’s approach to address the safety needs of its roadways. An LRSP is also based on the FHWA’s efforts to reduce facilities and serious injuries on all public roads. Since this announcement, other transportation funding sources-e.g., One Bay Area Grant (OBAG) Cycle 3, Safe Streets for All (SS4A)-have similarly incorporated a funding eligibility requirement to adopt a LRSP.
In June 2020, the California Transportation Commission (CTC) released $8 Million in funding to assist local agencies in developing their local roadway safety plans. The City applied for funding assistance and was awarded $40,000 in state grant funds-with a required local match of $8,000 (Resolution 2020-151)-to develop the plan.
Public Works and Police Department staff engaged with stakeholders regarding the elements of an LRSP during:
• November 1, 2022, Traffic Safety Working Group (consisting of City Public Works and Police Department employees)
• January 25, 2023, San Pablo Safety Commission (consisting of Public Works and Police Department employees, plus up to five public representatives appointed by the City Council).
Comments and suggestions made as part of these two presentations were considered in the preparation of the LRSP. Public Works staff also worked with the Contra Costa Transportation Authority (CCTA) Vision Zero Working Group to learn more about Vision Zero and contribute to this emerging nationwide strategy to eliminate traffic fatalities and severe injuries.
In order to formulate the plan, a competitive Request for Proposal (RFP) process was undertaken. On March 20, 2023, under the City Manager’s signing authority, the City contracted with Minagar & Associates, Inc. to prepare a recommended Local Roadway Safety Plan.
The Project Team consisted of City staff and the consultant. They used the following outreach data to review for specific traffic safety concerns:
• Complete Streets Safety Assessment (2020)
• Bicycle and Pedestrian Corridor Study (2022)
• Safe Routes to School Master Plan (2022)
• City’s “GOGov” system, from citizen requests submitted between 2010 and 2022
This data was evaluated in the context of Statewide Integrated Traffic Records System (SWITRS) data, accessed through Transportation Injury Mapping System (TIMS), as well as City asset data.
The LRSP study, a period from January 1, 2018 until December 31, 2022 revealed that there were a total of 1,823 collisions including 13 fatalities and 800 injured victims.
The most common types of collision were
• Rear End (553)
• Sideswipe (460)
• Broadside (260)
• Hit-Object (224)
Primary Collision Factor (PCF) violations that caused the most collisions were
• Unsafe Speed (543),
• Improper Turning (269)
• Unsafe Lane Change (237)
Victims were mostly drivers (473) and passengers (212).
The LRSP includes recommendations to address the “four emphasis area” type of collisions through countermeasures based on the five E’s of Traffic Safety. For example, to address high collision intersections, a recommendation in the Enforcement category is to prioritize patrol patterns at high-risk intersections to monitor traffic law violations including unsafe speed, improper turning, unsafe lane changes and DUI. When laws are enforced and awareness of abiding by traffic laws is raised, intersection collisions will reduce significantly.
The LRSP also identifies major stakeholders (outside of City programs), such as the Contra Costa Fire Department, San Pablo Chamber of Commerce (i.e. SPEDC) and general public, Contra Costa County Transportation Authority (CCTA), West Contra Costa Transportation Advisory Committee (WCCTAC) and others. These stakeholders could be consulted for future input as the City Public Works Department works on the Capital Improvement Plan (CIP) and recommends future capital projects that would improve roadway safety.
The Local Roadway Safety Plan is a major element to ameliorate transportation and traffic safety within a city. This LRSP was prepared and developed in compliance with the State and Federal guidelines for eligibility to apply for the funding of Highway Safety Improvement Program (HSIP). In addition to the provided countermeasures for collision patterns, this LRSP also provides the corresponding cost estimates and benefit-cost ratios, to support applications for the Highway Safety Improvement Program (HSIP).
Staff recommends that Council adopt a Resolution to adopt the LRSP, so that the City can maintain eligibility to apply to various transportation grant funding sources, and begin to apply for such grants in order to implement the proposed improvements, as staff and budget resources allow.
Any future transportation improvements contemplated by the City for implementation will be reviewed by the City’s Public Safety Standing Committee and by the City Council prior to any project authorization and fund appropriation.
FISCAL IMPACT
There is no current impact to the General Fund associated with this action. Implementation of any recommended improvements would likely require grant and City funds. Staff time and local funding will be required to apply for and implement the grants needed to finalize design and construct the proposed projects. Required grant matches will need to be budgeted for in future years.
ATTACHMENTS
Att A - Resolution
Att B - Local Roadway Safety Plan, dated September 27, 2023