DATE: November 14, 2023
TO: Mayor and City Council
FROM: Director of Public Works
SUBJECT
Title
Adopt a Resolution Approving the Recommended Alignment for the East Bay Greenway Multimodal Project
End
RECOMMENDATION
Recommendation
That Council adopts a resolution (Attachment II) approving the recommended alignment for the East Bay Greenway Multimodal (EBGWMM) Project.
End
SUMMARY
The Alameda County Transportation Commission (Alameda CTC) is the project sponsor and implementing agency for the East Bay Greenway Multimodal (EBGWMM) Urban Trail Project (Urban Trail) from the Lake Merritt Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) station in Oakland to South Hayward BART station in Hayward. Due to the projected timeline and potential expense of acquiring the required UPRR’s right of way, Alameda CTC approved a near-term project implementation in December 2021 which focused on providing multimodal improvements along arterials that could be constructed within a 3-5-year timeframe as the Phase 1 project (Project). The December 2021 action moved the Urban Trail project along the Union Pacific Railroad corridor as long term, the Phase 2 project.
The goals of the Phase 1 Project are to:
• Provide safe, high-quality (Class I, buffered Class II, Class III, or Class IV) options for biking for all ages and abilities
• Improve safety by physically separating bicyclists from high-speed, high volume vehicular traffic to the extent feasible
• Create a continuous north/south bike facility connecting seven BART stations
• Improve access to regional transit, schools, downtown areas, and major activity centers
• Improve multimodal access to BART stations
• Reduce greenhouse gas emissions
Alameda CTC coordinated with City staff for their planning and public outreach strategies for this project which included developing outreach materials that describe the Project need, Project delivery updates, public outreach opportunities in Hayward, and implementation schedule. This culminated in a presentation to the Council Infrastructure (CIC) Committee on October 26, 2022.
In subsequent discussions regarding concerns over the proposed improvements, both agencies agreed to re-evaluate the alignment of the project while still meeting the intended goals of Phase 1 project.
Council Infrastructure Committee Review
This item was reviewed by the Council Infrastructure Committee (CIC) on October 25, 2023.
The CIC reviewed the revised recommended alignment in Hayward for the Scoping and Environmental phase of project development. All Committee members were in favor of the revised alignment. If Council adopts the resolution approving the revised alignment, Alameda CTC will seek their Commission approval in December 2023 to provide the necessary resources to further develop, define, and refine the project features in Hayward.
ATTACHMENTS
Attachment I Staff Report
Attachment II Resolution
Attachment III Bayfair to Hayward Corridor
Attachment IV Bike Path Exhibit