Title
Discuss the Mecartney Road/Island Drive Recommended Roundabout Concept and the Citywide Roundabout Analysis
Body
To: Honorable Chair and Members of the Commission on Persons with Disabilities
BACKGROUND
As stated in the City’s Capital Budget for 2015-17, the goal of the Mecartney Road/Island Drive intersection project is to improve this wide and busy intersection for all modes of transportation by using best practices to enhance safety and mobility. In 2021, City staff and Kittelson & Associates, Inc. (Kittelson) considered a range of potential improvement options including a roundabout, reduced footprint all-way stop, “do nothing” and traffic signal. Based on an analysis and community outreach in late 2021 and early 2022, the City staff/consultant team recommends a roundabout concept for the Mecartney Road/Island Drive intersection, which is expected to best improve safety and operations, and also would reduce the footprint of the intersection relative to existing conditions, and would provide landscaping, art and flood reduction opportunities. In March, the Transportation Commission voted unanimously to recommend City Council approval the roundabout concept. City staff is requesting City Council approval at the June 21 meeting. The project webpage is www.alamedaca.gov/MecartneyIsland <http://www.alamedaca.gov/MecartneyIsland>
As shown in the Mecartney/Island intersection project, roundabouts can be an important tool in the implementation of the Vision Zero policy, which prioritizes the reduction of fatal and severe injury crashes to zero. Roundabouts reduce the types of crashes where people are seriously hurt or killed by 90 percent when compared to conventional stop-controlled and signalized intersections. Roundabouts result in lower vehicle speeds, generally 15-25 miles per hour, around the roundabout. Crashes that occur will be less severe because of this reduced speed. Pedestrians are generally safer at roundabouts, and are faced with simpler decisions at a time. Roundabouts also reduce delays compared to traffic signals, provide landscaping and flood reduction opportunities, and have lower maintenance costs. As part of the Central Avenue Safety Improvement Project, City staff worked the blind community in Alameda on roundabout education. Videos and presentations on roundabouts are as follows:
• Roundabout Education at City of Alameda Transportation Commission (Jan 27, 2021) - Staff Report/Presentation <https://alameda.legistar.com/LegislationDetail.aspx?ID=4758234&GUID=2345B774-9EAA-4A94-9A51-BFC236809F5E&Options=&Search=&FullText=1> - Video <http://alameda.granicus.com/player/clip/2716?view_id=6&redirect=true> (at 30 minute mark)
• Metropolitan Transportation Commission Roundabouts <https://mtc.ca.gov/operations/programs-projects/streets-roads-arterials/roundabouts>
• FHWA Video: A Safer Choice <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uhHzly_6lWM>
• FHWA Video: An Innovative Solution to Intersection Safety Concerns <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C6LoK0hxj7k>
• FHWA Roundabout Safety Resources <https://safety.fhwa.dot.gov/intersection/roundabouts/index.cfm>
The City staff/Kittelson consultant team is seeking input on the citywide roundabout analysis to assist with next steps on grant writing for the highest priority roundabouts. The Alameda County Transportation Commission has a call for projects with grant applications due on June 30, 2022. The input received at the Transportation Commission in May and at this meeting will help guide the development of roundabout concepts for the grant applications. City staff is expected to submit two different grants with roundabouts as follows:
1) Safety Improvements at High Crash Intersections - Roundabouts for consideration to submit include:
• High Street/Fernside Boulevard
• Marina Village Parkway/Constitution Way
• Stargell Ave/Mariner Square Loop
• Central Avenue/Fourth Street/Ballena Blvd.
2) Lincoln Avenue/Marshall Way/Pacific Avenue with roundabouts for consideration at:
• Lincoln Avenue/Marshall Way/Fifth Street
• Lincoln Avenue/Constitution Way/Eighth Street
DISCUSSION
Based on the analysis and community outreach in late 2021 and early 2022, the City staff/Kittelson consultant team recommends the roundabout concept for the Mecartney Road/Island Drive intersection, which is expected to best improve safety and operations, simplifies the travel experience for people walking and bicycling making it possible to cross one travel lane at a time with a refuge between each travel lane, would reduce the footprint of the intersection relative to existing conditions, and would provide landscaping, art and flood reduction opportunities (Exhibit 1 and Table 1). Regarding costs, the staff/consultant team estimates that the Mecartney/Island roundabout concept would cost approximately $5.9 million. City staff/consultant team recommends a phased approach to construction so as to expedite the core elements of the roundabout, which are expected to total about $2.3 million for this first phase. A subsequent construction phase, which would include the addition of adjacent path improvements and bioretention areas for flood reduction at the lane transitions, is expected to total $3.6 million.
Table 1: Mecartney/Island Roundabout Concept Recommendation Summary
|
Evaluation Category |
Improvement |
|
Safety and quality of service |
Shorter pedestrian crossings Speed control features Reduced conflicts between and among travel modes Provide option for bike travel on-street or in separate path with bike crossings |
|
Improved vehicle mobility and operations |
Reduced travel delay Volume-to-capacity ratio of 0.6 Resilient to future increased travel demand |
|
Opportunities for landscaping and flood reduction |
Reduced intersection footprint Flexibility in additional use of space Central island landscaping and art opportunities |
|
Transit mobility and accessibility |
Improved operations keeps buses moving Coordinating optimal stop locations with AC Transit |
|
Site specific issues |
Eliminates existing U-turn patterns Coordinating Starbucks access with Planning |
|
Design vehicles |
Serves AC Transit buses and large trucks Accommodates emergency vehicle access |
For the citywide roundabout analysis, Exhibit 2 shows a map of the potential locations in the City where roundabouts are possible using the existing public street right-of-way. The high-priority roundabout locations were selected by using the four general plan goals of equity, safety, choices and sustainability as well as a category for “strength weakness opportunity threat.” The combined locations for roundabouts are grouped as follows to better understand how to proceed with next steps:
High Priority Locations
• High Street/Fernside Boulevard (recommend for high-crash grant application)
• Marina Village Parkway/Constitution Way (recommend for high-crash grant application)
• Stargell Ave/Mariner Square Loop (recommend for high-crash grant application)
• Encinal Avenue/Fernside Blvd (unfunded; recent signal work expected to improve safety)
• Main Street/Willie Stargell Avenue (unfunded, potential for adjacent new development in Alameda Point to construct)
• Atlantic Avenue/Main Street/Appezzato Parkway (unfunded, could be added to the Appezzato Parkway Bus Improvement Project)
• Atlantic Avenue/Constitution Way (unfunded; recent signal/path work expected to improve safety)
• Island Drive/Robert Davey Jr. Drive (not a high-injury corridor or intersection)
City Council Approved
• Central Avenue/Main Street/Pacific Avenue (funded)
• Central Avenue/Third Street/Taylor Avenue (funded)
• Central Avenue/Fourth Street/Ballena Blvd. (unfunded) (recommend for Central Avenue roundabout grant application)
• Central Avenue/Sherman Street/Encinal Avenue (unfunded) (coordinating with Caltrans on right-of-way, which will influence the roundabout design)
• Otis Drive/Grand Street (unfunded; recent work expected to improve safety)
Evaluation in Process
• Tilden Way/Blanding Avenue/Fernside Blvd. (part of the Clement Avenue/Tilden Way Safety Improvement Project; webpage: www.alamedaca.gov/ClementTilden <https://www.alamedaca.gov/ClementTilden>) (funded)
• Mecartney Road/Island Drive (recommended for City Council approval by the Transportation Commission in March 2022; request for City Council approval is expected on June 21, 2022; webpage: www.alamedaca.gov/MecartneyIsland <http://www.alamedaca.gov/MecartneyIsland>) (unfunded; potential funding from Transportation Impact Fee)
• Lincoln Avenue/Marshall Way/Fifth Street (part of the Lincoln/Marshall/Pacific Improvement Project; webpage: www.alamedaca.gov/LincolnMarshallPacific <http://www.alamedaca.gov/LincolnMarshallPacific> (unfunded; recommend for grant application)
• Lincoln Avenue/Constitution Way/Eighth Street (part of the Lincoln/Marshall/Pacific Improvement Project; webpage: www.alamedaca.gov/LincolnMarshallPacific <http://www.alamedaca.gov/LincolnMarshallPacific> (unfunded; recommend for grant application)
As part of the Central Avenue Safety Improvement Project, the staff/consultant team met with community members who are blind and visually impaired in Alameda and, based on their input, provided tactile maps of an example roundabout to individual community members and made the tactile maps available at the libraries in town (Exhibit 3). The City staff/consultant team will continue to work with community members and accessible mobility experts when developing pedestrian facilities at roundabout intersections to create safe and clear paths of travel for people with disabilities. The roundabout components will vary for each crossing depending on site specific characteristics, and will include the following wayfinding features:
• Sidewalks to lead to crosswalks
• Clearly defined edge of street with detectable warnings, fencing or landscape strip
• Curb ramp width the same as crosswalk width
• Curb ramp slope aligned with crossing
• Curb ramp edges aligned with crossing
• Detectable warning aligned with slope of curb ramp
• Sufficient level landing and turning space where pedestrians wait to cross
• Crossings at the shortest distance practical
• Crossings perpendicular to the curb and island edges
• High-visibility crosswalk markings with color contrasting
• Pedestrian splitter islands wide enough to provide safe refuge
FINANCIAL IMPACT
The concept phase of the Mecartney/Island intersection project and the citywide screening analysis for roundabouts is funded by Measures B/BB, Alameda County’s transportation sales tax, which is administered by the Alameda County Transportation Commission.
MUNICIPAL CODE/POLICY DOCUMENT CROSS REFERENCE
The roundabout concept is consistent with the General Plan (2021), which mentions roundabouts as follows:
ME-7: Safe Streets:
e. Roundabouts. Increase the use of roundabouts at intersections to improve the safety and lower maintenance costs compared to traffic signals.
j. Intersection Safety. To improve safety at a stop controlled or signalized intersections, consider a roundabout design or eliminating right turns on red and adding pedestrian scrambles to existing signals.
k. Roundabouts and Traffic Circles. When considering modification to an intersection, prioritize roundabouts and traffic circles for consideration recognizing that land acquisition needs, operational considerations, or other engineering factors or constraints may result in other intersection solutions on a case-by-case basis.
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW
Approval of the Mecartney Road/Island Drive roundabout concept is categorically exempt pursuant to California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) Guidelines section 15301(c) Existing Facilities (Minor alterations to existing facilities including bicycle facilities) and Section 15304(h) Minor Alterations to Land and the creation of bicycle lanes on existing public rights of way. The citywide roundabout item is not a project under Public Resources Code section 21065 and California Environmental Quality Act Guidelines section 15378(b)(4).
CLIMATE IMPACT
Since vehicle miles traveled in Alameda is the largest source of greenhouse gas emissions in Alameda, City staff is expecting that roundabouts would have a positive climate impact. Roundabouts are developed to make it safer and more convenient to ride a bicycle and walk and to reduce congestion and idling motor vehicles.
RECOMMENDATION
Discuss the Mecartney Road/Island Drive recommended roundabout concept and the citywide roundabout analysis
Respectfully submitted,
Gail Payne, Senior Transportation Coordinator
Exhibits:
1. Roundabout Concept for Mecartney Road/Island Drive
2. Citywide Roundabout Map
3. Roundabout Tactile Map
4. Roundabout Educational Presentation for People with Disabilities