Hearing Room, 1455 Market Street, 22nd Floor

CITIZENS ADVISORY COMMITTEE  packet  agenda

Meeting Notice

Date: Wednesday, March 22, 2017; 6:00 p.m.

Location: Transportation Authority Hearing Room, 1455 Market Street, Floor 22

Members: Chris Waddling (Chair), Myla Ablog, Becky Hogue, Brian Larkin, John Larson, Santiago Lerma, Jacqualine Sachs, Peter Sachs, Peter Tannen, Shannon Wells-Mongiovi and Bradley Wiedmaier

 

6:00 1. Call to Order

6:05 2. Chair’s Report – INFORMATION

6:10 3. Election of Vice Chair for 2017 – ACTION*

6:15 Consent Agenda

4. Approve the Minutes of the February 22, 2017 Meeting – ACTION*  minutes

5. Adopt a Motion of Support for Adoption of the Alemany Interchange Improvement Study [NTIP Planning] Final Report – ACTION*  memo  enclosure

The Alemany Interchange Improvement Study (Study) was recommended by former Commissioner Campos for $100,000 in Prop K sales tax funds from the Transportation Authority’s Neighborhood Transportation Improvement Program (NTIP). The NTIP is intended to strengthen project pipelines and advance the delivery of community-supported neighborhood-scale projects, especially in Communities of Concern and other underserved neighborhoods and areas with at-risk populations. This community-driven project addresses concerns about safety and access across and along Alemany Boulevard between Bayshore Boulevard and Putnam Street, which provides access to Alemany Farmers Market. This portion of Alemany, where U.S. 101, I-280, San Bruno Avenue and Bayshore Boulevard intersect, presents major challenges to pedestrian and bicycle safety and accessibility. The freeways and vehicle-oriented street design present barriers between the surrounding neighborhoods and limit crossing opportunities, requiring pedestrians, bicyclists, and transit riders to navigate a circuitous maze of high-speed streets and ramps. The Study has identified two phases for improvements through this corridor. Phase 1 recommendations include: extend the existing Alemany bicycle lanes from west of Putnam to connect to existing bicycle lanes on Bayshore Boulevard; reduce Alemany vehicle lanes from three to two in each direction; and restripe for multimodal improvements and traffic calming at intersections. Phase 2 recommendations include: a new multiuse path connecting from San Bruno Avenue to the Alemany Farmers Market, with a new traffic signal and marked crosswalk to facilitate pedestrian crossing of westbound Alemany. Phase 1 is funded with NTIP Capital funds and scheduled to be completed by mid-2018. The first step of Phase 2 is funded with $100,000 from the General Fund. This step would include a project location survey and preliminary path design. Throughout the project, we collaborated with various community groups including Portola Neighborhood Association, SF Empowerment Center, and Portola Family Connection. The project team also presented at various neighborhood events such as Alemany Farmers Market. The final report is included as an enclosure in this packet.

6. State and Federal Legislative Update – INFORMATION*  legislation

Every month, we provide an update on state and federal legislation and, when appropriate, seek recommendations to adopt new positions on active legislation. The attached matrix tracks the latest activity on state bills and the positions previously adopted by the Transportation Authority. At its March 14, 2017 meeting, the Board adopted the following new positions: support on Assembly Bill (AB) 342 (Chiu), and oppose positions on Senate Bill (SB) 423 (Cannella) and SB 493 (Hill).

7. Proposed Allocation of $4,549,675 in Prop K Funds, with Conditions for the Downtown Extension - Preliminary Engineering; $915,000, with Conditions, for the Downtown Extension Tunneling Options Engineering Study; and Appropriation of $200,000 for Oversight of the Downtown Extension, Subject to the Attached Fiscal Year Cash Flow Distribution Schedules – INFORMATION*  memo

In response to feedback provided by the Board, the Transbay Joint Powers Authority (TJPA) has revised its prior $6,774,400 request for Prop K funds for preliminary engineering of the Caltrain Downtown Extension (DTX) to a reduced scope and cost of $4.5 million. The revised scope advances design of project segments that are common to all alignments being evaluated in the Planning Department’s Railyard Alternatives and I-280 Boulevard Feasibility Study (RAB). As requested by Transportation Authority staff, the TJPA has also submitted a new request for $915,000 for a Tunneling Options Engineering Study intended to analyze opportunities to reduce surface impacts due to construction of the DTX. With the evolution of construction technologies and methodologies since the project was environmentally cleared in 2004, there are opportunities worth exploring. TJPA expects to complete the tunneling study in about three months following issuance of a Notice to Proceed and will report back to the Board when the study is completed. We are proposing similar special conditions as were previously presented to the Board, including allowing the Transportation Authority to call for the work to be paused and renegotiated or cancelled if the Board endorses a different alignment and requiring continued compliance with the oversight protocol attached to the enclosed allocation request forms. In addition, we are requesting appropriation of $200,000 in Prop K funds to enable us to tap into our on-call oversight and engineering services contract approved by the Board last month, to bring on independent experts in tunneling, cost estimation, right of way acquisition, and funding to assist with oversight and peer review of the DTX project during this critical preliminary engineering stage.

End of Consent Agenda

6:20 8. Adopt a Motion of Support for the Allocation of $38,475 in Prop K Funds for One Request, with Conditions, and Appropriation of $602,254 in Prop K Funds for One Request, Subject to the Attached Fiscal Year Cash Flow Distribution Schedules – ACTION*  memo

As summarized in Attachments 1 and 2, we have two requests totaling $640,729 in Prop K funds to present to the Citizens Advisory Committee. We are requesting $602,254 for additional unanticipated activities required to complete the environmental phase of the Geary Bus Rapid Transit project. The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) and local agencies agreed to prepare the Final Environmental Impact Report (EIR) separate from a Final Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) in order to provide for local approvals that were ready to proceed, while allowing staff to respond to the federal direction on EIS administrative comments. On January 5, 2017, the Transportation Authority certified the Final EIR, but has continued to work with the FTA to address comments on an administrative draft of the Final EIS. The scope of this Prop K request includes additional environmental analysis to incorporate minor project design changes in response to community input, ongoing work with FTA to complete a standalone EIS, and legal defense of the project's EIR. The project team anticipates publication of the Final EIS and FTA Record of Decision by Summer 2017. The San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency (SFMTA) has requested $38,475 for promotion and event-day services for Bike to Work Day (BTWD) 2017 on May 11th. The SFMTA conducts bicycle counts before, during, and after BTWD during the peak commute hour (8:30-9:30 AM) and has consistently observed increases in bike commuting rates between the pre- and post-BTWD counts over the years.

6:35 9. Adopt a Motion of Support for Adoption of the Western Addition Community-Based Transportation Plan [NTIP Planning] Final Report – ACTION*  memo  enclosure

The Western Addition Community-Based Transportation Plan (CBTP) was recommended by Commissioner Breed for $100,000 in Prop K sales tax funds from the Transportation Authority’s Neighborhood Transportation Improvement Program (NTIP). The NTIP is intended to strengthen project pipelines and advance the delivery of community-supported neighborhood-scale projects, especially in Communities of Concern and other underserved neighborhoods and areas with at-risk populations (e.g. seniors, children, and/or people with disabilities). The project was led by the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency (SFMTA) in partnership with Commissioner Breed’s office, the community-based organization Mo’MAGIC, and the project’s Technical Advisory Committee. It included a transportation planning analysis and community engagement process to develop near-, mid- and long-term improvement packages to enhance pedestrian safety, transportation connections, and community space within the project area. The SFMTA has identified some funding in its Capital Improvement Plan to advance some of the recommendations, and the draft 2017 Prop AA Strategic Plan includes funding to implement pedestrian lighting on one or more corridors in the project area. The final report is included as an enclosure in this packet.

6:50 10. Adopt a Motion of Support for the Adoption of Community of Concern Boundaries for San Francisco – ACTION*  memo

The Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC) has conducted an equity analysis to identify a series of disadvantaged communities or “Communities of Concern (CoCs)” in compliance with federal civil rights and environmental justice laws. MTC prioritizes projects in or serving CoCs for several competitive grants that are distributed through Congestion Management Agencies. As a regional planning authority, MTC’s analysis measured disadvantaged communities at a larger geography – census tracts; however, that methodology does not fully capture many of San Francisco’s disadvantaged communities, which often are part of the same census tract as more affluent neighborhoods. Consequently, projects within or serving these unidentified communities are unable to receive the same level of priority as MTC’s official CoCs for some of the competitive grant awards or inclusion in regional and local planning efforts. Conducting a similar analysis at a more fine-grain level – the census block-group level – more accurately captures San Francisco’s disadvantaged communities, particularly when they are immediately adjacent to more affluent areas. The Board adoption of the updated boundaries will enable these communities to be considered by MTC as official CoCs and increase competitiveness of projects serving those communities during competitive grants.

7:05 11. Adopt a Motion of Support for Amendment of the Adopted Fiscal Year 2016/17 Budget to Increase Revenues by $13,396,777, Increase Expenditures by $15,356,835 and Increase Other Financing Sources by $21,335,835 for a Total Net Increase in Fund Balance of $19,375,777 – ACTION*  memo

Every year between January and April, we present the Board with any adjustments to the annual budget adopted the previous June. This revision is an opportunity to take stock of changes in revenue trends, recognize grants or other funds that are obtained subsequent to the original approval of the annual budget, and adjust for unforeseen expenditures. In June 2016, through Resolution 16-58, the Transportation Authority adopted the Fiscal Year (FY) 2016/17 Annual Budget and Work Program. Revenue and expenditure figures pertaining to several capital projects need to be updated from the original estimates contained in the adopted FY 2016/17 Budget. The Transportation Authority’s Fiscal Policy allows for the amendment of the adopted budget during the fiscal year to reflect actual revenues and expenditures incurred. We propose that the adopted FY 2016/17 Budget be amended as shown in Attachment A.

7:20 12. Update on the Peninsula Corridor Electrification Project – INFORMATION*  attachment

The Peninsula Corridor Joint Powers Board (JPB) is leading the Peninsula Corridor Electrification Project (PCEP), which has an adopted budget of $1.98 billion. The JPB has applied for inclusion in the Federal Transit Administration’s (FTA’s) Core Capacity Grant program to receive $647 million in funding for the PCEP, and is working with FTA staff to obtain a Full Funding Grant Agreement (FFGA) to secure these funds. At the March CAC meeting, Caltrain staff will provide an update on the FFGA status. In mid-February, Congress completed the required 30-day Congressional Review of Caltrain’s pending FFGA request for the PCEP, marking the last milestone that needs to be completed as a prerequisite for the FFGA. Subsequently, the FTA notified Caltrain that it would not act on the FFGA until it was assured of funding availability in the President’s proposed Fiscal Year 2017/18 budget expected in the April/May timeframe. The PCEP will replace Caltrain’s existing diesel service with a fully-electrified service from the 4th and King station in San Francisco to the Tamien station in San Jose. This project is one of the signature projects of the Prop K Expenditure Plan.

7:30 13. Preliminary Results of the Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) Perks Program – INFORMATION*  presentation

The Perks Program was a six-month test program managed by BART and the Transportation Authority that ran from August 2016 – February 2017. The goal of the program was to test whether crowding can be reduced by offering riders incentives for traveling outside of the morning peak hour. The program garnered a high level of interest with almost 18,000 participants. Staff will share preliminary results from the program. A full program evaluation will be completed by fall 2017. BART Perks was primarily funded through a federal grant with additional support from BART operating funds and Prop K sales tax funds.

7:45 14. Introduction of New Business – INFORMATION

During this segment of the meeting, CAC members may make comments on items not specifically listed above, or introduce or request items for future consideration.

7:50 15. Public Comment

8:00 16. Adjournment

 

* Additional materials

Next Meeting: April 26, 2017

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