To: Board of Supervisors
From: Warren Lai, Public Works Director/Chief Engineer
Report Title: Grant application for the Metropolitan Transportation Commission Active Transportation Capital Design Technical Assistance program, El Sobrante area.
☒Recommendation of the County Administrator ☐ Recommendation of Board Committee
RECOMMENDATIONS:
APPROVE and AUTHORIZE the Public Works Director, or designee, to submit a grant application to the Metropolitan Transportation Commission in the amount of $300,000, for the Active Transportation Capital Design Technical Assistance program, for the San Pablo Dam Road Complete Street project, El Sobrante area. (District I)
FISCAL IMPACT:
100% Metropolitan Transportation Commission Active Transportation Capital Design Technical Assistance Program Funds. No County match required.
BACKGROUND:
The County often seeks regional, state, and federal funding to augment local road funding, stretching local dollars to build improvements that would not be possible otherwise. The current opportunity is through the Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC) Active Transportation Capital Design Technical Assistance Program, which released a Call for Projects in October 2024. In the Call for Projects, the MTC invites local jurisdictions to submit active transportation projects located on MTC’s Active Transportation (AT) Network that need technical assistance to move from conceptual or preliminary engineering design to final design ready for construction. Competitive projects will incorporate All Ages and Abilities design principles and Accessibility Guidelines for Pedestrian Facilities in the Public Right-of-Way. Awarded projects will enter into a funding agreement with MTC to select their own consultant and can utilize MTC’s on-call bench of consultants.
The MTC will evaluate applications based on the following evaluation criteria: (A) equity; (B) mode shift; (C) safety; and (D) alignment with MTC’s Regional Active Transportation Plan and Complete Streets Policy.
Public Works staff is preparing to submit a grant application to fund the design of the San Pablo Dam Road Complete Street project. The proposed project primarily comprises a “road diet” to convert the existing four-lane San Pablo Dam Road to a three-lane roadway with one lane in each direction and a center two-way left-turn lane. The additional roadway width will be used to install bikeways. Additional work will involve removing the existing pavement striping and markings, applying a slurry seal, traffic signal modifications, installing the new pavement striping and markings, and installing pedestrian crosswalk improvements.
The maximum award amount is $300,000 for design costs. The grant program does not require a local match. If authorized to proceed, staff will finalize and submit the grant application by the deadline of December 20, 2024
CONSEQUENCE OF NEGATIVE ACTION:
If the Public Works Department is not authorized to submit the application, grant funding will not be available, which will delay the design and construction of this project.