Report to Mayor and City Council
Wednesday, November 04, 2020
Discussion
SUBJECT:
Title
DISCUSSION ON BIKEWAY IMPROVEMENTS ON FIGUEROA STREET, MAIN STREET, VICTORIA STREET, CARSON STREET , UNIVERSITY DRIVE, AVALON BOULEVARD, CENTRAL AVENUE, DEL AMO BOULEVARD, AND 223RD STREET (CITY COUNCIL)
Body
I. SUMMARY
The City of Carson was awarded two Highway Safety Improvement Program (HSIP) grants to design and install bike lanes on various streets throughout the City.
Project No. 1451 has $1,338,400.00 available in federal grant funds which can be used for both the design and construction of bike improvements on Figueroa Street, Main Street, Victoria Street, and Carson Street (Exhibit No. 1).
Project No. 1452 has $1,250,000.00 available in federal grant funds which can be used for design and construction of bike improvements on University Drive, Avalon Boulevard, Central Avenue, Del Amo Boulevard, and 223rd Street (Exhibit No. 2).
In March 2020, following a competitive solicitation process, the City Council approved two contracts with KOA Corporation to design the projects. A traffic assessment was conducted, project plans are 60% complete, and staff is ready to update the City Council and the public on the progress and next steps.
As part of KOA’s work plan, they were required to hold community workshops and present their findings and recommendations. Given the current pandemic due to Covid-19, a website was created to serve as a virtual forum to inform and update the public about the project. Visit the following website to learn more: <http://bit.ly/Carson_BikeProjects>
Staff would like to update the City Council and public on the status of these projects and our Master Plan of Bikeways.
II. RECOMMENDATION
Recommendation
RECEIVE and FILE.
Body
III. ALTERNATIVES
TAKE another action the City Council deems appropriate, consistent with the requirements of the law.
IV. BACKGROUND
Federal funding through the HSIP program is available to fund the development of nine bikeway projects, approximately 30 miles of new bike facilities, and further expand Carson's existing bicycle network.
The nine corridors under design include the following:
1. University Drive from Avalon Blvd to Wilmington Blvd
2. Avalon Boulevard from Victoria St to south City limit
3. Central Avenue from Victoria St to Del Amo Boulevard
4. Del Amo Boulevard from east city limit to west city limit
5. 223rd Street from west city limit to Wilmington Ave
6. Figueroa Street from Victoria St to south city limit
7. Main Street from north city limit to south city limit
8. Victoria Street from Figueroa Street to east city limit
9. Carson Street from I-405 to east city limit
The City of Carson’s Master Plan of Bikeways and the California Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices (CAMUTCD) were the documents used to develop the design of the bike improvements along these nine corridors.
The corridors were studied to gather information on roadway widths, right-of-way, adjacent land uses, traffic volumes, and speeds to determine appropriate bike improvements. Bike lanes, buffered bike lanes, and bike routes with sharrows were considered.
The Master Plan of Bikeways was adopted via Resolution No. 13-084 by the City Council following a public hearing in 2013. In total, the proposed bikeway network includes nearly 88 miles of bike facilities which can be bike paths, bike lanes, or bike routes.
During the design, it was determined that certain roadway segments could not be designed as proposed in the Master Plan of Bikeway because of engineering constraints and/or potential traffic delays. The Master Plan of Bikeway allows for the modification of proposed improvements due to engineering constraints. The document also states, “Carson should take precaution and research the newest bikeway design guidelines and engineering treatments prior to construction of a facility.” An amendment to the Transportation and Infrastructure element of the General Plan may be needed in the future to address deviances and update the document to incorporate new requirements.
Per the Master Plan of Bikeways, the following segments were identified to have roadway configurations (previously known as road diets) which consider the removal of travel lane(s) in order to install buffered Class II bike lanes.
|
Street |
Segment |
|
Figueroa Street |
Between Lomita Boulevard and 223rd Street |
|
|
Between Del Amo Boulevard and Victoria Street |
|
Carson Street |
Between Alameda Street and Santa Fe Avenue |
|
Avalon Boulevard |
Between Carson Street and I-405 South Ramp |
|
Central Avenue |
Between Artesia Boulevard and Walnut Street |
Implementing roadway reconfigurations may cause some traffic delays and subsequently impact parallel streets, therefore, the design team performed an assessment (Exhibit No. 4) to determine the feasibility of lane reduction and the impact of traffic conditions. The assessment was conducted using historical Annual Daily Traffic (ADT) data. The ADT was adjusted to reflect the current year conditions and truck volumes. Each segments volume to capacity ratio was compared to the City’s General Plan level of service threshold to determine if a roadway configuration can be implemented while maintaining good operation along the segment. At this time, we are not going forward with segments that would operate at fair or worst thresholds and have the potential for long-standing traffic queues. These segments will be re-evaluated to determine if an alternative bike facility can be installed without implementing the roadway reconfiguration.
Based on the assessment and engineering judgment, we are implementing roadway reconfiguration (lane reduction) where we think it is feasible and where it will be successful. Roadway reconfiguration, at this time, is planned along these two segments:
• Figueroa Street from Lomita Boulevard and 223rd Street
• Carson Street from Alameda Street to Santa Fe Avenue
Staff is also considering implementing colored bike lanes at conflict points in lieu of a continuous colored strip.
Exhibit No. 3 provides a visual overview of the proposed treatments that are being designed along the nine corridors.
The accomplished and anticipated timeline for this project is as follows:
|
Release RFP |
Complete |
|
Evaluate Technical Proposals |
Complete |
|
Award Consultant Contract |
Complete |
|
Issue PO / Notice to Proceed |
Complete |
|
Complete PS&Es |
In progress |
|
Caltrans ROW Certification & Arrange for material testing (if needed) |
In progress |
|
Caltrans issuance of authorization to proceed with construction (E-76) |
January 2021 |
|
City Council Approval of PS&E |
February 2021 |
|
Advertise for Construction Bids |
March 2021 |
|
City Council Award of Contract |
April 2021 |
|
Construction |
May - October 2021 |
|
Accept Project as Complete / Project Close-out |
November - December 2021 |
The Master Plan of Bikeways can be found by visiting the following link: <http://ci.carson.ca.us/content/files/pdfs/planning/BikeMasterPlan.pdf>
V. FISCAL IMPACT
None at this time.
VI. EXHIBITS
1. Location map for Project No. 1451 as proposed in the Master Plan of Bikeways. (Pgs. 5)
2. Location map for Project No. 1452 as proposed in the Master Plan of Bikeways. (Pgs. 6)
3. Proposed Bikeway Maps for the project corridors. (Pgs. 7)
4. Traffic Assessment. (Pgs. 8-12)
Prepared by: Reata Kulcsar, Sustainability Administrator - Utilities & Gilbert Marquez, P.E. City Engineer