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HomeMy WebLinkAboutStaff Report 202-06City of Palo Alto City Manager’s Repor TO:HONORABLE CITY COUNCIL FROM:CITY MANAGER DEPARTMENT: PLANNING AND COMMUNITY ENVIRONMENT DATE:APRIL 24, 2006 CMR: 202:06 SUBJECT: COLLEGE TERRACE TRIAL TRAFFIC CALMING PROJECT RECOMMENDATION This is an information report; no Council action is required. BACKGROUND In November 2004, the City Council directed staff to implement a trial of the College Terrace Traffic Calming Plan. The plan includes five traffic circles in the interior of the neighborhood, on Cambridge Street and on College Avenue, and a total of six speed tables on the perimeter streets, California Avenue and Stanford Avenue. (See Exhibit A). The project is scheduled to be implemented this summer for a one year trial. Staff has completed the bid documents and is prepared to issue the request for bids by the end of April and to award the construction contract in late May. Construction is scheduled to begin in June and be completed by August. Staff has reviewed and discussed the construction schedule for the trial traffic calming project with Public Works and Utilities staff to identify other projects scheduled in the College Terrace neighborhood over the next 3 years and to determine any conflicts or conditions that would need to be addressed in the scheduling of or bid documents for the traffic calming project. Staff believes that this project can proceed as scheduled. DISCUSSION The Utilities Department has scheduled a major gas main replacement project in the College Terrace neighborhood in summer 2007. This project will occur on the segments of Yale Street, College Avenue, and Stanford Avenue where all of the traffic circles and one of the six speed tables will be located. At the conclusion of the gas main project, the Public Works Department plans to overlay all the streets in the College Terrace neighborhood. This work will occur beginning in 2008, depending upon the duration of the gas main project, and take several years to complete. Utilities staff will not begin the detailed design of the project until this fall, but the method of construction is to be directional boring rather than open trench, which will minimize the impact on the roadway or surface features such as the traffic circles. The traffic circles are typically 23 feet in diameter and are constructed of a 2-foot wide concrete ring which is doweled into the CMR:202:06 Page 1 of 3 street below with reinforcing bars. Staff believes the presence of the traffic circles will not restrict or impede the design work for the Utilities project. Even if Utilities needed to locate a bore pit in the concrete sections of the traffic circles, the work could proceed and the section of the traffic circle could be reconstructed at minimal cost. Temporary traffic circles will need to be removed prior to resurfacing the College Terrace streets. If the trial is successful and permanent traffic circles are recommended, they will be installed after the street resurfacing work is completed. The design issues for these projects can be addressed in the plans and specifications for the College Terrace traffic calming project and through coordination with Utilities staff as the design of the gas main project proceeds. Given that the College Terrace neighborhood has awaited the installation of the traffic calming features since 2004, and that the Utilities and Public Works projects could extend through summer 2008, staff plans to move ahead with implementation of the College Terrace trial traffic calming project this summer as scheduled. RESOURCE IMPACT Funding of $150,000 is provided in CIP Project PL-05003 calming proj ect. for the College Terrace traffic Public Works Department staff has consistently raised the concern that the existing roadways and traffic control devices cannot be maintained to the level that is needed with existing contract and staff resources. The cumulative impact of the addition of new roadway features adds to this deficit in maintenance resources. Additional operational costs of maintaining these structures would need to be included in the annual operating budget. Public Works will be able to quantify this impact once the permanent traffic calming project is determined. This information will be included in the evaluation report to the City Council at the conclusion of the trial phase. POLICY IMPLICATION This project is consistent with City Council policy. ATTACHMENTS A. College Terrace Traffic Calming Plan Map COURTESY COPIES Traffic Advisory Committee of the College Terrace Residents’ Association Jean Snider, Stanford Management Company CMR:202:06 Page 2 of 3 PREPARED BY: Acting Chief Transportation Official APPROVED BY: .,STEVE F~’VI S LIE Director of Planning and Community Environment CITY MANAGER APPROVAL: . EM~[LY HARRISON Assistant City Manager CMR:202:06 Page 3 of 3 ATTACHMENT A (Physical Traffic Calming Devices) ~x ~E .- II Driveway Legend Traffic Signal Slop Sign TrafficCirde Speed Table Cornell Princeton Escondido Driveway Obedin I Escondido School Bowdoin Harvard LL Hanover Dartmouth ~I~L I i C°’umb’a1,3L 1 Odveway Driveway i~Hanover Driveway Plan also includes signal timing modification at CambridgelECR and pavement legend improvements Source: Kimley-Hom and Associales, Inc.