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HomeMy WebLinkAboutStaff Report 2506-4894Rail Committee Staff Report From: City Manager Report Type: ACTION ITEMS Lead Department: Transportation Meeting Date: September 16, 2025 Report #:2506-4894 TITLE Initial Review of Refined Conceptual Designs for the selection and development of alternatives to proceed with 15% design for the Grade Separations at Churchill Avenue, Meadow Drive, and Charleston Road. RECOMMENDATION Staff is seeking initial review and feedback on the refined conceptual designs for the grade separations at Churchill Avenue, Meadow Drive, and Charleston Road for the selection and development of alternatives to proceed with 15% design. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY In collaboration with City staff, Caltrain has refined the conceptual designs for the partial underpass alternative for Churchill Avenue, as well as hybrid and underpass alternatives for the Meadow Drive and Charleston Road grade separation projects. Caltrain has also developed initial concepts for Seale Avenue as part of Churchill Avenue grade separation. These revisions respond to City Council direction aimed at minimizing right-of-way impacts and enhancing mobility as part of the Preliminary Engineering and Environmental Documentation phase of the City of Palo Alto’s Grade Separation Project. This staff report presents the updated concepts for the Rail Committee’s initial review and feedback before seeking community input and feedback. Staff plan to conduct community meetings on September 30 and October 1, 2025, to gather community input before returning to the Rail Committee for further review and recommendation to Council on Locally Preferred Alternatives to advance into the 15% design phase. BACKGROUND The City of Palo Alto’s rail corridor planning efforts commenced in 2010 with the Palo Alto Rail Corridor Study, which was adopted by Council on January 22, 2013 (Staff Report # 34101). From November 4, 2013, the City developed preliminary grade separation alternatives as part of the Connecting Palo Alto project, which explored multiple options for the four at-grade rail crossing locations of Charleston Road, Meadow Drive, Churchill Avenue, and Palo Alto Avenue. This work resulted in a Rail Corridor Circulation Study and initial screening of ideas for various alternatives that was reviewed by the Council on May 29, 2018 (Staff Report # 92842). In April 2018, in-depth analysis of engineering options continued, with review by the Council Rail Committee and Rail Crossing Community Advisory Committee (XCAP). The XCAP process concluded deliberations in March 2021. The XCAP completed the review and presented its recommendation to the Council on March 23, 2021 (Staff Report 117973). Since 2022, staff have secured grants from the Federal Rail Administration (FRA), California State Transportation Agency (CalSTA) and Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority (VTA), and have continued to develop, evaluate and present grade separation alternatives for consideration. In consultation with the community, Rail Committee and Council, the City has refined project alternatives for rail crossings at Charleston Road, Meadow Drive, and Churchill Avenue, while the Palo Alto Avenue crossing was put on hold. On June 10, 2024 (Staff Report # 2402-29574) and June 18, 2024(Staff Report # 2406-31695), Council selected the following alternatives to advance into the Conceptual Development phase in preparation for Preliminary Engineering and Environmental Documentation: For Churchill Avenue, the Council selected the Partial Underpass as the Locally Preferred Alternative (LPA) with vehicle crossing at Churchill Avenue and pedestrian/bicycle crossing at Seale Avenue / Peers Park. Additionally, the Council identified the Pedestrian/Bicycle Undercrossing at Churchill (aka Closure Alternative) as the backup alternative if needed in the future for this location. (As directed by Council, the backup alternative will not advance to preliminary engineering at this time.) For Meadow Drive and Charleston Road, the Council identified the 1 City Council , January 22, 2013; Item 7, Action Item, SR# 3410 https://www.paloalto.gov/files/assets/public/v/1/agendas-minutes-reports/reports/city-manager-reports- cmrs/year-archive/2013/railcorridor1_22.pdf 2 City Council , May 29, 2018; Item 7, Action Item, SR# 9284 https://www.paloalto.gov/files/assets/public/v/1/agendas-minutes-reports/reports/city-manager-reports- cmrs/year-archive/2018/9284.pdf 3 City Council , March 23, 2021; Item 1, Study Session Item, SR# 9284 https://recordsportal.paloalto.gov/WebLink/DocView.aspx?id=2236&dbid=0&repo=PaloAlto 4 City Council , June 10, 2024; Item 13, Action Item, SR# 2402-2957 https://recordsportal.paloalto.gov/WebLink/DocView.aspx?id=82879&dbid=0&repo=PaloAlto5 City Council , June 18, 2024; Item AA3, Action Item, SR# 2406-3169 https://recordsportal.paloalto.gov/Weblink/DocView.aspx?id=82944&dbid=0&repo=PaloAlto Hybrid Underpass and Underpass as the two alternatives to advance to Conceptual Design with refinements to minimize right-of-way impacts and improve mobility at each location. The preferred alternative for each location will advance to 35% Design. (Constructability concerns may require the City to implement grade separations in these two locations in a coordinated manner.) Caltrain is leading the Preliminary Engineering and Environmental Documentation phase and the City collaborates with Caltrain for project design and acts as project sponsor. The City has successfully secured $6 million in Rail Crossing Elimination (RCE) program funds from the FRA towards completing the Preliminary Engineering and Environmental Documentation phase for grade separations at Churchill Avenue, Meadow Drive, and Charleston Road. In addition, on December 9, 2024 (Staff Report # 2408-33226), the City Council approved a Cooperative Agreement with VTA for $14 million in Measure B Caltrain Grade Separation funding for this phase. ANALYSIS The Council has directed staff to refine the project concepts with a focus on minimizing property impacts and enhancing mobility. To facilitate durable decision-making and expedited refinement of the alternatives, the Project is divided into two steps: Preliminary Engineering Conceptual Refinement (15% Design), which is anticipated to progress through Summer-2026; and Preliminary Engineering (35% Design) and Environmental Documentation under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) and the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), which is anticipated to conclude in Fall 2027. Conceptual Refinement will also include estimation of project costs and evaluation of constructability issues to support the selection of an LPA at each location, prior to development of 35% design plans and environmental documents. In consultation with City and Caltrain staff, the project team has refined the concepts for review by the rail committee. The following refined concepts have been developed to minimize private property impacts while maintaining and/or improving the traffic circulation and enhancing pedestrian and bicycle crossings: Churchill Avenue Partial Underpass Alternative, including the following elements that have been further developed since Council discussion on June 18, 2024]: o One northbound vehicular lane on the upper portion of Alma Street, which connects to Churchill Avenue north of Alma Street. This 6 City Council , December 9, 2024; Item 12, Consent Item, SR# 2408-3322 https://recordsportal.paloalto.gov/Weblink/DocView.aspx?id=37338&dbid=0&repo=PaloAlto represents a reduction from the previously proposed 2-lane configuration. o One northbound combined lane (northbound through and northbound left turns) that is depressed approximately 22.5 to 29 feet below the current roadway depending upon construction methods and bridge design and connects with Churchill Avenue for motor vehicles. o Seale Avenue Bicycle and Pedestrian crossing to provide active transportation access across the tracks 1,800-feet south of Churchill Avenue. This crossing has two variants: §Seale Option 1: Alma Street Ramp §Seale Option 2: Seale Avenue Ramp Meadow Drive and Charleston Road Crossings include the following elements: o Hybrid: Hybrid Underpass at Meadow Drive and Charleston Road, where the railway tracks are elevated by 17 -19 ft and the roadway is depressed 4-6 ft. o Underpass: Underpass at Meadow Drive and Charleston Road, where the tracks remain at their existing elevation. The Charleston Road Underpass is depressed 22.5 to 29 ft depending upon construction techniques and bridge design has two variants: §Charleston Option 1: 1-lane roundabout §Charleston Option 2: U-Turn o Combination: Hybrid Underpass at Meadow Drive and Underpass at Charleston Road Staff will conduct engagement through community meetings on September 30 and October 1, 2025, at Mitchell Park Community Center to gather community feedback on the refined concept alternatives. Additionally, community members will be able to provide feedback via an online comment’s submission. Staff will utilize social media and other channels to provide information to community members on the above engagement opportunities. FISCAL/RESOURCE IMPACT Funding for this concept design study is appropriated as part of the FY 2026 Adopted Capital Budget and future costs are programmed in the 2026-2030 Capital Improvement Plan in capital projects PL-24000 Meadow Drive and Charleston Road and PL-24001 Churchill Avenue Rail Grade Separation and Safety Improvements. This item is included in the scope of the two projects with no additional fiscal impact anticipated at this time. STAKEHOLDER ENGAGEMENT The Rail Committee meetings are open to the public and provide opportunities for community members to share comments with both the Committee and the City. Regular project updates are presented at these meetings. In addition, staff plans to host outreach meetings on September 30 and October 1, 2025, to gather community input and feedback. Additional comments can also be submitted through the project websites. Continued progress on refining and narrowing project alternatives will provide greater certainty for property owners throughout this multi-year planning process. For example, staff was recently approached by a property owner potentially impacted by a design alternative who expressed interest in selling their property to the City. Unfortunately, the City is unable to use project funds for property acquisition until much later in project development. ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW The Preliminary Engineering and Environmental Documentation phase of the grade separation project includes environmental review in accordance with the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) and National Environmental Protection Act (NEPA). ATTACHMENTS Revised Concepts Attachment A - Churchill Avenue Partial Underpass: Without Landscape Strip Attachment B - Churchill Avenue Partial Underpass: With Landscape Strip Attachment C - Seale Avenue: Option 1 - Seale Avenue Ramp Attachment D - Seale Avenue: Option 2 - Alma Street Ramp Attachment E - Meadow Drive Hybrid Attachment F -Meadow Drive Underpass Attachment G -Charleston Road Hybrid Attachment H - Charleston Road Underpass: Option 1 - Refined Roundabout Attachment I - Charleston Road Underpass: Option 2 - Direct Access Ramp (To be released late packet on September 11, 2025) APPROVED BY: Ria Hutabarat Lo, Chief Transportation Official CHURCHILL AVENUE, PARTIAL UNDERPASS WITH LANDSCAPE STRIP DRAFT Concept - Graphic being revised to improve legibility and make suitable for public viewing SEALE AVENUE: SEALE AVENUE RAMP DRAFT Concept - Graphic being revised to improve legibility and make suitable for public viewing SEALE AVENUE: ALMA STREET RAMP DRAFT Concept - Graphic being revised to improve legibility and make suitable for public viewing MEADOW DRIVE, UNDERPASS DRAFT Concept - Graphic being revised to improve legibility and make suitable for public viewing. CHARLESTON ROAD, HYBRID DRAFT Concept - Graphic being revised to improve legibility and make suitable for public viewing. CHARLESTON ROAD, UNDERPASS: ROUNDABOUT DRAFT Concept - Graphic being revised to improve legibility and make suitable for public viewing. Rail Committee Report Type: Supplemental Report Lead Department: Transportation Meeting Date: September 16, 2025 Report #:2509-5198 TITLE Supplemental Report - Initial Review of Refined Conceptual Designs for the selection and development of alternatives to proceed with 15% design for the Grade Separations at Churchill Avenue, Meadow Drive, and Charleston Road As indicated in Staff Report 2506-4894, Item 1 on September 16, 2025, Rail Committee Agenda, Attachment I was expected to be distributed as a late packet on September 11, 2025. This supplemental report provides Attachment I - Charleston Road Underpass: Option 2 - Direct Access Ramp ATTACHMENTS Attachment A: Charleston Road Underpass: Option 2 - Direct Access Ramp APPROVED BY: Ria Hutabarat Lo, Chief Transportation Official Charleston Road, Underpass: Direct Access Ramp DRAFT Concept - Graphic being revised to improve legibility and make suitable for public viewing. City of Palo Alto Grade Separation Project Churchill Avenue, Meadow Drive, and Charleston Road Rail Committee September 16, 2025 1Rail Committee 9/16/25 Meeting Purpose Review draft refined concepts Provide an update on public engagement opportunities Provide an update on schedule and upcoming decisions No decisions to be made at this time 2 Introduction and Recap1 Next Steps4 Agenda 3 Recent Technical Activities2 Refined Concepts & Initial Considerations3 Project Site Current Project Phase 5 2025 2026 2027 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Preliminary Engineering and Environmental 35% Design and Environmental 15% DesignConceptual Refinement Funding Total: $20 Million (VTA Measure B = $14 M + FRA Rail Crossing Elimination = $6 M) Deadline: Complete 35% Design and Environmental Documentation by the end of 2027 We are here Receive direction from City Council on which alternatives to advance to 15% Design. June 2024 Council Direction 6 Churchill Avenue Alternatives Motion approved to recommend Seale Avenue as the Bicycle and Pedestrian crossing location for the Partial Underpass Alternative at Churchill Avenue to advance into the Preliminary Engineering and Environmental Documentation phase, with the Bicycle and Pedestrian Crossing (Street Closure) alternative as a backup. Meadow Drive and Charleston Road Alternatives Motion approved to advance Hybrid (including mixed wall/column approach) and Underpass alternatives into the Preliminary Engineering and Environmental Documentation phase. Council requested updates through the alternatives’ refinements (during 15% design) with opportunities to change course and refocus on one option, if desired. Conceptual Alternatives 7 Churchill Avenue Meadow Drive Locally Preferred Alternative (Includes Seale Bike/Ped Crossing) Bike/ped Crossing Backup Charleston Road Project Goals and Desired Outcomes 8 Improve safety Improve mobility and minimize congestion Establish project footprint for environmental clearance & minimize environmental impacts Minimize potential private property impacts Recent Technical Activities • Existing Conditions • Topographic Survey • Geotechnical Exploration • Existing Utility Research • Technical Analysis • Multimodal and Circulation Analysis • Drainage and Stormwater Analysis • Design Development • Basis of Design Development • Constructability Workshops • Risk Identification and Management 9 Multimodal and Circulation Analysis •Conducted new roadway, intersection, pedestrian, and bicycle counts •Assess network connectivity •Identified opportunities for Concept Refinement •All alternatives • Improve upon existing conditions through 2040 • Show operational improvement compared to today’s conditions – specifically reduction in delays, intersection spillback, and multi-modal safety 10 Summary of Concepts 11 Roundabout Direct Access Ramp Meadow Drive Charleston Road HYBRID UNDERPASS HYBRID UNDERPASS With Landscape Strip Without Landscape Strip Seale Avenue Ramp Alma Street Ramp PARTIAL UNDERPASS Churchill Avenue Churchill Avenue (and Seale Avenue) 12 PARTIAL UNDERPASS 13 Churchill Avenue Partial Underpass (shown with landscape strip between curb and sidewalk) DRAFT Concept Refinement • Reduced Upper Alma Street from two northbound lanes to one PARTIAL UNDERPASS PARTIAL UNDERPASS Churchill Avenue Partial Underpass Alma Street Cross-Section without Landscape Strip 14 DRAFT PARTIAL UNDERPASS Existing Proposed (without landscape strip) PARTIAL UNDERPASS Churchill Avenue Partial Underpass Alma Street Cross-Section with Landscape Strip 15 DRAFT PARTIAL UNDERPASS Existing Proposed (with landscape strip) PARTIAL UNDERPASS 16 DRAFT Churchill Avenue Partial Underpass (Looking south on Alma Street – no landscape strip between curb and sidewalk) PARTIAL UNDERPASS PARTIAL UNDERPASS DRAFT Seale Avenue: Seale Avenue Ramp 17 PARTIAL UNDERPASS Bike/Ped Crossing • East ramp centered in Seale Avenue • Tunnel under Alma Street and railroad tracks • West ramp connects to Park Boulevard near Stanford Avenue • Removes on-street parking on Seale Avenue • Potential partial property acquisition on Seale Avenue PARTIAL UNDERPASS 18 Seale Avenue: Seale Avenue Ramp This rendering is shown for illustrative purposes only. DRAFT PARTIAL UNDERPASS PARTIAL UNDERPASS 19 Seale Avenue: Seale Avenue Ramp Seale Avenue Cross-Section DRAFT Existing Proposed PARTIAL UNDERPASS DRAFT Seale Avenue: Alma Street Ramp 20 Bike/Ped Crossing • Ramp on east side of Alma Street • Tunnel under Alma Street and railroad tracks • Ramp to Castilleja Avenue • Potential partial property acquisition on both sides of Alma Street PARTIAL UNDERPASS DRAFT Seale Avenue: Alma Street Ramp PARTIAL UNDERPASS Peers Park Ramp to/from Tunnel Ramp to/from Tunnel PARTIAL UNDERPASS DRAFT PARTIAL UNDERPASS Seale Avenue: Alma Street Ramp Ramp to/from Tunnel PARTIAL UNDERPASS DRAFT PARTIAL UNDERPASS Seale Avenue: Alma Street Ramp Ramp to/from Tunnel PARTIAL UNDERPASS Existing PARTIAL UNDERPASS Seale Avenue: Alma Street Ramp Alma Street Cross-Section DRAFT 24 Proposed Signalized Intersection AM Peak Hour Intersection Delay (Level of Service) PM Peak Hour Intersection Delay (Level of Service) Existing Existing with Partial Underpass Future with Partial Underpass Existing Existing with Partial Underpass Future with Partial Underpass Alma Street at Churchill Avenue 30.0 (C) - - 39.7 (D) - - Alma Street at Churchill Avenue (Lower) - 12.9 (B) 14.4 (B) - 15.4 (B) 19.1 (B) Existing = 2025 Future = 2040 using 1% growth for all movements Delay = seconds per vehicle Level of Service = letter grade, ranging from A to F, describing operational conditions of an intersection Preliminary Analysis Results 25 Churchill Avenue Partial Underpass Initial Considerations 26 Seale Avenue Bike/Ped With Landscape Strip • Potential Parcel Acquisition • 16 to 18 partial Without Landscape Strip • Potential Property Acquisition at Intersection corners Seale Avenue Ramp • Potential Parcel Acquisition • 14 to 16 partial • Removed Seale Avenue on-street parking • Peers Park entrance closer to high school Alma Street Ramp • Potential Parcel Acquisition • 3 to 4 partial Meadow Drive & Charleston Road 27 DRAFT Crossing Concept Profiles 28 UNDERPASS HYBRID COMBINATION Meadow Drive Charleston RoadEl Verano Avenue Greenmeadow Way Not to Scale HYBRID 29 DRAFT Meadow Drive Hybrid Concept Refinement • Lower Meadow Drive 4’ to 6’ at crossing • Raise railroad tracks 17’ to 19’ • Dedicated left-turn lanes to align lanes across Alma Street • Added bicycle queuing area on westbound Meadow Drive • No potential property acquisitions UNDERPASS 30 DRAFT Meadow Drive Underpass Concept Refinement • Reduced width of multi-use path and corresponding shoulders • Checked which size vehicles can navigate turns in proposed design • Potential full and partial property acquisitions UNDERPASS 31 DRAFT Meadow Drive UnderpassUNDERPASS HYBRID DRAFT 32 Charleston Road Hybrid Concept Refinement • Lower Charleston Road 4’ to 6’ at crossing • Raise railroad tracks 17’ to 19’ • No potential property acquisitions UNDERPASS Charleston Road Underpass: Roundabout DRAFT 33 UNDERPASS Concept Refinement • Reduced roundabout from two to one lane • Reduced width of multi-use path and corresponding shoulders • Potential partial and full property acquisition UNDERPASS Charleston Road Underpass: Roundabout 34 UNDERPASS DRAFT Note: Concept shown is for two-lane roundabout. Current concept is one- lane roundabout. Concepts are working drafts for initial review and feedback. UNDERPASS UNDERPASS Charleston Road Underpass: Direct Access Ramp UNDERPASS 35 DRAFT Concept Refinement • Eliminated the roundabout • Reduced width of multi-use path and corresponding shoulders • Potential partial and full property acquisition UNDERPASS DRAFT UNDERPASS Charleston Road Underpass: Direct-Access Ramp N Signalized Intersection AM Peak Hour Intersection Delay (Level of Service) PM Peak Hour Intersection Delay (Level of Service) Existing Hybrid Underpass Existing Hybrid Underpass Existing Future Existing Future Existing Future Existing Future Alma Street at Meadow Drive 41.7 (D) 34.6 (C) 40.4 (D) - - 62.6 (E) 37.9 (D) 49.8 (D) - - Alma Street at Meadow Drive (Lower) - - - 9.9 (A) 12.9 (B) - - - 9.8 (A) 12.5 (B) Existing = 2025 Future = 2040 using 1% growth for all movements Delay = seconds per vehicle Level of Service = letter grade, ranging from A to F, describing operational conditions of an intersection Meadow Drive Preliminary Analysis Results 37 Signalized Intersection AM Peak Hour Intersection Delay (Level of Service) PM Peak Hour Intersection Delay (Level of Service) Existing Hybrid Underpass with Roundabout Underpass with Direct Access Ramp Existing Hybrid Underpass with Roundabout Underpass with Direct Access Ramp Existing Future Existing Future Existing Future Existing Future Existing Future Existing Future Alma Street at Charleston Road 57.2 (E) 41.8 (D) 50.4 (D) - - - - 106.4 (F) 52.9 (D) 101.3 (F) - - - - Alma Street at Charleston Road (Upper) - - - 13.5 (B) 16.5 (B) 12.3 (B) 14.9 (B) - - - 12.4 (B) 14.6 (B) 12.4 (B) 15.2 (B) Alma Street at Charleston Road (Lower) - - - - - 10.6 (B) 13.8 (B) - - - - - 7.0 (A) 7.7 (A) Existing = 2025 | Future = 2040 using 1% growth for all movements Delay = seconds per vehicle Level of Service = letter grade, ranging from A to F, describing operational conditions of an intersection Charleston Road Preliminary Analysis Results 38 Initial Considerations 39 Meadow Drive Charleston Road Hybrid • No potential property acquisition* Underpass – Roundabout • Potential Parcel Acquisitions • 3 full • 23 to 25 partial Underpass – Direct Access Ramp • Potential Parcel Acquisitions • 1 full • 21 to 23 partial Hybrid • No potential property acquisition* Underpass • Potential Parcel Acquisitions • 1 to 4 full • 6 to 9 partial *To be confirmed through title reports 4-Month Lookahead 40 September October November December 9/16 Rail Committee Refined concept review and input 9/30 Community Meetings Refined concept review and input Synthesize Rail Committee and Community Meeting comments and input Review and refine concepts 11/18 Rail Committee Refined concept review and recommendations to advance to 15% 12/8 City Council Decision Point #1 – Advance 1 or 2 concepts to 15% Upcoming Community Meetings 41 •Recap “How we got here” •Review refined draft concepts •Receive input from community Meadow & Charleston Grade Separations Meeting Churchill Grade Separation Meeting (Including Seale Ave) TUESDAY | September 30, 2025 Mitchell Park Community Center 3700 Middlefield Road, Palo Alto, CA 94303 4:00 – 6:00pm 6:00 – 8:00pm •Zoom Presentation (Live and recorded) •Concept Stations •Translation services provided, upon request Materials Will Be Provided on Website: • Refined concepts for review • Recorded presentation • Comment form •Comment Period = October 3 – October 17 Additional Input Opportunities 42 Project Website