Approval is requested for the award of a contract to Graham Contractors, Inc., of San Jose for construction of the Countywide Bicycle Route (Project #TR-00/07-02) for the Department of Public Works Administration Division.

As part of the project design, removal of on-street parking spaces is required. In addition, staff recommends that the speed limit on two sections of the route (Mountain View-Alviso Road and Moffett Park Drive) be lowered from 45 miles per hour to 40 miles per hour.

Moffett Park Drive, Lawrence Station Road, and Mountain View-Alviso Road are part of a Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority (VTA) designated Cross County Bicycle Corridor, County Bike Route 8. This is one of sixteen cross county bicycle corridors which form a 347-mile bicycle network. This network supports connections between local jurisdictions as well as adjacent counties and serves the major trip attractors in the county.

In January 2000, Council approved an application for Bay Area Air Quality Management District Transportation Fund For Clean Air (TFCA) funds to construct bicycle lanes along the majority of the Sunnyvale portion of County Bike Route 8. The requested project proposes to install bicycle lanes on Moffett Park Drive from Bordeaux Drive to Caribbean Drive, on Lawrence Station Road from Elko Drive to Mountain View-Alviso Road, and on Mountain View-Alviso Road from Lawrence Station Road to the east city limits. The removal of on-street parking is proposed on Moffett Park Drive and Mountain View-Alviso Road, in addition to narrowing some of the travel lane width from twelve feet to eleven feet to accommodate the bicycle lanes. VTA funding was subsequently approved, and Council approved the funding agreement at its November 14, 2000, meeting. The design phase for this project is complete, and construction is planned to be completed before October 2002.

Land Use and Transportation Element: Goal C3-Attain a transportation system that is effective, safe, pleasant, and convenient.

Land Use and Transportation Element: C3.4.6 Manage on-street parking to assure safe, efficient traffic flow.

Land Use and Transportation Element: C3.4.7 Conduct periodic analysis of roadway facilities and collision data in order to assure traffic safety.

Land Use and Transportation Element: C3.5.1 Promote alternate modes of travel to the automobile.

A study of historical and current engineering traffic studies on Moffett Park Drive between Mathilda Avenue to Caribbean Drive and on Mountain View-Alviso Road from Lawrence Station Road to the east city limits was completed in order to determine if the posted speed limit should be reduced from 45 miles per hour to 40 miles per hour. This study was prompted by the required roadway geometry changes and by anecdotal and other evidence that correlates decreased bicyclist comfort and safety with increased motor vehicle speeds. From this analysis, it is recommended that a lower speed limit of 40 miles per hour be established for Moffett Park Drive east of Mathilda Avenue and Mountain View-Alviso Road.

In determining the posted speed limit for Sunnyvale streets, the California Vehicle Code requires that the speed limit be set, based upon an engineering traffic study. The City of Sunnyvale has adopted the California Department of Transportation Traffic Manual methodology in establishing speed limits. Authority for formal establishment of speed limits lies with the City Council, as dictated by the Sunnyvale Municipal Code and established by resolution.

Typically, speed limits are set at or below the 85^th percentile speed, which is defined as that speed at or below which 85 percent of traffic is moving.

However, the speed limit may be set below the 85^th percentile when other factors, such as accident history; vehicular, pedestrian and bicycle volume; on-street parking; adjacent land use; etc., are taken into consideration. When the speed limit is set below the 85^th percentile, the speed limit should be within the limits of the 10 miles per hour pace, which is defined as the 10-mile increment of speed containing the largest number of vehicles.

The Sunnyvale Municipal Code goes a step further, however, and allows speed limits to be set greater than State law permits to facilitate the orderly movement of vehicular traffic, if reasonable and safe. This is currently the case for the portions of Moffett Park Drive and Mountain View-Alviso Road in question.

Moffett Park Drive is a commercial/industrial collector with two lanes and a double yellow line in the center. No sidewalk exists onto either side. This section of Moffett Park Drive runs along Route 237. Driveways for large industrial and some commercial properties are present as well as side street intersections. There are sharp curves at Moffett Park Court and just west of Caribbean Drive.

Mountain View-Alviso Road is a two-lane commercial/industrial collector with a broken yellow line in the center. The east end of the roadway features a gradient for the approach to a bridge over Calabazas Creek. Parking is prohibited on the north side of this roadway, west of Hammerwood Avenue. The area is industrial, and the south side of this roadway has several side streets and driveways. The north side of the roadway borders Route 237 for the most part. No sidewalks exist along either side.

The Countywide Bicycle Route 8 Project would narrow travel lanes on Moffett Park Drive in both directions to eleven feet. There would be one bike lane in each direction, measuring five feet in width, from Bordeaux Drive to Caribbean Drive. It is unpleasant for bicyclists to occupy a narrow, high-speed road with automobiles. Traffic Engineering staff observed considerable bicycle traffic on Moffett Park Drive and Mountain View-Alviso and anticipate increased bicycle traffic as the City’s bike lane network expands. Traffic Engineering staff has also noted high pedestrian activity along Moffett Park Drive, east of Mathilda Drive, which currently has no sidewalks. Pedestrians were observed walking along the curb line of Moffett Park and Mountain View-Alviso Road, occupying a portion of the traveled way.

Based upon the traffic data and review of roadway characteristics, a reduction of the speed limit on Moffett Park Drive between Mathilda Avenue to Caribbean Drive and on Mountain View-Alviso Road from Lawrence Station Road to the east city limits from 45 miles per hour to 40 miles per hour is reasonable. Traffic volume, accident history, and the physical geometry of the street were taken into consideration in determining the proposed speed limit. The Average Weekday Daily Traffic (AWDT) volume for Moffett Park Drive east of Mathilda Avenue is 2,365 vehicles per day. With the volume being so low, staff has determined that there will be no congestion issues associated with lowering the speed on Moffett Park. It is documented that in the last 18 months there were eleven accidents along Moffett Park Drive east of Mathilda Avenue and fifty-four collisions in the last five years of available data. The presence of frequently used driveways and side streets is a potential hazard for merging high speed traffic.

Adjustment of the posted speed will make the speed limit consistent along the entire length of Moffett Park Drive, as the posted speed limit from Mathilda Avenue to the west city limit is 40 miles per hour. Also, other frontage roads within the City with similar characteristics have lower speed limits, such as Weddell Drive and Ahwanee Avenue. A speed limit modification will set the speed limit within the parameters defined by the State Traffic Manual methodology as well. Documented engineering traffic surveys from June 2000 indicate that the 85^th percentile speed on Moffett Park Drive from Crossman Drive to Moffett Park Court is 38.8 miles per hour and from Moffett Park Court to Caribbean Drive is 40.9 miles per hour. The same documents indicate an 85^th percentile speed of 38.7 miles per hour for Mountain View-Alviso Road. Current (August 2002) documented engineering and traffic studies indicate that the 85^th percentile speed has decreased on Moffett Park Drive from Mathilda Avenue to Borregas Avenue from 44.1 miles per hour in 2000 to 39.7 miles per hour in 2002, and that 85^th percentile speeds on the other segments of Moffett Park Drive in question have remained near or below 40 miles per hour. For the reasons cited above, staff recommends modification of the City’s resolution designating speed limits to lower the speed limit on Moffett Park Drive from Mathilda Avenue to Caribbean Drive from 45 miles per hour to 40 miles per hour.

To accomplish the required roadway geometry to provide bike lanes, staff is proposing the removal of on-street parking on the following two roadway sections. On-street parking removal is required to construct the projects as designed and meet State design requirements for bike lanes.

A public meeting was held on June 26, 2002, at the Wind River Systems complex on Moffett Park Drive. Notification was sent to all affected property owners, area bicycle organizations, and the Moffett Park Business and Transportation Association. There were no negative comments regarding parking removal on this site. One affected business owner and employees working in the area spoke in favor of the reconfiguration.

• Mtn. View Alviso Road – from Lawrence Station Road to east City Limit. There is currently parking permitted on the south side of the street from Lawrence Station Road to Hammerwood Avenue and on both sides of the street from Hammerwood Avenue to the city limit. The project would remove all on-street parking on this segment.

At the June 26, 2002, public meeting, there was one commentor concerned with parking removal in this segment; and three employees in the area spoke in favor of the reconfiguration. The concern came from the property owner from 1190-1206 Mountain View-Alviso Road who stated that, although there may not be a demand for on-street parking at this time, there may be different tenants in the future who require more parking.

On the other roadway affected by the project, Lawrence Station Road, parking is currently allowed on the east side. Parking will be retained along the east side of Lawrence Station Road due to heavy weekday demand. Currently, there is no on-street parking permitted on the west side of the street. That regulation will be maintained.

It is critical to understand that on-street parking removal is required to make this project constructable. Authority for removal of on-street parking resides with the Transportation and Traffic Manager, with the City Council acting as an appeals board in the case of disputes. However, this project involves numerous adjacent properties; and staff believes it is prudent to inform the Council of the proposed action. The intent of this report is to inform the Council of the efforts undertaken to research and gather public input in support of a decision to remove on street parking on Moffett Park Drive from Bordeaux Drive to Moffett Park Court and on Mountain View-Alviso Road from Lawrence Station Road to east city limit for the purpose of constructing bike lanes along a Sunnyvale section of County Bike Route 8.

Bid specifications for bicycle lane striping, marking and signage were prepared by Public Works and Purchasing staff. The Notice Inviting Bids was published in The Sun on July 3, 2002. The bid package was distributed to Bay Area Builders Exchanges and broadcast to potential contractors through the DemandStar public procurement network. Twelve contractors requested bid documents.

Staff recommends acceptance of the bid from Graham Contractors, Inc., the lowest responsive and responsible bidder.

Funds are available in Capital Projects #806652 - TDA Article 3 Bicycle Pedestrian Projects FY 2000-2001 and 822970 - Countywide Bicycle Route 3 Bike Lanes.

Public contact for this Report to Council was made through posting of the City Council agenda on the City’s official notice bulletin board, posting of the agenda on the City’s web page, publication of the City Council agenda in the San Jose Mercury News, and availability of the report in the Library and the City Clerk’s Office. In addition, notification was sent to all effected property owners, area bicycle organizations, and the Moffett Park Business and Transportation Association.

There were previous public hearings on this project as well as the December 1999 and January 2000 Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Committee meetings. The City Council considered this project on its consent calendar at the January 25 and November 14, 2000, City Council meetings.