May 17, 2005

SUBJECT: Frances Street Transit Center Project, Approval of Conceptual Design

REPORT IN BRIEF

Staff is requesting direction from City Council on various design elements of the Frances Street Transit Center Project. The preferred design concept is shown in Attachment 1. The project was developed in response to community input gathered through the development of the Sunnyvale Multimodal Station, Sunnyvale Downtown Urban Design Plan and the Sunnyvale Downtown Plaza Project. The project includes the installation of transit enhancement improvements at the Sunnyvale Transit Center located on Frances Street between Evelyn Avenue and Cappella Way. The project will create a pedestrian scale transit corridor that connects pedestrians and transit riders from six Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority (VTA) bus routes to the Sunnyvale Caltrain Multimodal Station, Downtown Commercial Center, Town Center Mall, Mozart office buildings, and Plaza del Sol. The project must include six bus stop locations, two on the west side of the street, four on the east side of the street. The transit improvements include sidewalk improvements, crosswalk improvements, bus shelters, bicycle facilities, pedestrian-scaled street lighting, pedestrian amenities, enhanced landscaping, a VTA bus drivers’ restroom, and potentially the incorporation of a public restroom.

There are a number of options associated with the elements of the project mentioned above. These options include; design, type and location of a restroom facility; design of the bus shelters; determination of street crossing locations and design; and outdoor information and/or advertising facilities.

City Council is asked to consider the options and approve a conceptual design for the Frances Street Transit Center project. These details will be discussed in this report.

BACKGROUND

The City of Sunnyvale has approved major new developments in the downtown area near the project site and has completed a Downtown Specific Plan for further downtown redevelopment. A central feature of the redeveloping downtown are the transit facilities at Evelyn Avenue and Frances Street. The City, in partnership with VTA and the Peninsula Corridor Joint Powers Board (Caltrain), recently completed “Phases I and II” of the Sunnyvale Multimodal Station, which provided new parking facilities and passenger amenities for Caltrain patrons.

As part of the conceptual design effort for the Sunnyvale Multimodal Station improvement concepts were developed for the existing Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority (VTA) major bus stop on Frances Street as a “Phase III” of the Sunnyvale Multimodal Station. The City secured a total of $1,301,611 in funding from the Federal Transit Administration (FTA), the Bay Area Air Quality Management District (BAAQMD) and City funds for the design and construction of these improvements.

On April 6, 2004 City Council authorized Budget Modification #33 to accept the

Transportation Fund for Clean Air(TFCA) grant funding for the Frances Street Transit Corridor Improvement Project (RTC 04-129). With this action, a project was created in the 10-Year Resource Allocation Plan and $429,000 from the BAAQMD TFCA grant program was appropriated. In addition $329,700 of City matching funds from the Regional Transportation Mitigation Reserve of the Capital Projects Fund/Traffic Mitigation Sub-fund were budgeted. The total project budget at that time was $758,700.

On August 10, 2004 City Council authorized Budget Modification No. 2 (RTC 04-277) to accept $178,000 funding from the FTA FY 2004 Transit Enhancement Grant program. The City matching funds were reduced to $151,700. The total project budget remained $758,700.

During the design contracting phase for the Frances Street Transit Center Project, it was determined that additional project funding would be required. On February 1, 2005 City Council Authorized Budget Modification No. 22 (RTC 05-034) in order to appropriate $236,002 of additional FTA Transit Enhancement funds and $ 306,909 in additional City funds from the Regional Traffic Mitigation funds. The total City funding for the project was increased to $458,609. The total project budget was increased to $1,301,611.  At this time a design contract was awarded to a team lead by DKS Associates.

EXISTING POLICY

Land Use and Transportation Element C3.5.8 – Work to improve bus service within the City, including linkages to rail.

Land Use and Transportation Element C3.6.1 Develop clear, safe, and convenient linkages between all modes of travel; including, access to transit stations and stops, and connections between work, home, and commercial sites.

Land Use and Transportation Element C3.5.4 - Maximize the provision of bicycle and pedestrian facilities.

Land Use and Transportation Element C3.5.7 Ensure safe and efficient pedestrian and bicycle connections to neighborhood transit stops.

DISCUSSION

Approval is requested for the conceptual design of the Frances Street Transit Center Project which will consist of transit, pedestrian, and streetscape enhancements at the Sunnyvale Transit Center located on Frances Street between Evelyn Avenue and Cappella Way. The project aims to increase the use of public transportation in Sunnyvale by creating a safer, more convenient and more comfortable environment for transit riders.

Project Description

The project will create a pedestrian-friendly transit corridor that connects pedestrians and transit riders from six VTA bus routes to the Sunnyvale Caltrain Multimodal Station, Downtown Commercial Center, Town Center Mall, Mozart office buildings, and Plaza del Sol. As part of the conditions of the grant, the project must include six bus stop locations and a bus driver’s restroom facility.

The scope of improvements includes:

• six bus stop locations, 2 on the west side of Frances Street, 4 on the east side of Frances Street, 
• sidewalk improvements,
• crosswalk improvements
• two bus shelters on the east side of the street, one bus shelter on the west side of the street,
• bicycle parking facilities,
• pedestrian-scaled street lighting,
• pedestrian amenities,
• enhanced landscaping,
• VTA bus drivers’ restroom, and potentially the incorporation of a public restroom.  

The Downtown Standard Specifications will be used for right of way improvements to match the Plaza del Sol and Mozart improvements. See Attachment 1 for a site plan of the preferred design concept.

Data Collection Process

Before beginning the design process, data was collected regarding the roadway configuration, current and future bus operations, and bus ridership numbers.  A technical working group of City staff from several departments, VTA facilities, operations, and maintenance staff, and the consultant team was convened to inform the design process.  

Roadway Configuration - The curb to curb width is 45 feet. The sidewalk width on the west side (Plaza del Sol) is 8 feet and the distance between the street curb and the parking lot is approximately 14 feet. The sidewalk width on the east side (Frances Street parking lot) is 8 feet wide and the distance between the street curb and the parking lot is approximately 16 feet. Currently there are a total of seven on-street parking spaces adjacent to the Plaza del Sol. There is currently one travel lane in each direction, with a left turn pocket and a right turn pocket in the northbound direction at Evelyn Avenue.

Bus Operations – The VTA currently operates six bus lines which stop along Frances Street between Evelyn Avenue and Cappella Way (26, 32, 53, 54, 55, and 140). Lines 53 and 140 use Frances Street as a layover point in the northbound direction of Frances Street (on the east side of the street). All other bus lines stop briefly along Frances Street and continue on. Most of the high activity is heading northbound on Frances Street. Articulated buses stop in the southbound direction in the mornings only on line 55. During the weekday peak hour, there are generally 13 buses an hour heading north and 5 buses an hour heading south. The largest number of bus to train and train to bus transfers occur with Lines 54 and 55 during weekday peak hours. The largest number of bus to bus transfers occur between Line 32 and Lines 53, 54 and 55. Much of the transfer activity is school-related. See Attachment 2 for maps of each of the described bus routes. Four bus stops will need to be accommodated on the east side of Frances Street. Two bus stops shall be accommodated on the west side of Frances Street. The Greyhound Bus had a stop in downtown Sunnyvale in past. However, as of April 3, 2005 all service in Sunnyvale has been canceled.

Bus Ridership – Total average bus ridership activity (bus boarding and deboarding) on Frances Street between Evelyn Avenue and Cappella Way is 825 riders on weekdays, 422 riders on Saturdays, and 202 riders on Sunday.

Alternatives Analysis

City and VTA staff and the design team have considered a series of design issues and conducted public outreach to identify a preferred draft conceptual design for the Frances Street Transit Center. A number of alternative design elements were considered in developing the draft conceptual design. These alternatives will be identified and described in detail in this section of the report. Council will be asked to endorse preferred design concepts for each element or give direction on alternative design features.

The current project budget will be adequate to fund any of the project options at a basic level. However, because there is a fixed budget, if some of the higher cost elements are chosen, it could affect some of the smaller items in the project such as material choices, fixture choices, and other pedestrian, transit and restroom amenities.

ELEMENT 1 – MID-BLOCK CROSSWALK

Staff and the design team have identified a desire line for pedestrian traffic that would necessitate a crosswalk to be located on Frances Street, between Evelyn Avenue and Cappella Way. Although the City does not typically install crosswalks at mid-block uncontrolled locations, there are a number of reasons why a mid-block crossing would be warranted in this location:

1.   Bus transfer activity may require that the bus rider cross Frances Street.

2.   Because of the location of the Plaza del Sol parking garage stairway and the Plaza itself, it is reasonable to assume that pedestrians entering/exiting the parking garage and the Plaza bound for Murphy Avenue will choose the most direct route to get to their destination.

3.   Traffic volume and speed are low on Frances Street, making it less dangerous for pedestrians to cross the street.

4.   From site observations it has been determined that many people are already crossing mid-block on Frances Street. A crosswalk and additional crossing treatments such as contrasting color and textured surfaces, and possibly in-pavement crosswalk warning lights would increase the safety and visibility of pedestrians. 

If a mid-block crosswalk were installed on Frances Street there could be a loss of one to two on-street parking spaces adjacent to the Plaza in order to create space for the crosswalk and to provide adequate visibility around any parked vehicles.

Bulb-Out

To increase visibility of the pedestrian in the crosswalk, curb extensions, called “bulb-outs” could be included in the design. This is a method of narrowing the roadway by extending a raised curb into the street. The narrower street generally results in reduced traffic speeds, a shorter pedestrian crossing distance, an increased measure of protection for pedestrians and greater pedestrian visibility.

If a bulb-out were to be included on both the east and the west side of the street, it would require that one of the buses on the west side of the street stop adjacent to the plaza frontage due to bus spacing and maneuverability requirements. This would necessitate the loss of the majority of on-street parking in front of the Plaza del Sol (5-6 spaces). See Attachment 3 for site plan showing this alternative. This would also eliminate parking for maintenance vehicles that serve Plaza del Sol. In addition, a bus stopped adjacent to the plaza could alter the plaza characteristics due to the visual addition of bus traffic as well as the noise and pollution of a bus.

Another option would be to include a bulb-out on the east side of the street only. On the west side of the street a colored pavement treatment would emulate the size and shape of a bulb-out, but would be flush with the pavement so that there would be enough space for both buses to stop south of the Plaza. This option would require the removal of between one and two parking spaces to provide adequate visibility around any parked vehicles. Details for this alternative are shown in Attachment 1.     

Mid-block Crosswalk Options

Option A – Include a mid-block crosswalk with a bulb-out on the east side of Frances Street only. Colored pavement emulating a bulb-out will be placed on the west side of the street. The west side bus stop will be located south of the Plaza del Sol.

Option B – Include a mid-block crosswalk with bulb-outs on both sides of Frances Street. This would require that one west side bus stop be located in front of the Plaza del Sol. Between five and six on-street parking spaces would be eliminated.

Option C – Include mid-block crosswalk with no bulb-outs.

Option D – Do not include a mid-block crosswalk in the conceptual design.

Summary Table

ELEMENT 2 – EAST SIDE SEAT-WALL

To provide increased seating capacity and waiting area for the bus stops on the east side of Frances Street, An 18 inch high and 15 inch wide curved concrete seat wall is proposed. This concept is shown on the preferred design concept in Attachment 1. It would be placed in front of the existing magnolia trees. All existing magnolia trees are considered an asset to this project and will be preserved. The wall will have an added benefit of protecting all of the existing trees and landscaping from possible damage from high pedestrian traffic. There is also an option of creating a rectilinear seat wall, rather than a curved wall. Attachment 4 shows details of this option. This would have the same benefits of a curvilinear with a different aesthetic. There is also an option of not including a seat wall as part of the project. Any type of seating option will be treated with an anti-graffiti coating, anti-skate boarding elements (as at the Plaza) and will be maintained by the City of Sunnyvale. Maintenance is expected to be consistent with existing levels of maintenance and would be absorbed by current operating budgets.

Seat Wall Options

Option A- Include a curvilinear seat wall in the conceptual design.

Option B – Include a rectilinear seat wall in the conceptual design.

Option C – Do not include a seat wall in the conceptual design. The landscaping will be similar to existing conditions where it is open from both the sidewalk side and the parking lot side.

Summary Table

ELEMENT 3 – BUS SHELTERS

Staff and the design team have developed a concept for three bus shelters to be integrated into the project design. There would be two shelters located on the east side and one shelter on the west side of Frances Street.

One possibility with this design element is to construct custom bus shelters. Details of a custom bus shelter are included in the preferred design concept in Attachment 1. These would integrate with the architectural elements of the Plaza del Sol and the Sunnyvale Multimodal Station. The shelter materials would include a clear overhanging roof that is the same material as the waiting area in for the Multi Modal Station; a steel frame which would reference the shape of the Plaza del Sol arcade and the artwork on the stairway of the Multimodal Station parking structure; and glass sides with Mylar film coating. The interior of the shelter would be brightly lit and would include space for VTA bus route information. In addition there will be seating provided by a concrete seat-wall as discussed in the previous section. The structure would be fitted with an electrical supply so that real-time bus route information can be installed as part of a VTA pilot project currently underway.   

Currently, VTA maintains the bus shelters on Frances Street as part of the Bus Shelter Advertising Program. The City is not responsible for the two bus shelters currently located on Frances Street. If a custom shelter is chosen as part of the conceptual design, the City of Sunnyvale would have to take on the maintenance of the structures. It is estimated that it would cost approximately $ 7,500 per year for maintenance and graffiti removal for three custom bus shelters of this type. If this option is chosen, City Council will need to increase the budget to account for increased annual maintenance costs.  It has not been determined at this time which department would be responsible for maintenance.  Staff would return to Council with a budget modification for maintenance at the time of project award or completion, or during an upcoming budget cycle.

Council could choose not to include custom shelters in the design of the project. If this were the case, VTA standard shelters would be installed similar to the shelters currently existing. Shelters could also be eliminated altogether from the design. Either of these options would eliminate the need for increased annual budget for maintenance of the structures. Photographs of a VTA standard shelter are included in Attachment 5.

Bus Shelter Options

Option A – Custom shelters integrated with the architectural elements of the Plaza and Sunnyvale Multimodal Station.

Option B – Use the standard VTA shelter.

Option C – Do not include shelters as part of this project.  

Summary Table

ELEMENT 4 – RESTROOM NUMBER

As per the project funding agreement for the FTA Transit Enhancement Grant Program, this project must provide a restroom facility for the VTA bus drivers. At a minimum, this will consist of one unisex restroom facility. Only VTA drivers will be able to access the driver restroom; public use would not be permitted. A VTA driver’s only restroom would be maintained by the VTA.

A public restroom could also be included as part of the project. At a minimum this would consist of two unisex restrooms; one VTA driver’s facility and one public facility. Maintenance for this alternative would be taken on by the City of Sunnyvale.  It is assumed that because of the high pedestrian volumes on the street from the downtown, the Plaza, the bus stops and the Caltrain station, the restroom would need to be cleaned twice per day. This would most likely cost between $10,000 and $30,000 per year with a cost sharing agreement with VTA. At the time construction documents are being prepared staff will discuss the possibility of shared maintenance costs with the VTA. The VTA traditionally shares maintenance costs and maintains its own driver facilities in transit center projects. VTA staff, in preliminary discussions, has indicated a willingness to share costs as part of the Frances Street Transit Center project as well.

A restroom currently exists at the Multimodal Station and a public restroom planned for Phase II of the Plaza del Sol. It will be located at the south west corner of the plaza.  Phase II Plaza improvements are proposed to be funded and constructed with Park Dedication funds in the year 2012/13 assuming funding is available.  The improvements are estimated to cost $ 2.5 million and include a custom constructed restroom, water features, and other amenities sited over the Taaffe Street parking garage entrance. These features are custom designed, integrated with each other, and the overall plaza setting and design. Therefore a direct comparison between a plaza restroom and a modular restroom located on Frances Street is not relevant. Although an exact cost estimate for the Plaza restroom as planned cannot be exactly extracted, staff believes that a Frances Street public restroom would be considerably less expensive to construct. The City could choose to defer the construction of a public restroom until the City has secured funding for the Plaza Phase II project. Because of the scope, budget and funding agreement requirements, installing a public restroom on the Plaza as part of the Frances Street Transit Center project will not be possible. The proposed location of this restroom is also too far from the bus parking area to be viable for driver use.

The restroom facility for the Frances Street project is proposed to have a different aesthetic than the Plaza and Plaza restroom which may be viewed as a detraction by some (see discussion under Element 6 below).  Also, there is an existing public restroom maintained by the City in the Caltrain station, therefore there is the potential in the future to have three public restrooms in close proximity.

The plaza restroom is not programmed to be built until 2012/13. The only public restroom in the downtown would be at the Caltrain Station for approximately the next 9 years. However, staff believes an ultimate configuration of the Plaza/Multimodal area with 3 public restrooms is excessive and costly from a maintenance standpoint. Therefore staff recommends that the Frances Street Transit Center project be constructed with a VTA driver facility only, additional public restroom facilities would be deferred until the Plaza restroom is funded.  

Restroom Number Options

Option A- Include a VTA driver’s only facility as part of the conceptual design. This would consist of one unisex restroom that would be open to VTA drivers only. The VTA will maintain the restroom.

Option B –Include a VTA driver’s restroom and a public restroom as part of the conceptual design. This will include 2 unisex restrooms, one for drivers only, one for public only. The City will maintain the restroom at an estimated $10,000 - $30,000 annually with a cost sharing agreement with VTA.

Summary Table

ELEMENT 5 – RESTROOM LOCATION

There are two possible locations for the restroom facility. In the first option, the restroom facility could be located on the east side of Frances Street set back into the Frances Street parking lot. Attachment 1 shows the location of the restroom on the east side of the street. The facility would have to be set back in the parking lot in order to allow for adequate pedestrian flow past the structure on the sidewalk. Functionally this location works well because it will be visible and centrally located. High activity and foot traffic would be occurring around the restroom facility, making it a less attractive target for vandalism or other illicit activities. In addition, because all sides of the restroom will be easily visible, public safety surveillance would be more effective. However, depending on the type of restroom that is chosen, this option could require the removal of between 2 and 4 parking spaces in the Frances Street lot.

A second option would locate the restroom facility on the west side of the street directly south of the Plaza del Sol. There is a driveway from the Cappella Way parking lot onto Frances Street. That driveway would be closed and the restroom would be set back in the parking lot. Because of a wall along the edge of the Plaza, and the location of the building along the frontage of Frances Street on the west side, two sides of the structure would be hidden from view. This is could be more attractive for vandalism and other illicit activities. In addition, public safety surveillance becomes more difficult in this location. Also, unless the facility is constructed of high quality materials from the ground up consistent with materials in the Plaza, staff has serious reservations that a building in this location would conflict with the Plaza improvements.  There is insufficient budget in the Frances Street project to build a restroom with materials of the quality of the Plaza construction. In addition, the placement of a public restroom in this location may effect the redevelopment of the Cappella Way parking lot parcel in the future. The Downtown Specific Plan recommends that this parcel be ground floor retail with housing on the upper floors. This could impede future development of that parcel. However one positive element of this location is that the restroom facility isn’t the central design feature of the project. It is more subtle and less obtrusive. In addition, fewer parking spaces would most likely be removed; approximately 2 spaces would be required.

Restroom Location Options

Option A – Locate the restroom facility on the east side of Frances Street, mid-block in a parking lot bulb-out. This would require the removal of between 2 and 4 parking spaces in the Frances Street parking lot.

Option B – Locate the restroom on the west side of Frances Street, directly south of the Plaza del Sol, at the existing driveway exit location for Cappella Way. This would require the removal of approximately 2 parking spaces in the Cappella Way parking lot.

Summary Table

ELEMENT 6 – RESTROOM BUILDING OPTIONS

Staff and the design team have developed two options for the type of restroom building that could be constructed.

The first option is a prefabricated structure that is manufactured entirely off-site and placed at the designated location. See an architectural rendering of a pre-cast restroom with custom details in Attachment 6. Because this is a pre-fabricated structure, the size and shape is already designated. The City would not have the ability to alter the dimensions in order to reduce the impact on parking spaces. In addition, the City will have less control over the type of construction materials. However, there will be a number of different materials and colors that the city will have to choose from and it will be possible to get a material and color that will integrate well with the Plaza and the Multimodal Station. In addition, the City will be able to add a number of custom architectural elements and façade treatments that would improve the look of the structure. There are also a range of options that this City will be able to choose from when it comes to bathroom fixtures and amenities. A pre fabricated structure would cost approximately $60,000, which is significantly less than a custom built stru