REPORT TO COUNCIL
SUBJECT
Title
Update on the Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority’s Bart Silicon Valley Phase II Extension Project and Action on a Revision to the West Portal Early Works Construction Transportation Management Plan for the Project
Report
BACKGROUND
The Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority's (VTA) BART Phase II Extension Project (Project) is a four-station, six-mile extension of the BART system. The Project begins at the Berryessa/North San Jose BART Station and extends into San Jose with three stations in San Jose (28th Street/Little Portugal, Downtown San Jose, and Diridon), a final station in Santa Clara (i.e. Santa Clara BART Station), and a train maintenance and storage facility also known as the Newhall Maintenance Yard (Attachment 1).
Council has held previous study sessions related to the Project on April 23, 2019, January 5, 2022, May 10, 2022, March 21, 2023, and April 23, 2024. The City has also entered into a Master Agreement and two Cooperative Agreements with the VTA and adopted the findings of the Final Supplemental Environmental Impact Report (FSEIR) completed by the VTA for the Project. Additionally, on June 6, 2023, the City Council approved the West Portal Early Works Construction Transportation Management Plan (West Portal CTMP) for the Project (Attachment 2).
West Portal CTMP: As highlighted during previous Council study sessions, the VTA is moving forward with design and construction efforts for the Project in multiple packages. In May 2022, VTA awarded the Project’s Tunnel and Trackwork contract (Contract Package 2 or CP2) to the joint venture of Kiewit Shea Traylor (KST). The initial phase of work (also known as Early Works) for KST is to prepare the West Portal site, located at VTA’s Newhall Yard property, as this will be the launch site for the Project’s tunnel boring machine (TBM) and staging area during major construction and tunneling operations. These Early Works activities include site grading, temporary utility installation, and construction of access roads, temporary field office buildings, precast concrete plant and grout plant, and launch structure for the TBM (Attachment 3).
Prior to Early Works construction at the West Portal site, the VTA and KST prepared the West Portal CTMP to address potential temporary effects to multimodal transportation circulation, access, and emergency vehicle access needs during this early phase work. Due to the VTA’s request to have nighttime operations and utilize Brokaw Road (near Costco) for truck hauling access, the West Portal CTMP was brought to Council for discussion on June 6, 2023 and was ultimately approved by the City Council. Additionally, as a majority of construction activities on the West Portal site are within the City of San Jose’s jurisdiction, the San Jose City Council also approved the West Portal CTMP on June 18, 2023.
DISCUSSION
After approval by both the Santa Clara City Council and the San Jose City Council, construction activities commenced on the West Portal site in Spring 2024. Activities to date include:
• site preparation (grading, temporary utility installation, field office buildings and construction of access roads);
• precast concrete and grout plants assembly;
• noise curtain installation;
• sheet pile installation (driving metal sheets into the ground to support excavation);
• construction of guide walls for underground support;
• electrical infrastructure work (installing control panels, ducts, and utility pads);
• building deep underground support walls to retain water and soil;
• groundwater dewatering to safely excavate the launch structure; excavation within areas enclosed by sheet piles; and
• installation of Y-shaped concrete panels, forming part of the underground support wall system.
Recently, the VTA requested that both Santa Clara and San Jose consider a revision to the West Portal CTMP to allow for:
• an extension of nighttime operations by two additional hours
• the ability to work on Sundays as needed (with no truck hauling activity)
• other updates, such as a modification to the construction sequence originally included in the West Portal CTMP.
Revisions to the West Portal CTMP require the approval of the City Council.
Extension of Nighttime Operations:
The approved West Portal CTMP allows VTA to work on the West Portal site in 12 and 22 hours shifts as shown in Table 1 below.
Table 1
Current Working Hours and Days (Approved West Portal CTMP)
|
Shift |
Hours |
Days |
Estimated Duration |
|
Single Shift (12 hours) |
6am to 6pm |
M-F |
Mid-2023 through late 2023 |
|
Double Shift (22 hours) |
6am to 4am |
M-F, Sat |
Late 2023 through early 2025 |
VTA and KST indicated that after the approval of the West Portal CTMP and during finalization of the construction documents, completion of additional geotechnical investigations, and adding a specialty deep foundation subcontractor, the project team recognized the necessity of additional work hours to complete the project successfully. Specifically, VTA has requested that working hours be allowed between 4am to 6am, resulting in a 24-hour workday.
It is important to note that the need for a continuous 6:00 AM to 6:00 AM operation is due to the many construction activities that require continuous operations once initiated. For example, to construct the necessary slurry wall to support the project’s excavation requires uninterrupted excavation, rebar placement, and concrete pouring to avoid excavation collapse. VTA has also indicated that the additional two hours is crucial for completing concrete pours and mitigating potential schedule delays. The proposed additional nighttime working hours are shown in Table 2 below.
Table 2
Proposed Working Hours and Days (Amended West Portal CTMP)
|
ShiftHoursDaysEstimated Duration |
|
|
|
|
Single Shift (12 hours) |
6am to 6pm |
M-Sat |
October 2025** through Oct 2027 |
|
Double Shift (24 hours) |
6am to 6am |
7 days* |
October 2025** through Oct 2027 |
*Sunday as backup only.
**Pending Council approval.
Currently, nighttime work is being performed at the Project site including construction of deep concrete walls underground to hold back water and soil, involving trench excavation, slurry installation, and concrete pours. VTA monitors construction noise to ensure that the work stays within the permitted noise levels identified in the Project’s approved environmental limits. Additionally, VTA actively communicates with adjacent properties during nighttime work activities and has established a 24-hour hotline that is monitored by the Project’s External Affairs Team. Recently, KST has installed a temporary sound curtain to further alleviate construction noise complaints.
Sunday Work Days (As Needed)
The VTA is also requesting that the Project have the ability to work on Sundays, as needed. As proposed, Sunday work activities will exclude off-site hauling and on-site activities will be limited to those with minimal potential impacts on the surrounding community. Potential Sunday activities may include instrumentation and monitoring system maintenance, rebar tying, welding, construction equipment maintenance, and progressing critical path activities after coordination with the Project team who will notify both the City of Santa Clara and City of San Jose on any planned Sunday work.
Update to Construction Sequencing and Staging: The amended CTMP provides updated information related to how VTA and KST plan to sequence and stage construction activities at the West Portal site. Table 3 provides a breakdown of the four construction stages and the period of construction for each stage.
Table 3
Construction Sequencing and Staging
|
Stage |
Construction Activity |
Estimated Duration |
|
1 |
Site Grading |
Beginning Summer 2024 for 6 Months (complete) |
|
2 |
Site Development |
Beginning 1st Quarter 2025 for 9 Months (underway) |
|
3 |
Precast Plant and TBM Segment Storage Area |
Beginning Summer 2025, Expected duration 13 Months (underway) |
|
4 |
TBM Shaft and Muck Bin Excavation |
Beginning Summer 2025, Expected duration 27 Months (underway) |
All other items in the West Portal CTMP remain the same, including:
• Employee parking
• Detour routes, construction access
• Transportation operational Level of Service analysis
• Coordination with PayPal Park events and operations
• Coordination with on-going nearby development projects construction (i.e. Gateway Crossings) and existing businesses (i.e. Costco).
City of San Jose Approval of Amendment to West Portal CTMP: Per the authority granted by the San Jose City Council, the San Jose Director of Public Works has granted approval of the 24-hour work day on August 22, 2025. The approval of the subject Amendment to the West Portal CTMP will be forthcoming. The 24-hour, Mondays through Saturday work is San Jose’s jurisdiction.
Recommendation: Based on the need to support uninterrupted construction operations for the slurry walls and deep foundation work, maintain project schedule, and minimize long-term impacts on surrounding businesses and residents, staff recommends that the City Council approve the Revision to the West Portal CTMP. Approval will provide the necessary flexibility for the VTA and KST to complete critical early works efficiently.
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW
On April 5, 2018, the VTA, as lead agency under the California Environmental Quality Act of 1970, certified the Project’s Final Supplemental Environmental Impact Report (FSEIR) and adopted findings as required by CEQA. On July 13, 2021, the City adopted Resolution No. 21-8990 which adopted the Findings of the FSEIR completed by VTA for the BART Silicon Valley Phase II Extension Project. The City’s review and approval of the West Portal CTMP is within the scope of the FSEIR. The proposed revision to the West Portal CTMP does not change the scope of the Project analyzed in the FSEIR, nor does it involve new significant impacts or a substantial increase in the severity of previously identified impacts. Therefore, no additional CEQA review is required, and the revision remains fully covered under the original FSEIR.
FISCAL IMPACT
The City and VTA have entered into a Master Agreement and two Cooperative Agreements related to VTA’s reimbursement of City’s staff time spent on the Project.
COORDINATION
The Project regularly conducts public outreach and engagement activities to ensure that local stakeholders and community members are kept up to date. This is done through various tabling events, meetings with local stakeholders, quarterly BART Phase II Community Working Group meetings, and the distribution of electronic communications (e.g., email blasts, electronic newsletters, social media, and blog posts) for Project milestones. VTA has hosted in-person and virtual meetings and briefings for the community to learn about the early construction activities, ask questions, and provide feedback. In addition, VTA has engaged with stakeholders whose local street network would be most affected by Project haul routes, including Costco, Hunter Partners, Holland Partners, Apple, Encanto/Orlo/Altura Condominium Associations, and the San José Earthquakes/PayPal Park. This item has been coordinated with the City Attorney’s Office, Community Development Department, VTA, and the City of San Jose.
PUBLIC CONTACT
Public contact was made by posting the Council agenda on the City’s official-notice bulletin board outside City Hall Council Chambers. A complete agenda packet is available on the City’s website and in the City Clerk’s Office at least 72 hours prior to a Regular Meeting and 24 hours prior to a Special Meeting. A hard copy of any agenda report may be requested by contacting the City Clerk’s Office at (408) 615-2220, email clerk@santaclaraca.gov or at the public information desk at any City of Santa Clara public library.
ALTERNATIVES
1. Approve the Revision to the West Portal Early Works Construction Transportation Management Plan for the VTA’s BART Phase II Extension Project
2. Authorize the City Manager or designee to approve minor modifications, such as annual updates or supplemental plans, to the CTMP, if needed.
3. Provide other direction to staff and the VTA on the Revision to the West Portal Early Works Construction Transportation Management Plan for the VTA BART Phase II Extension Project
RECOMMENDATION
Recommendation
1. Approve the Revision to the West Portal Early Works Construction Transportation Management Plan for the VTA’s BART Phase II Extension Project in the form presented; and
2. Authorize the City Manager or designee to approve minor modifications, such as annual updates or supplemental plans, to the CTMP, if needed.
Staff
Reviewed by: Craig Mobeck, Director of Public Works
Approved by: Jovan Grogan, City Manager
ATTACHMENTS
1. Project Location Maps
2. June 6, 2024 Santa Clara City Council Approved West Portal CTMP
3. West Portal Early Works Site Maps
4. VTA’s BART Phase II Extension, West Portal Early Works Amended CTMP