REPORT TO BICYCLE AND PEDESTRIAN ADVISORY COMMITTEE
SUBJECT
Title
BART Silicon Valley Phase II Extension Project’s Santa Clara Station (VTA)
Report
BACKGROUND
VTA’s BART Silicon Valley Phase II Extension (BSVII Project) is a six-mile, four-station extension of BART from the Berryessa/North San José Station (opened 2020) through downtown San José to the City of Santa Clara (City). The BSVII Project is planned to include an approximately five-mile subway with three underground platform stations (28th Street/Little Portugal, Downtown San José, and Diridon), one ground-level station (Santa Clara), a train maintenance and storage facility (Newhall Yard and Maintenance Facility), and other additional facilities.
The BSVII Project was approved with state and federal environmental clearance in 2018. The City adopted the environmental document in July 2021. In May 2022, the Santa Clara Valley (VTA) Board of Directors voted unanimously to authorize the General Manager/CEO to award the first Contract Package for the Tunnel and Trackwork (CP2) to Kiewit Shea Traylor (KST), a Joint Venture.
The latest Station design addressed public concerns regarding the previous configuration of the Santa Clara Station, which required passengers to travel up onto an elevated concourse before going back down to the at-grade platform. The revised design of the Station allows for a ground-level station entrance and concourse, significantly simplifying the path of travel that passengers would need to follow to access the BART trains.
VTA re-engaged the City as station design advanced in 2023, bringing forward this major station configuration change.
DISCUSSION
The Santa Clara BART Station (Station) will be the end of the line for the BSVII Project, and is located at the end of Brokaw Road, just north of the railroad corridor and south of the future extension of Champions Way. A site plan of the Station is provided in Attachment 1. The station will be across the railroad tracks from Santa Clara Caltrain Station and adjacent to the under-construction Gateway Crossings transit-oriented development.
The Station design features a ground level station entrance, plaza, fare-gates, and platform. Since the last update to the Santa Clara Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Committee (BPAC) in late 2021, the Santa Clara Station design has been refined specifically to improve the pedestrian and bicycle access to the station platform, while providing a better place for the community to meet and gather. Details on the latest design of the Station are provided in the discussion below.
Station Configuration Changes
Following feedback from the community, the Station was re-designed to eliminate the need for an elevated concourse, and now includes a ground-level station entrance, faregates, and platform. A station plaza fronting Brokaw Road is also included as part of this design update. These changes were made possible through close coordination with BART who provided special considerations and design exceptions for the Newhall Yard and Maintenance Facility that is located immediately southeast of the station, thus allowing the platform to shift south. Attachment 2 includes a comparison of the prior and current paths of travel for passengers accessing the platform. As seen in Attachment 2, the prior configuration required passengers to take elevators or escalators to an elevated concourse before going back down to the ground-level platform. The current configuration eliminates the need for vertical circulation by bringing the concourse and faregates to ground level at the end of the station platform, greatly simplifying passenger access to trains.
Station Access Facilities
The Station will be accessible from the north via Brokaw Road, from the east via Champions Way, and from the south via the existing pedestrian undercrossing that connects to the Caltrain Station and Santa Clara Transit Center. The revisions to the Station’s configuration had limited impact on the access facilities that were presented to the Santa Clara BPAC in October 2021.
A description of the access facilities being provided for the Santa Clara Station are provided below. The numbers correspond to those shown in the station access map provided in Attachment 3.
1. The pedestrian ramp to Brokaw Road from the existing pedestrian undercrossing is planned to be widened and straightened.
2. A new roadway called Champions Way is planned to be constructed in conjunction with the adjacent developer. Champions Way is planned to be constructed with sidewalks, a two-way Class IV bikeway, and streetscaping. A minimum of 180 feet of curb space is planned to be provided along the station frontage to facilitate passenger pick up and drop off.
3. A two-way Class IV bikeway is planned to be provided from the pedestrian undercrossing ramp at the end of Brokaw Road to Champions Way and along the site frontage on Champions Way to connect to existing and planned bicycle facilities at the Champions Way/Wondo Way intersection. The bicycle facilities between the parking garage ramp and Wondo Way will be on-street to assist in the transition to the existing bicycle facilities.
4. The future intersection of Brokaw Road and Champions Way is planned to include high-visibility crosswalks, directional curb ramps and bike ramps, and striping.
5. The future intersection of Champions Way and the parking garage ramp is planned to provide an all-way stop controlled intersection with crosswalks. The parking garage driveway ramp is planned to be designed to provide safe pedestrian and bicycle crossings of the driveway.
6. A speed table is planned to be installed across Champions Way at Chastain Place, with high visibility crosswalks, pedestrian bulb-outs, and Rectangular Rapid Flashing Beacons.
7. Class 1 and Class 2 bike parking is planned to be provided. A total of 240 spaces is planned to be provided with 180 Class 1 and 60 Class 2 parking spaces. The contractor must identify space allocation for an additional 40 Class 2 bike rack spaces as part of their Final Design.
The Santa Clara Station has been designed consistent with VTA’s Station Access Policy, which emphasizes prioritization of pedestrians, cyclists, and transit access to stations. Multimodal connections and facilities are provided along both Brokaw Road and Champions Way, the two roadways serving the Station. A description of the facilities included for each roadway is provided below.
Champions Way
A new roadway called Champions Way will be the secondary access street to the Station. The roadway will connect to Brokaw Road (east of Costco) and Coleman Avenue. Champions Way, between Brokaw Road and the Station’s parking garage driveway, will serve as the primary access point for passenger pick-up and drop-off. Champions Way will also provide primary vehicle access to the Station parking garage.
The current design for the BSVII Project includes a proposed two-way Class IV separated bikeway (also known as “protected bike lanes”) on Champions Way between Brokaw Road and Wondo Way. This bikeway was previously updated in the BPAC update from 2021 and remains the same with the station configuration changes.
Brokaw Road
Brokaw Road is a local collector that terminates at the western end of the street where it connects to the existing pedestrian ramp that leads to the existing Santa Clara Pedestrian Underpass. The existing Santa Clara Pedestrian Underpass connects to Santa Clara’s Caltrain Station and neighborhoods on the west side of the tracks, including Santa Clara University. The BSVII Project will improve Brokaw Road between the western end of the street and Champions Way, inclusive of the intersection. Brokaw Road will become the primary entry point for all pedestrians and cyclists arriving at the station. The existing pedestrian ramp between the Santa Clara Pedestrian Underpass to Brokaw Road at the west end of the street will be straightened and widened.
The bike and pedestrian access to Brokaw Road remain the same as previously updated to the BPAC back in 2021. Brokaw Road east of Champions Way is currently being improved by the Gateway Crossings project. In this area, the street will have Class II buffered bicycle lanes, two travel lanes, and a center turn lane.
Additionally, the Station’s design includes accommodations for bicycle parking and micromobility such as scooters and bike-share.
Bicycle Parking and Micromobility
A total of 240 bicycle parking spaces will be provided at the station, of which 25 percent will be short-term and 75 percent will be long-term secure bicycle parking. Long-term bike parking (also referred to as Class 1) is appropriate for two hours to all day parking and typically protects the entire bicycle and its components from theft, vandalism, or inclement weather. Short-term bike parking (also referred to as Class 2) is typically for a duration of two hours or less and provides a mechanism to which the frame of the bicycle and at least one wheel can be secured with a user-provided U-lock or padlock and cable.
A total of 180 Class 1 secure long-term bicycle parking spaces will be provided as a combination of e-lockers at and around the Station Plaza, and a secure bike room on the northeast corner of the Station site near the front the new Station Plaza. A total of 60 bicycle parking spaces will be provided as Class 2 bicycle racks. These bicycle racks will be located adjacent to the station entrance and along Champions Way, in high foot traffic and well-lit areas but outside of the pedestrian path of travel.
Major Project Milestones
In November 2023, VTA placed an order for the Tunnel Boring Machine, which will be manufactured specifically for this Project’s needs. This represented a major milestone as it solidifies a timeline for when construction of the tunnel can commence. This past May, VTA completed 60 percent designs for the BSVII Project, allowing them to apply for Federal Transit Administration’s (FTA) New Starts Engineering phase - the final phase in the process for obtaining a Full Funding Grant Agreement (FFGA) from the FTA. The FTA evaluates proposed projects against a number of criteria to ensure that prospective grant recipients demonstrate the technical, legal, and financial capability to implement the project. On August 2, the FTA issued a letter to VTA informing them that their request for the BSVII Project to enter the New Starts Engineering phase of the FTA Capital Investment Grants (CIG) Program was approved. With that funding program milestone, the FTA committed $5,098 billion of CIG funds to BSV Phase II Project that will be provided should a FFGA be approved. The Project must still progress through further steps in the CIG program to be eligible for consideration to receive CIG funding.
Staff
Written by: Bernice Alaniz, Director of External Affairs, Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority’s (VTA) BART Silicon Valley Program
Reviewed by: Steve Chan, Transportation Manager, Public Works
Approved by: Michael Liw, Assistant Director/City Engineer, Public Works
ATTACHMENTS
1. Santa Clara BART Station Site Plan (2024)
2. Santa Clara BART Station Previous and Current Cross-Sections
3. Santa Clara BART Station Access Features Map