REPORT TO BICYCLE AND PEDESTRIAN ADVISORY COMMITTEE
SUBJECT
Title
BART Santa Clara Station (VTA)
Report
BACKGROUND
VTA’s BART Silicon Valley Phase II Extension (BSVII) 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. 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, and other additional facilities.
The BSVII Project was approved with state and federal environmental clearance in 2018. The City of Santa Clara adopted the environmental document in July 2021. VTA and the City are currently in an on-going technical process to establish a shared understanding of the basis of design of the station and are discussing project access/circulation features in collaboration with the adjacent developer.
DISCUSSION
The Santa Clara BART Station (Station) will be adjacent to the Santa Clara Caltrain Station and the future Gateway Crossings development. This Station will be the end of the line for BSVII. The Station will feature an elevated concourse with the platform at ground level, similar to the Warm Springs BART Station in the City of Fremont. The Station will include vehicle parking, bicycle facilities, pedestrian facilities, and a connection to Caltrain, Capitol Corridor, Altamont Corridor Express, and several VTA bus lines through an extension of the existing Santa Clara pedestrian undercrossing. As shown in the site map the Station will be located on a new street called Champions Way and will be bounded by Brokaw Road to the north and Champions Way to the south. See Attachment 1 for a site map.
Multi-modal connections and facilities to the Station are an important feature of the current preliminary design and planning phase. The two main streets adjacent to the Station are described below. See Attachments 2, 3, and 4 for circulation diagrams.
Champions Way
A new roadway called Champions Way will be the primary access point to the Station for all travel modes. 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, drop-off and bicyclists and pedestrians coming from the eastern side of the Caltrain tracks. Champions Way will also provide primary vehicle access to the Station parking garage. While most drivers are anticipated to access the garage from Coleman Avenue, this roadway allows drivers to also access the garage from Brokaw Road. The roadway will have local street characteristics with lower speed limits, sidewalks, and street trees.
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. The separated bikeway will be at roadway level between Brokaw Road and just north of a new street called Chastain Place. Near the Chastain Place intersection, the bikeway will transition to sidewalk level to provide a level surface for Fire truck access in front of the Station and to calm bike traffic speeds through this important pedestrian crossing. The bikeway will transition to roadway level again south of Chastain Place until it ends at Wondo Way. At the Champions Way and Wondo Way intersection, bicyclists can continue down Wondo Way or on Champions Way out to Coleman Avenue. The BSVII Project proposes that this intersection be an all-way stop with intersection markings to transition bicyclists from the two-way separated bikeway to Class II buffered bike lanes on Wondo Way and the Class III bike route with sharrows (shared lane markings) on Champions Way between Wondo Way and Coleman Avenue.
The BSVII Project also proposes to install wide sidewalks along Champions Way in front of the Station area. Passenger and ADA pick-up and drop-off will be provided along Champions Way. A passenger waiting area will also be provided along the pick-up and drop-off zones. Pedestrians will cross the two-way protected bikeway along Champions Way to access the sidewalk and Station frontage. A new mixed-use development with retail and residential uses (also known as Gateway Crossings) is currently being constructed directly across from the Station. Pedestrians will be able to cross at Champions Way and Chastain Place or at Champions Way and Brokaw Road. The BSVII Project proposes that a Rectangular Rapid Flashing Beacon (RRFB) be installed at the Champions Way and Chastain Place intersection to encourage vehicles to yield to pedestrians in the crosswalk as a flashing beacon will light up when the pedestrian button is pushed. Finally, an all-way stop is proposed for the intersection of Champions Way and Brokaw Road.
Brokaw Road
The BSVII Project will improve Brokaw Road between the western end of the street and Champions Way, inclusive of the intersection. Brokaw Road will provide one of the main connection points to the Station for bicyclists and pedestrians. 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 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 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 BSVII Project proposes to narrow Brokaw Road to expand the frontage on the southern side of the street to provide enhanced pedestrian and bicycle facilities as well as some landscaping, inclusive of a two-way Class IV separated bikeway. As proposed, Brokaw Road will allow for emergency and limited-service access. Brokaw Road will be raised to be level with the frontage from the south side of the street. Then it will gradually slope to meet the existing northern curb to provide a curb on the north side of the street for added separation between the roadway and the sidewalk. Given that Brokaw Road is an important connection to the Santa Clara Caltrain Station, the Project prioritizes Brokaw Road as primarily a pedestrian and bicycle connection with limited vehicular access to the west of Champions Way.
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.
Bicycle Parking and Micromobility
At the Station, both short-term and long-term secure bicycle parking will be provided. 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.
Class 1 secure long-term bicycle parking will be constructed as a combination of e-lockers on the Station plaza and a secure bike room on the northeast corner of the Station site on Champions Way. Class 2 bicycle racks will be located both in the paid area of the Station and on the Station plaza in high foot traffic and well-lit areas but outside of the pedestrian path of travel. Bicycle parking at the Station will be provided in the quantities shown in Table 1 below.
Table 1: Santa Clara Station Bicycle Parking on Opening Day
|
Station |
Total Bike Parking |
Class 1: Locker Spaces or Bike Station Spaces1 |
Class 2: Rack Spaces 1, 2 |
|
Santa Clara |
240 |
180 |
60 |
1. Class I spaces comprise 75% of the total bike parking, and Class 2 spaces comprise 25%.
2. Note that with a typical inverted U-rack or staple rack, one rack provides two bike parking spaces.
The City of Santa Clara is currently in the process of creating a shared mobility program to support shared bicycles and scooters (i.e. examples of micromobility). Micromobility, as a general subject, refers to a range of small, lightweight vehicles operating at speeds typically below 25 km/h and driven by users personally. Micromobility devices include bicycles, e-bikes, electric scooters, electric skateboards, shared bicycles, and electric pedal assisted bicycles. To prepare for potential future shared mobility uses in Santa Clara, the BSVII Project has preliminarily designated a micromobility parking area near the Station along Champions Way that remains flexible to allow for adjustments based on emerging technology and parking needs. The BSVII Project team will work with permitted operators, VTA, and local agencies on siting convenient parking locations that are out of the way of the pedestrian path of travel. The BSVII Project team will also work with permitted operators to establish a geofence at the selected location to ensure that scooters or bikes are parked in the correct locations. See Attachment 5 for recommended bicycle and micromobility parking locations.
Currently, the BSVII Project is in the early planning stages. The BPAC is encouraged to provide comments for staff consideration.
Staff
Written by: Bernice Alaniz, Director of External Affairs, Valley Transportation Authority’s (VTA) BART Silicon Valley Program, VTA
Reviewed by: Carol Shariat, Principal Transportation Planner, Public Works
Reviewed by: Jonathan Yee, Transportation Manager, Public Works
Approved by: Michael Liw, Assistant Director/City Engineer, Public Works
ATTACHMENTS
1. Santa Clara Station Site Map
2. Pedestrian Circulation
3. Passenger Loading
4. Bicycle Circulation
5. Proposed Bicycle and Micromobility Parking Locations