RICHMOND PARKWAY Transportation Plan

Study funded by Caltrans Sustainable Communities Grant

ADOPTED PLANFEBRUARY 2025

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

Study funded by Caltrans Sustainable Communities Grant #74A1366

West Contra Costa Transportation Commission (WCCTC)

WCCTC Staff

Leah Greenblat John Nemeth Coire Reilly

WCCTC Board

Rita Xavier, Chair Anthony Tave, Vice Chair Chris Kelley Eduardo Martinez Paul Fadelli Jovanka Beckles Rebecca Saltzman Tom Hansen John Gioia Soheila Bana, Alternate Doria Robinson, Alternate Claudia Jimenez, Alternate Chris Peeples, Alternate Cesar Zepeda, Former

Public Advisory Group

Port of Richmond

Lucy Zhou Lizeht Zepeda

Richmond Neighborhood Coordinating Council

Arto Rintella

Trails for Richmond Action Committee

Bruce Beyaert

Urban Tilth

Latifah Abdullah

Watershed Project

Juliana Gonzalez Naama Raz-Yaseef

Groundwork Richmond

Salma Berumen Sarah Calderon

Project Team

Fehr & Peers

Karina Schneider, AICP Carrie Modi, AICP Amy Deng Gaby Picado-Aguilar Minnie Chen

ESA

Beverly Choi Shannon Wages Stephanie Cadena

NCE

Ryan Shafer, PE, GE Myles Goins, PE

Robert Prinz Dani Lanis

North Richmond Municipal Advisory Council

Don Gilmore

Community HousingDevelopmentCorporation

Darrell Davis

Bay Area Outreach and Recreation Program

Emily Seelenfreund

California Trucking

Bernice Creager

Technical Advisory Committee

City of Richmond*

Daniel Chavarria

Robert Armijo

Hillal Hamdan

Lina Velasco

Hector Rojas, Former

Denee Evans, Former

Contra Costa County*

Emily Warming, Public Health

Daniel Barrios, Conservation and

Development

Adam Scarbrough Conservation and Development

Jamar Stamps, Transportation Planning Samantha Harris, Transportation Planning Sonia Bustamante, Supervisor Gioia’s Office Tania Pulido, Supervisor Gioia’s Office

Contra Costa Transportation Authority

Matt Kelly Stephanie Hu Hisham Noeimi

Metropolitan Transportation Commission

Lee Huo

Michelle Go

Dee Dohm

Caltrans

Issa Ibrahimi

Becky Frank

Bay Area Air Quality Management District

Samuel De Perio Garcia

East Bay RegionalParks District

Sean Dougan

West CountyWastewater DistrictLosenh Neugebauer

City of San Pablo Allan Panganiban

City of Pinole

Faby Guillen Kapil Amin Sanjay Mishra, Former Misha Kaur, Former

AC Transit

Jim Cunradi Michael Eshleman WestCAT

Robert ThompsonFinn Wurtz

BART

Rachel Factor

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Click on a chapter to navigate to its corresponding page.

1. Introduction … 5

2. Existing Conditions … 11

3. Engagement … 35

4.Strategies … 47

5. Priority Strategies … 57

6. Implementation and Funding … 81

APPENDICES

Appendix A: Community Engagement Summary Notes … 91

Appendix B: Overview of Regional Influence … 117

Appendix C: Plan Strategies Goals Alignment … 121

Appendix D: Separated Bikeway 35% Design Concept and Cost Estimate for Northern Segment of Richmond Parkway … 129

Appendix E: Existing Funding Sources for Priority Strategies … 141

Appendix F: Priority Strategy Cost Estimates … 149

FIGURES

Figure 1: Plan Timeline … 7

Figure 2: Jurisdictions in Study Area … 8

Figure 3: Map of Study Corridor … 9

Figure 4: Corridor Population Characteristics … 12

Figure 5: Map of Equity Priority Areas in Study Area … 13

Figure 6: KSI Collisions by Year, 2011-2020 … 14

Figure 7: Map of 85th Percentile 7PM-6AM Weekday Speeds … 16

Figure 8: Map of KSI Collisions … 17

Figure 9: Map of High Injury Networks … 19

Figure 10: Map of Existing and Proposed Bikeways … 21

Figure 11: Map of Slowdowns During 7-9AM and 4-6PM Peak Periods … 24

Figure 12: Map of Northbound Daily Truck Distribution … 26

Figure 13: Map of Southbound Daily Truck Distribution … 27

Figure 14: Map of Pollution Burden in Study Area … 29

Figure 15: Map of Asthma Rate in Study Area … 31

Figure 16: Map of Transit Routes in Study Area … 33

Figure 17: Map of Richmond Parkway Transit Center Existing Conditions … 34

Figure 18: Distribution of Need-Related Topics Heard … 41

Figure 19: Distribution of Draft Strategy Category Votes … 45

Figure 20: Top Five Priority Strategies Survey Ranking … 46

Figure 21: Strategy Categories … 48

Figure 22: Goals Alignment Ranking … 49

Figure 23: Map of Existing Designated Truck Routes … 60

Figure 24: Intersection Safety Recommendations … 65

Figure 25: Intersection Safety Recommendations (Cont.) … 66

Figure 26: Sidewalk Gaps and Recommended Bikeways … 71

Figure 27: Proposed Signalized Crossing at Wildcat Creek Trail … 73

TABLES

Table 1: Qualitative Goal Alignment Metrics … 49

Table 2: Full List of Strategies … 50

Table 3: Priority Strategies … 58

Table 4: Priority Strategies Implementation Plan … 82

Table 5: Priority Strategies Implementation Next Steps … 84

CHAPTER 1 Introduction

ABOUT THIS PLAN

THE RICHMOND PARKWAY TRANSPORTATION PLAN (“PLAN”) DEVELOPS A STRATEGIC VISION FOR THE FUTURE OF THIS MAJOR MULTI-JURISDICTIONAL ROADWAY BETWEEN I-580 AND I-80, EXTENDING TO FITZGERALD AVENUE.

The focus of the plan is a set of targeted strategies for WCCTC and partner agencies to advance in the next 10 years. The strategies were developed in close collaboration with project partners, technical advisors, and members of the public and are responsive to both the Plan-identified transportation needs (summarized in Chapter 2) and feedback received via public engagement (summarized in Chapter 3). The strategies (summarized in Chapter 4) are projects, programs, and policies that collectively aim to address the following six goals of the Plan:

Plan Goals

IMPROVE SAFETY FOR ALL USERS

ADVANCE PLACEMAKING

INCREASE ACCESS TO KEY DESTINATIONS

ENHANCE TRAVEL TIME RELIABILITY AND EFFICIENCY

IMPROVE HEALTH

SUPPORT FEASIBLE STRATEGIES

Of the full list of strategies, ten are considered priority strategies for WCCTC and partner agencies to implement. These priority strategies best align with the Plan goals and reflect engagement participant preferences. The priority strategies are described in Chapter 5, including the lead implementation agency, goals alignment, benefits, and graphics of the top strategies. Chapter 6 introduces the implementation time frame and funding sources for the priority strategies.

Figure 1 shows the project timeline, which spanned nearly two years between March 2023 and January 2025.

History of Richmond Parkway

The Richmond Parkway was completed in the 1990s to serve as a regional arterial route. However, the facility has not been adopted into the State Highway System. Based on a study completed by CCTA in 2008, it would cost between $140M and 400M(2024) to upgrade the corridor to Caltrans standards and transfer ownership to the state.

THE STUDY AREA

Richmond Parkway is a major road linking I-80 and I-580 and a primary route connecting to the the Richmond-San Rafael Bridge. The Parkway is located in both the City of Richmond and unincorporated Contra Costa County (North Richmond), as shown in Figure 2. Combined with Castro Street, a parallel roadway at the southern end of the corridor, the study corridor is approximately nine miles in length. At the northeastern end in the City of Pinole, Richmond Parkway becomes Fitzgerald Avenue.

It serves many functions of regional and local importance: a goods movement (truck and rail) corridor connecting to the Port of Richmond and local industrial uses, a regional commuter corridor, a critical segment of the San Francisco Bay Trail—a 500-mile long regional walking and biking path network looping around San Francisco Bay—and a connector to the Richmond Parkway Transit Center served by AC Transit and WestCAT.

Richmond Parkway and Castro Street travel through the City of Richmond and unincorporated Contra Costa County for

9 MILES.

A third of the corridor is adjacent to the Bay Trail.

Richmond Parkway intersects Wildcat Creek and is adjacent to several nearby schools and parks, including Point Pinole Regional Park. As shown in Figure 3, industrial land uses line most of the corridor, particularly along Castro Street and along the Parkway in North Richmond. The Parkway also serves residential areas in Atchison Village, Iron Triangle, North Richmond, and nearby Hilltop. As new industrial and residential growth continues along the Parkway, this Plan presents an opportunity to design for better corridor access and mobility before existing challenges are exacerbated.

CHAPTER 2

Existing Conditions

This chapter introduces how Richmond Parkway is used today and the wide range of existing challenges for all types of users. On average, 25,000 vehicles use the Parkway every day to reach local destinations, including as a connection between I-580 and I-80 and to the Richmond-San Rafael Bridge. Residents living near the corridor are largely Hispanic/Latino with lower incomes and are exposed to the large volumes of traffic, vehicle emissions, pollution, and noise. Despite the availability of the Bay Trail, many sections can feel uncomfortable for pedestrians and bicyclists, particularly when crossing the Parkway. Speeding is a major concern and is the most common collision factor.

CORRIDOR COMMUNITIES

Compared to the Contra Costa County population as a whole, residents living in the study area tend to have higher rates of unemployment and lower education attainment, as seen in Figure 4. The majority of residents living near the corridor are Hispanic/Latino, 16% have limited English proficiency, and nearly 38% are below the federal poverty level (US Census, ACS 5-Year Estimates, 2019).

Overall, these groups have less access to opportunities and are at greater risk of displacement (ESA, 2023; Urban

Displacement Project, 2015). Given that people living near the study corridor reflect demographics of historically underserved populations, most census tracts within the study area fall within regionally or federally-defined equity priority areas, including MTC Equity Priority Communities, USDOT Historically Disadvantaged Communities, and USDOT Areas of Persistent Poverty (Figure 5). Chapter 3 presents outreach methods for engaging historically marginalized populations during the planning process.

Source: Fehr & Peers (2023); MTC (2018), USDOT (2021).

SAFETY FOR ALL ROAD USERS

Collisions on the Parkway

From 2011 to 2020, there were 322 traffic collisions on the corridor that resulted in injury, including 46 Killed and Severe Injury (KSI) collisions. Of these KSI collisions, 21 resulted in a severe injury and 25 resulted in a fatality (Transportation Injury Mapping System (TIMS), 2011-2020). This is an average of 4-5 KSI collisions per year, and collisions are increasing—between 2011 and 2017, there was an average of 3 KSI collisions per year, however, the average jumped to 9 between 2018 and 2020 (Figure 6).

There were increases in KSI collisions involving unsafe speeds, traffic signal and sign violations, driving under the influence, and driver violations of the pedestrian right-of-way. Concentrations of collisions occur in areas along the corridor that have higher intersection density, near railroad crossings, and at major arterials where there is more interaction between vehicles and Bay Trail users. Considering these locations for redesign can reduce collisions and are considered in Strategies (Chapter 4).

Source: TIMS, 2011-2020

Unsafe Speeds

Unsafe speed is the most common primary collision factor making up 45% of all injury collisions and 28% of KSI collisions. The next most common factors in KSI collisions are failure to obey traffic signals and signs (15%) and driver violations of the pedestrian right-of-way (15%).

Although the posted speed limit on the Parkway is typically 45 miles per hour (mph), most of the corridor sees off-peak 85th percentile speeds over 50 miles per hour as shown in Figure 7 (Wejo, 2019). The maximum observed speeds during this period rise to nearly 100 mph along the elevated segment of the Parkway between North Richmond and Hilltop.

Nighttime Collisions

While only 32% of all injury collisions occurred at night, 52% of all KSI collisions and 75% of pedestrian KSI collisions occurred in dark conditions. Although existing street lights were reported at most of these KSI collision locations, reducing unsafe speeds and improving pedestrian-scale lighting and crosswalk striping could address these types of collisions.

Bicyclists and Pedestrians

KSI collision locations are shown in Figure 8. Although bicycle and pedestrian collisions represent only 6% of all injury collisions, they make up 20% of all KSI collisions and 24% of fatal collisions, highlighting the safety disparity for more vulnerable bicyclists and pedestrians along the corridor. Studies show that for vulnerable users, collisions have a higher likelihood of serious injury or death, particularly at high speeds.

of collisions on the Parkway are caused by unsafe speed.

24%

of fatal collisions on the Parkway involved a bicyclist or a pedestrian compared to only 6% of all injury collisions.

Contra Costa County Vision Zero FINAL REPORT

Contra Costa Countywide Transportation Safety Policy and Implementation Guide

LOCAL ROADWAY SAFETY PLAN

Previous Safety Studies

The Contra Costa Transportation Authority (CCTA) Contra Costa Countywide Transportation Safety Policy and Implementation Guide (2021), Contra Costa County Vision Zero (2022), and City of Richmond Local Roadway Safety Plan (2022) have all identified Richmond Parkway as a corridor on the High-Injury Network (HIN).

This means that Richmond Parkway sees higher concentrations of KSI collisions as compared to other areas of Richmond and Contra Costa County. However, Castro Street is not included on the HIN. Figure 9 maps the HIN of each agency.

Source: Contra Costa Transportation Authority (2021); Contra Costa County (2022); City of Richmond (2022).

BIKING AND WALKING

Poor pavement quality, gaps, proximity to fast-moving traffic, long infrequent pedestrian crossings, and lack of shade, lighting, signage, and vegetation buffers make Richmond Parkway unwelcoming to walk or bike on today. There is a range of opportunities to improve the comfort of people using the Bay Trail, bikeways, sidewalks, and crossings.

The Bay Trail

The Bay Trail is a critical regional path that generally traverses the Parkway’s west side from the southern end to Goodrick Avenue in North Richmond. The Bay Trail is on the east side of the corridor between Hensley Street and Gertrude Avenue, and the City of Richmond has proposed to realign this section to the west side for better connectivity. While the Bay Trail connects users to destinations like Point Pinole, Point Richmond, and beyond, there are few crossing locations and they lack basic safety enhancements. Many

parts of the Bay Trail along the study corridor are in need of repair, with cracked and uneven pavement and overgrown landscaping. Regular maintenance to remove trash and vegetative overgrowth to improve user experience is needed. The Bay Trail also has limited lighting, wayfinding signage, and shade, and a narrow or nonexistent buffer from fast-moving traffic on the Parkway. The Bay Trail also connects to Wildcat Creek Trail, which crosses beneath the Parkway and floods several times throughout the year.

Biking and Walking Experience along the Parkway

Poor Bay Trail pavement quality

Limited shade in hot conditions

Trail gaps force people onto high-stress routes like Hensley Street

Small buffer between sidewalk and fast traffic

Lack of trail lighting

No signage indicating shared-use path

Inconsistent buffer between bike trail and roadway

Missing sidewalks near more active land uses

Source: Fehr & Peers (2023); Richmond BPAP (2023); Contra Costa County ATP (2022); CCTA Countywide Bicycle and Pedestrian Plan (2018)

Closing the Gaps

There are also several gaps in the bikeway and walkway infrastructure on the corridor. Figure 10 (previous page) identifies the existing and proposed bikeways. There are currently about three miles of bikeway gaps along the Parkway where there are no plans for the Bay Trail and no bicycle facilities exist. Though there are no active fronting land uses consistently across

miles of new bikeways are needed.

67%

of intersections along the Parkway are missing pedestrian countdown signals.

the corridor, there are 2.6 miles of sidewalk gaps on the west side of the corridor and 3.4 miles on the east side.

Safety at Intersections

Most intersections are large in size with curb radii that enable turns at high speeds and make for long pedestrian and bicycle crossing distances.

About 70% of the signalized intersections do not have bicycle detection and 65% are missing pedestrian countdown timers, leaving pedestrians unsure of how much time is left to safely cross the street. Both bicycle detection and pedestrian countdown timers are state requirements per the California Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices (MUTCD).

These gaps in pedestrian and bikeway infrastructure along the corridor are critical to address given safety and speeding concerns along the corridor.

Example Safety Improvement Needs

Bent crosswalks

Corner sight distance issues

ADA non-compliant ramps

Outdated push buttons

Faded markings

High vehicle turn speeds

DRIVING AND GOODS MOVEMENT

Richmond Parkway is a major road linking I-80 and I-580 and serves industrial truck traffic, regional commuters, and local trips. The Parkway carries between 19,000 and 37,000 vehicles every weekday, 7% of which are trucks. Truck volumes are highest along the southern section of Richmond Parkway and Castro Street, ranging between 5%-13% of total daily vehicle volumes. Truck volumes on San Pablo Avenue in Contra Costa County, a comparable arterial, range only between 2%-3% of total daily volumes (Caltrans, 2022). Many of these vehicle and truck trips serve regional destinations along the corridor, such as the Contra Costa Landfill, UPS and Amazon distribution centers, Whole Foods Market Food Distribution Center, and the Chevron Refinery.

Speeds and Signals

Along most of the corridor, signals are not coordinated. This negatively impacts air quality and does not optimize vehicle flow. Slowdowns are worst in the northbound

direction in the afternoon commute period with average speeds around 30 mph as shown in Figure 11 (Wejo, 2019). The slowest segment is north of the Castro Street and Richmond Parkway merge where speeds are less than 25 mph for nearly a mile. To keep traffic moving, green times along the Parkway can be 30 seconds longer compared to other signals in Richmond, which results in more delay for all users entering or crossing the Parkway. Travel times are expected to double in the future, given planned and anticipated growth along the corridor. On average, traffic volumes are expected to grow about 50%-60% by 2040.

Up to

vehicles take the Parkway on weekdays.

of vehicles are trucks.

Photo: Congestion causing queue spillover at San Pablo Avenue and and Richmond Parkway.

Travel Patterns

Drivers typically use the Parkway for trips that start or end in the study area rather than as a freeway-to-freeway connector. In the afternoon peak period, less than a third of northbound car drivers travel from the I-580 interchange and get onto I-80 (Streetlight, 2022). This pattern is similar for daily truck trips.

Over 60% of trucks getting onto the Parkway from I-80 or I-580 travel to destinations along the corridor. These destinations are often sources of regional economic activity and services, and include the aforementioned distribution centers, landfill and recycling yards,

hazardous waste disposal plants, water reclaim plants, and more. For northbound trucks that stop along the corridor, the most popular destinations are in North Richmond via Parr Boulevard, Pittsburgh Avenue, and Hensley Street, as shown in Figure 12. Southbound truck trips are more dispersed, with 21% continuing on to the Port of Richmond as shown in Figure 13.

Photo: Truck turning close to the sidewalk at Atlas Road and Richmond Parkway.

Existing Conditions | 25

PUBLIC HEALTH

Local and regional sources of pollution, noise, and increasing threat from climate change hazards affect public health and environmental quality for communities along the corridor.

Pollution

Diesel particulate matter (diesel PM), is a carcinogenic air contaminant produced by the exhaust of trucks, trains, ships, and equipment with diesel engines. Given the industrial and goods movement uses along Richmond Parkway, diesel PM concentrations near the corridor range from 0.08 to 0.98 tons per year. This is greater than 78% of communities statewide (California Office of Health Hazard Assessment, 2021).

Some census tracts adjacent to Richmond Parkway have diesel particulate matter concentrations higher than

78%

of all census tracts in California.

Climate

Increasing concentrations of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions are the primary cause of global warming. This change in the earth’s climate systems will increase the severity, frequency, and duration of climate hazards, including extreme heat, wildfire, drought, and sea level rise. Forecasts anticipate up to 12 inches of sea level rise by 2050, and 36 inches by 2100, directly affecting the area west of the corridor (Adapting to Rising Tides, Bay Area Sea Level Rise Analysis and Mapping Project, 2017). This would increase flood risk, affecting roadways, property, utilities and critical infrastructure, emergency services, and evacuations.

Vulnerable populations and neighborhoods subject to GHG emissions will be disproportionately affected by climate change, including people of color, children, seniors, individuals with disabilities, and households without access to a vehicle (Contra Costa County Local Hazard Mitigation Plan, 2018; Fehr and Peers, 2023; ESA, 2023). The burden of pollution can be visualized through the CalEnviroScreen tool, as shown in Figure 14.

Source: California Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (2021).

Health Impacts

Poor environmental conditions contribute to public health issues, including asthma, cardiovascular disease, cancer, and low birth weight. The highest rates of asthma attacks based on Emergency Room admissions near the corridor are in North Richmond and the Iron Triangle neighborhood.

The asthma rate in Iron Triangle is greater than 99% of other census tracts statewide, and North Richmond’s rate is greater than 98% of other census tracts statewide as shown in Figure 15 (California Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment, 2021).

Iron Triangle has an asthma rate higher than

+99%

of all census tracts in California.

TRANSIT SERVICE

Limited transit service operates on the corridor. Although there are 11 local and regional routes, they only travel on the northern and southern sections of the Parkway, including at the Richmond Parkway Transit Center (RPTC), but none run along the full length of the corridor. Study area routes and community destinations like schools, hospitals, and supermarkets are shown in Figure 16. Many transit routes that serve corridor residents run through residential neighborhoods and to community destinations instead of directly on the Parkway, which has fewer active uses.

9%

of households in the study area do not own a car, compared to 5% across Contra Costa County.

Bus Connections

About 28% of total morning peak period trips starting in the study area use the Richmond-San Rafael Bridge in the westbound direction. While there are several bus routes that take riders north and south of Richmond, there is only one route that takes riders across the Richmond-San Rafael Bridge: the Golden Gate Transit 580 Route that stops at Tewksbury Avenue and Castro Street. Today, there are limited connections between the study area and this bus stop via the 607 and 72M. The 607 is a school route with only one run on weekdays, and the 72M only connects residents living in the southern portion of the corridor. Many lines run about every 30 minutes, providing limited service to hospitals, supermarkets, and connections like the Richmond BART station.

Richmond Parkway Transit Center

The RPTC includes a park-and-ride lot and serves five AC Transit and three WestCat bus routes that connect West County communities to Richmond, Hercules, San Pablo, El Cerrito, and Downtown San Francisco. However, the layout of the Transit Center requires several minutes of diversion time, which adds up to over 13,000 annual rider hours for WestCAT express routes. There is also limited bicycle and pedestrian infrastructure connecting to the transit center as shown in Figure 17.

Source: Richmond Parkway Transit Center Existing Conditions Review (AC Transit, 2011); Fehr & Peers (2023).

CHAPTER 3 Engagement

A robust community engagement process provided critical input to the Plan’s recommendations. This chapter summarizes the stakeholder groups, engagement methods, and feedback received. Appendix A contains the engagement approach and feedback summaries.

STAKEHOLDER GROUPS

WCCTC engaged a variety of stakeholder groups, ranging from project partners who will help deliver the Plan’s recommendations to members of the public. Key stakeholder groups were:

General Public

Residents and users of the Parkway were reached through in-person and online activities. To ensure engagement from marginalized residents living within the study area, in-person methods focused on presenting at community meetings and tabling at events/pop-ups in adjacent neighborhoods, including North Richmond, Parchester Village, and Iron Triangle. To get the word out, opportunities were advertised through social media ads and flyers and engagement information was distributed to all members of the WCCTC Board,

PAG, and Technical Advisory Committee. Because over 48% of people living in the area speak Spanish at home, Spanish-speaking staff attended each pop-up event and interactive boards, flyers, and social media ads were translated into Spanish. Online engagement was conducted through an online platform that enabled translation into any language.

Public Advisory Group (PAG)

The PAG served as community liaisons to review and confirm the Public Engagement Plan, share information with community members, and provide input on the strategies. The Public Advisory Group consisted of representatives from the Port of Richmond, Richmond

Neighborhood Coordinating Council, Trails for Richmond Action Committee, Urban Tilth, Watershed Project, Groundwork Richmond, Bike East Bay, North Richmond Municipal Advisory Council, Community Housing Development Corporation, Bay Area Outreach and Recreation Program, and the California Trucking Association. Four PAG meetings were convened through the process.

WCCTC Board

The Board was continually updated throughout the project and provided strategic direction on the Plan. Board members consisted of elected officials representing the cities of Hercules, Pinole, Richmond, San Pablo, and El Cerrito, as well as AC Transit, BART, WestCAT, and Contra Costa County.

Project Partners

WCCTC partnered with the City of Richmond and Contra Costa County to deliver this Plan. Project partners participated in project management team meetings on a bi-weekly basis and were involved in key decisions throughout the study. Their feedback is foundational to this Plan, as agencies that operate the local right-of-way will ultimately deliver many of the strategies and recommendations included in this Plan.

Technical Advisory Committee (TAC)

The Technical Advisory Committee (TAC) facilitated coordination among various agencies and organizations, allowing key stakeholders to provide input and technical guidance. The TAC included representatives from the cities of Hercules, Pinole, Richmond, and San Pablo, as well as AC Transit, BART, WestCAT, Contra Costa County, the Metropolitan Transportation Commission, the East Bay Regional Parks District, and the West County Wastewater District.

ENGAGEMENT SUMMARY

The public engagement plan was developed with input from the PAG. After the first engagement phase was completed, the PAG confirmed the rest of the engagement plan was on-track.

Engagement efforts resulted in…

1. Understand Needs

The first engagement phase focused on identifying needs and vision for the Parkway and confirming understanding of existing challenges and experiences using the Richmond Parkway.

Pop-Up Engagement

● August 6, 2023: North Richmond Flea Market (North Richmond)

● August 10, 2023: Thrive Thursdays (Coronado)

● August 19, 2023: Walmart(Hilltop)

Community Meetings

● September 5, 2023: North Richmond Municipal Advisory Council

● September 12, 2023: Parchester Village Neighborhood Council

● September 20, 2023: Iron Triangle Neighborhood Council

Online Webmap

● June 15 through September 4, 2023

PAG Meetings

● June 8, 2023

● September 21, 2023

WCCTC Board Meetings

● May 26, 2023

● September 29, 2023

2. Explore Strategies

Then, stakeholders provided input on draft strategies responding to identified needs and issues. Community priorities for solutions were identified.

Pop-Up Engagement

● March 24, 2024: North Richmond Flea Market

● April 20, 2024: North Richmond’s Earth Day Festival

Community Meetings

● March 12, 2024: Parchester Village Neighborhood Council

● April 2, 2024: North Richmond Municipal Advisory Council

● April 6, 2024: City of Richmond District 2

● April 17, 2024: Iron Triangle Neighborhood Council

Online Survey

● March 11 through April 29, 2024

PAG Meeting

● February 22, 2024

WCCTC Board Meeting

● March 22, 2024

3. Refine Solutions

Comments on the priority strategies and Draft Plan were collected.

Public Draft Online Survey

● November 4th through November 29th, 2024

PAG Meeting

● October 9, 2024

WCCTC Board Meeting

● October 25, 2024

Richmond Council Meeting

● November 19, 2024

Contra Costa County Board of Supervisors Transportation, Water, and Infrastructure Committee (TWIC)

● December 9, 2024

PHASE 1: UNDERSTAND NEEDS

To kick off the Plan, WCCTC asked participants to share their challenges and experiences using the Richmond Parkway via an online webmap of the corridor and by providing input in-person. Participants provided feedback on experiences related to safety, public health, transit, biking and walking, and vehicles and goods movement.

Photo of Phase 1 pop-up at North Richmond Flea Market, 2024, and images of Phase 1 online webmap and social media ads.

What We Heard

Respondents cited safety as their top concern, particularly related to speeding along the Parkway. Nearly a third of all responses related to biking and walking, a majority of which noted comfort and safety challenges while using the Parkway and the Bay Trail. Biking and walking comments also indicated concerns about existing infrastructure, such as missing sidewalks and curb ramps and poor accessibility to trails. Participants also brought up peak period congestion

throughout the corridor, with specific issues at intersections like San Pablo Avenue, Giant Road, and Castro Street. Maintenance was an important theme, specifically concerning deteriorating pavement, illegal dumping, and overgrown trees. The distribution of need-related topics heard can be seen in Figure 18.

Feedback on needs and desired improvements was used as a basis for the development of draft strategies presented in Chapter 4.

“Walking across the Parkway is super scary.”

“The stretch where Parkway opens up from 2 lanes to 4 is crazy! It turns into a speedway!”

“Making the Parkway look like it’s being cared for will go a long way towards making people feel safe.”

“It’s a deadly rat race road that I prefer not to drive on anymore.”

Note: Percentages add up to more than 100% due to the open-ended nature of comments received. More than one topic could be discussed in each comment.

PHASE 2: EXPLORE STRATEGIES

A list of over 30 strategies, organized into six different overarching topics, was developed to address the issues previously identified through existing conditions analysis, existing plans and policies, and engagement. Stakeholders reviewed each strategy and provided a sense of relative priority.

Strategy Categories

Public Health

Strategies that reduce neighborhood truck traffic and reduce or mitigate vehicle emissions.

Safety

Strategies that reduce speeding and expand emergency vehicle access.

Walking and Biking

Strategies that improve walking and biking experience on the Richmond Parkway and the Bay Trail.

Driving and Goods Movement

Strategies that address congestion and improve wayfinding.

Maintenance

Strategies that address corridor and trail maintenance and illegal dumping.

Transit

Strategies that address transit reliability, service, comfort, and access.

In this phase of engagement, participants were asked to provide feedback on the draft strategies. Participants ranked strategies via an online survey, in-person verbally, or in-person on interactive boards. Participants could also provide open-ended feedback on the draft strategies or suggest strategies that they felt were missing. Since the Parkway is also a regional facility serving a broader community whose preferred solutions may look different from residents living along the corridor, it was important to supplement the results of digital engagement strategy with in-person feedback from nearby residents.

Categories of Strategies

What categories of solutions are you most interested in? Please select at least two (2). Required

Walking and Biking

Driving and Goods Movement

Safety

Public Health

Maintenance

Transit

Photo of Phase 2 pop-up at North Richmond Flea Market, 2024.

Safety

The Safety category includes draft strategies aimed at improving safety for all roadway users on the Parkway.

Click here to see example images of the strategies below.

Please rank the four (4) Safety strategies in order of preference from greatest to least. Required

S-1 Install safety improvements at intersections along the Parkway, such as high-visibility crosswalks and curb bulb-outs

S-2 Deploy an Emergency Vehicle Preemption and Transit Priority system at signalized intersections

S-3 Implement measures to reduce speeding and lower the speed limit

S-4 Install physical treatments to prevent misuse of right turn lane

S-5 Install intersection monitoring systems for speeding, red light running, etc. at high-risk intersections

What We Heard

Figure 19 summarizes the pop-up and online survey results, and highlights the top strategy categories identified. The top four draft strategy categories were public health, safety, maintenance, and walking and biking. Top strategies were ranked within each category based on the level of support.

The top strategy categories differed between online survey respondents and pop-up participants. Pop-up participants more strongly represented Equity Priority Communities living along the corridor compared to online survey respondents, who represented the broader community of regional Parkway users. Almost half of pop-up interactions occurred in Spanish. Pop-up participants ranked public health as the top strategy, followed by maintenance and safety, while online respondents ranked

walking and biking as their top strategy, followed by safety and maintenance.

Public health strategies that received the most support were strategies restricting trucks from driving through neighborhoods and parking or idling near sensitive land uses, as well as the strategy to mitigate emissions through urban greening. Safety strategies, particularly measures to reduce speeding and address high risk intersections, were desired. Under maintenance, strategies addressing ongoing roadway maintenance and illegal dumping received support from all audiences. Popular strategies related to walking and biking included upgrading on-street bikeways and sidewalks and constructing a new crossing for Wildcat Creek Trail.

Feedback received during this phase confirmed the responsiveness of draft strategies to community needs and identified the top strategies for implementation.

Strategies in the highest-ranking categories were given greater consideration during the identification of Priority Strategies described in Chapter 5.

Online Survey Votes by Category¹

Public Health, Maintenance, Safety, and Walking & Biking were the most popular strategy categories.

Public Health

Maintenance

Safety

Walking and Biking

Transit

Driving and Goods Movement

1. Survey respondents skew more white and more wealthy than residents living along the Parkway.

Note: Pop-Up events were held on March 24, 2024 and April 20, 2024. The Online Survey was open from March 11 through April 29, 2024.

PHASE 3: REFINE SOLUTIONS

A subset of ten priority strategies were identified based on their ability to fulfill the Plan’s six goals outlined in Chapter 1, issues identified in Chapter 2, and feedback from previous community engagement phases. Details about the priority strategies can be found in Chapter 5.

In this phase of engagement, the Draft Plan was disseminated to the public, project partners, PAG, TAC, WCCTC Board, Richmond City Council, and the Contra Costa County Board of Supervisors Transportation, Water, and Infrastructure Committee. In an online survey, participants were asked to provide feedback on the responsiveness of all the strategies to participant needs and which priority strategy they wanted to see advanced first. Participants could also provide open-ended feedback on the Draft Plan. The ranking of community priority strategies is listed in Figure 20.

Feedback heard during the PAG and public meetings confirmed the importance of implementing the priority strategies in response to existing needs and challenges along the corridor, while also identifying sources of funding that acknowledge the regional benefit of the Parkway. The regional-serving nature of the Parkway is described in Appendix B.

The feedback on the Draft Plan was incorporated into the Final Draft Plan, which was recirculated to project partners. The adoption of the Final Plan by WCCTC, the City of Richmond, and Contra Costa County is expected to occur in early 2025. Social media ads will be used to share the Final Plan.

Upgrade bikeways and connect sidewalk gaps

S-1 11 VOTES

Safety improvements at intersections

PH-2 8 VOTES

Trees and green infrastructure

S-2 7 VOTES

Reduce speeding

M-1 7 VOTES

Implement cross-jurisdictional maintenance program

92% of survey respondents agreed or strongly agreed that the Plan strategies responded to their needs and challenges along the corridor.

CHAPTER 4

Strategies

A major outcome of this Plan is a recommended list of strategies that represent projects, policies, or programs related to transportation or transportation impacts along the corridor for WCCTC and project partners to advance.

IDENTIFYING STRATEGIES

The Plan identifies 27 final strategies that address the Plan’s six goals, issues identified through existing conditions analysis (Chapter 2), and community

engagement feedback (Chapter 3). The strategies are organized into six categories described in Figure 21 below.

Public Health

Strategies that reduce truck cut-through traffic and reduce or capture vehicle emissions.

Safety

Strategies that reduce vehicle speeds, address intersection conflict points, and prioritize emergency vehicle access.

Walking and Biking

Strategies that support comfortable walking and biking on the Parkway and the Bay Trail.

Driving and Goods Movement

Strategies that encourage carpooling, optimize signal timing, and improve wayfinding for drivers.

Maintenance

Strategies that holistically address corridor and Bay Trail maintenance and reduce illegal dumping.

Transit

Strategies that improve access and circulation at the Richmond Parkway Transit Center and support and encourage transit ridership.

Implementing these strategies will require coordination between WCCTC and partner agencies and organizations. The top 10 are identified as Priority Strategies (Chapter 5) to be advanced first. WCCTC and partner agencies may draw from the larger list of strategies as conditions change or as new funding or capacity opportunities arise.

To measure the Plan’s performance, each strategy was evaluated against the Plan’s goals, as shown in Table 1. Consideration

of equity was incorporated by more heavily weighting goals that would have a disproportionate benefit to Equity Priority Communities living along the corridor. Appendix C lists the effectiveness of each strategy in meeting the Plan’s goals.

Based on the goal alignment metrics, each strategy met Some Goals, Many Goals, or Most Goals, as pictured in Figure 22. The full list of 27 strategies is presented in Table 2.

Table 1: Qualitative Goal Alignment Metrics

Goal	Goal	Metric
	Improve Safety for All Users*	1a Reduce severe and fatal injury collisions
	Increase Access to Key Destinations*	2a Increase quality of connections 2b Expand connectivity to key destinations
	Improve Health*	3a Decrease emissions 3b Reduce cut-through traffic
	Advance Placemaking*	4a Improve maintenance and street beautification 4b Address key topics heard during engagement
	Enhance Travel Time Reliability and Efficiency	5a Reduce vehicle delay 5b Increase vehicle occupancy
	Support Feasible Strategies	6a Advance already adopted strategies 6b Near- to Medium-term implementation

*Goal weighted more heavily given disproportionate benefit to local Equity Priority Communities.

All strategies meet at least some of the Plan’s goals, and 63% meet many or most goals.

Table 2: Full List of Strategies

*Priority Strategies with an implementation plan in Chapter 5.

Description

Confirm designated truck routes in North Richmond, which is surrounded by industrial use, to ensure connections between truck-generating uses and the Parkway avoid residential neighborhoods to the extent feasible. Install cameras for legal automated monitoring and enforcement of heavy vehicles exceeding vehicle size limits.

Incorporate trees and green infrastructure into all capital projects where feasible.

Encourage clean trucks to the maximum extent feasible through new development requirements. Ensure requirements adhere to AB98 legislation. Place no truck parking and no idling zones judiciously to reinforce but not overburden truck operations. Install signs in strategic locations such as residential areas and near sensitive receptors (schools, hospitals, parks) indicating no-idling zones and displaying the associated fines.

Identify publicly-owned buildings within the study area exposed to emissions levels beyond the Bay Area Air Quality Management District thresholds of significance and prioritize these locations for installation and regular maintenance of high-quality air filtration systems.

Add electric vehicle charging infrastructure for vehicles and provide education on electric vehicle (EV) subsidy or rebate/incentive programs.

Improve the sound wall by increasing size or effectiveness of the sound barrier.

Install safety treatments per the Intersection Safety Recommendations in Chapter 5. These treatments include but are not limited to:

● Lighting, which includes roadway lighting, visibility of signage, reflectivity, and lighting of pedestrians and bicyclists; ensure bike lanes and intersections are adequately illuminated, particularly in high-traffic areas

● High-visibility crosswalks, curb ramps, and curb extensions

● Conflict zone markings for bicycle crossings

● Geometric changes

● Accessible pedestrian push buttons, pedestrian countdown signals, and bicycle detection at signalized intersections

Add speed limit signs and radar speed feedback signs at high speed locations. Study opportunity to follow through on the legal process for speed limit reduction. When legalized, implement pilot of speed safety cameras.

Install monitoring systems for near-miss events, speeding, red light running, etc. at high-risk intersections.

Table 2: Full List of Strategies (cont.)

ID	Topic	Subtopic	Strategy Name	Goals Alignment
WB-1*	Walking and Biking	Street Design	Upgrade bikeways and connect sidewalk gaps
WB-2*	Walking and Biking	Wildcat Creek Trail Crossing	On-street Wildcat Creek Trail crossing
WB-3	Walking and Biking	New Technology	Test innovative bicycle and pedestrian detection at intersections
WB-4	Walking and Biking	Shared Mobility	Expand electric bike share program
DG-1*	Driving and Goods Movement	Cycle Length	Upgrade and coordinate traffic signals
DG-2	Driving and Goods Movement	Congestion	Add carpool lane on segments with high congestion
DG-3	Driving and Goods Movement	Street Design	Redesign Richmond Parkway/ Castro Street merge
DG-4	Driving and Goods Movement	Signage/ Wayfinding	Signage for blind turns
DG-5	Driving and Goods Movement	Signage/ Wayfinding	Install wayfinding for drivers

Description

Upgrade the Bay Trail to align with Bay Trail Design Guidelines, including adding clear and visible signage, particularly where the Bay Trail transitions to bikeways on Richmond Parkway. Realign Bay Trail between Hensley St and Gertrude Ave to western side of Castro St and Richmond Parkway. Create buffers to physically separate bicyclists from motor vehicle traffic using landscaping to enhance bicyclist comfort and safety. Coordinate with the San Francisco Bay Restoration Authority on the Living Levy project plans to improve pedestrian and operations access along Pittsburgh Ave.

Install bike facilities, independent of the Bay Trail, with physical buffers to separate bicyclists from motor vehicles and improve bicyclist comfort and safety. Ensure bike lanes and intersections are adequately illuminated, particularly in high-traffic areas.

Install new sidewalks to close sidewalk gaps. Where sidewalk is missing on one side of the street along inactive land uses, condition future developers to install sidewalks.

Develop at-grade signalized multi-use crossing of Wildcat Creek Trail, install lighting, and add wayfinding signage to indicate distance traveled or what facilities are provided/nearby. In the long-term, consider a grade-separated overcrossing for the Wildcat Creek Trail over the Richmond Parkway.

Test new technologies (e.g. LiDAR, AI) that can help a traffic signal predict the arrival of a bicyclist or pedestrian and maintain signal protection until they have exited the intersection.

Support expansion of Richmond’s bikeshare program.

Implement signal coordination along the Parkway in the peak period and optimize corridor-wide cycle lengths. Consider signal operations, pedestrian delay, and impact on speed. Install a connected battery backup system and a central signal management system. Upgrade signal hardware and software to allow automated traffic signal performance measures. Investigate, test, and deploy a system that allows for emergency vehicle preemption and transit prioritization at signalized intersections. Consider an adaptive traffic signal system.

Study the conversion of the northbound right turn lane into a high-occupancy vehicle (HOV) lane for bus, carpool, and right turn only in the afternoon peak period. Implement recommendations in MTC’s I-580 Richmond Parkway Interchange Operational Improvements project.

Study reallocating merge capacity through restriping Richmond Parkway at the Castro Street merge to be one lane or introduce metering on Castro Street to control queues. Improve guidance for drivers through signage and striping.

Add a yield or prepare to stop sign/signal ahead of blind turns.

Install gateway and wayfinding signage directing drivers on which lanes to use to access key destinations.

Table 2: Full List of Strategies (cont.)

ID	Topic	Subtopic	Strategy Name	Goals Alignment
M-1*	Maintenance	Roadway	Implement cross-jurisdictional maintenance program
M-2	Maintenance	Encampments	Keep sidewalks and paths clear near encampments
M-3	Maintenance	Illegal Dumping	Discourage illegal dumping
T-1*	Transit	Richmond Parkway Transit Center	Improve access to the Richmond Parkway Transit Center
T-2	Transit	Transit Bus/Shuttle	Improve bus stop comfort
T-3	Transit	Transit Bus/Shuttle	New transit service to Marin County
T-4	Transit	Transit Bus/Shuttle	Increase bus frequency
T-5	Transit	Transit Bus/Shuttle	On-demand shuttle service
T-6	Transit	Parking	Parking lot for transit to Marin County
T-7	Transit	Accessibility	Publicize transit options/ information

Description

Implement a consistent management program assigned to upkeep the Parkway and provide a plan on what maintenance is, how it is performed, how it can be budgeted, and why it is needed. Consider maintenance agreement stating staff time commitments, legal resources, support from elected officials, and the process to identify a regional funding source. Identify a cross-jurisdictional maintenance manager to implement the program to rehabilitate and maintain pavement quality and striping along the corridor, as well as maintenance to extend the service life of shared use path pavement. This program would also apply to signage, tree, debris, and signal maintenance.

Partner with advocacy group for unhoused, such as SOS Richmond and Contra Costa Health, Housing and Homeless Services, to encourage people experiencing homeless to keep sidewalks and paths clear.

Reduce illegal dumping on the corridor via fencing and provide education on how to properly dispose of waste.

Develop formal pedestrian connection between the northwest corner of the Richmond Parkway Transit Center and Richmond Parkway. Upgrade faded crosswalk markings within the Transit Center. Install bike lockers at the Richmond Parkway Transit Center consistent with the Association of Pedestrian & Bicycle Professionals guidance. Install bus pullout stops to allow buses to directly serve the Transit Center from the Parkway as recommended in the WCCTC Express Bus Implementation Plan (2020).

Enhance bus stops with features like seating, shelters, lighting, and real-time displays.

Study a bus line that connects Central/North Richmond and Hilltop to Marin across the Richmond-San Rafael Bridge.

Increase frequencies of AC Transit buses serving the corridor subject to AC Transit’s Realign Plan.

Support continued operation and expansion of Richmond Moves on-demand shuttle, including to jobs centers.

To serve the large number of residents in the corridor commuting to the North Bay, study park-and-ride opportunities supporting transit service into Marin County.

Make transit schedules more accessible, expand education for Clipper Card usage, and publicize different transit options.

CHAPTER 5

Priority Strategies

The Plan identifies ten priority strategies to advance first based on their ability to address the Plan’s six goals outlined in Chapter 1, issues identified in Chapter 2, and community engagement feedback in Chapter 3. All the priority strategies shown in Table 3 meet many or most goals and received the most support through the online survey, popups, and community meetings on the strategies. This chapter provides cutsheets describing the strategies’ associated actions, benefits, timeframes, lead and

coordinating agencies, and cost ranges shown below. Cost ranges of each priority strategy are included in the subsequent cutssheets. Funding must be identified and acquired to implement the strategies, and WCCTC will support partner agencies in pursuing grants and regional funding opportunities. Funding and implementation are further discussed in Chapter 6.

$$$ = <$1M \quad $ = $1M-5M

$$$ = 6M−10M $ = $11M+

Table 3: Priority Strategies

PH-1 PUBLIC HEALTH

$$

Confirm and enforce truck routes in North Richmond

Goals Alignment

Meets Most Goals

Lead Agency

Contra Costa County: Planning, Public Works, CHP

Coordinating Agency

WCCTC, CalTrans, City of San Pablo, City of Richmond

Completion Timeframe

0 to 2 years

Actions

Confirm designated truck routes

Confirm designated truck routes in North Richmond, where there are large industrial-use generators, to ensure connections between truck-generating uses and the Parkway avoid residential neighborhoods to the extent feasible.

Enforce designated truck routes

Install cameras for legal automated monitoring and enforcement of heavy vehicles exceeding vehicle size limits.

Benefits

Improved neighborhood sound quality

Reducing truck-related noise pollution, which can be damaging above 85 decibels 50 feet away, can decrease stress and improve sleep quality.¹

Reduced exposure to emissions $\tilde{CO}_2$

Trucks emit pollutants at a rate of 1.15 times more than passenger vehicles, which contributes to respiratory and cardiovascular diseases.² Redirecting truck traffic from sensitive sites and residential neighborhoods reduces exposure to these emissions, leading to better air quality and fewer health issues, such as asthma.³

1. Community and Environmental Defense Services,”Truck Stops & Neighborhood Quality of Life,”2024.

2. EPA, US EPA Archive Document on Idling Reduction; EPA, 2024.

3. OEHHA, 2021.

Figure 23:

Map of Existing Designated Truck Routes

PH-1

Source: Richmond General Plan 2030, 2016. Industrial land use areas include land that is used for the manufacturing, storage, processing, or packaging of goods and materials.

PH-2 PUBLIC HEALTH

$

Trees and green infrastructure

Goals Alignment

Meets Most Goals

Lead Agency

City of Richmond: Public Works, Contra Costa County: Public Works

Coordinating Agency

GroundworkRichmond, ContraCosta County: Planning

Completion Timeframe

Actions

Incorporate trees and green infrastructure

Incorporate trees and green infrastructure, such as bioretention planters, into all capital projects where feasible.

Benefits

Improved air quality

Planting trees along sections of the nine-mile corridor would improve local air quality by capturing 213.6 metric tons of CO2 by 2050, the equivalent of removing 46 cars from the road driving a combined 529 thousand miles annually.¹

Increased tree cover and lower temperatures

Adding about 800 trees to the tree cover will provide shade along the entire corridor. This strategy can lower surface temperatures by up to 11 degrees Fahrenheit, which has the potential to save lives as climate change increases the frequency of extreme heat episodes.²

Improved drainage and water quality +

Bioretention planters provide, on average, 56% to 89% stormwater volume reduction and are proven to filter pollutants from stormwater, reducing flooding along the corridor and improving water quality.³

1. ESA, 2024.

2. Rx FOR HOT CITIES, 2023.

3. EPA, NPDES: Stormwater Best Management Practice—Bioretention (Rain Gardens), 2021.

Additional Details

PH-2

Street trees

Increased tree cover improves air quality by removing particulate matter, and reduces surface temperatures by providing shade and increasing moisture in the air. Trees also help manage runoff, reduce erosion caused by rain, and promote infiltration, which all work to reduce potential flooding.¹

Public domain image.

Bioretention planters

Installing bioetention planters helps manage stormwater runoff by capturing, treating, and absorbing runoff from the street, while recharging the local groundwater supply.

Image source: City of Raleigh.

1. ESA, Soak Up the Rain: Trees Help Reduce Runoff,” 2024.

PH-3

PUBLIC HEALTH

$$

Minimize vehicle impacts to air quality

Goals Alignment

Meets Many Goals

Lead Agency

Contra Costa County:Planning, City ofRichmond: PublicWorks, BAAQMD

Coordinating Agency

City of Richmond:Planning, Contra CostaCounty: Planning, CHP

Completion

Timeframe

0 to 2 years

Actions

Encourage clean trucks and prohibit truck activity in sensitive areas

Encourage clean trucks to the maximum extent feasible through new development requirements. Ensure requirements adhere to AB98 legislation. Place no truck parking and no idling zones judiciously to reinforce but not overburden truck operations. Install signs in strategic locations such as residential areas and near sensitive receptors (schools, hospitals, parks) indicating no-idling zones and displaying the associated fines.

Install air filtration systems

Identify publicly-owned buildings within the study area exposed to emissions levels beyond the Bay Area Air Quality Management District thresholds of significance and prioritize these locations for installation and regular maintenance of high-quality air filtration systems.

Benefits

Improved air qualit

Trucks idle at a rate of 1 gallon of diesel per hour on average, which releases more than 500 pounds of CO2 emissions per day.¹ This strategy would reduce local exposure to these truck emissions.

Reduced health risks

Higher CO2 levels contribute significantly to the prevalence of asthma and the risk of heart and lung disease. Reducing emissions will positively affect the 99th and 98th percentile asthma rates near the Parkway in the North Richmond and the Iron Triangle neighborhoods.²

Additional Details

No-idling signage

No-idling signs are enforcement signs regarding truck parking or idling and can include associated fines. Detering this truck activity can improve the local air quality.

Image source: Traffic Signs.

1. EPA, US EPA Archive Document on Idling Reduction; EPA, 2024.

2. California Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment, 2021.

S-1 SAFETY

$

Safety improvements at intersections

Goals Alignment

Meets Most Goals

Lead Agency

Contra Costa County: Public Works, City of Richmond: Public Works

Coordinating Agency

Caltrans, MTC, West County Wastewater, CCTA, BNSF

Completion Timeframe

6 to 10 years

Actions

Install safety enhancements

Install safety treatments per the following Intersection Safety Recommendations pages. These treatments include but are not limited to: high visibility crosswalks, curb ramps and curb extensions/bulbouts, turn delineators to slow down left turn speeds, conflict zone markings for bicycle crossings, pedestrian refuge islands, removing slip lanes, and lighting (overhead lighting, pedestrian- and bicyclist-scale lighting, bus stop lighting, visibility and reflectivity of signage). Ensure bike lanes and intersections are adequately illuminated, particularly in high-traffic areas.

Improve safety at signalized intersections

Install safety treatments per the following Intersection Safety Recommendations pages. These treatments include but are not limited to: accessible pedestrian push buttons, pedestrian countdown signals, bicycle detection, striped trail crossings, and No Right Turn on Red signage.

Benefits

Safer streets for all

This strategy could lead to a 7% reduction in all collisions.¹

Safer streets for bicyclists and pedestrians

This strategy could lead to a 43% reduction in injury collisions involving bicyclists or pedestrians. ¹

1. Caltrans, Local Roadway Safety Manual, 2024; City of Richmond Bicycle and Pedestrian Action Plan, 2023; City of Richmond General Plan, 2012; City of Richmond Local Road Safety Plan, 2023; Contra Costa County General Plan, 2005; Fehr and Peers, 2024; FHWA, CMF Clearinghouse, 2024; San Pablo General Plan, 2011.

Figure 24:

Intersection Safety Recommendations

TREATMENTS AT EVERY INTERSECTION

HIGH-VISIBILITY CROSSWALKS

Mark all crosswalks with high-visibility striping and advance stop bars to improve pedestrian crossing visibility.

ACCESSIBLE CURB RAMPS

Install directional ADA curb ramps.

ACCESSIBLE PEDESTRIAN SIGNALS

Install audible pedestrian signals and accessible push buttons at crossings.

REFLECTIVE BACKPLATES

Install reflective backplates on signals to enhance the visibility of traffic signals.

BIKE DETECTION

Install bike detection at signalized intersections.

LIGHTING AND REFLECTIVITY

Improve overhead, pedestrian-scale, and bus stop lighting to increase visibility of all road users. Increase visibility and reflectivity of all signage.

TREATMENTS AS NEEDED

STRAIGHTEN CROSSWALKS

Straighten crosswalks to improve sightlines and shorten pedestrian crossing distances.

TIGHTEN CURB RADII

Reduce curb radii to slow down vehicle turning speeds, shorten pedestrian and bicyclist crossing distances, and provide more sidewalk space for pedestrians and bicyclists.

RAISED CROSSWALKS

Install a raised crosswalk in the right-turn slip lane to reduce turning speeds.

INSTALL PORKCHOP ISLAND WITH RAISED CROSSWALK

Where large vehicles must turn, install a porkchop island to reduce crossing distances and provide a raised crosswalk to reduce speeds.

MAJOR BKE INTERSECTION IMPROVEMENTS

Install protected intersection to support bicyclist turning movements and create slower interactions and clear sightlines.

MINOR BIKE INTERSECTION IMPROVEMENTS

Enhance or create new active transportation connection between bike facility and the Parkway with lighting and maintenance.

ENFORCE RIGHT-TURN ONLY LANES

Promote self-enforcement of right-turn only lane by installing a far-side bulbout and enhancing related signage.

NO RIGHT-TURN ON RED

Prohibit vehicle right-turn on red at path and separated bikeway crossings of the minor street to reduce conflicts.

PROTECTED RIGHT-TURN PHASE

Provide protected right-turn phase to remove vehicle-bike and vehicle-pedestrian conflicts in time.

PEDESTRIAN COUNTDOWN SIGNALS

Install pedestrian countdown timers to display the crossing time remaining.

MEDIAN REFUGE ISLANDS

Provide pedestrians a place to wait if they are unable to finish crossing an intersection.

RAILROAD CROSSING ARMS

Install railroad crossing arms for pedestrian and bicyclist safety.

STRIPE TRAIL CROSSING

Stripe crosswalk to indicate trail crossing and improve user visibility.

Figure 25:

Intersection Safety Recommendations (Cont.)

S-1

Intersection Safety Recommendations (Cont.)

S-1

S-2 SAFETY

$

Reduce speeding

Goals Alignment

Meets Many Goals

Lead Agency

City of Richmond: Public Works, Contra Costa County: Public Works

Coordinating Agency

City of Richmond: PD;California HighwayPatrol

Completion Timeframe

Actions

Install speed-monitoring systems

Add radar speed feedback signs or implement pilot of speed cameras at high speeding locations. Speed cameras are currently not allowed under state law, but legislation passed in 2023, Assembly Bill 645, authorizes six designated cities across California to implement a speed camera pilot program.

Indicate speed limits

Add speed limit signs and lower the speed limit throughout the Parkway if allowed under state law.

Benefits

Safer streets for all

This strategy could lead to a 20% reduction in all collisions.¹

1. Caltrans, Local Roadway Safety Manual, 2024; FHWA, CMF Clearinghouse, 2024.

Additional Details

Radar speed signs

Radar speed feedback signs are cost-effective traffic calming solutions that reduce average vehicle speeds and slow speeding drivers.

Image Source: Trafficalm.

WB-1 WALKING AND BIKING

$$

Upgrade bikeways and connect sidewalk gaps

Goals Alignment

Meets Most Goals

Lead Agency

City of Richmond: Public Works, Contra Costa County: Public Works

Coordinating Agency

MTC, CCTA, WCCTC, City of Pinole, EBRPD

Completion

Actions

Upgrade Bay Trail facilities

Upgrade the Bay Trail to align with Bay Trail Design Guidelines, including adding clear and visible signage, particularly where the Bay Trail transitions to bikeways on Richmond Parkway. Realign Bay Trail between Hensley St and Gertrude Ave to western side of Castro St and Richmond Parkway. Create buffers to physically separate bicyclists from motor vehicle traffic using landscaping to enhance bicyclist comfort and safety. Coordinate with the San Francisco Bay Restoration Authority on the Living Levy project plans to improve pedestrian and operations access along Pittsburgh Ave.

Install high-quality on-street bikeways

Install bike facilities, independent of the Bay Trail, with physical buffers to separate bicyclists from motor vehicles and improve bicyclist comfort and safety. Ensure bike lanes and intersections are adequately illuminated, particularly in high-traffic areas.

Close sidewalk gaps

Install new sidewalks to close sidewalk gaps. Where sidewalk is missing on one side of the street along inactive land uses, condition future developers to install sidewalks.

Benefits

Increased access for pedestrians

Creates a more direct and usable path for pedestrians along the entire Parkway, improving connections to bus stops, Richmond Parkway Transit Center, nearby parks, schools, and community services.

Increased access for bicyclists¹

Within 20 minutes, residents near the North segment would be able to access up to…

Within 20 minutes, residents near the Central segment would be able to access up to…

Within 20 minutes, residents near the South segment would be able to access up to…

2x more amenities²

5x more amenities²

10% more amenities²

3x more jobs

2.5x more jobs

20% more jobs

3x more park area by biking

4x more park area by biking

5% more park area by biking

Figure 26:

Sidewalk Gaps and Recommended Bikeways

Source: Richmond Bicycle and Pedestrian Action Plan, 2023.

WB-2 WALKING AND BIKING

$$

On-street Wildcat Creek Trail crossing

Goals Alignment

Meets Many Goals

Lead Agency

Contra Costa County: Public Works

Coordinating Agency

EBRPD, City of Richmond: Public Works, MTC, West County Wastewater, WCCTC

Completion Timeframe

Actions

Add a signalized crossing

Develop at-grade signalized multi-use crossing of Wildcat Creek Trail, install lighting, add signage along Wildcat Creek Trail to indicate distance traveled or what facilities are provided/nearby.

Benefits

Increased multimodal access

Improving the Wildcat Creek Trail Crossing through near-term improvements would connect nearly 1 mile of trail east of the Parkway with 1.4 miles of trail west of the Parkway when the underpass is flooded, resulting in a total of 2.2 miles of low stress bicycle facilities.¹

Improved crossing usage and experience

Provides a functioning, year-round crossing resilient to sea level rise effects and resolves the current flooding of the existing tunnel.

1. Fehr & Peers, 2024.

Previous planning efforts, such as the San Francisco Estuary Partnership’s Restoring Wildcat Creek: Community-Led Watershed Health Update and Priority Project Implementation project, have identified a community desire for a grade-separated crossing at this location. The Richmond Parkway Transportation Plan recommends installing a signalized crossing to improve conditions in the nearer term as overcrossing costs are significant and will require a longer time horizon to fund and construct.

Figure 27:

Proposed Signalized Crossing at Wildcat Creek Trail

DG-1 DRIVING AND GOODS MOVEMENT

$

Upgrade and coordinate traffic signals

Goals Alignment

Meets Many Goals

Lead Agency

City of Richmond:Public Works; ContraCosta County: CCTA

Coordinating Agency

Caltrans, MTC

Completion

Timeframe

3 to 5 years

Actions

Implement signal coordination

Implement signal coordination along the Parkway in the peak period and optimize corridor-wide cycle lengths. Consider signal operations, pedestrian delay, and impact on speed.

Upgrade signal infrastructure

Install a connected battery backup system and a central signal management system. Upgrade signal hardware and software to allow automated traffic signal performance measures. Investigate, test, and deploy a system that allows for emergency vehicle preemption and transit prioritization at signalized intersections. Consider an adaptive traffic signal system.

Benefits

Travel time savings1

Coordinating the signals along the Parkway could save drivers up to…

13 minutes

in the northbound direction in the afternoon peak period.

3 minutes

in the southbound direction in the morning peak period.

Reduced idling CO2

Time travel savings may reduce vehicle emissions and driver frustrations from sitting at lights, improving local air quality and discouraging dangerous driving actions such as running red lights, speeding, and driving on the shoulder lane.

Improved emergency services and bus reliability

Signal priority for emergency services or transit at signalized intersections can improve the speed of emergency responders in reaching a scene and increase the time available for making critical decisions, as well as improve or increase bus reliability along the corridor.

1. Fehr & Peers, SimTraffic Model, 2024. Travel time savings are greater in the northbound direction since it is more heavily impacted by existing traffic congestion, particularly during the evening commute period as discussed in Chapter 2.

Additional Details

Traffic signal coordination

Coordinating traffic signals synchronizes the timing of multiple intersections to improve traffic flow and reduce delays. This can result in less braking, improve goods movement efficiency, and discourage neighborhood cut-through traffic. Contra Costa Transportation Authority (CCTA) is currently leading a Smart Signals Project to

upgrade and coordinate traffic signals at over 300 intersections throughout the county to optimize traffic flow and reduce congestion, providing a potential avenue for traffic signal funding on the Parkway.

Image source: UDOT.

Emergency vehicle preemption (EVP) technology

EVP technologies allow signals to modify their signal timing to provide a green light as soon as possible for an approaching emergency vehicle.

Image source: Maripoca Association of Governments.

M-1 MAINTENANCE

$$

Implement cross-jurisdictional maintenance program

Goals Alignmer

Meets Most Goals

Lead Agency

Contra Costa County: Public Works, City of Richmond: Public Works

Coordinating Agency

ССТА, WCCTC

Completion

Timeframe

2 to 4 years

Actions

Implement a corridor-wide maintenance program with a maintenance manager

Implement a consistent management program assigned to upkeep the Parkway and provide a plan on what maintenance is, how it is performed, how it can be budgeted, and why it is needed. Consider maintenance agreement stating staff time commitments, legal resources, support from elected officials, and the process to identify a regional funding source.

The program will need to determine the feasible maintenance level, associated analyses, and implementation costs for, but not limited to, the following items: roadway pavement, striping, shared use path pavement, signage life, signals, street lights, street sweeping, drainage systems, and vegetation. Following program development, which may be developed with the assistance of a maintenance consultant, identify a cross-jurisdictional maintenance manager for implementation.

Benefits

Reduced emissions and costs to drivers

Improved pavement conditions could save drivers up to 4%-10% of fuel consumption, repair and maintenance, and tire wear. Reducing fuel consumption and tire wear reduces emissions and microplastics, improving air and water quality and protecting the environment by reducing the use of natural resources.^1, 2

Improved safety

Improved pavement friction at intersections provides numerous benefits: improved driver control, reduced stopping distances, reduced skidding, and a 20% reduction in total intersection crashes.³

Improved coordination and response

Consolidating maintenance responsibilities under one central manager allows for improved coordination between agencies, cost savings due to consolidation, and a more timely response to concerns.

1. SMOOTHNESS MATTERS, Asphalt Pavement Alliance, 2008.

2. Reynolds, R. L., Molden, N., Kokaly, R. F., Lowers, H., Breit, G. N., Goldstein, H. L., et al. (2024). Microplastic and associated black particles from road-tire wear: Implications for radiative effects across the cryosphere and in the atmosphere. Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres, 129, e2024JD041116.

Additional Details

Pavement Condition Index (PCI) Scores

Consistent pavement maintenance helps extend the useful life of pavement. PCI scores measure the health of a road’s pavement, ranging from 0 (worst) to 100 (best). A PCI score of at least 70 is desired. Factors that affect a PCI score include the age of the pavement/when the roadway was last paved, climate and precipitation, traffic loads, and available maintenance funding. Keeping the Parkway in good pavement condition will require more constant maintenance due to consistent heavy truck traffic; this may include pavement milling and overlaying with digouts, slurry sealing, and practices that better accommodate the weight of trucks. Regularly maintaining the roadway is less costly than major pavement reconstruction.

MTC’s StreetSaver software includes network PCI data as well as projected PCI information, assuming various maintenance scenarios, to help jurisdictions make maintenance decisions. The current PCI scores across different segments of Richmond Parkway range from 3 to 92. Segments with low PCI scores would require reconstruction of the pavement surface whereas segments with a high PCI score could be treated with a slurry seal.

Castro Street approaching Richmond Lane in good pavement condition (high PCI score) in 2013.

Image source: AA Roads, 2013.

T-1 TRANSIT

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Improve access to the Richmond Parkway Transit Center

Goals Alignment

Meets Many Goals

Lead Agency

AC Transit, City of Richmond: Public Works, MTC¹

Coordinating Agency

Caltrans, CCTA, WestCAT, WCCTC

Completion Timeframe

3 to 5 years

Actions

Support transit access

Install bus pullout stops on Richmond Parkway for Richmond Parkway Transit Center (RPTC) routes and shift eastbound bikeway south of the bus stops. These bus bays would allow southbound buses traveling from I-80 or eastbound buses from Richmond Parkway to serve riders without turning onto Blume Drive and circulating within the Transit Center, saving a significant amount of time (northbound or westbound buses would still be required to enter the Transit Center).¹

Support pedestrian access

Develop formal pedestrian connection between the northwest corner of the RPTC and Richmond Parkway. Upgrade faded crosswalk markings within the Transit Center.

Provide bicycle storage

Install bike lockers at the RPTC consistent with the Association of Pedestrian & Bicycle Professionals guidance.

Benefits

Improve transit reliability

Access enhancements would reduce travel time delays associated with buses circulating within the RPTC, saving approximately 13,000 annual rider hours for WestCAT express routes. Time travel savings across operators would be greater.²

Support potential mode shift

Providing secure bicycle lockers for long term parking (2+ hours) encourages bicycle owners to bike to transit as a first/last mile connection.³

Improve pedestrian experience

Creating a direct formal pedestrian connection from the Parkway would enhance comfort and access for users who currently walk through landscaping or take a less direct route from Blume Drive to enter the RPTC. Providing a marked crosswalk will also improve visibility of these pedestrians.

Additional Details

Richmond Parkway Transit Center Access Enhancement

Improvements would install three new curbside bus stops, a rerouted separated bikeway, and a direct pedestrian connection for users coming in and out of the RPTC.

Source: West Contra Costa County Express Bus Implementation Plan, WCCTC, 2020.

Bike lockers

Providing bike lockers will provide safe storage areas for people to store their bicycles, supporting a potential mode shift, as secure bicycle storage does not currently exist at the Richmond Parkway Transit Center.

1. MTC is considering the implementation of this strategy as part of its Bay Bridge Forward work along I-80.

2. West Contra Costa County Express Bus Implementation Plan, WCCTC, 2020.

3. Bicycle and Transit Integration, A Practical Transit Agency Guide to Bicycle Integration and Equitable Mobility, APTA, 2018.

CHAPTER 6 Implementation and Funding

IMPLEMENTING THE PRIORITY STRATEGIES

Table 4: Priority StrategiesImplementation Plan

Given the regional and economic importance and 9-mile span of the Parkway, implementation will require multi-jurisdictional efforts and substantial funding. Table 4 highlights partnership opportunities and jurisdictional responsibility for each of the priority strategies introduced in Chapter 5. For each priority strategy, lead agencies, coordinating agencies, cost estimates, and completion timeframes for delivering the strategy are listed. Agencies

Category	ID	Strategy Name	Lead Agencies
Public Health		Confirm and enforce truck routes in North Richmond	Contra Costa County: Planning, Public Works, CHP
Public Health		Incorporate trees and green infrastructure	City of Richmond: Public Works; Contra Costa County: Public Works
Public Health		Minimize vehicle impacts to air quality	Contra Costa County: Planning; City of Richmond: Public Works
Safety		Install safety improvements at intersections	Contra Costa County: Public Works; City of Richmond: Public Works
Safety		Reduce speeding	City of Richmond: Public Works; Contra Costa County: Public Works
Walking and Biking		Upgrade bikeways and connect sidewalk gaps	City of Richmond: Public Works; Contra Costa County: Public Works
Walking and Biking		Install on-street Wildcat Creek Trail crossing	Contra Costa County: Public Works
Driving and Goods Movement		Upgrade and coordinate traffic signals	City of Richmond: Public Works; CCTA
Maintenance		Implement cross-jurisdictional maintenance program	Contra Costa County: Public Works; City of Richmond: Public Works
Transit		Improve access to the Richmond Parkway Transit Center	AC Transit; City of Richmond: Public Works; MTC

Completion timeframe covers program development. Additional costs will vary depending on program development.

1. Assumes a 4% inflation rate with construction occurring in 2030. Some costs may be duplicated across strategies, such as landscaping under PH-2 and landscape separated bikeways under WB-1. 2. See Appendix F for more details on cost estimates.

identified as lead have jurisdiction over the priority strategy and will have ultimate decisionmaking power during implementation. Coordinating agencies may have prior planning knowledge or funding streams valuable for implementation, be working on similar efforts or efforts affected by the strategy, or have a role in post-implementation operation. For example, MTC could have

a role in identifying funding for Bay Trail improvements in strategy WB-1. Lead agencies and coordinating agencies may work together to identify funding sources for the priority strategies, which altogether are estimated to cost between $130M and $150M. Lead agencies can look for opportunities to initiate these strategies immediately regardless of target completion timeframe.

and in North Richmond. Other segments require funding. Low end of range assumes general landscaping only, while high end of range assumes bioretention with landscaping. 4. Speed cameras currently not permitted under state law. Costs to be determined when legalized. 5. Includes cost of Bay Trail realignment between Gertrude Avenue and Hensley Street and path widening between Parr Boulevard and Gertrude Avenue.

To advance the priority strategies in the near-term, Table 5 includes immediate next steps for lead agencies to undertake as well as future steps. WCCTC and CCTA may assist with preparing grant applications, but lead agencies should also consider short-term mitigation measures for safety and accessibility through existing City/County programs. Due to the length of the corridor, capital improvement strategies should be grouped by corridor segment and assembled as packages for funding applications. For example,

Appendix D includes a 35% design concept for a landscape separated bikeway on the northern segment of Richmond Parkway, which incorporates multiple priority strategies. Lead agencies can use the design concept to pursue funding in the near-term to address several existing challenges on this segment, including a concentration of speed-related injury collisions, absence of separated bikeways connecting to the Richmond Parkway Transit Center (RPTC), and an indirect bus connection to the RPTC.

Table 5: Priority Strategies Implementation Next Steps

Action	Priority Strategy ID	Next Steps	Future Steps
Advance 35% design concept for northern segment of Richmond Parkway1		Pursue funding, such as from the RAISE Grant, RM3, and OBAG, to finalize design and construct project.2	Pursue funding for concept development for remaining segments of the Parkway and Bay Trail.
Confirm and enforce truck routes in North Richmond		Given low implementation cost, assess existing staffing capacity and City/County funding sources to advance planning component.	Apply for funding if needed.2
Minimize vehicle impacts to air quality		Confirm previously-studied recommendations from the 2019 Program for Arterial System Synchronization (PASS) Report.	Apply for funding2 and advocate for inclusion in CCTA’s Countywide Smart Signals Project.
Upgrade and coordinate traffic signals		Confirm the City and County’s interest in pursuing the action by considering an agreement.	Negotiate agreement, identify a regional funding source, and determine guidelines for program development.
Implement Roadway Pavement and Maintenance Management Program		Confirm the City and County’s interest in pursuing the action by considering an agreement.	Negotiate agreement, identify a regional funding source, and determine guidelines for program development.

POTENTIAL CURRENT FUNDING SOURCES

To fully implement the many strategies in this plan, substantial funding will be needed. A full list of potential funding sources is provided in Appendix E. A sample of current federal, state, and regional funding sources that are aligned with priority strategies are presented below. Given the recent federal administration change, federal funding sources may become less available. Therefore, regional and countywide measures may offer the most promising funding opportunities.

Lead agencies may determine how to prioritize the implementation of the strategies, including the priority strategies. WCCTC will continue to support project partners in pursuing funding options for the strategies, including regional sources.

Rebuilding American Infrastructure with Sustainability and Equity Grant Program (RAISE)

RAISE grants are awarded to surface transportation projects that are consistent with the Department’s strategic goals and will have significant local or regional impact.

Next Cycle: FY2025

When to Apply: Early 2025

Maximum Amount: $25M per project

Funding Source:

Federal

State

Regional

Bay Trail at the intersection of Hilltop Drive and Richmond Parkway.

Administered By:

U.S. Department of Transportation Office of the Secretary

Lead Agencies:

Contra Costa County

City of Richmond

Applicable Strategies:

Local Highway Safety Improvement Program (HSIP)

The HSIP Program funds work on any public road or publicly owned bicycle or pedestrian pathway or trail, or on tribal lands for general use of tribal members, that improves the safety for its users.

Next Cycle: Cycle 13

When to Apply: As early as May 2026

Maximum Amount: $10M per project

Funding Source:

Federal

State

Regional

Administered By:

Caltrans Division of Local Assistance

Lead Agencies:

Contra Costa CountyCity of Richmond

Applicable Strategies:

Regional Measure 3 (RM3)

RM3 provides funding for a comprehensive suite of highway and transit improvements through an increase of tolls on the San Francisco Bay Area’s seven state-owned toll bridges. RM3 has about $10 million that could be allocated to the priority strategies.

Next Cycle: Monthly

When to Apply: Monthly

Maximum Amount: $160M for Goods Movement, $150M for Bay Trail and Safe Routes to Transit

Funding Source:

Federal

State

Regional

Administered By:

Metropolitan Transportation Commission

Lead Agencies:

Contra Costa County

Contra Costa Transportation Authority

City of Richmond

Applicable Strategies:

Local Partnership Program Formula & Competitive Programs (LPP)

The LPP Program provides funding to local and regional agencies to improve aging infrastructure, road conditions, active transportation, transit and rail, and health and safety benefits.

Next Cycle: 2026

When to Apply: Fall 2026

Maximum Amount: $25M per project

Funding Source:

Federal

State

Regional

Administered By:

Caltrans Division of Local Assistance

California Transportation Commission

Lead Agencies:

Contra Costa Transportation AuthorityCity of Richmond

Applicable Strategies:

One Bay Area Grant Program (OBAG)

The One Bay Area Grant (OBAG), now in its third iteration, distributes federal transportation funding from the Federal Highway Administration to projects and programs that improve safety, spur economic development and help the Bay Area meet climate change and air quality improvement goals.

Next Cycle: OBAG 4

When to Apply: As early as 2026

Maximum Amount: $47.3M forContra Costa County for 2023-2026

Funding Source:

State

Regional

Administered By:

Metropolitan Transportation Commission

Contra Costa Transportation Authority

Lead Agencies:

Contra Costa County

Contra Costa Transportation Authority

City of Richmond

Applicable Strategies:

POTENTIAL FUTURE FUNDING SOURCES

Since the Richmond Parkway is a regional facility, funding streams paid for by regional users should be considered. Potential future funding sources may include a new sales tax, regional measure, Enhanced Infrastructure Financing District (EIFD), and/or Benefit Assessment District. These options are described

on the following pages. These tools could provide long-term, stable funding sources for priority strategies that require ongoing efforts, such as maintenance. Electeds and staff at the City of Richmond, Contra Costa County, and WCCTC will need to continue to advocate for project inclusion in future expenditure plans.

Transportation Sales Tax

A new Contra Costa transportation sales tax would generate stable funding for capital and operating uses laid out in an Expenditure Plan. Approval of the sales tax requires a ballot measure with two-thirds voter support.

Potential Sponsors:

Contra Costa Transportation AuthorityCity of Richmond

Applicable Strategy Categories:

Public Health Safety

Walking and Biking

Driving and Goods Movement

Maintenance

Transit

Contra Costa County Measure J

In November 2004, Contra Costa voters approved Measure J with a 71% vote. The measure provided for the continuation of the county’s half-cent transportation sales tax for 25 more years beyond the original expiration date of 2009. The tax revenues fund a voter-approved Expenditure Plan of transportation programs and projects. Measure C, the precursor to Measure J passed in 1988, was used to construct the Parkway.

Source: Smart Signal Project, Contra Costa Transportation Authority (2024)

Regional Measures

A new Bay Area-wide regional measure such as a sales tax, property tax, or increased tolls could fund transportation projects included in an Expenditure Plan.

Potential Sponsors:

Metropolitan Transportation CommissionContra Costa Transportation AuthorityApplicable Strategy Categories:

Safety

Maintenance

Walking and Biking

Transit

Driving and Goods Movement

Potential Regional Transportation Measure for 2026

A new transportation revenue measure for the Bay Area is being crafted and may be on a future ballot as early as November 2026. The measure is expected to generate at least $1 billion annually and is currently considering a wide range of options for its revenue source.

Source: Toll station, East Bay Times (2023)

Enhanced Infrastructure Financing District (EIFD)

EIFDs allow for a separate government entity to be created by a city and/or county within a defined area to finance infrastructure projects with community-wide benefits. EIFDs use tax increment financing to reallocate a portion of future property taxes to fund infrastructure projects, meaning this option does not increase taxes or require voter approval. Further analysis is needed to understand the costs and benefits of this funding option.

Potential Sponsors:

Contra Costa County

City of Richmond

Applicable Strategy Categories:

City of Placentia/County of Orange EIFD

The City of Placentia and County of Orange formed the first city and county partnership EIFD in 2019. The EIFD was formed to fund transit-supportive and housing-supportive infrastructure in the communities to the north and south of the upcoming Placentia Metrolink Station.

Source: Placentia Metrolink Station rendering, City of Placentia EIFD StoryMap, SCAG (2024)

Benefits Assessment Districts (BADs)

BADs are established for specific geographic areas to receive special benefits from public improvements and services, such as lighting and landscaping. Districts are funded through a property assessment and require majority voter approval from impacted property owner. Sufficient development is required to establish a BAD, so this would not be a comprehensive funding option for the corridor.

Potential Sponsors:

City of Richmond

Contra Costa County

Applicable Strategy Categories:

Public Health

Maintenance

Hilltop Landscape Maintenance Assessment District

The City of Richmond’s Hilltop Landscape Maintenance Assessment District provides maintenance and servicing of landscaping in three zones located in the northern area of Richmond. This section of Lakeside Drive just south of Richmond Parkway is part of the District and serviced by this Benefit Assessment District.

Source: Lakeside Drive, Google Maps (2022)