Title:
Title
2020 State Transit and Intercity Rail Capital Program (TIRCP) Grant Joint Application with Capitol Corridor JPA, Sacramento Regional Transit and Downtown Railyards Ventures (T15029000)
End
FileID
File ID: 2019-01841
Location
Location: 401 I Street, Districts 3 and 4
Recommendation:
Recommendation
Adopt a Resolution: 1) directing staff to submit a proposal for the Transit and Intercity Rail Capital Program (TIRCP) in collaboration with Capitol Corridor JPA (CCJPA) as lead agency applicant, Sacramento Regional Transit (SacRT), and Downtown Railyards Ventures, LLC (DRV) for project funding to design and construct a new Transit Center at the Sacramento Valley Station (SVS); and 2) authorizing the City Manager to accept the City of Sacramento portion of awarded grant funding from the State of California, Department of Transportation (Caltrans).
Contact: Gregory Taylor, AIA, LEED AP, Project Manager, (916-808-5268); Ryan Moore, Interim Director, (916-808-6629), Department of Public Works
Body
Presenter: None.
Attachments:
1-Description/Analysis
2-Resolution
Description/Analysis
Issue Detail: The State of California, Caltrans Division of Rail and Mass Transportation has issued a Request for Proposals for the third round of the Transit and Intercity Rail Capital Program (TIRCP). Applications are due January 16, 2020. If approved in this action, the City of Sacramento will be one of the joint applicants under a master grant application made by Capitol Corridor Joint Powers Authority (CCJPA). Other joint applicants include Sacramento Regional Transit and Downtown Railyards Ventures, LLC. The City’s portion of the request include a regional passenger bus hub and improved bicycle access; RT’s piece includes double tracking and loop of the green line to provide enhanced transit service to destinations in the Railyards and River District. Details are outlined in the Background section.
Policy Considerations: The recommendation in this report is consistent with the City of Sacramento General Plan goals to improve system connectivity and promote economic and infill development. The City has developed facility plan for expanding regional bus access to the station which meet the service needs for the station outlined in the 2018 State Rail Plan for increasing for intercity passenger rail and regional bus networks with milestones in 2022, 2027 and 2040.
Economic Impacts: None.
Environmental Considerations: In accordance with the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), under Statutory Exemption 15262, feasibility and planning studies for possible future actions do not require the preparation of environmental documents, but they do require the consideration of environmental factors. The master planning of the Sacramento Valley Station, which is a planning study, is a component of the larger Intermodal Transportation Facility Project (T15029000) and has been assessed as part of that project’s environmental review. Environmental clearances in accordance with CEQA and the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) have been received at the program and project levels. When specific projects or future actions are proposed that stem from the master planning, they will be subject to project level review.
Sustainability: The Transit Center project was developed within the current SVS Master Plan work and will provide expanded bus and light rail transit operations, electrical vehicle charging and bicycle facilities. The Transit Center is designed to standards under the Living Building Challenge (LBC) framework developed by the International Living Futures Institute (ILFI). Department of Public Works has registered the master plan as a Living Community Challenge (LCC) project with ILFI as a project under the City’s Demonstration Partnership Program.
Commission/Committee Action: None.
Rationale for Recommendation: The SVS is currently the eight busiest train station in the nation, located adjacent to the central business and at the heart of a developing new infill development area. To take advantage of this regional hub, the SVS is planned to expand as a regional transportation facility to serve multiple modes of transportation: from intercity passenger rail, bus services, and a hub for regional light rail service, bus service, and bike and pedestrian trails. A consolidated grant request reflects the regional utility and related benefits of rail and transit services.
Financial Considerations: Projects applying for the TIRCP do not require a minimum match. City staff will identify public and private investments made in the Railyards as leverage to support the grant request. Total project application for all projects will not exceed $200 million. CCJPA as grant applicant will transfer awarded grant funds to the City and RT for their respective project components. The City will use available funds from the Measure A Capital Program to prepare and support the capital facilities as necessary. Upon approval of the grant, the Department will request City Council approval to increase the revenue and expenditure budget per the grant amount.
Local Business Enterprise (LBE): Not applicable.
Background: The City and region has identified expansion of the SVS and historic depot and its surrounding land uses into a regional transportation facility to serve multiple modes of transportation: from intercity passenger rail, bus services, and a hub for regional light rail service, bus service, and bike and pedestrian trails. The City has taken the lead to develop this regional project through multiple phases. Phase 1, Track Relocation, completed in 2012, moved and expanded the mainline rail tracks and related operations to the north, improving passenger and freight train efficiency and services with major upgrades to passenger rail facilities. Phase 2, rehabilitation and renovation of the historic station building was completed in March 2017.
Phase 3 is the expansion of transportation infrastructure and site development into a larger intermodal center located near the relocated passenger rail infrastructure. The Department of Public Works is leading the Phase 3 master plan with a consultant team that has developed the Transit Center as part of the overall master plan. The master plan will be incorporated into the Railyards Specific Plan scheduled for Council approval in Summer 2020.
The level of passenger service needs are guided by the 2018 State Rail Plan which outlines service increases for intercity passenger rail and regional bus networks with milestones in 2022, 2027 and 2040 that outline statewide rail and bus service improvements that will require significant service and capacity increases at SVS for bus, light rail and other mobility services. The state has created the TIRCP as a principal funding vehicle to implement the state rail plan.
As stated in the TIRCP request for projects statement: “the TIRCP was created to provide grants from the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund (GGRF) to fund transformative capital improvements that will modernize California’s intercity, commuter, and urban rail systems, and bus and ferry transit systems, to significantly reduce emissions of greenhouse gases, vehicle miles traveled, and congestion.”
The proposed Sacramento Valley Station Transit Center is intended to transform the facility to accommodate the expansion of all service modes, particularly bus, light rail, and bike access.
The Transit Center will provide 18 bus births for intercity buses and some existing local RT routes. Currently ten bus agencies serve Downtown Sacramento with 90 routes stopping within a half-mile of the station. For those routes, 764 alightings and departures occur each day, with only 84 of those totals serving SVS. Existing Amtrak bus births are at capacity at periods of the day and the ability to add bus services is limited with the current configuration. Demand for bus access has increased and is projected to increase with new job centers such as the County Courthouse and new commercial and residential developments proximate to the station.
Light rail that terminates on the north side of the historic station in an east-west alignment, has been long planned to relocate the station platform in a north-south configuration on the eastern edge of city property and provide through service loop connecting H Street and 7th Street via F Street. This station and double track loop which will serve the new Major League Soccer (MLS) stadium and the planned State Office Building at Richards Boulevard, along with the general high-density development in the Railyards and River District.
Bike Access to the station has been a significant public request in many public meetings and online surveys conducted through the Phase 3 master plan process. Capitol Corridor has a significant 8% of current ridership that access the station by bike, despite the current limited access. Consistent with the Central City Specific Plan (CCSP), the Transit Center project will improve bike access via a Class IV facility extended along F Street into the site to the existing terminus of 2nd Street north of Old Sacramento. This facility can be connected to a future crossing of the historic I Street bridge with its conversion to a pedestrian and bike facility. Including in the application is a two-way cycle track along H Street from 10th Street to the station that is consistent with the CCSP but is aligned to the south to prevent conflict with the light rail tracks on H Street.
Pedestrian and bike access to the Railyards development area is proposed with a new entrance at the northern end of the Steve Cohn Passageway with a set of wide stairs and accessible rampway. DRV is providing project cost estimates and schedule and would enter into cooperative agreements with the City to construct the addition to the City facility with Council approval.
The historic station will continue to serve Amtrak passengers and Amtrak operations such as baggage and ticketing services, crew base, as well as passenger waiting are in the refurbished Main Waiting Room and house over 26,000 sf of retail and office lease space.