City of Alameda Transportation Commission Meeting - 2025-05-28
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City of Alameda Transportation Commission Meeting - 2025-05-28
The Transportation Commission met on Wednesday, May 28, 2025, starting at 6:30 PM at City Hall. The meeting included staff updates, approval of prior meeting minutes, and a detailed discussion on Caltrans’ State Route 61 pavement preservation project and future plans for Otis Drive. Public comments emphasized safety concerns, and commissioners called for more collaborative planning between the city and Caltrans.
Staff Communications
- Transportation Planning Manager Lisa Foster reported on City Council budget workshops (no major changes to the capital improvement plan), the replacement of a bus lanes project with three transit-focused multimodal projects (pending AC Transit board approval), and upcoming public events (urban cycling workshop, senior transportation workshop). She also noted expansions for the Oakland-Alameda Water Shuttle, funding for neighborhood greenway crossings, progress on Central Avenue and Grand Street construction, and signal refinements along Ralph Appezzato Memorial Parkway including new bicycle detection indicators.
Consent Calendar
- Approval of Draft Minutes of April 30, 2025: The minutes were approved. Commissioner Gloyne abstained because he was absent from that meeting. The motion carried with the remaining commissioners voting aye.
Public Comments & Testimony
- Maria Piper (in person) criticized the project’s stated goals, asserting that ride quality was prioritized over traffic safety. She argued that congestion can improve safety by slowing cars and urged the commission to focus on pedestrian and bicycle safety, noting that many users avoid Otis Drive.
- Christy Cannon (in person) expressed frustration with Caltrans’ past record of not listening to the city, but acknowledged the recent improvements. She urged continued prioritization of pedestrian and bicycle safety.
- Cindy Johnson (on Zoom, representing Bike Walk Alameda) expressed relief and appreciation for the late-breaking safety upgrades. She requested trail crossing improvements at Doolittle/Island, bicycle markings at Harbor Bay Parkway, and full class-four bikeways along the entire Doolittle corridor, and asked whether narrower lanes or reduced speed limits were considered where gaps exist.
- Jim Strelo (on Zoom) asked for the new presentation diagrams to be posted online and inquired about jurisdictional responsibility for the wooden pedestrian/bike bridge over Doolittle Drive, noting its poor condition.
- Alice Sunshine (on Zoom, President of Ravens Cove Homeowners Association) thanked staff and the mayor for securing bulb-outs at Otis and Bayview, but stressed that the main issue is crowding between pedestrians and cyclists. She requested that the bulb-out design provide adequate space for both modes and referenced near-crashes at that corner.
Discussion Items
- Update on Caltrans State Route 61 Project (Discussion)
- Ron Kia Aina (Caltrans Regional Project Manager) presented the Capital Preventive Maintenance (CAPM) project covering five miles from Route 112 along Doolittle Drive through San Leandro, Oakland, and Alameda to Otis Drive and Broadway. He emphasized that the project is primarily a pavement preservation project (grind and overlay, 10-year design life) and does not change lane configurations.
- In response to feedback, Caltrans incorporated safety improvements: rectangular rapid flashing beacons (RRFBs) with lighting at Mound and Versailles, median refuge islands at four locations on Otis, curb bulb-outs at Bayview, and a class-four protected bike lane on Doolittle Drive from Harbor Bay Parkway to Island Drive (class-two bike lanes where shoulder width is insufficient).
- The project is funded at $23 million through the State Highway Operations and Protection Program (SHOPP), with construction expected from January 2026 to April 2027.
- For the future Otis Drive project (Broadway to Bay Farm Island Bridge), Caltrans plans to program a project in the 2028 SHOPP cycle to study a road diet and other alternatives, with environmental and design phases taking about three years and construction around 2032. The city recommended studying alternatives ranging from enhanced crossings on four lanes to road diets with or without bike lanes.
- Commissioners discussed the need for detailed traffic and speed studies, truck turning radii, design details for bulb-outs (quick-curb vs. concrete), and comprehensive traffic diversion analysis for future alternatives.
- Commissioners appreciated the improvements but noted the process was inefficient and urged earlier, more collaborative engagement between Caltrans and the city. They emphasized that the project must be safe and usable and requested Caltrans address specific connectivity and crowding issues raised by public comments.
- No vote was taken (discussion only).
Key Outcomes
- Minutes Approved: The draft minutes of April 30, 2025 were approved with one abstention (Commissioner Gloyne).
- Adjournment: The meeting adjourned before 8:00 PM.
Meeting Transcript
Good evening, everyone. Welcome to the City of Alameda Transportation Commission meeting for Wednesday, May 28th, 2025. We will begin with the roll call. Lisa Foster. Commissioner Dara Abrams. Commissioner Kim. Here. Commissioner Gloyne. Present. Chair Whitesy. Here. Vice Chair Sutham Thira. Commissioner Johnson is absent at the moment, and Commissioner Noctigall cannot make it. She is absent. Okay. Seeing that we have quorum, we will continue. Next item on the agenda. Any agenda changes? Any proposed agenda changes from Commissioners? Seeing none, we will move on to item number three, staff communications. Take it away, Lisa Foster. Thank you. Good evening, Chair Whitesy and Commissioners. As Chair Whitesy said, I'm Lisa Foster, Transportation Planning Manager. We've had a couple of council items on items reviewed by the Transportation Commission recently. And on May 5th and 13th, the City Council held budget workshops to provide direction on the fiscal year 2025 to 2027 budget proposals. There wasn't any major changes in given for direction for the capital improvement plan draft that you all reviewed. Also authorized replacing the Ralph Opposato Memorial Parkway Buslanes project with three transit focused multimodal projects for the named measure BB project. So that is next going to the AC Transit Board of Directors. And then September 24th. And then for public events coming up, May 31st in a few days is an urban cycling workshop. That'll be at the main library. And then on June 6th, we have the Transportation 101 and Clipper cards for seniors at the Mastic Senior Center. For project updates, July will be a big month for the Oakland Alameda Water Shuttle. The water shuttle team is planning to add a six day of service along with other service expansions. And we will also celebrate the one year anniversary and expect to celebrate the 100,000 100,000th passenger. So keep an eye out for communications about those. It was on April 26th. I guess that was maybe I mentioned that at the last meeting we had. Funding for an additional two years of service for the Oakland Alameda Water Shuttle. Funding for neighborhood greenway major crossings, two million dollars for that. Some money for the Willie Stargil Complete Street Corridor project that you guys have reviewed, and uh funding for a uh FEMA brick match for the Doolittle Drive State Route 61 and Bay Farm Island project. Uh FEMA has recently ended their BRIC program, but the city is still advancing this project and looking for a new funding plan. So on Central Avenue, as you all know, construction is underway. There are more details on the web page and in the written staff communications. Public works has continued to refine the signals along the Ralph Opposato Memorial Parkway with the Cross Alameda Trail. Although you know the project was substantially completed last year. Um they are continuing to tweak. They added new bicycle detection indicators at a few intersections and a new protected left turn phase at Atlantic and Wilmachan. And this allowing for a longer green right turn phase arrow for the east base eastbound Atlantic traffic, which was a big source of frustration when this when the signal upgrades first went into place for drivers, so that should improve things there.
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