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File Number: 20-400 <br />convenient travel along and across streets for all users, including pedestrians, bicyclists, persons <br />with disabilities, motorists, movers of commercial goods, public transportation, seniors, youth and <br />families. <br />Fairmont Drive between Hesperian Boulevard and East 14th Street is listed in the City’s 2018 <br />Bicycle and Pedestrian Master Plan as recommended for the implementation of Class IV <br />protected bicycle lanes. To corroborate the validity of the Master Plan recommendation, staff <br />identified that additional analysis was needed to determine how they should be built, their impact <br />on traffic and whether they will fit within the existing roadway. <br />Fairmont Drive is currently configured with three travel lanes in each direction, a concrete median <br />from Hesperian Boulevard to East 14th Street and it has a 35 mph speed limit. East of the <br />project limit at East 14th Street, and outside City limits, Fairmont Drive is configured with two <br />travel lanes in each direction and bike lanes. West of the project limit at Hesperian Boulevard, <br />the road is named Halcyon Drive and is configured with two travel lanes in each direction and <br />intermittent bike lanes. The Alameda County Transportation Commission designated pedestrians <br />as the highest priority user of Fairmont Drive followed by bicycles, transit, trucks, and finally autos. <br />With the help of a transportation consultant, a potential road diet or reduction of vehicle travel <br />lanes to make room for improved bicycle facilities, was evaluated. A public meeting was held at <br />Bay Fair Mall where the results of the evaluation were discussed, and the attendees were asked <br />to vote on preferred alternatives. The public was also asked to vote on preferred alternatives at <br />the 2018 Cherry Festival and given the opportunity to vote online. In total, approximately 250 <br />responses were received. 38% of respondents preferred to leave Fairmont Drive in its current <br />configuration and 62% preferred the road diet option with protected bicycle lanes. <br />In 2019, staff submitted an application to the Bay Area Air Quality Management District <br />(BAAQMD) for a Transportation Fund for Clean Air (TFCA) grant to fund Class IV bike lanes on <br />Fairmont. In 2020, BAAQMD proposed an agreement that would fund 90% of the project costs, <br />up to $220,000. The terms of the agreement include a requirement that the facilities remain in <br />service for at least 10 years. <br />Analysis <br />Implementation of a road diet on the Fairmont Drive segment will not reduce the level of service to <br />unacceptable levels. The intersection of Fairmont Drive with Hesperian Boulevard receives the <br />most impact. The existing peak demand level of service at this intersection is D. The City’s <br />General Plan sets a goal of D or better for intersection level of service (scale is rated from A to F). <br />Implementing a road diet will not significantly increase the delay at the Hesperian intersection. <br />Increases in traffic, such as are expected due to the Bay Fair Transit-Oriented Development Plan <br />when combined with a road diet, will increase delay by 100% over the existing condition and the <br />expected level of service will drop to E. However, a similar reduction in level of service is <br />expected with or without the project, as projects accumulate over time. <br />The highest priority uses of Fairmont Drive are pedestrians and then bicycles. Implementing a <br />road diet on the subject segment of Fairmont Drive such that the travel lanes are reduced from 3 <br />to 2 in each direction will make it safer for pedestrians to cross the street and improve bicyclists’ <br />Page 2 City of San Leandro Printed on 9/23/2020 <br />161