August 29, 2024 - De Anza Blvd Buffered Bike Lane Project
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CITY COUNCIL INFORMATIONAL MEMORANDUM
Date: August 29, 2024
To: Cupertino City Council
From: Pamela Wu, City Manager, Chad Mosley, Director of Public Works, David
Stillman, Transportation Manager
Re: De Anza Blvd Buffered Bike Lane Project
Background
The upcoming scheduled implementation of the De Anza Blvd Buffered Bike Lane
project has resulted in a substantial amount of misinformation being presented to City
Council through a campaign of emails and a Change.org petition from members of the
public opposed to the project. Staff has prepared this memorandum to address and
clarify this information.
Project Scope
De Anza Boulevard is a major north-south principal arterial roadway across Cupertino,
a designated truck route along most of its length, and has posted speed limits of 35 and
40 mph. Currently, standard Class II bike lanes exist along both directions of De Anza
Boulevard within Cupertino, and no buffer zone exists to increase the separation
between bicycle and vehicle traffic. The De Anza Blvd Buffered Bike Lane Project, the
highest-ranking Tier 2 project in the 2016 Cupertino Bicycle Transportation Plan, will
enhance the safety of the existing Class II bicycle lanes on De Anza Blvd between
Homestead Road and Bollinger Road by creating a painted buffer zone to provide
greater separation between the bike lanes and the adjacent vehicle lanes. Recently the
City of San Jose completed the installation of a painted buffer zone separating the Class
II bike lanes from vehicle traffic lanes along De Anza Boulevard within their City limits
south of Bollinger Road. The improvements from Cupertino’s project will similarly
enhance safety for cyclists within Cupertino by providing a continuation of buffered
bike lanes into the City’s jurisdiction in addition to calming vehicular traffic speeds.
In the southbound direction, De Anza Blvd currently has three vehicle travel lanes
between Homestead Road and the I-280 southbound ramp, and four lanes between the
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I-280 southbound ramp and Bollinger Road. De Anza Blvd then reduces back to 3 lanes
south of Bollinger Road. In the northbound direction, De Anza Blvd has three lanes
between Bollinger Road and Stevens Creek Blvd, four lanes between Stevens Creek Blvd
and the I-280 southbound ramp, and then reduces back to three lanes between the I-280
southbound ramp and Homestead Road, and northward into Sunnyvale. Due to the
constrained pavement widths along some segments, the number of travel lanes will be
reduced in order to provide room for the painted buffer zone. These modifications
include a reduction from four to three lanes in the northbound direction between
Stevens Creek Blvd and Lazaneo Drive, and a reduction in the southbound direction,
from four to three lanes between Stevens Creek Blvd and Bollinger Road (a fourth lane
will be provided at McClellan Road for right-turning vehicles). The attached exhibit
shows existing and proposed lane configurations. Minor lane width adjustments will
also be performed along the corridor to provide for a consistent and safe driver
experience.
Engagement and Actions
The project was included in the Capital Improvement Program budget for Fiscal Year
2022-23, approved by City Council on June 9, 2022 by 4-1 vote. On December 21, 2022,
the project was presented to the Bicycle Pedestrian Commission (BPC), where the
proposed modifications to the lane configurations were discussed and general support
from the commission was received. At the meeting, in response to a suggestion and
inquiry from commissioner Ganga, staff noted that traffic data from the corridor would
be collected and evaluated. No formal action was taken at the meeting. Staff returned
to the BPC on April 19, 2023 to request that the BPC recommend Council approve the
allocation of $166,259 of Cupertino’s Transportation Development Act Article 3 (TDA3)
funding for the project. Following a discussion about the project, the BPC voted
unanimously to approve the allocation request. City Council subsequently approved
the allocation unanimously under consent on June 6, 2023.
On July 19, 2023, the project was again discussed at the BPC, within the context of a
larger discussion about the Transportation Division work plan. Staff explained at the
meeting that a microsimulation analysis of the De Anza Blvd corridor was not
performed, but that traffic data was collected and traffic patterns were observed. On
April 16, 2024, City Council awarded the construction contract for $529,680 unanimously
under consent.
Data Collection and Analysis
Traffic count data was collected in February and March 2023. Data included 24-hour
northbound and southbound volumes, in 15-minute increments.
Vehicle throughput along a corridor such as De Anza Blvd is constrained more by the
capacities of the signalized intersections and the ability to accommodate a progression of
vehicles, than by the number of through lanes. Staff verified the adequacy of the De
Anza Blvd corridor to support the design through a quantitative analysis of the per-lane
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capacity of the signalized intersections, as well as through observation of the
performance of similar corridors with similar traffic volumes as an indication of
expected performance of the De Anza corridor. A more detailed analysis, such as a
computer microsimulation, was not performed due to the inherent challenges of
accurately modeling the corridor. This type of analysis is not an appropriate tool for
evaluating this corridor due to the number of lanes, predominance of driveways and
variability of traffic volumes. Model results would be highly sensitive to design inputs
and assumptions, requiring extensive engineering judgement. This approach would
require lengthy and expensive evaluation of the corridor, and the results would not
provide significantly more insight than the quantitative analysis performed.
With respect to the performance of similar corridors, one notable example is El Camino
Real in the cities of Mountain View and Sunnyvale. El Camino Real has three through
lanes in each direction, numerous driveways which introduce significant friction along
the corridor, and multiple signalized intersections with high-volume cross streets. Per-
lane traffic volumes along El Camino Real are similar to, and in some locations higher
than, the per-lane volumes expected along De Anza Blvd following project
implementation. El Camino Real operates acceptably under these conditions.
Based upon available green times, traffic signal cycle length, and per-lane hourly
capacities of arterial roadways, the volume-to-capacity ratios of the travel lanes along De
Anza Blvd will be acceptable and drivers should not experience an increase in vehicle
delays with the proposed changes.
Following implementation of the project, Transportation Division staff will be
monitoring traffic flows, and adjustments to signal timings and coordination will be
performed if necessary to ensure satisfactory vehicle progression is maintained and
delays are minimized.
Finally, regarding the need for a formal traffic analysis, the 2018 California Governor’s
Office of Planning and Research (OPR) Technical Advisory “On Evaluating Impacts in
CEQA” states, “reducing roadway capacity (for example, by removing or repurposing
motor vehicle travel lanes) will generally reduce VMT and therefore is presumed to
cause a less-than-significant impact on transportation. Generally, no transportation
analysis is needed for such projects.”
Sustainability Impact
The recommended improvements are intended to encourage bicycle use, which will
reduce single-occupancy vehicle trips and lead to reduced vehicle emissions. This will
help the City achieve air quality and greenhouse gas emission reduction goals.
Fiscal Impact
The FY 2022/2023 budget allocated $525,000 for the project, which is partially offset by
Transportation Development Act Article 3 grant funds received ($166,259).
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Prepared by: David Stillman, Transportation Manager
Reviewed by: Chad Mosley, Director of Public Works
Approved for Submission by: Pamela Wu, City Manager
Attachment:
A – Exhibit of Before and After Lane Configurations