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CC-Adoption of a Resolution (1) Adopting the Local Road Safety Plan (LRSP); and (2) Finding the LRSP to be Exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act.
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Meeting Date: November 8, 2021
Contact Person: Heba El-Guindy/Public Works Department
Phone: (310) 253-5628
Action Item: Yes [X] No [ ] Attachments/Links: Yes [X] No [ ]
Fiscal Impact: Yes [ ] No [X] General Fund: Yes [ ] No [X]
Public Notification: (E-Mail) Meetings and Agendas - City Council (11/04/2021)
Department Approval: Yanni Demitri, PW Director/City Engineer (11/01/2021)
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MOTION
Staff recommends the City Council adopt a Resolution (1) adopting the City’s first Local Road Safety Plan (LRSP); and (2) finding the LRSP to be exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), pursuant to CEQA Guidelines, Sections 15061 (b)(3) and 15301(c).
BACKGROUND/DISCUSSION
The California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) published a Systemic Safety Analysis Report Program (SSARP) that focuses on evaluating an entire roadway network using a defined set of criteria in light of collisions history and aggregate basis to identify high-risk roadway characteristics. To support use of the SSARP, Caltrans announced in 2019 the availability of grant funds to assist local agencies desiring to develop a systemwide Local Road Safety Plan (LRSP). Concurrently, Caltrans also announced that agencies must have an adopted LRSP as a prerequisite to be eligible to apply for the Highway Safety Improvements Program (HSIP) funding starting with grant Cycle 11 to be announced around April 2022.
The City’s Public Works Department applied for the maximum grant funding amount permitted at the time, a grant in the amount of $72,000 with a required local match of $8,000. Following the grant award and City Council approval, the PW Department retained TJKM Consultants to assist staff with the LRSP development.
The LRSP assesses safety conditions citywide and recommends an action plan covering infrastructure and non-infrastructure improvements. As part of the road network review, the Plan identified priority safety corridors and intersections. Corrective measures contained in the LRSP covers traffic safety education, means for encouraging the use of sustainable modes of travel, engineering/infrastructure improvements, enforcement, emerging technologies, and evaluation of the measures’ effectiveness and future Plan updates.
It should be noted that PW staff already utilized recommendations of the LRSP in their submittal of six grant applications to Cycle 10 of the HSIP in October of 2020, and the City was awarded in May of this year about $5 million in grant funds for three of the six submitted applications as follows:
• Installation of High Friction Surface Treatment (HFST) on the curved segment of Overland Avenue in the vicinity of West LA College, and enhancement to signage, pavement markings, and establishment of bike lanes from Jefferson Boulevard to Flaxton Street (grant award $677,000);
• Safety improvements including improvement to signal hardware, provision of protected left-turn phase, and modification of signal phasing to implement Lead Pedestrian Interval (LPI) at ten (10) signalized intersections with four located on Washington Boulevard, one on Culver Boulevard, two on Overland Avenue, one on Jefferson Boulevard, one on Centinela Avenue, and one on Sepulveda Boulevard (grant award $2,766,700); and
• Safety improvements including improvement to street lighting, warning and regulatory signs, and pavement markings at twelve (12) unsignalized intersections with eight located on Washington Boulevard, two on Sepulveda Boulevard, one on Washington Place, and one on Higuera Street (grant award $1,545,700).
In addition to the internal staff review by the different divisions of the Public Works Department, the Draft LRSP was circulated for review and feedback by the Police, Fire, Transportation, and Community Development Departments. The Draft LRSP was also reviewed by members of the City’s Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Committee, Culver City Unified School District, Walk n Roller School Safety Program, Bike Culver City, and Women on Bikes. The revised LRSP report was then presented, and public comments were solicited, in duly noticed public meetings of the Mobility, Traffic and Parking Subcommittee on August 10, 2021, and the Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Committee on September 14, 2021.
The LRSP is exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) pursuant to CEQA Guidelines Section 15061(b)(3), as it can be seen with certainty there is no possibility the proposed LRSP will have a significant effect on the environment. The LRSP, by itself, does not result in any physical changes in the environment because it is a guiding document and plan that establishes policies, programs and design guidelines intended to make the road network in Culver City safe, comfortable, and convenient for all road users, and is not in conjunction with any specific approval of a physical project. Therefore, any project implemented under the proposed LRSP, would be subject to appropriate CEQA analysis at the time of project implementation. The proposed LRSP is further exempt pursuant to CEQA Guidelines 15301 (c), as it consists of the operation, repair, maintenance, permitting, leasing, licensing, or minor alteration of existing public or private structures, facilities, mechanical equipment, or topographical features, involving negligible or no expansion of existing or former use. Such facilities include existing highways and streets, sidewalks, gutters, bicycle and pedestrian trails, and similar facilities (this includes road grading for the purpose of public safety, and other alterations such as the addition of bicycle facilities, including but not limited to bicycle parking, bicycle lanes, transit improvements such as bus lanes, pedestrian crossings, signal modifications, street trees, and other similar alterations that do not create additional automobile lanes).
FISCAL ANALYSIS
There is currently no fiscal impact. The individual projects will be brought for City Council consideration and approval in the future at which time staff will provide cost estimates of any detailed operational and environmental review that may be needed, design and construction costs, as well as operational costs. As noted above, some of LRSP recommendations have already been awarded state grant funds for design and construction in FY 21/22 and FY 22/23 and will soon be brought for City Council consideration prior to proceeding with the work/award of contracts.
ATTACHMENT
1. 2021-11-08_ATT_LRSP Resolution
MOTION
That the City Council:
Adopt a Resolution (1) adopting the City’s first Local Road Safety Plan (LRSP); and (2) finding the LRSP to be exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), pursuant to CEQA Guidelines, Sections 15061 (b)(3) and 15301(c).