Section One: Executive Summary Projects... · blade signs Custom Palo Alto bicycle boulevard roadway marking Matadero Ave 300 Street Signs Along designated bicycle boulevards, additional

The Stanford and Palo Alto Trails Program: Connecting the Bay to the Ridge

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Section One: Executive Summary


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The area of San Francisco Bay comprised of Palo Alto, Menlo Park, Los Altos, Los Altos Hills, Portola

Valley and Stanford University is one of the most beautiful in Northern California. The hills, valleys,

and shoreline provide a stunning native landscape with a gentle climate for hikers, runners, bicy-

clists and others for year-round use. As recreational demand has increased with both regional and

local growth, so too has attention on how to protect, enhance, and link these regional amenities.

Historically, the City of Palo Alto has made signifi cant investments in providing recreational

opportunities up to the tops of the local ridgeline, most notably through the purchase and estab-

lishment of the Arastradero Preserve Park. The park includes 10.4 miles of trails that connect to

adjacent communities including the Town of Los Altos Hills. Through implementation of the Santa

Clara County/Stanford Trails Agreement, Stanford University has added two new trails identifi ed

in the County Trails Master Plan—the S1 Trail that extends from Junipero Serra Boulevard into the

foothills, to the Town of Los Altos Hills, and the C2 Trail that will extend through Los Alto Hills to

the Arastradero Preserve.

The region has invested heavily in trail networks along the Bay Trail, including the Palo Alto

Baylands and Shoreline at Mountain View. The Bay Trail is a planned recreational corridor that is

intended to encircle San Francisco and San Pablo Bays, with 500 miles of continuous off -street

trails. Over half (250 miles) of the trail are currently in operation. In Palo Alto, the Bay Trail is

an off -street multi-use path through the Baylands Preserve running from the edge of Shoreline

at Mountain View Park to the Friendship Bridge and East Palo Alto, and with connections to the

Ravenswood Open Space Preserves and Bayfront Park in Menlo Park.

The following proposed fi ve (5) linkages represent a coordinated eff ort between the City of Palo

Alto and Stanford University to leverage existing and planned trail corridors for new and expanded

recreational opportunities for Stanford campus residents and the public who use campus recre-

ational facilities. The linkages complete key gaps in the system of recreational trails and bicycle-

priority on-street connections that comprise the designated Bay to Ridge Trail and Santa Clara

County Trails network. Along with being recreational amenities on their own, these linkages

connect together an impressive and diverse array of parks, schools, residential neighborhoods and

employment centers along the way.

Linkage 1: Stanford Perimeter TrailIn partnership with the City of Palo Alto, Stanford University proposes the Stanford Perimeter Trail

(SPT) along Junipero Serra Boulevard, Stanford Avenue and El Camino Real to provide a multi-use

recreational resource for both Stanford campus residents and facility users. The proposed linkage

introduces 3.4 miles of a new Class I walking, jogging, and bicycling facility along a key segment of

the designated Bay-to-Ridge Trail that connects to the recently completed S1 Trail and the soon-

to-be completed C2 Trail. The linkage also expands connectivity to Escondido Elementary School,

Nixon Elementary School, Palo Alto High School, and Stanford child care facilities on El Camino

Real, all immediately adjacent to the SPT.

The proposed trail will be a high-quality facility, separated from streets, so that the user has a

sense of safety and is protected from vehicular traffi c confl icts. It will be available to all, uni-

versally accessible throughout with both paved and soft shoulder surfaces. In many locations,

new trail segments will be developed where none currently exist, utilizing Stanford property and

1 Executive Summarypublic rights-of-way. In other locations, existing sub-standard trail segments will be improved and

expanded. As a result, the trail will provide a continuously comfortable and scenic recreational

facility for residents and visitors alike.

The SPT links to adjacent recreational facilities implemented by the City of Palo Alto including

bicycle lanes on Stanford Avenue between Harvard Street and El Camino Real, and an upgraded El

Camino Park (currently under construction) with new turf playfi elds.

Centrally located near a number of other existing or planned trails, the SPT will enhance the local and

regional trail/bike network connectivity. The trail will enhance connections to and on the following:

• C1 Trail (Palo Alto) • Arastradero Preserve (Palo Alto)

• C2 Trail (Los Altos Hills) • Stanford Dish Recreational Route (Stanford University)

• S1 Trail (Santa Clara County) • Bay-to-Ridge Trail Network

The Stanford and Palo Alto Trails

Program will connect to the foothills trail

network, including the S1 Matadero Creek

Pedestrian Trail, and extend it into the

edges of campus and beyond to the Palo

Alto Baylands.

Stanford Ave. near Junipero Serra Blvd. consists of paved shoulders but no trail on the north side.

A multi-use Class I trail and Class II bike lane will be added along the north side of Stanford Ave.


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Linkage 2: Park Boulevard Bicycle Boulevard ExtensionThe Park Boulevard Bicycle Boulevard extends the bicycle boulevard currently under deployment

by the City of Palo Alto between Churchill Avenue and Oregon Expressway. The facility includes

existing traffi c diverters and Class II on-street bicycle lanes, new bioswale curb extensions and a

traffi c circle on Castilleja Avenue, and enhanced bicycle boulevard wayfi nding signage and green

bicycle lane treatments through the California Avenue Business District to Oregon Expressway.

The project is being integrated with the California Avenue Transit Hub Corridor – Streetscape

Improvement project, which is undergoing a transformation from El Camino Real to the Caltrain

Station that includes a new pedestrian and bicycle-friendly transit plaza with secure bicycle

parking and space for a future bicycle share docking station.

The proposed grant application linkage expands the Park Boulevard Bicycle Boulevard from

Oregon Expressway south to Charleston Road via MacLane Street and Wilkie Way, and to El

Camino Real (and Linkage 1) via Stanford Avenue. These additions will better link the Stanford

University campus to an expanded, continuous low-stress bicycle facility with traffi c calming to

further improve safety; revised traffi c control to remove bicycle fl ow impediments; and custom

signage and wayfi nding to guide recreational users to nearby facilities and destinations.

The new facility will provide a vital north-south recreational “greenway” over 2.2 miles in length

between El Camino Real and Alma Street (two high-volume arterials where bicycle facilities are

not apparently feasible) and will aid connections to the Bay-to-Ridge Trail network across the

Caltrain/Alma Street corridor at California Avenue, E. Meadow Drive, and Charleston Road.

BICYCLEBOULEVARD

Castilleja-Park-Wilkie

Identification / Confirmation Signs

Route Guidance Pavement Markings

30”

Bicycle Boulevard Route Wayfinding Guidelines (Adopted)

Customized signs and markings will be used on designated bicycle boulevards and integrated into the citywide system, where appropriate.

Bicycle boulevard confirmation sign

Confirmation signs should be placed at the beginning of designated bikeways and repeated at appropriate locations, such as the far side of an intersection where two bikeways meet or every one-third to one-half mile depending on length segment, sight distance, and need for confirmation. Destination “blade” signs may be used in conjunction with confirmation signs to provide additional information.

For bicycle boulevards, identification signs shall be customized with violet coloring, the approved “Bike Palo Alto” logo, and the specific corridor or roadway name(s).

Along bicycle boulevards, a customized pavement marker (left) may be used in addition to or in lieu of repeated confirmation signage. These markers can be used with arrows to provide route guidance through jogs or roadways changes, and at off-route locations leading toward a bicycle boulevard. In general, the custom markings should be placed in the center of the travel lane to denote bicycle priority. Through higher-traffic areas of bicycle boulevards, or wherever lane positioning and route confirmation are desirable on Class III facilities, shared lane markings (right) may also be used.

Destination / Route Blade Signs

Stanford Perimeter Trail

Bol Park / Arastradero Rd

Baylands / Bay Trail

“Blade” signs provide route or destination information at major decision points along or near a designated bikeway. Closest destinations should be listed on top, and no more than three blade signs should be used for any one location/pole. Destinations can include common neighborhood names, major parks and trails, schools/universities, important roads/bikeways, general commercial areas, and adjacent communities.

If a sign is located on or directing to a bicycle boulevard, it shall be differentiated by its [violet] color. When not accompanied by a confirmation sign, blade signs should include a bicycle symbol. Use of established symbols/graphics for trails and destinations is encouraged, as are mileage indicators for longer destinations.

Bicycle boulevard destination blade signs

Custom Palo Alto bicycle boulevard roadway marking

Matadero Ave300

Street Signs Along designated bicycle boulevards, additional route confirmation and wayfinding will be achieved through integrated street name signs that carry the bicycle boulevard marker symbol and color. Installation can occur as part of the city’s non-conforming street sign upgrade program, or in conjunction with other bikeway or roadway maintenance projects.

Recently installed street sign on Park Boulevard

Adopted street sign standard for designated bicycle boulevards

Sharrows help confirm routes and guide cyclists on Class III facilities

Bicycle boulevard wayfi nding guidelines, adopted in the 2012 Palo Alto Bicycle + Pedestrian

Transportation Plan. Expanding the Park Blvd Bicycle Boulevard will provide a gateway corridor

with wayfi nding to key recreational destinations.City of Palo Alto staff discussing the potential improvements to Wilkie Way as part of the Park

Blvd Bicycle Boulevard Tour in May 2011. This segment of the popular north/south bicycle cor-

ridor would be implemented as part of the Stanford and Palo Alto Trails Program to help connect

the Stanford Campus across and between the El Camino Real and Caltrain barriers.


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Linkage 3: Matadero Creek TrailThe proposed Matadero Creek Trail is a new 1.3 mile recreational facility along levies and access

roads owned by the Santa Clara Valley Water District (SCVWD) along Matadero Creek. The

linkage will provide a continuous east-west Class I trail directly through the center of Palo Alto,

with improved safety across Middlefi eld Road in the Midtown Shopping District and enhanced

connections to three major City parks and two elementary schools. The new trail will serve

Stanford University residents and facility users via the existing Bryant Street Bicycle Boulevard and

California Avenue Caltrain undercrossing, and will provide additional opportunities for users to

access the Bay Trail via planned bicycle boulevard connections to Adobe Creek (Linkage 4) along

the Ross Road and Greer/Louis Road corridors.

An exciting near-term opportunity for an urban trail connector, the Matadero Creek Trail linkage

is also a down payment on the overall vision of a continuous east-west trail corridor from Foothills

Expressway to Highway 101. This vision, established in the designation of the Matadero Creek cor-

ridor as part of the Bay-to-Ridge Trail network, includes future potential barrier crossings over the

Highway 101 and Caltrain/Alma Street corridors.

The existing Santa Clara Valley Water District maintenance road along Matadero Creek is

an underutilized resource that stretches from Alma Street to W. Bayshore Road. This grant

application requests funding to implement a Class I shared use trail in order to provide a cost-

eff ective – yet transformative – recreational facility through the heart of the Bay to Ridge trail

network and Palo Alto.


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Access to the Bay Trail from west of Highway 101 is extremely limited, with one of the two bicycle/pedestrian linkages subject to fl ooding (and closure)

for more than six months out of the year. A new dedicated, year-round facility at Adobe Creek could provide a much-needed recreational connection.

Linkage 4: Adobe Creek/

Highway 101 OvercrossingThe Adobe Creek Overcrossing will provide a

year-round, Class I trail crossing of Highway

101 with direct access to the Bay Trail,

Baylands Nature Preserve, and Shoreline at

Mountain View park. The project overcomes

a key obstacle for bicyclists and pedestrians

accessing the Baylands from Palo Alto and

Stanford along the designated southern Bay to

Ridge Trail Alignment.

The current undercrossing is open season-

ally, while the nearby San Antonio Avenue

highway overpass has no bicycle facilities and

a narrow fi ve foot sidewalk with exposure to

multiple on/off ramps.

A new bridge crossing over Highway 101 will

provide year-round access between Palo Alto

and the Bay Lands, expanding access to rec-

reational activities for Stanford and Palo Alto

residents and regional users. The bridge will

require additional local and regional funding

and replaces the existing seasonal Lefkowitz

Tunnel. This link is currently under preliminary

design and environmental review by the City

of Palo Alto. The requested funding will fund

a substantial portion of the overall project

cost, estimated at between $6-10 million, and

will position the project to be competitive for

outside state and federal funding.


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Linkage 5: Arastradero Road C-2 Trail UpgradesThe Arastradero Road Trail Improvement linkage replaces and widens select areas of the existing

trail located along the north side of Arastradero Road between Foothill Expressway and Purissima

Drive in the Town of Los Altos. The project connects to the recently completed S1 trail built by

Stanford University via bike lanes on Deer Creek Road as well as the soon to be completed C2 trail

that will be constructed by Los Altos Hills. The linkage enhances recreational opportunities at the

Arastradero Preserve as well as for Stanford Research Park and school employees and students

between Los Altos Hills and Gunn High School/Terman Middle School.

These linkages were selected to leverage local investments in trail networks by both the City of

Palo Alto and the County of Santa Clara. In addition to directly benefi ting the Stanford campus

residents and facility users, these improvements will substantially complete key sections of the

City’s Bay to Ridge Trail network and further regional priorities as identifi ed in the Santa Clara

Countywide Trails Master Plan Update.

SHARED USE PATH

NO MOTOR

VEHICLES OR

MOTORIZED BICYCLES

8’2’ 2’Multi-use path

8’ min. required paved width2 ’ clear, graded shoulders required12’ min. total width recommended

10’ vertical clearance

2’ horizontalclearance

The Arastradero Road C-2 trail within Palo Alto is a key link in the Bay-to-Ridge trail system, yet

signifi cant portions are narrow and substandard such that it is not usable or preferred by many

recreational users. Linkage #5 would widen and extend the trail to meet the target of a Class I

shared use trail with an accessible paved surface and soft shoulders on both sides.

Typical cross section of expanded Arastradero Road C-2 Trail.


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Stanford & Palo Alto Trai ls Program

O ver view Map

Palo Alto Bay to Ridge Trails Network

Other Trails (Select)

Approved Trail (Est. Completion by 2013)

Proposed Grant Projects (New Linkages)

City of Palo Alto Supportive Projectsand On-Street Facilities (Existing or Active and Funded by Others)

Existing Trail Linkages

Stanford University Properties

1. Stanford Perimeter Trai l

2. Park B oulevard Bic ycle B oulevard Ex tension

3. Matadero Creek Trai l

4. Adobe Creek/Highway 101 O vercrossing

5. Arastradero Road C-2 Trai l Upgrades

Projec t Linkages

Countywide Trails AlignmentX#

Stanford and Palo Alto Bay Trail


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Program PurposeThe Stanford & Palo Alto Trails Program builds upon the significant efforts by Stanford University, the City of Palo Alto, and Santa Clara County to extend publicly-accessible trails out to the foot-hills and open space ridges, as well to the Baylands and regional Bay Trail. Taking advantage of the rare opportunity for significant new funding, and guided by updated Stanford trails planning and the recently adopted City of Palo Alto Bicycle + Pedestrian Transportation Plan, the Trails Program will build approximately 8 miles of new and expanded linkages to:

1. Greatly improve Stanford resident and facility user access to the regional trail and open space network, including the Bay Trail and Baylands Nature Preserve

2. Provide new recreational opportunities for existing and future residents and facility users within the campus ‘core’ and in adjacent Palo Alto neighborhoods

3. Leverage recent planning to establish a unified University/City vision for an urban green-ways network with prioritized projects, phasing, and stakeholder roles

4. Target projects that overcome significant barriers and remove significant gaps in the trail network

Trails Program Timeline

4Q 2012

20 13 2Q 3Q 4Q 20 14 2Q 3Q 4Q 20 15 2Q

Project A greements

Linkage 1: Stanford Perimeter Trail

Linkage 2: Park Blvd Bicycle Boulevard

Linkage 4 : Adobe Creek /H ighway 10 1 Overcrossing

Stanford and Palo Al to Trails Program Projected Timeline

3Q 4Q

Linkage 3: Matadero Creek Trail

Linkage 5: A rastradero Road C-2 Trail Upgrades

20 16 2Q 3Q 4Q 20 17


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Project Eligibility RequirementStanford Perimeter

TrailPark Bicycle Boulevard Matadero Creek Trail

Adobe Creek Overcrossing Arastradero Trail

Consent for recreational facilities on Stanford lands √ – – – –

CEQA Compliance/Review (to be completed prior to construction) √ √ √ √ √

Public Access and Recreational Use √ √ √ √ √

Affirmative statements to execute a Project Agreement and provide Progress Reports, Record Retention

√ √ √ √ √

Commitment to public access, operations and maintenance of facilities √ √ √ √ √

Grant Request $4.5 million $200,000 $1.5 million $4 million $200,000

Total Project Cost $4.5 million $250,000 $2 million $6-10 million* $325,000

Affirmative Statement of Insurance Requirements Compliance √ √ √ √ √

* City of Palo Alto will provide approximately $1 million of development impact mitigation fees and will seek additional federal, state, or regional grant sources to complete project funding

The Eligibility Checklist, above, demonstrates that the Stanford and Palo Alto Trails Program meets all of the criteria established by the County of Santa Clara.

Criteria Eligibility Checklist and Lookup Table

Documents

Section One: Executive Summary Projects... · blade signs Custom Palo Alto bicycle boulevard roadway marking Matadero Ave 300 Street Signs Along designated bicycle boulevards, additional