LAVTA Short Range Transit Plan DRAFT
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Livermore Amador Valley Transit Authority Short Range Transit Plan Fiscal Years 2008 to 2017 May 2008 Federal transportation statutes require that the Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC), in partnership with state and local agencies, develop and periodically update a long range Regional Transportation Plan (RTP), and a Transportation Improvement Program (TIP) that implements the RTP by programming federal funds to transportation projects contained in the RTP. In order to effectively execute these planning and programming responsibilities, the MTC requires that each transit operator in its region that receives federal funding through the TIP, prepare, adopt and submit a Short Range Transit Plan (SRTP) to the MTC. The preparation of this report has been funded in part by a grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation through section 5303 of the Federal Transit Act. The contents of this SRTP reflect the views of the Livermore Amador Valley Transit Authority (LAVTA), and not necessarily those of the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) or MTC. LAVTA is solely responsible for the accuracy of the information presented in this SRTP. LAVTA Short Range Transit Plan 2008-17 1 This page intentionally left blank LAVTA Short Range Transit Plan 2008-17 2 LAVTA 2008-2017 Short Range Transit Plan Final SRTP May 5, 2008 LAVTA Short Range Transit Plan 2008-17 3 TABLE OF CONTENTS Chapter 1. SYSTEM OVERVIEW ..............................................................................6 Chapter 2. GOALS, OBJECTIVES, AND STANDARDS ........................................47 Chapter 3. SERVICE AND SYSTEM EVALUATION.............................................67 Chapter 4. FISCALLY CONSTRAINED SERVICE PLAN AND ILLUSTRATIVE PRIORITIES FY 2008 THROUGH FY 20017 .......................................82 Chapter 5. STUDENT TRANSPORTATION...........................................................97 Chapter 6. FINANCIAL PLAN CAPITAL AND OPERATING.............................104 Chapter 7. BUS RAPID TRANSIT PLAN..............................................................126 Chapter 8. MARKETING AND PUBLIC AWARENESS ......................................136 Chapter 9. LAND USE CONSIDERATIONS ........................................................164 Chapter 10. BUS STOP IMPROVEMENT PLAN ...................................................178 Chapter 11. PARATRANSIT PLAN .........................................................................190 LAVTA Short Range Transit Plan 2008-17 4 TABLE OF FIGURES Figure 1. Fixed Route Financial and Operating Characteristics.........................................116 Figure 2. Paratransit Financial Plan and Operating Characteristics .................................118 Figure 3. Systemwide Operating Information and Notes.....................................................119 Figure 4. Capital Improvement Program ..............................................................................121 Figure 5. Existing Fixed Route and Paratransit Fleet ..........................................................122 Figure 6. Replacement Fixed Route and Paratransit Fleet ..................................................123 Figure 7. Expansion Fleet Needs.............................................................................................124 Figure 8. Summary of Revenue Vehicle Inventory ...............................................................125 LAVTA Short Range Transit Plan 2008-17 5 Chapter 1 SYSTEM OVERVIEW 1.1 Service Area Characteristics The WHEELS core service area covers 40 square miles and consists primarily of the jurisdictions of Dublin (pop. 41,200), Livermore (pop. 80,400), and Pleasanton (pop. 69,200). For the purposes of this document, these three cities will be referred to as the Tri-Valley area. The Tri-Valley area is located in East Alameda, which is part of the metropolitan of San Francisco. This part of Alameda County is sometimes called the Livermore Valley or Amador Valley. 1.2 Service Area History Until the 1950s, the Tri-Valley area was primarily agricultural and the cities of Pleasanton and Livermore, which were incorporated in the 19th century, provided services for the local agricultural economy. When research facilities, like the Lawrence Livermore Laboratory, were established in the 1950s, the character of the area began to change. The completion of the freeway system between 1960 and 1970 opened the area to single family, suburban development in unincorporated areas and near the cities of Pleasanton and Livermore. A third city, Dublin, was incorporated in the early 1980s. The areas of Dublin included land that was previously developed under the jurisdiction of Alameda County. During the 1980s, the Tri-Valley area became a major source of employment for the region due mainly to the development of the Bishop Ranch office park in San Ramon and the Hacienda Business Park in Pleasanton. During this time, all three cities featured low density, automobile oriented land use development, with an extensive network of wide arterials between land use types that, for the most part, were highly separated. Between 1990 and 2005, the population of the Tri-Valley area grew by 42%. This population growth resulted in rapid building and land use development. This rapid development resulted in geographic changes and an increased demand for transportation. In 2000, Alameda County voters approved Measure D, which establishes growth boundaries around Dublin, LAVTA Short Range Transit Plan 2008-17 6 Livermore, and Pleasanton, and serves to limit the development within unincorporated areas. Growth in the Tri-Valley area is anticipated to continue, due to its location, availability of open land, and the overall attractiveness of Bay Area living. Mean Household Income - 2000-2030 % Change % Change Total % 2000 2015 2030 2000-2015 2015-2030 Change Dublin 108,200 119,500 10% 137,000 42% 27% Livermore 106,700 118,700 11% 139,800 53% 31% Pleasanton 138,700 151,000 9% 174,100 9% 26% Average 118,533 130,405 10% 150,977 16% 27% 1.3 Transit System History Transportation services in the Tri-Valley area have evolved incrementally, starting with municipalities and private providers that operate services which range from yellow school bus services to Greyhound intercity lines. When the Alameda-Contra Costa Transit District (AC Transit) was created in 1956, it did not include the Tri-Valley area. In 1972, the San Francisco The City of Livermore operated transit under the Bay Area Rapid Transit District (BART) opened name RIDEO from 1976 until the formation of WHEELS ten years later. The horserace theme of and began bus feeder services on the “U” line, the icon projected a western, small-town image. which connected central portions of Livermore and Pleasanton to the Bayfair BART station in San Leandro. (More information about BART is under the “Transit Services and Coverage” section.) In 1976, the City of Livermore started the RIDEO transit system, which was operated by a private contractor out of leased facilities in downtown Livermore. By 1980, RIDEO had six local Livermore routes that operated on the headways hourly, Monday through Saturday. Over the next five years, RIDEO remained largely the same, with some routes incrementally receiving peak hour frequency improvements. By the mid-1980s, BART’s “U” line feeder service had grown to provide service along a central corridor that spanned the cores of Livermore, Pleasanton, and Dublin. Supplemental “U” loops were operated during peak hours locations such as the Hacienda Business Park and Stoneridge Mall. The “U” line eventually provided service seven days a week and became the foundation for what would become the strongest transit route in the area (subsequently, Route 10). LAVTA Short Range Transit Plan 2008-17 7 In 1985, Dublin, Livermore, and Pleasanton partnered with Alameda County to form the Livermore Amador Valley Transit Authority (LAVTA). LAVTA began services in July 1987 under the marketing name WHEELS. Maintenance and operations for WHEELS were contracted out, and the fleet was composed of leased vehicles. LAVTA enabled expanded service coverage in Dublin and Pleasanton. The established service pattern resembled that of a grid, with transfer points at Alcosta and San Ramon, Dublin and the Golden Because Livermore has historically been a small, compact town, it did not develop Gate, Stoneridge Mall, Hopyard and Las Positas, a transit system prior to the widespread use of the automobile. Since then, its and Valley Memorial Hospital. Most of the new growth has been in a low-density, non- grid pattern. The new bus route network routes operated only on weekdays, on an hourly that was established in the 1970s reflects this. This graphic shows the geography headway, with office hour oriented time spans of of service as it looked in 1981. Principal approximately 7:00 A.M. to 6:00 P.M. Over the coverage has changed little since then. following years, LAVTA increased frequencies and added Saturday service to most of the new routes. The LAVTA Maintenance, Operations and Administration (MOA) facility was built in 1991 and is the central base of operations for all WHEELS service activity. This facility houses both the LAVTA agency staff and the contracted (1980s) WHEELS Route 1 as seen near the Stoneridge— Before the BART extension was finished, the mall was one operations staff; this facilitates easier of several secondary transfer hubs. After which, its new communication, resulting in better service station became the only significant transfer point in