Pines Road/BNSF Grade Separation Project US Department of Transportation, Office of the Secretary of Transportation Better Utilizing Investments to Leverage Development (BUILD) FY 2018 Grant Application Location: Urban area of Spokane Valley, Washington Primary Project Type: Road Secondary Project Type: Road/Rail Crossing BUILD Funding Request: $23,020,800 City of Spokane Valley, Pines Road (SR27) / BNSF Grade Separation Project BUILD Grant Application, July 2018 Contents 1 Project Description.................................................................................................................. 3 1.1 Project Overview .............................................................................................................. 3 1.2 Transportation Challenges the Project Aims to Address .................................................. 5 1.3 Project History and Relationship to Other Plans .............................................................. 8 1.4 Project Parties ................................................................................................................. 10 1.5 Summary of Project Benefits ......................................................................................... 10 2 Project Location .................................................................................................................... 13 3 Grant Funds, Sources and Uses of Project Funds ................................................................. 15 3.1 Project Costs ................................................................................................................... 15 3.2 Committed and Expected Funding ................................................................................. 16 3.3 Project Budget ................................................................................................................ 18 3.4 BUILD Funding Allocation ........................................................................................... 18 4 Merit Criteria ........................................................................................................................ 18 4.1 Safety .............................................................................................................................. 18 4.2 State of Good Repair ...................................................................................................... 19 4.3 Economic Competitiveness ............................................................................................ 20 4.4 Environmental Protection ............................................................................................... 22 4.5 Quality of Life ................................................................................................................ 22 4.6 Innovation....................................................................................................................... 23 4.7 Partnership ...................................................................................................................... 24 5 Project Readiness .................................................................................................................. 25 5.1 Technical Feasibility ...................................................................................................... 25 5.2 Scope, Schedule, and Budget Risk Mitigation Measures............................................... 27 5.3 Required Approvals........................................................................................................ 28 5.4 Assessment of Project Risks and Mitigation Strategies ................................................. 30 1 JULY, 2018 City of Spokane Valley, Pines Road (SR27) / BNSF Grade Separation Project BUILD Grant Application, July 2018 Figures Figure 1: BNSF Freight Movement in the Pacific Northwest ........................................................ 3 Figure 2: View of Existing Pines Road/BNSF Crossing ................................................................ 4 Figures 3 & 4: Alternate 1 with Roundabout & Alternate 2 with Roundabout .............................. 5 Figure 5: Collision History, Pines Rd (SR 27) / Trent Ave (SR290) Intersection, 2015-2017 ...... 6 Figure 6: Delays Due to Frequent Train Crossings ........................................................................ 6 Figure 7: Urbanized Area Boundary ............................................................................................. 13 Figure 8: Project Locations and Connections to Existing Transportation Infrastructure ............. 14 Figure 9: Funding Sources ............................................................................................................ 17 Figure 10: Current Zoning ............................................................................................................ 21 Figure 11: Selected 2040 Employment Activity Centres ............................................................. 21 Tables Table 1: Before and After Conditions at Pines Road BNSF Railway Crossings.......................... 11 Table 2: Expected Project Outcomes ............................................................................................ 12 Table 3: Annual Inflated Project Costs ......................................................................................... 16 Table 4: Funding Sources ............................................................................................................. 17 Table 5: Allocation of Project Funding ........................................................................................ 18 Table 6: Annual Collision Reduction, 2040 Horizon Year........................................................... 19 Table 7: Partners in the Project Development .............................................................................. 24 Table 8: Project Scope of Work .................................................................................................... 26 Table 9: Project Schedule ............................................................................................................. 27 Table 10: Overall Results of the Benefit Cost Analysis, 2016 Dollars ....................................... 30 Appendices A. Local Agency Endorsement Form B. Detailed Cost Estimate C. Benefit Cost Analysis D. Draft Pines Road/BNSF Grade Separation – Consolidated Traffic and Safety Analysis 2 JULY, 2018 City of Spokane Valley, Pines Road (SR27) / BNSF Grade Separation Project BUILD Grant Application, July 2018 1 Project Description In 2017, the Pines Road crossing of the BNSF Railway Company (BNSF) railroad tracks resulted in over 27,000 vehicle hours of delay1, at least one vehicle incident2, and an additional 27 collisions at the adjacent Pines Road (SR 27) / Trent Avenue (SR 290) intersection. In 2018, the at-grade crossing was rated Washington State’s top Tier 1 road-rail conflict.3 The City of Spokane Valley seeks a BUILD Discretionary Grant of $23,020,800 to complete funding for the Pines Road/BNSF Grade Separation Project to create a safer, more efficient, and reliable transportation network for its users. 1.1 Project Overview The Pines Road at-grade crossing of the BNSF Railway Company tracks is located 275 feet south of Trent Avenue in the city of Spokane Valley, WA. Pines Road and Trent Avenue are significant corridors for local travel and freight movement. Pines Road is a state highway (SR 27), and is one of Spokane Valley’s primary north-south arterial roadways. It directly connects Trent Avenue, also a state highway (SR 290), with Interstate 90 to the south, and is a preferred freight route to I-90 between north Idaho and Canada. The BNSF corridor carries freight between western ports and Midwest intermodal facilities as shown in Figure 1. Figure 1: BNSF Freight Movement in the Pacific Northwest The BNSF corridor also hosts Amtrak, with two passenger trains per day. The Pines Road/BNSF Grade Separation Project replaces an existing at-grade crossing with an underpass of BNSF’s railroad tracks and provides a roundabout or traffic signal at the intersection of Pines Road and Trent Avenue. These improvements will reduce the risk of 1 60 trains/day (freight and passenger) with an average crossing time of 3.55 minutes/train, creating 3.6 hours of roadway blockage due to freight and passenger trains/day (14.8% of the day); with 16,925 vehicles/day (2016 City ADT records projected into 2017), 14.8% of vehicles will be affected for an average of 1.78 minutes (including lead/lag time for gate operations), resulting in 74.3 vehicle hours/day of delay, or 27,100 vehicle hours/year. 2 Analysis of Washington Department of Transportation (WSDOT) Vehicle Crash Data, 2015-2017 3 DRAFT Prioritization of Prominent Road-Rail Conflicts Phase 2 Study, May 22, 2018 3 JULY, 2018 City of Spokane Valley, Pines Road (SR27) / BNSF Grade Separation Project BUILD Grant Application, July 2018 collisions between the existing 16,400 vehicles/day4 and 60 trains/day5 at the crossing and help prevent unintended releases of hazardous materials. The existing crossing is shown in Figure 2. Figure 2: View of Existing Pines Road/BNSF Crossing Train horns through Spokane Valley will be reduced, as will the community severance effects created by the railroad tracks. Replacement of the existing signalized intersection with a roundabout at the Pines/Trent intersection is predicted to reduce all collisions by 19%, and fatal and injury collisions by 71%.6 Afternoon peak hour intersection