Resolution 12992CITY OF ALAMEDA RESOLUTION NO, 12992
SUPPORTING THE CONTINUED USE OF THE EXISTING TRANSBAY TRANSIT
TERMINAL AND THE,RAMPS WHICH SERVE THAT FACILITY
WHEREAS, the State -owned Transbay Transit Terminal in downtown San Francisco,
together with the ramps which provide grade- separated access to and from the San Francisco -
Oakland Bay Bridge, were constructed as an integral part of the San Francisco - Oakland Bay Bridge;
and
WHEREAS, the Transbay Transit Terminal, including its ramps, has been an integral part
of the Bay Area transportation system since it began operation in 1939; and
WHEREAS, AC Transit and its predecessor, the Key System, have operated commuter bus
service between the East Bay and San Francisco since 1937, and buses have utilized the Transbay
Transit Terminal exclusively since 1958; and
WHEREAS, the Transbay Transit Terminal is the busiest bus termin
States; and
e United
WHEREAS, over the past 59 years, the need for the Transbay Transit Terminal and its ramps
as part of the overall Bay Area transportation system has not diminished. Specifically, during the
1997 BART strike, as a result of breakdowns in the BART system, and because of the lack of
sufficient capacity on the San Francisco - Oakland Bay Bridge, the Transbay Transit Terminal and
its ramps provided the facilities in downtown San Francisco which enabled AC Transit to meet the
transportation needs of East Bay residents who otherwise would not have had a feasible
transportation alterative; and
WHEREAS, with the opening of the HOV lanes on I -80 from Highway 4 in Pinole to the San
Francisco - Oakland Bay Bridge toll plaza, AC Transit can provide even faster service to the Transbay
Transit Terminal, thereby making public transportatin from Solano County, Contra Costa County
and Alameda County more attrative as an alternative to single occupancy automobile drivers and
provides a seamless connection to WestCAT and Vallejo Transit; and
WHEREAS, AC Transit's ridership from the East Bay to the Transbay Transit Teiniinal has
increased 40% (to 13,000 passengers per day) since October, 1997, and with the implementation of
the Transbay Comprehensive Service Plan later this year, AC Transit projects that its service will
increase by the year 2000 by an additional 13% to 23% (15,000 to 17,000 passengers per day); and
WHEREAS, the public hearings held by the MTC Bay Bridge Design Task Force and the
tour of the Transbay Transit Terminal by the Task Force clearly indicate the importance and
convenience of the existing Transbay Transit Terminal facility and its ramps to the Bay Area's
transportation system; and
WHEREAS, there is no justification for considering the removal of the existing Transbay
Transit Terminal or its ramps for the following reasons:
the existing Transbay Transit Terminal and connecting ramps have and will continue
to be able to provide the space needed to meet the expanding needs of AC Transit
and other transit providers who currently use or may use the space in the future,
without causing any increase in AC Transit's operational costs, while providing the
greatest efficiency to AC Transit and its transbay passengers;
the proposed relocated terminal at a Howard/Main/Beale site is not as convenient a
location for transbay passengers;
• the proposed relocated facility and ramp would not provide comparable adequate
staging and storage capacities as the existing Transbay Transit Terminal and ramps,
thereby increasing the operating costs for AC Transit and negatively impacting
service reliability;
the proposed relocated facility is estimated to cost approximately $126,000,000 to
$145,000,000 and no funding exists to cover these costs;
• the proposed relocated facility assumes bus service levels and growth estimates
which predated the 1997 BART strike; the present service levels, together with the
future increase in ridership estimated under AC Transit's Transbay Comprehensive
Service Plan, would require a larger facility initially (at an estimated cost of
$145,000,000 or more) and an even larger facility to accommodate the proposed
future growth (with a corresponding increase in the cost for the facility);
• no environmental document has been prepared which considers and compares the
environmental advantages and disadvantages of any relocated site against the existing
Transbay Transit Terminal and its connecting ramps; and
o no comprehensive economic analysis has been prepared which compares the
economic costs of a relocated terminal versus retaining and improving the existing
Terminal.
WHEREAS, a 1998 study by DKS Associates for MTC, which analyzed the proposal by
Caltrans to remove the eastern ramp to the Transbay Transit Terminal and make the western ramp
bi-directional, has proven that this idea will not work. The study verified that the existing two-ramp
loop system is the most efficient method of providing service to the Transbay Transit Tee The
proposed bi-directional, single ramp alternative would, at a minimum:
• reduce AC Transit's existing 99% PM peak on-time efficiency, with a potential loss
of passengers;
eliminate essential staging capabilities on the existing ramps and place additional
costs on the region and AC Transit to find adequate alternative staging areas within
San Francisco or in the East Bay area, thereby increasing operational costs to AC
Transit;
increase the potential for congestion and accidents on the Bay Bridge and San
Francisco Surface streets as AC Transit buses attempt to reach the Terminal from the
bridge or city streets; and
hinder or eliminate one of the most flexible means of providing mass transportation
between the East Bay and San Francisco at a time when the construction of the
eastern portion of the Bay Bridge and the seven -phase retrofit of the westem segment
are under simultaneous construction for a period of approximately five or more years;
and
WHEREAS, Caltrans has been proceeding with its bi- directional, single ramp proposal,
despite the above described impacts, without any environmental or public review of its actions and
their consequences.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the City Council of the City of Alameda that:
SECTION 1. Reaffirms its previous opposition to the relocation or impairment of the
existing Transbay Transit Terminal, including its connecting ramps.
SECTION 2. Recommends that the MTC Bay Bridge Design Task Force reject any
proposal for the removal or replacement of the existing Transbay Transit Terminal and ramps or the
replacement of the Terminal at any other location without first undertaking an environmental
analysis under the California Environmental Quality Act and its Implementing Guidelines.
SECTION 3. Opposes the elimination of any of the connecting ramps to the Transbay
Transit Terminal unless and until there is definitive evidence by Caltrans that conclusively shows
that:
any alternative proposal will work and this is verified by an independent traffic
engineering analysis;
b. there would be no increase costs to AC Transit and other transit providers who use
the Transbay Transit Teiminal (either because there are no cost impacts or funding
is provided for such additional costs, both now and in the future);
c. there will be no deterioration of bus service from the riders' perspective (i.e., on-
time performance, trip duration, loading and unloading convenience);
d. any alternative will not increase the potential for additional traffic congestion on the
Bay Bridge or on the streets of the City of San Francisco from buses servicing the
Terminal;
e. the proposal does not favor private automobiles over public transportation; and
an environmental analysis consistent with the California Environmental Quality Act
and its Guidelines is undertaken in advance of any policy action.
I, the undersigned, hereby certify that the foregoing
Resolution was duly and regularly adopted and passed by the Council
of the City of Alameda in regular meeting assembled on the 2nd
day of June , 1998, by the following vote to wit:
AYES: Councilmembers DeWitt, Kerr, Lucas and
President Appezzato - 4.
NOES: Councilmember Daysog - 1.
ABSENT: None.
ABSTENTIONS: None.
IN WITNESS, WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand and affixed the
official seal of said City this 3rd day of June , 1998.
Dian Felsch, City Clerk
City of Alameda