TO:
Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council
THROUGH:
Bruce Moe, City Manager
FROM:
Erick Lee, Public Works Director
Katherine Doherty, City Engineer
Helen Shi, Senior Civil Engineer
SUBJECT:Title
Consideration to Approve the Preliminary Design Concept for the Marine Avenue at Cedar Avenue Traffic Signal and Intersection Improvements Project (Public Works Director Lee).
APPROVE
Line
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Recommended Action
RECOMMENDATION:ody
Staff recommends that City Council approve the Preliminary Design Concept for the Marine Avenue at Cedar Avenue Traffic Signal and Intersection Improvements Project.
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
The Marine Avenue at Cedar Avenue Intersection Improvements Project has a total life to date project budget of $990,000 for expenditures in the Proposition C Fund. On February 2, 2021, the City Council approved a Measure R Funding Agreement between the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (LACMTA) and the City of Manhattan Beach (City) for $900,000 to fund the development of design plans and specifications and construction of the Marine Avenue at Cedar Avenue Intersection Improvements Project. The project funding is anticipated to cover the cost of engineering design, environmental clearance and construction.
There are no anticipated fiscal implications of the project at this time.
BACKGROUND:
The intersection of Marine Avenue and Cedar Avenue is approximately 250 feet east (between vehicular stop lines) of Sepulveda Boulevard, under full signal operation. Currently, the delay at the intersection of Marine Avenue and Cedar Avenue causes the eastbound traffic to back up, which extends to Sepulveda Boulevard and causes blockage and delay along Sepulveda Boulevard. Also, the signal operation at the intersection is not optimized to address excessive delay to the exiting traffic from the Manhattan Beach Village Shopping Center. After further analysis and investigation, the City has determined that improving the signal coordination between the two Marine Avenue intersections (Marine Avenue / Sepulveda Boulevard, and Marine Avenue / Cedar Avenue), and the intersection configuration and signal improvement of Marine Avenue and Cedar Avenue are critical, would benefit the community and improve the regional traffic conditions, especially along Sepulveda Boulevard.
On June 23, 2016, LACMTA granted Measure R funding of $900,000 to the South Bay Measure R Highway Program for the Operational Improvements Projects along Sepulveda Boulevard (SR-1) within the City. The purpose of the projects is to alleviate traffic congestion by adding capacity at the left-turn pockets and modifying lane configurations at the five intersections - Rosecrans Avenue, 33rd Street, Cedar Avenue at Marine Avenue, 14th Street and 2nd Street.
Shortly after the funding approval, Caltrans informed all South Bay cities of the Capital Preventive Maintenance (CAPM) Project on Sepulveda Boulevard (SR-1) planned in 2022. Subsequently, for the next 24-30 months, the City coordinated with Caltrans and received confirmation on January 29, 2019 that four of the five funded locations will be incorporated into the Caltrans CAPM Project. The City, therefore, proceeded to take the lead on the fifth location, the intersection and traffic signal improvement at Marine Avenue and Cedar Avenue, and requested a revised scope of work.
On June 25, 2020, the LACMTA Board reprogrammed the project funds to FY 20-21 and amended the scope and limits of the project. The project scope has been reduced to only one intersection: Marine Avenue and Cedar Avenue. This project will construct a new physical configuration and traffic signal improvements at the intersection of Marine Avenue and Cedar Avenue. The project budget remained the same.
On September 25, 2020, LACMTA staff finalized and approved a Funding Agreement for the City’s approval and execution for the design and construction of the Marine Avenue at Cedar Avenue Intersection Improvements Project, subject to the terms and conditions of a fully executed Funding Agreement.
On February 2, 2021, the City Council approved the funding agreement and appropriation of the $900,000 funding to the Marine Avenue at Cedar Avenue Traffic Signal and Intersection Improvement Project. On March 19, 2021, LACMTA staff executed the final funding agreement.
On August 24, 2021, the City Council awarded a professional services agreement to KOA Corporation for Engineering Design Services. Soon after, the consultant assisted the City to develop several improvement options for discussion with residents, businesses, visitors, schools and communities.
DISCUSSION:
The project team conducted four outreach meetings to present improvement options to the residents, businesses, visitors, schools, and nearby communities on the following dates: November 4th, November 8th, November 9th and November 23rd, 2021. Also, City staff has been discussing the project improvement options with various residents via emails and phone calls.
Per the above meeting discussions, the community-preferred improvement option was selected, optimized and provided as Attachment 2 as the Preliminary Design Concept. The purpose of the improvement is to modify the intersection configuration, install state of the art infrastructure and coordinate the adjacent intersection signal operations and physical configuration. Operation of the signal at this intersection will improve the progression of the eastbound and westbound traffic and alleviate the delay and blockage at the intersection of Sepulveda Boulevard and Marine Avenue. Ultimately, this should relieve traffic congestion along both Sepulveda Boulevard and Marine Avenue, especially during peak commute periods. Specifically, the proposed improvements include:
o Converting the southbound approach from a left-turn, through and right-turn lane configuration to a left-turn, shared left/through and right-turn lane configuration;
o Removing the eastern crosswalk to reduce conflicts with the southbound vehicular left turns resulting in improved operational and safety benefits;
o Installing traffic detection camera mounted on a pole in the median along Marine Avenue east of Sepulveda Boulevard to detect traffic from Sepulveda Boulevard traveling eastbound on Marine Avenue and
o Coordinating traffic signals along Marine Avenue at Sepulveda Boulevard and Cedar Avenue.
Therefore, staff recommends that the City Council approve the Preliminary Design Concept for the Marine Avenue at Cedar Avenue Traffic Signal and Intersection Improvements Project. Once approved by Council, the design consultant will continue with its design work and develop documents for formal construction bidding.
PUBLIC OUTREACH:
Public outreach meetings have been conducted during the design phase of the Marine Avenue at Cedar Avenue Intersection Improvements Project to inform the public of the project improvements and their benefit to the community and regional traffic circulation system. All public comments and recommendations to the intersection design and equipment details will be considered, as appropriate, during the design phase. More public outreach meetings will be scheduled during the design process. Targeted outreach will occur before the start of construction for residents and businesses located near and/or adjacent to construction activities.
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW:
As part of KOA Corporation’s scope of work included in the Professional Services Agreement, all environmental concerns will be reviewed and discussed with City staff. Once the issues have been closely studied and evaluated, the appropriate findings in compliance with the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) will be prepared.
LEGAL REVIEW:
The City Attorney has reviewed this report and determined that no additional legal analysis is necessary.
ATTACHMENTS:
1. Budget and Expenditures Summary Report
2. Preliminary Design Concept