Contra Costa Herald

News Of By and For The People of Contra Costa County, California

BART to Antioch, former Lafayette city manager honored with first-ever Bay Area Metro Awards

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A two-car eBART train in the middle of Highway 4 between Hillcrest Avenue and A Street/Lone Tree Way. Herald file photo.

Among 13 winners named from across the nine-county region

Steven Falk. Photo by City of Lafayette.

The Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC) and the Association of Bay Area Governments (ABAG) joined forces to present the first Bay Area Metro Awards Thursday, at a ceremony in Oakland recognizing 13 people, projects, organizations and local governments advancing solutions to ease the Bay Area’s housing crisis, improve the transportation system or make the nine-county region more resilient.

Winners include:

BART to Antioch: For the 10-mile rail extension from the former Pittsburg terminus along the Highway 4 median to a pair of new stations at Pittsburg Center and Antioch.

Steven Falk: For his years of committed service to the city of Lafayette as city manager. He retired last September after 38 years working for the city.

UC Berkeley’s Y-PLAN Team: For the program that brought young people’s ideas into a regional challenge to develop community-based solutions to climate change.

Sonoma-Marin Area Rail Transit (SMART): For the successful start of rail service connecting Sonoma and Marin counties.

HayWired Earthquake Scenario: To the U.S. Geological Survey and partners for studying a hypothetical 7.0 magnitude quake in the East Bay to help shape public policy for earthquake safety and planning.

Pacific Beach Coalition: For organizing volunteers over the past 21 years to clean up beaches along the San Mateo Coast.

Acquisition of the 23rd Avenue Community Building in Oakland: To the Oakland Community Land Trust and others, permanently preserving it as an affordable, mixed-use building.

San Francisco Bay Restoration Authority: For work on the Clean Water, Pollution Prevention and Habitat Restoration Measure – Measure AA – which was approved by voters in 2016 to tax themselves to help restore Bay Area wetlands.

Joint Workforce Investment Apprenticeship Program: To a partnership between the Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority (VTA), its Amalgamated Transit Union (ATU) Local 265, and Mission College to support the professional development of VTA employees.

San Leandro Homeless Compact: For the efforts of three partner organizations to end homelessness in the city of San Leandro: the city, the Rental Housing Association of Southern Alameda County, and the non-profit Building Futures with Women and Children.

Carl Guardino, Gabriel Metcalf and Jim Wunderman: For their dedicated and tireless work advocating for Regional Measure 3, the voter-approved 2018 measure which raised bridge tolls to fund transportation improvements and congestion relief projects.

LEGISLATIVE AWARD: Hon. Jim Beall, California State Senator.

GRAND AWARD: Recognizes three public transit operators and a public energy program for their work to save lives, protect communities and aid in rebuilding in response to the October 2017 North Bay fires:

  • Santa Rosa CityBus
  • Sonoma Clean Power, Advanced Energy Rebuild Program
  • Sonoma County Transit
  • Vine Transit (Napa County)

Launched jointly by ABAG and MTC in September 2018 with a call for nominations, the new awards program honors positive impacts on the Bay Area’s mobility, affordability, resilience and community; and recognizes efforts that make the region a better place to live, work and play.

“We honor this year’s winners to say thank you for the work they are doing and we hope that the winners’ stories will inspire others to strive for excellence in their daily tasks,” said ABAG President and MTC Commissioner David Rabbitt.

Winners received a specially designed Bay Area Metro Award at the recognition ceremony.  A six-member jury that included members of ABAG’s and MTC’s governing boards, as well as staff and a community representative, met to consider some 80 nominations in early 2019. The list of winners, with more details, can be found here: https://mtc.ca.gov/whats-happening/news/special-features/2019-bay-area-metro-award-winners.

 

Sheriff’s Detectives investigate attempted rape near Pittsburg-Bay Point BART Station on Thursday

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Attempted rape suspect sought by County Sheriff’s Detectives. Photos by CCCSheriff.

By Jimmy Lee, Director of Public Affairs, Contra Costa County Office of the Sheriff

Thursday afternoon at about 1:04 PM, Contra Costa County Sheriff’s Deputies were dispatched to an alleged rape. A woman told Deputies she got on a Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) train in San Francisco and was approached by a man. The two started a conversation. They got off the BART train at the Pittsburg/Bay Point station and exited the station. They walked north on Bailey Road.

Sometime during their walk while in a vacant field near Mims Avenue and Canal Road, the man exposed himself to the woman and told her to perform a sexual act on him. The suspect then physically assaulted the victim and tried to remove her clothing, but the victim fought him off and was able to get away. The victim was taken to the hospital as a precaution.

The suspect in this case was described as a black male adult, possibly in his 20’s, approximately 5’8” to 5’9”, medium build, with some facial hair. The suspect was last seen wearing black athletic shoes, blue jeans, and a white or gray hooded sweater under a hooded black jacket with fur trim on the hood. He was also carrying a red and black colored messenger style bag. Several photos of the suspect are attached.

Anyone with any information about this case is asked to contact the Investigation Division at (925) 646-2441 or (925) 313-2600. For any tips, call 866-846-3592 to leave an anonymous voice message or email: tips@so.cccounty.us.

BART’s February schedule change will impact weekdays and Sundays

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BART is making major schedule changes beginning February 11th to accommodate Measure RR funded improvements to our infrastructure to keep BART safe and reliable. Projects to upgrade our electrical power system in downtown San Francisco and the Transbay Tube Seismic Retrofit require adjustments to our schedules. The Fleet of the Future roll out is also allowing us to expand some service and run longer trains.

Riders are encouraged to check before you go. Download the official BART app or check the Trip Planner to see how these changes impact your trip.

Weekday Changes

To retrofit the Transbay Tube, we need to open at 5am on weekdays- that’s one hour later. Visit www.bart.gov/earlybirdexpress for bus service alternatives during the 4am hour. We will also be single-tracking trains through the Tube on weeknights for this project. Impacts from this project include:

  • Weekdays after 9pm, trains will run every 24 minutes instead of 20 because of single tracking.
  • On Friday evenings, trains will be added to the schedule after 8pm to the Green, Red, and Yellow lines to reduce wait times and increase capacity.
  • The first train from Daly City (5:03 am) to Antioch will skip from MacArthur directly to Pittsburg/Bay Point. The train will not pick up or drop off passengers between these stations. The next train from Daly City (5:11 am) will make all stops.

·         Weekday service improvements include:

  • New direct Millbrae to SFO service on weekdays from 6:30 am to 9 pm every 30 minutes.
  • Early morning/late-evening trains will now be longer.
  • A Fleet of the Future train will run as part of the schedule on each transbay line and some trains will be lengthened thanks to the arrival of the new fleet.
  • We are adding an additional Yellow Line train to the morning commute and we will extend one late afternoon train from Pleasant Hill to Pittsburg Bay Point.
  • New Richmond-Daly City (Red) and Warm Springs-Daly City (Green) trains on Friday evenings at select times.

Sunday Changes

To upgrade the electrical power system in Downtown San Francisco from 8am-6pm, we need to single track trains in San Francisco on some Sundays. We will maintain 20-minute headways, but impacts include:

  • For the most part, only one line (the Antioch/Yellow Line) will provide service through the Transbay Tube (some direct Red and Green line trains will be part of the schedule at select times).
  • Sunday service changes vary week to week and riders are encouraged to check the Trip Planner or the official BART app before each trip to see the service plan.
  • Dublin/Pleasanton/Blue Line service will operate between Dublin/Pleasanton and MacArthur.
  • All Lake Merritt-Dublin/Warm Springs Transbay riders must transfer at 12th Station—go downstairs one level.
  • All Millbrae riders must transfer to/from a San Francisco/Antioch train at SFO.

·         Sunday service improvements include:

  • Yellow Line passengers transferring to an East Bay line should transfer at MacArthur and will now have increased service with both a Blue and Orange Line train depending on destination.
  • Additional trains/train length will be added to the Orange/Richmond/Warm Springs service.
  • New direct Red and Green line trains added to the schedule on Sundays at select times.

There are no changes to Saturday service.

Check Before You Go

The new schedule has been loaded into the Trip Planner on bart.gov as well as the official BART app. Select a date Feb. 11th and beyond to see how these changes impact your trip. 

Sunday riders are encouraged to check the Trip Planner or the app before each trip as it varies week by week based on single tracking weekends.

The extra Friday service will be reflected in the Trip Planner and in Real Time Departures.  However, these extra trains are not listed in the Schedule by Station or Schedule by Line sections of bart.gov or the printed brochures. 

Sunday’s new Red and Green line trains will be reflected in the Trip Planner, and Schedules by Station, Schedules by Line and Real Time Departures. They are not listed in the printed brochures because they vary week by week.

Sunday Service Map:  Millbrae Shuttle Service weekdays and Saturday

Glazer calls on state political watchdog agency to levy maximum fine on BART

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State Sen. Steve Glazer (D-Orinda) today sent a letter to the Fair Political Practices Commission requesting the FPPC to levy the maximum possible fine against the Bay Area Rapid Transit district for its illegal use of public funds to campaign for Measure RR on the November 2016 ballot.

“The modest administrative penalty that the FPPC is considering would represent less than a slap on the wrist for BART after the district violated state law by using public funds to campaign for its bond measure,” Glazer said.

“In fact, this penalty is barely a tap on the wrist to BART. It would send a message to government officials in every agency in the state that they are free to break the law and use the public’s funds to wage political campaigns to sway public opinion.”

The commission, which meets Thursday in Sacramento, is considering a $7,500 penalty to punish BART for failing to properly disclose its illegal spending, which financed a video featuring Warriors star Draymond Green and text messages sent to thousands of Bay Area residents.

But the commission’s focus on the lack of disclosure ignores the far more serious offense that occurred when BART spent the money in violation of state law banning public agencies from engaging in political campaigns at public expense.

Glazer said that even if the FPPC believes its jurisdiction over illegal spending is limited, the commission could still levy a larger fine.

The $7,500 proposed penalty was based in part on the commission staff’s conclusion that BART’s text message campaign cost little because the list of residents who received the text was already in BART’s files.

But that list was compiled by BART as part of a years-long effort to build a public relations machine to further its interests. The FPPC should base its fine on the cost of that effort – not the cost of writing a mass text message and hitting the “send” button.

Even using its more limited valuation of the public funds BART spent illegally, the FPPC’s own staff acknowledged that the commission could levy a penalty of $33,375. But the commission’s proposed decision calls for a penalty of only a fraction of that amount.

“The people of California depend on the FPPC to be our watchdog over the practices of our politicians,” Glazer said. “But this proposed decision is so toothless that no government official or agency will ever again fear the consequences of spending the public’s money on a political campaign.”

Payton Perspective: Re-elect Joel Keller to BART Board

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Joel Keller at Antioch BART Station opening 5-25-18. Photo by Allen Payton

Usually, I don’t recommend elected officials serving in the same office for 24 years, such as Joel Keller, who was elected to the BART Board on the same night in November 1994 that I was elected to the Antioch City Council. That’s because elected representatives tend to become complacent or arrogant in office and stop listening to their constituents, and end up doing the bidding of the powerful, special interests who support them and contribute to their re-election campaigns.

However, Joel is different. Having served on the Contra Costa Transportation Authority and three of the four transportation boards in East County, including as Chairman of the Bypass Authority in 1998 when we purchased the right-of-way for the State Route 4 extension (aka The Bypass) from Lone Tree Way to Balfour Road, I’ve learned the difficult lesson that infrastructure projects can take a long time. Too much time for most all of our liking. But, that’s another issue. My point is, it’s taken that time for Joel to get BART extended to Antioch.

Although it’s not full or “real” BART, as we Antioch residents would have preferred, the bottom line is Joel was able to wade through the funding limitations from BART and the federal government, as well as the opposition by other regions in the BART District and directors who represent those regions and make his promise and commitment a reality. Antioch has a BART station. During his next four years, if re-elected, I believe Joel will be able to help deliver further extensions in East County, first to Laurel Road – which will benefit Antioch’s economic development area for job creation and serve the residents of Oakley – then to Brentwood near Sand Creek Road.

Joel has done what he said he would do, and he listens to his constituents. Most recently, Joel heard the complaints about safety on the BART system. In order to ensure the rest of the board members heard the complaints from the people in his district who can’t attend their normal day time meetings in Oakland, had the board hold a night time meeting in Pittsburg. Then, due to the overwhelming response by riders to the opening of the Antioch BART Station, Joel heard the outcry for more parking spaces, and he delivered by getting the other BART Board Members to join him in voting to fund 800 more spaces.

I believe Joel has earned one more term on the BART Board, which most likely will be his last, and recommend we re-elect him.

Contra Costa riders invited to Sept 27th evening BART Board meeting in Pittsburg on system safety

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Rider safety will be the focus as the BART Board of Directors holds its Thursday, September 27th meeting at 5:00 P.M. at Pittsburg City Hall. The BART board voted in August to hold a special night meeting in a suburban location to further discuss General Manager Grace Crunican’s Safety and Security Action Plan.

“The special time and location of this board meeting will give more members of the public the chance to share their thoughts about public safety directly with board members,” said BART Board President Robert Raburn. “We need their input as we take action to make BART safer.”

The meeting will include an update on BART’s proof-of-payment strategy. There will be a presentation with citation data as well as a hearing on a request to hire more community service officers to expand the program, which was launched in January. Further, the board will get an update on station infrastructure efforts to deter fare evasion. That is likely to include a discussion on whether to replace BART’s fare gates.

BART Police Chief Carlos Rojas is scheduled to present a new report from the University of North Texas on the BART Police Department. The report includes recommendations for adequate police staffing levels at BART.

The board is moving towards adopting a district surveillance policy. A final vote on this policy could come at this meeting depending on actions that take place at the September 13th meeting. BART has already made clear that any boosts to system safety will not include the implementation of facial-recognition technology.

The board could also vote on a plan to provide alternative bus service for when the system moves to a 5am start time as part of the Transbay Tube seismic retrofit project. The switch to the 5am service start is expected to happen on February 11, 2019.

We also anticipate an update on efforts to increase parking around the new BART to Antioch line.

The meeting is open to the public. The public may comment at various points throughout the meeting- including the public comment period or during specific agenda items. The agenda will be posted the Friday before the meeting at https://www.bart.gov/about/bod/meetings/2018

Because this meeting is not taking place in the BART board room, we will record it and post it on our website several days later due to the post production time needed. It will not be livestreamed.

The meeting will be held in the Pittsburg City Council Chambers, which is on the third floor of the building. The council chambers are located at 65 Civic Avenue, which is a short walk from the Pittsburg Center Station on the new BART to Antioch line. Courtesy of Tri-Delta Transit, there will be a shuttle available in the pick-up lot at the corner of Railroad Avenue and California Avenue to transport attendees between the BART station and the City Council Chambers. The shuttle will run from 4:15 pm to 11:15 pm. There will be directional signs at the Pittsburg Center BART station and the shuttle pick-up and drop-off locations. See map below:

Pittsburg City Hall shuttle route

Driving Directions:

From all points west:

Take Highway 4 eastbound toward Pittsburg/Stockton

Exit Railroad Avenue (exit 23)

Turn left onto Railroad Avenue

Turn left onto Center Drive, drive past the Justice Center and the Library

There is a parking lot in front of City Hall

Parking is free.

From Antioch/Oakley/Brentwood:

Take Highway 4 westbound toward Martinez

Exit Harbor St/Railroad Avenue (exit 23)

Turn left onto California Avenue

Turn right onto Railroad Avenue

Turn left onto Center Drive, drive past the Justice Center and the Library

There is a parking lot in front of City Hall

Parking is free.

Editor’s Note: We need to pack the room and make sure our voices are heard, by letting the full BART Board know about our concerns with safety, so that they don’t just hear from the folks who live close to and/or were able to attend their day-time meeting during the summer the BART Headquarters in Oakland.

BART’s Measure RR annual report: bond funded projects are on time, on budget and paying off

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Report cover from BART.

The first year of BART’s Measure RR Bond-funded rebuilding work is already paying off for our riders. BART’s on-time performance rate has increased to 93.6%. That’s BART’s highest on-time rate in four years and is thanks in part to the infrastructure improvements supported by RR along with several years of greater attention to incident management, quality maintenance, and system rehabilitation.  As we roll out more projects, we anticipate the on-time performance to improve exponentially.

Measure RR Spending and Projects

So far, BART has spent nearly $70 million from the $3.5 billion bond measure passed by voters in November 2016. Based on performance to date, the projects that are underway are on time and on budget.  Much of the initial effort has been heavily focused on engineering and issuing the first installment of bonds worth $300 million.  This early work isn’t very visible to the public but that will soon change.  The year ahead will bring the launch of multi-year projects that include new escalators and modernized stations that will have a big impact on our riders.  We will also continue to perform behind-the-scenes infrastructure upgrades that will further boost our reliability.  Staying one step ahead of maintenance troubles is at the heart of RR.

The Measure RR Bond Oversight Committee is keeping track of how funds are spent. The Committee’s mandate is to provide diligent oversight that all spending is authorized and that projects are completed in a timely, cost-effective, and high-quality manner. The Bond Oversight Committee is made up of community members with expertise in different disciplines from finance to engineering to project management.

Today, the BART Board of Directors is acknowledging the work of this volunteer committee and receiving its first annual report.  Click here to dig into the report and all its details.

 

Op-Ed: BART parking – One size does not fit all

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BART Director Joel Keller. From BART.gov

At age 17, after interviewing hundreds of renowned thinkers, Nikhil Goyal wrote a book called, One Size Does Not Fit All.  It offers a prescription to transform the American educational system.

I don’t claim to be as smart as that young man. But I’d like to borrow the title to his book and apply it to BART parking.  Here’s why.

As a BART Director in Contra Costa County, most of my constituents depend on their cars.  They have a very different commute experience than my colleagues whose constituents live in more transit and pedestrian friendly areas.  Consequently, the solutions to help my constituents connect with BART may be different than those of some of my colleagues.

In January, BART staff made a presentation to the Board entitled “BART’s Parking Program: Update and Discussion.”

We board members learned that BART’s revenue from parking has increased from under $5 million in 2003 to $35 million in 2017. BART has a total of 48,000 parking spaces at 34 parking facilities. We have a systemwide waitlist total of 38,000 customers.   Staff presented some possible solutions to dealing with easing the overcrowding in our existing lots.  Those ideas included demand based pricing and variable pricing.  These are fine ideas for consideration, but what about parking expansion?

So, I decided to do what young Nikhil did and speak with some pretty smart thinkers in my district.  I contacted several local business owners about parking at BART.  They asked, “Why is BART just trying to manage the overcrowding, and not capturing the revenue that could be generated by creatively accommodating the people whose names are on the waitlist?”

As a director who represents auto dependent riders, I think they are right. Let’s assume that the 38,000 names on the waitlist contains duplications, and that there are, say, 16,000 potential riders who are willing to pay parking fees to get a spot. That could increase our parking revenue to as high as $54 million, or a $19 million/year increase.

So why aren’t we looking at solutions to find more places to park and charging for those additional spots along with better managing the existing spots that we have now?  Why not create satellite parking lots served by free shuttle buses?  Why not partner with area businesses, local governmental agencies and others to use adjacent and existing parking more efficiently?

I believe each of these ideas merits further discussion and I look forward to a robust exchange of ideas when this item returns to the Board. I am sure that there are other ideas that we should explore, but as I said at the Board meeting, the solution to overcrowded parking cannot be a “one size fits all.”

The needs of auto dependent stations are different than the needs of stations in more urbanized parts of the District. While the solutions may be different, the differences should be respected.

Director Keller represents the BART District 2, which includes Antioch, Brentwood, Concord (partial), Oakley, Pittsburg, Bay Point, Byron, Knightsen, Bethel Island, and Discovery Bay.

See new fares from Pittsburg Center and Antioch Stations

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Screenshot of the Pittsburg Center BART Station animation. From BART.gov

New fare information available now

 

By Allen Payton

According to the BART website’s East County Extension page, parking permits for the new Antioch Station which is planned to open in May along with the Pittsburg Center Station, will be available for purchase beginning January 16. According to BART Director Joel Keller there will be 1,000 parking spaces and about 124 reserved spaces available. However, he said the reserved permits don’t get you a specific spot, just one of the reserved parking spots in the lot.

New Fares

The BART Board adopted the parking fees and fares at the December 7, 2017 board meeting.

BART is applying its existing distance-based fare structure to calculate fares for the new service.  For the 9.1-mile trip between Pittsburg Bay/Bay Point and Antioch Station, the Clipper fare will be $2.00 (starting Jan 1, 2018 there will be a $.50 surcharge on all paper ticket trips).  All BART discount programs will be applied to these fares.

The table below shows 2018 BART to Antioch sample fares using the adult Clipper card, a fare paid for with a paper ticket will be an additional 50 cents.

1/5/18 UPDATE: On Tuesday, January 16, 2018 at 11 AM, BART will open up the waitlist for passengers that would like to sign up to reserve a monthly permit, which guarantees a parking space until 10am each weekday. There will be a limited number of these permits available and they will be available on a first-come/first-served basis. The cost for the monthly permit will be $105 per month. You will only be charged for the permit if you are offered one and not until the extension officially opens. You may sign up to join when the waitlist at www.Select-a-Spot.com any time after January 16, 2018 at 11am. This website is also available through a link on the www.BART.gov/Parking webpage.

Monthly reserved permits will only be available at the Antioch Station. The Pittsburg Center Station will not offer any reserved parking permits, due to a limited number of parking spaces at the station.

There will be other parking options available as well:

Daily Fee Parking

Both stations will offer daily unreserved parking for a fee of $3. This parking is first-come/first-served in any marked “Fee” lot. Look at signs to the entrance to each section of the lot to determine if it is a “Fee” or “Permit” area. After 10am, any unused Permit spaces are open to all parkers for the Daily Fee.

Permit Parking

The Antioch Station will offer “Permit” parking. Customers with permits will be allowed to park in the designated areas of the parking lot. Permit spaces are available until 10am each weekday morning. After 10am all unused Permit spaces are available to anyone for the Daily Fee. All permits will be available on the www.Select-a-Spot.com website. There also will be a link to that website on www.BART.gov/Parking

Types of Permits:

  • Single Day reserved permits will cost $6 a day.
  • Airport/Long-Term Permits will cost $7 a day.
  • Monthly reserved parking permits will cost $105

 

To view the animation of the Pittsburg Center BART Station, click here. To view the animation of the Antioch BART Station, click here.

BART Board to hear from public on Pittsburg, Antioch extension ride costs and parking fees, Nov 16 & Dec 7

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A two-car eBART train undergoes testing in the middle of Highway 4 between Hillcrest Avenue and A Street/Lone Tree Way on Friday evening, July 1, 2016 for the extension to Pittsburg and Antioch. Herald file photo by Allen Payton

BART Director Joel Keller. From BART.gov

By Joel Keller, District 2 Director, Bay Area Rapid Transit District

The BART Board will consider both BART to Antioch fares and BART to Antioch parking fees at a public hearing on November 16th meeting. On December 7th, the Board will be asked to approve the BART to Antioch fares and parking fees.

The proposal will extend BART’s distance-based fare structure for the Pittsburg Center Station and the Antioch station, resulting in a 15 cent increase at Pittsburg Center and an 80 cent increase at Antioch.

Sample BART to Antioch Fares:

Pittsburg/Bay Point to Embarcadero: $6.70

Pittsburg Center to Embarcadero: $6.85

Antioch to Embarcadero: $7.50

There will be 262 parking spaces on Bliss Avenue near Railroad Avenue serving the Pittsburg Center Station and 1012 parking spaces at the Antioch Station.

The parking fees are proposed to be effective upon commencement of operation of the Pittsburg Center and Antioch stations as follows:

Daily Fee Parking: $3.00 per day

Permit Fee Parking:

Monthly Reserved Permit: $105 per month

Single Day Reserved Permit: $6.00 per day

Airport/Long-Term Permit: $7.00 per day

Your opinion is valued and you can contact me directly at Joel.Keller@bart.gov or 510-915-7925 or you can let the entire Board know your thoughts by emailing BoardOfDirectors@BART.gov or calling 510-464-6095.

District 2 includes Antioch, Brentwood, Oakley, Pittsburg and portions of Concord and unincorporated Contra Costa County.