12 Staff Report - One Way Pilot
PREPARED BY: Matt Morley
Parks and Public Works Director
Reviewed by: Town Manager, Assistant Town Manager, and Town Attorney
110 E. Main Street Los Gatos, CA 95030 ● (408) 354-6832
www.losgatosca.gov
TOWN OF LOS GATOS
COUNCIL AGENDA REPORT
MEETING DATE: 10/01/2019 ITEM NO: 12
DATE: September 26, 2019
TO: Mayor and Town Council
FROM: Laurel Prevetti, Town Manager
SUBJECT: Provide Feedback and Direction on the Downtown One-Way Pilot Project
RECOMMENDATION:
Provide feedback and further direction on the Downtown One-Way Pilot Project.
BACKGROUND:
On May 7, 2019 the Town Council approved a project for conversion of North Santa Cruz
Avenue to a one-way street between Bachman Avenue and Elm Street as a four-month pilot
program. The project included restriping for the one-way street, the addition of angled parking,
and the addition of seven parklets along North Santa Cruz Avenue.
The pilot began with the idea that wider sidewalks would provide a functional improvement to
the downtown, allowing for a more comfortable walking experience and for programming of
spaces along the sidewalks for activities like sidewalk dining. To achieve wider sidewalks, the
potential pilot widening would need to obtain space from either existing parking or from a
travel lane, reducing those areas by the space needed for more sidewalk. The pilot was
designed to allow for exploration of these ideas and to illustrate the tradeoffs associated with
the component parts. Wider sidewalks and reductions in parking were simulated through the
installation of parklets.
The installation of angled parking towards the northerly end created an overall small net
increase in parking, offsetting the decrease due to the temporary parklets. The reduction of a
travel lane allowed for all of the changes and provided a real experience for residents,
businesses, and visitors on the possible benefits of widening the downtown sidewalks and
sidewalk dining.
PAGE 2 OF 6 SUBJECT: Provide Feedback and Direction on the Downtown One-Way Pilot Project DATE: September 26, 2019
BACKGROUND (continued):
On July 8, 2019, the one-way pilot was installed. The direction from Council included removal
of the pilot program at the end of October.
DISCUSSION:
Staff has monitored the pilot throughout the course of the pilot program. The following
sections highlight observations through the course of the program.
Public Outreach and Feedback
Leading up to and during the pilot, staff conducted significant public outreach, including
postings on social media and attending meetings of business and community groups. The Town
also established a dedicated web page with more information, including FAQs:
https://www.losgatosca.gov/2529/NSC-One-Way-Street-Pilot. The pilot also garnered much
attention through television media outlets, several of whom carried news stories in print and
on television. Despite extensive efforts to get information out about the purpose of the pilot,
the biggest challenge was countering the idea that the one-way pilot was meant to address
beach cut through traffic.
The Town marketed the summer event season through a new branding called ExperienceLG.
Through this effort, a separate email address (experiencelg@losgatosca.gov) was developed
and provided an opportunity to gather specific input. From emails and phone calls on the one-
way pilot specifically, 70 communications were generally against the pilot and 54
communications were generally in support through September 26. Public comments are
provided as Attachment 1. The Chamber of Commerce is also currently conducting a poll of
businesses and will provide that information prior to the Town Council meeting.
Over the course of the pilot, when cost effective, staff adjusted initial elements to address
some concerns that were brought up. Adjustments included programming more active cleaning
of the parklets and furniture, providing umbrellas for shade, and adding interactive features
such as a piano, tic tac toe, and a giant chess set.
During the week of September 23, everyone who submitted an email with feedback on the pilot
received an email from the Town with the October 1st Town Council meeting information,
including how to download this report and the Town Council agenda. In addition, a post on
Nextdoor, What’s New, and other social media will provide similar information to those
community users.
PAGE 3 OF 6 SUBJECT: Provide Feedback and Direction on the Downtown One-Way Pilot Project DATE: September 26, 2019
DISCUSSION (continued):
Roadway Configuration and Traffic
Over the course of the pilot program, staff observed the roadway configuration to ensure the
pilot was safe and functional. A major concern early on was ensuring that drivers did not turn
the wrong way given the new configuration. Signage was designed to achieve this, and
although a few wrong way instances occurred at the beginning of the program, no accidents
have resulted to date.
The capacity of Main Street at University Avenue to handle the additional traffic was another
concern. The left turn pocket from Main Street to University Avenue is very short and
therefore has little capacity to hold vehicles waiting to turn onto University Avenue. Any
significant increases in traffic at the intersection has the ability to quickly create congestion all
the way through the intersection of Main Street and Santa Cruz Avenue. Designing the one-
way to start at Elm Street instead of Main was meant to provide some relief to the University
Avenue and Main Street intersection and seems to have achieved that goal. Extending the one-
way in potential future configurations to Main Street would not be recommended by staff.
Other observations included that traffic on University Avenue grew significantly during the
course of the pilot. The impact from this increase is especially noticeable during the morning
and afternoon school drop-off and pickup times, and during busy lunchtime periods. Stop signs
along University Avenue kept speeds slow, but also added to congestion as vehicles were
unable to move through the intersections efficiently enough to reduce backups. The
intersection of University Avenue and Highway 9 appeared to manage the load, clearing traffic
on University Avenue with each cycle. Staff believes that the change in traffic on University
Avenue associated with the pilot put that street at its maximum capacity. Some of the
information provided through traffic analysis included:
• During the summer (when school is out), traffic on University Avenue increased 51% per
day compared to previous years in the same timeframe.
• With school in session in September, traffic on University Avenue increased by 39% per
day compared to previous years in the same timeframe.
• Northbound Massol Avenue traffic increased 130% during the morning school commute
and 58% over a 24 hour period.
• Northbound Tait Avenue traffic counts are in progress and will be provided prior to the
Council meeting.
• Southbound Santa Cruz Avenue traffic did not change as a result of the one-way pilot.
• Approximately 70% of the previous traffic on northbound Santa Cruz Avenue was
rerouted to University Avenue. The remaining 30% was distributed to local streets or
remained on Highway 17.
PAGE 4 OF 6 SUBJECT: Provide Feedback and Direction on the Downtown One-Way Pilot Project DATE: September 26, 2019
DISCUSSION (continued):
Parklets
The parklets received mixed reviews over the course of the pilot program. Although used less
frequently during the heat of the afternoons, the parklets had more use in the evenings. The
addition of interactive activities including a piano and a giant chess set provided a positive
change and attracted more involvement.
Staff reviewed the initial criticism on the visual appearance of the parklets. In general, given
the many changes in driver behavior the pilot introduced, the concrete barrier approach
provided a high level of protection to parklet users. In addition, given cost considerations and
the short-term aspect of the pilot program, the barriers provided an efficient and safe way to
illustrate a parklet concept. Staff does regret not using a more vibrant design for the vinyl wrap
on the barriers as initially considered. Costs for planters, higher end furniture, and/or more
elaborate barriers do not seem warranted given the short-term nature of the pilot program.
Much feedback came in the way of suggesting the parklets be placed in front of restaurants for
their use. Given the challenge with selecting the restaurants and modifying alcohol and food
service permits, the decision on locations seemed to have provided good spacing and equal
benefit. Independent of the one-way pilot, the Town has also received a number of
applications from businesses and property owners to install parklets through the separate
Parklet Pilot and did not want to interfere with the progress on those efforts. Staff did consider
moving one parklet; however, the logistics with moving the heavy barriers proved difficult and
the decision was made not to do so.
Angled Parking
The use of angled parking provided a good opportunity to try a change and assisted in ensuring
that the pilot program did not negatively impact the overall parking space counts. Because of
the efficiencies of angled parking, the pilot program saw a net gain of six parking spaces, even
accounting for those lost to parklet use.
Feedback on angled parking included the ease of use in comparison to parallel parking and the
traffic calming effect of cars backing out into the travel lane. Some feedback did highlight that
the angled parking changed the look of the downtown too much and provided obstructions to
the visibility of storefronts.
PAGE 5 OF 6 SUBJECT: Provide Feedback and Direction on the Downtown One-Way Pilot Project DATE: September 26, 2019
CONCLUSION AND NEXT STEPS:
The pilot project is set to complete at the end of October. To that end, staff has begun planning
for the return to the previous two-way configuration including the removal of angled parking
and parklets.
The original plan had included the application of a pavement slurry seal to ensure the
temporary improvements are fully removed and to address current pavement maintenance
needs. However, the estimated costs for this work have come in extremely high due to the
small size of this part of the project. In addition, this type of work requires warmer
temperatures and can be challenging in the fall when weather is less reliable. The work should
be completed at night, to prevent interference with downtown businesses, and lower nighttime
temperatures in October could prevent the material from hardening, delaying the road from
reopening. As an alternative, staff would like to remove the existing striping and black out the
marks temporarily. North Santa Cruz Avenue will then be included in next year’s pavement
maintenance program to fully address the roadway’s maintenance needs. This should
maximize cost effectiveness and minimize disruption to businesses. The concrete barriers are
rented and will be returned to the vendor. The Town purchased the furniture and will use
some of it in the Plaza and surplus what is not needed.
Given the overall information garnered from the pilot program, staff recommends the Council
provide feedback or direction in several areas:
1. Should any element of the pilot project remain in place past the end of the pilot
program? Staff will compile costs associated with ongoing efforts for future funding
decisions by the Council.
2. Was the one-way portion of the pilot successful given the changes in traffic patterns
that were created? If so, how should staff plan for future configurations?
3. Was the diagonal parking successful? If so, should this element be considered in a
future design of North Santa Cruz, noting the limitation that angled parking can only be
achieved in a one-way format?
4. One approach to create wider sidewalks is the reduction of on-street parking. Should
the existing parking study incorporate an analysis of the impact on parking quantities if
some or all on street parking is removed?
5. What other input and/or direction would the Council like to provide regarding the
overall pilot and its elements? This input would be useful in the preparation for future
capital improvement projects.
COORDINATION:
This project has been coordinated with the Economic Vitality Manager.
PAGE 6 OF 6 SUBJECT: Provide Feedback and Direction on the Downtown One-Way Pilot Project DATE: September 26, 2019
FISCAL IMPACT:
The following fiscal table shows expenditures and commitments to date. Operational costs to
date and through the end of the pilot are forecast at $10,000 for maintenance by Parks and
Public Works staff and have been absorbed in the Department budget. Extension of the
timeline for any portion of the project will increase costs and may require additional funding.
One-Way Downtown Street Pilot
Expenditures to Date
Project 813-0234
Budget Costs
Project Budget $238,686
Striping $153,376
Design Consultant $13,000
K Rail Rental $19,200
K Rail Wrapping $19,500
Furniture $6,359
Outreach $1,214
Total Expenditures $212,649
Balance $26,037
ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT:
This is a project as defined under CEQA but is Categorically Exempt (Section 15301c). A Notice
of Exemption will not be filed.
Attachment:
1. Public Comment received through September 26, 2019 at 11 a.m.
ATTACHMENT 1