$24.4M in Federal Funding Awarded for 22 East Bay Traffic Safety Projects

$24.4 Million in federal funding has been awarded to 22 East Bay traffic safety projects, including protected bikeway upgrades in Richmond and Concord, trail crossing upgrades in Antioch, and more.

This funding is from a competitive grant program called the Highway Safety Improvement Program (HSIP), which is focused on addressing safety issues at high-crash locations. These awards will be combined with a smaller amount of local money to fully fund the projects and bring them to construction within the next several years.

In previous cycles these funds have primarily been awarded to projects like guard rails, rumble strips, and signal upgrades largely focused on driver safety, so we are very pleased to see more bike/walk improvements funded this time around. A few highlights are included here, with the full list of projects and links to more info below.

Some of the project descriptions below are pretty technical, so here is a cheat sheet for a few of the terms used:

HAWK Beacon (info here) – Referred to as a High Intensity Activated CrossWalK (HAWK) or Pedestrian Hybrid Beacons (PHBs), these signals are typically used at crosswalk or trail crossings of busy streets. They provide a red light for the major road and a walk light for the crossing to provide the right of way for pedestrians and bike riders.

RRFB Lights (info here) – Referred to as Rapid Rectangular Flashing Beacons (RRFBs), these lights are used at uncontrolled crosswalks (no stop sign or signal), usually on narrower but busy streets. They highlight the existing right of way for pedestrians at crosswalks and are sometimes also used for bicycle crossings to encourage but not require drivers to yield.

Bicycle Box (info here) – These green boxes at the front of an intersection provide an advance waiting spot for bike riders at red lights with improved visibility, and to get a head start at a green light. Bike boxes are usually paired with a “no right on red” prohibition for drivers.

HSIP 2023 Grant Funding Project Highlights

Barrett Avenue Protected Bikeway, Richmond

This project will include 0.8 miles of physically protected bike lanes between Harbour Way and 24th Street in Downtown Richmond, an upgrade from the existing painted bike lanes and shared-lane bicycle markings. This corridor is part of Richmond’s high-injury network and was identified for priority safety improvements via the city’s new Bicycle and Pedestrian Action Plan.

In addition to the protected bikeway, the project also includes pedestrian safety upgrades such as widened sidewalks, median refuge islands, and Rapid Rectangular Flashing Beacons (RRFBs) at crosswalks without stop signs or signals.

Buffered to Protected Bikeway Upgrades, Concord

This is one of three project awards in Concord for biking and walking safety upgrades. The bikeways project will add physical protection such as posts or curbs to existing painted bike lanes on parts of Farm Bureau Road, Salvio Street, Grant Street, Oakland Ave, and Clayton Road (see map here). New bike boxes will also be added at 10 locations along Concord Boulevard, Farm Bureau Road, and Oak Grove Road.

Signalized Trail Crossings, Antioch

Antioch has some great biking and walking trails, but also many locations with no direct trail crossing of major roadways, forcing users to go out of their way to cross at the next closest intersection. The project will address this for the Delta de Anza Trail at James Donlan Boulevard and at Lone Tree Way, and for the Canada Valley Trail at Hillcrest Avenue, including direct crossings with dedicated signals to stop car traffic. The Canada Valley Trail crossing is also just east of Antioch’s existing Civic Center, library, water park and skate park, and it will connect to Antioch’s proposed bicycle safety training park.

(click here for an interactive map of Antioch trail crossing upgrade locations)

HSIP 2023 Grant Funding Awards List

City	Project Title	Location of Work	Description of Work	Grant Amount
Antioch	Signal System Upgrade at Multiple Locations	69 Signalized Intersections along Multiple Roadway Segments.	Improve signal hardware: lenses, back-plates with retroreflective borders, mounting, size, and number; Install pedestrian countdown signal heads; and Install advance stop bar before crosswalk (Bicycle Box).	$2.5M
Antioch	HAWK Signals at Trail Crossings	Delta de Anza Trail Xing at James Donlan Boulevard; Delta de Anza Trail Xing at Lone Tree Way; and Canada Valley Trail Xing at Hillcrest Avenue.	Install HAWK Signals at Trail Crossings to enhance Pedestrian and Bicycle Safety.	$828k
Concord	Street Lighting and Safety Improvements	Various locations throughout the City of Concord.	Install new street lighting, upgrade existing street and intersection lighting, install pedestrian countdown signal heads, modify phasing to provide a Leading Pedestrian Interval (LPI), install three new RRFBs and four HAWK signals.	$7.4M
Concord	RRFB Crosswalk Enhancements	9 intersection locations throughout the City of Concord.	Upgrade existing uncontrolled crossing locations to enhance pedestrian safety with flashing beacon systems.	$250k
Concord	Citywide Bike Lane Enhancements	Various existing bike facilities throughout the City.	Install bike lane buffer delineators to provide physical separation between bicycles and vehicles and install bike boxes at intersection approaches.	$250k
Contra Costa County	Countywide Guardrail Upgrades – Phase 2	Various locations on arterials, collectors, and local roads throughout Contra Costa County.	Replace sub-standard MBGR guardrails with Caltrans standard MGS guardrails and end treatments.	$1.0M
Contra Costa County	Appian Way at Fran Way Pedestrian Crosswalk Enhancements	The intersection of Appian Way and Fran Way in unincorporated El Sobrante.	Install Rectangular Rapid Flashing Beacons (RRFBs), bulb-outs and a median refuge island.	$250k
Contra Costa County	Walnut Boulevard Bike Safety Improvements	Walnut Boulevard between Marsh Creek Road and Vasco Road in unincorporated Brentwood.	Install bike lanes by widening and re-striping the roadway and install a centerline rumble strip.	$249k
Contra Costa County	Bryon Highway Safety Improvements	Byron Highway from Clifton Court Road to Bruns Road.	Add lighting, install dynamic/variable speed warning signs, and install edge-line rumble strips/stripes.	$1.3M
Contra Costa County	Vasco Road Safety Improvements	Vasco Road from Walnut Boulevard to Camino Diablo.	Install a no-passing line and centerline rumble strip/stripe and improve signal hardware at intersections.	$715k
Contra Costa County	Deer Valley Road Traffic Safety Improvements	Deer Valley Road between Deer Hill Lane and Marsh Creek Road in the unincorporated areas outside the cities of Antioch and Brentwood, in east Contra Costa County.	Install dynamic/variable speed feedback signs, guardrails, and curve shoulder widening.	$1.1M
Danville	Hartz Avenue Corridor Intersection Safety Improvements	Uncontrolled intersections of Hartz Avenue-Linda Mesa Avenue and Hartz Avenue-Prospect Avenue in the core downtown area.	Construct/install raised pedestrian crossings, curb ramp improvements, and intersection pavement markings.	$108k
Danville	Townwide Traffic Signal and Intersection Safety Improvements	20 signalized intersections along the arterial roadways of Sycamore Valley Road, Camino Tassjara and Diablo Road.	Improve signal hardware, install advance stop bar, and modify signal phasing to implement a leading pedestrian interval.	$531k
Moraga	HSIP Cycle 11 Pedestrian and Bicycle Safety Improvements	Various non-signalized intersections including Moraga Road at Lucas and at Alta Mesa; Moraga Way at Moraga Valley Lane; Camino Pablo at Sanders Ranch Road; and Rheem Boulevard at St. Mary’s Road.	Install/upgrade stop signs and other intersection warning/regulatory signs; install RRFB on Moraga Rd at Lucas Dr; install flashing beacons on Moraga Wy/Moraga Valley Ln, Moraga Rd/Alta Mesa Dr, St. Mary’s Rd/Rheem Blvd and Moraga Rd/Corliss Dr.	$446k
Moraga	HSIP Cycle 11 Pedestrian and Bicycle Safety Improvements	Three primary corridors and two non-signalized intersections: Moraga Wy; Moraga Rd from Larch Ave to Town Limit north; Rheem Blvd from Moraga Rd to La Salle; Moraga Wy/Moraga Valley Ln; and Moraga Road/Corliss Drive.	Upgrade and/or install enhanced safety features at pedestrian crossings. At Moraga Road at Corliss Drive, install flashing beacon and larger warning and regulatory signs in advance of intersection.	$220k
Newark	Crossing improvements at two unsignalized intersections across the City of Newark	Two unsignalized intersections: Thornton Ave & Magnolia St and Enterprise Dr & Aleppo Dr.	Install Rectangular Rapid Flashing Beacons with accompanying signage, curb cuts and pavement striping.	$174k
Oakland	Safe Oakland Streets Pedestrian Accessibility and Safety Enhancements	51 signalized intersections within Oakland’s priority equity neighborhoods.	Enhance pedestrian safety and accessibility by adding leading pedestrian intervals, longer pedestrian clearance times and pedestrian countdown signal heads.	$1.7M
Oakland	90th Avenue Intersection Enhancements	MacArthur Blvd/90th Ave and Bancroft Ave/90th Ave.	Enhance pedestrian safety and accessibility by adding leading pedestrian intervals, pedestrian countdown heads, protected left turns, and other safety upgrades.	$1.1M
Oakland	Safe Oakland Streets Major Crossings	Nine non-signalized intersections at arterial and collector streets within Oakland’s priority equity neighborhoods.	Enhance pedestrian and bicycle safety by installing Rectangular Rapid Flashing Beacons (RRFBs), refuge islands, and bulb-outs, and install/upgrade crosswalks and curb ramps.	$2.3M
Pinole	Safety Improvements on Arterial Roadways	On San Pablo Avenue at the Third Ave. intersection and Quinan Street intersection. On Pinole Valley Road at the Savage Avenue intersection.	Install pedestrian crossing enhancements at three mid-block crossings on arterial roadways. The enhancements include continental markings, median refuge islands, advanced stop bars and Rectangular Rapid Flash Beacons.	$239k
Richmond	MacDonald Avenue Pedestrian Crossing Safety Upgrades	Various intersections along MacDonald Avenue (15th Street and Nicholl Park).	Install Rectangular Rapid Flashing Beacons (RRFBs), curb extensions (bulb-outs), and added yield markings. Other safety measures include the installation of median refuge islands and red curb.	$225k
Richmond	Barrett Avenue Road Diet	Barrett Avenue from Harbour Way to 24th Street.	Road diet including protected bike lanes, sidewalk widening, high visibility crosswalk enhancements, protected left-turn phasing, advanced stop bars, median refuge islands, and Rectangular Rapid Flashing Beacons (RRFBs).	$1.4M

A complete list of all the HSIP grant awards around the whole state for 2023 is available here. Info on previous year HSIP awards is also available here.