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BACKGROUND On September 5, 2017, City Council approved the Junipero Street/Independence Drive Traffic Calming Plan to help mitigate the cut-through traffic and additional traffic concerns from Lund Ranch II. As part of the plan, it was recommended that a second left-turn lane from westbound Bernal to southbound Sunol Boulevard be installed. Subequently, the Capital Improvement Program (CIP) included funding for the design and construction of the improvements at the Bernal Avenue/Sunol Boulevard/First Street intersection. The amount budgeted focused on adding the second left turn lane from Bernal onto Sunol. However, during the design consultant selection process, concepts were developed that showed improvements were necessary on all four legs of the intersection in order to have proper lane alignment through the intersection. Also, enhancements to bicycle and pedestrian facilties at the intersection, similar in design to the recently constructed at the Stanley/Valley/Bernal intersection are necessary to comply with the complete streets program. The complete streets improvements will provide a safer intersection and better connectivity to the downtown, Pleasanton Unified School District offices and STEAM Preschool as well as the City's Senior Center. During the 2018/19 Capital Improvement Program Mid-Term update, additional funding was authorized for the project to include full complete streets concepts on the project. The project will include improvements in all legs of the intersection; a second left-turn lane, from Bernal to southbound Sunol; one or more retaining walls to accommodate widening (the exact location will be determined during the design phase); replacement of the asphalt sidewalk and curb and gutter in the southeast quadrant between Bernal Avenue and Mission Drive; traffic signal modifications; pedestrian bulb-outs; dedicated bike lanes; and necessary drainage improvements, stormwater quality treatment, curb, gutter, asphalt pavement and striping. DISCUSSION The Bernal Avenue/Sunol Boulevard/First Street intersection improvements will provide an enhanced level of service and reduce delays occuring in the a.m. peak hour. During school drop off, intersection queues can stretch back up the hill, sometimes extending over a quarter-mile; it can take multiple signal cycles for a vehicle to pass through the intersection. This delay on the arterial encourages non-local traffic to use the Independence and Junipero residential streets to bypass the traffic congestion. Eliminating this congestion point will allow for shorter travel times on the arterial and make the residential cut-through route less appealing. The intersection improvement was identified by City Council as a high priority work plan item and is already included in the CIP budget as CIP No. 17556. The project will require the acquisition of right-of-way to accommodate the road widening on Bernal Avenue for the second left-turn lane pocket and bike lanes. Through the design process, alternative alignments will be explored to determine the least impact to the adjacent property owners (Pleasanton Unified School District and Pleasanton Hills Homeowners Association) and provide options to the City to determine the best alignment. Because right-of-way acquisition could be difficult, it is proposed the design be taken only to the 35 percent level at this time. Staff will then work on acquiring the needed right-of-way and if successful, the design process will be resumed to complete project plans and specifications for bid. Page 2 of 3