CCMIN080503 - Laserfiche WebLink

Ms. Hosterman asked if it made sense to also study taking funding from the DMU project and applying it to the ACE train program to see how many more people could be moved throughout the region. Mr. Knowles felt if there is an option that is a combination of rail and express bus, there should also be an option for ACE and an express bus. BART is more of an all day service, whereas ACE is primarily during commute hours, which is when the main traffic problems occur. He believed a cost benefit analysis was important because he was unsure how much "bang for the buck" the City would get for mid-day service, since the freeways have plenty of capacity at that time as opposed to the peak times. Ms. Ayala asked if the EIR required all the options presented, or could some be left out? Mr. Knowles did not think any one option was a must. It was more important to identify which option was absolutely unacceptable, since each alternative takes quite a bit of money to evaluate. The County was interested in creating the most ridership, which is why it includes the one using the Iron Horse Trail route through the City. That produces the greatest increase in daily hdership because of proximity to existing residents and surface travel through the business park. Mr. Brozosky asked if the purpose of the project was to relieve congestion in the Th- Valley area or is it to bhng commuters from the San Joaquin area to the Th-Valley and San Ramon area? Mr. Knowles said the consultants say there is so much residual demand in the Th-Valley area that there will be no net reduction in congestion on 1-580 or around Pleasanton. Mr. Brozosky believed an environmental impact report had to identify the problem to be solved and felt if the object were to solve congestion, it seems some of the alternatives should be to consider financing the flyovers and Highway 84 improvements. Mr. Knowles said in general the report is to identify negative environmental impacts relative to other transit projects. Mr. Campbell asked which option makes the most sense in terms of convenience to the ridership, protecting Pleasanton, etc. Mr. Knowles indicated the consultants have said the building of the West Dublin BART station will provide all the Th-Valley parking and BART needs in terms of getting people from the Th-Valley to the rest of the BART system. His choice would be none of the options because of the cost and because none of the options provides serious congestion relief. There is very little excess demand for more transit from San Joaquin to San Jose. ACE is taking care of the needs. Most of the traffic over the Altamont is heading for other locations. That is why these options do not focus on San Joaquin to San Jose as much as San Joaquin to destinations north. Ridership appears to be addressed more on how it relates to the Th-Valley employment areas. Pleasanton City Council 7 08/05/03 Minutes