Elizabeth Patterson on Transportation & Traffic - Questions & Answers

QUESTION: Traffic - How will the proposed Seeno Project affect traffic?

The Seeno project, as currently proposed, is to be phased over 25 years. The DEIR (draft environmental impact report) anticipates a 240% increase in vehicle trips per day by build-out of the business park. This means intersections off East 2nd will become impossible, and Semple School will be surrounded by traffic with severe pollution impacts from tailpipe emissions from cars and trucks coming off I-780 and streaming up and down East Second at peak hours. Noise pollution will also increase significantly.

Proposed mitigations for these impacts are either inadequate or wholly unacceptable, for instance:

• the widening of I-780 from East 2nd to Columbus Parkway
• the provision for a "free lane" coming off the I-780 freeway, going north, around Semple School
• the proposed extension of Industrial Way to Lake Herman Road from East 2nd, which will bring daily commute traffic, including heavy trucks, coming from Lake Herman Road and I-680 into the proposed business park.

All of these traffic impacts and the proposed mitigations will permanently change the character of Benicia and pose public health and safety hazards, especially in surrounding neighborhoods and for Semple School children.

QUESTION: Transportation - What can we do about our need for better public transportation to get to world-class events, cultural resources and BART?

We have improved our transportation service in the last couple of years, but there is much more to be done. First, without a late Ferry Service, people cannot go to many of the world-class events. Benicia needs to have a working relationship with Vallejo and the Ferry Service. Better yet would be ferry service to Benicia. There are possibilities for such service with Martinez and perhaps Antioch.

"Follow the money" is good policy and these days. Homeland Security is the source of many funds. There is pending legislation for Bay Area Emergency Ferry Service which would actually fund regular ferry service as part of a "redundant" transportation system. We need to have routine meetings with Bay Area Water Transportation agencies and foster ferry service for Benicia. Studies show that ferry service in Benicia is much more popular than the proposed train.

QUESTION: Transportation - Why does everything have to go to Vallejo, and then go to whatever destination?

The City's Transportation Manager is working on this. As soon as Vallejo gets its transportation staff on board, we will be able to have express service to Benicia. We need to consider rerouting our express BART service to Concord (Pittsburg) so BART commuters can find a seat. The current Pleasant Hill station is far enough along on the route that the seats are often taken. We also need to advertise our Amtrak Bus connection from Benicia (by the City Park) to the Martinez train station.

The biggest boost to express service would be an Intermodal Transportation Station located on the Seeno Project site. By locating the ITS (bus primarily) at the business park site, we can reduce the traffic that is expected with development of any project and also make it easier for commuters from Southampton and downtown to get to the ITS. This would also help the environment by avoiding the Suisun Marsh on the east side of I-680 (you may recall the previous councils approved an ITS train station on the edge of the marsh).

QUESTION: Transportation - How could transportation between Benicia and outside communities be improved?

Again, we could build an Intermodal Bus Transportation Station near the Lake Herman Road, I-680 Interchange instead of a train station on the east side of 680 and adjacent to marsh lands and within the project sea level rise. This IBTS could be built in conjunction with the Seeno project as a mitigation measure.

Also, we should implement our “traffic calming” planning and accelerate projects so alternative ways of getting around are developed.

Note: For more information about the City's Traffic Calming Program, see my Questions on the Campaign Trail, Most Asked Questions, "What are we doing about the speed of traffic in Southampton Hills?"

We should also provide new jobs that match our demographics so people don’t have to commute outside of Benicia.

Over 25% of the people using the Vallejo Ferry service are Benicians. Yet, we apparently need to do yet another study to see if there would be riders. Instead of another study, I propose that we begin the planning for and permitting of Ferry Service.

QUESTION: How could we be better connected to mass transit?

The city has made good progress on connecting riders to transit. In addition to the ideas above for IBTS and Ferry service, we could provide more connections from Benica to express buses now in service regionally and have contests or awards program for the Amtrak bus service to the Martinez station.

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