City of South San Francisco

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Report regarding advancement of preferred alternatives for El Camino Real to the Caltrans Project Development Process (Megan Wooley-Ousdahl, Deputy City Manager; Matthew Ruble, Principal Engineer; John Wilson, Senior Engineer)

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RECOMMENDATION

Recommendation

Staff recommends that the City Council adopt a resolution advancing Alternative 2: Pedestrian & Bus Focus as the Preferred Alternative and Alternative 1: Pedestrian Focus as the Secondary Alternative to the Caltrans Project Development Process for El Camino Real.

Staff also recommends that the City Council adopt a resolution supporting SamTrans in working with Caltrans and the City of South San Francisco through Caltrans’ Project Development Process to plan, design, and implement Complete Street improvements on El Camino Real in South San Francisco.

Body

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

In early 2026, the El Camino Real Mobility Plan project team developed three design alternatives for the future of El Camino Real. Based on community input, staff recommends that the City Council advance the following alternatives to the Caltrans project development process:

• Alternative 2: Pedestrian & Bus Focus as the Preferred Alternative, and

• Alternative 1: Pedestrian Focus as the Secondary Alternative.

For images of the alternatives, see the “Staff Recommendations” section below.

BACKGROUND

In 2024, SamTrans relaunched the Grand Boulevard Initiative with a focus on multimodal transportation improvements on El Camino Real in San Mateo County.

To provide community-informed feedback to the Grand Boulevard Initiative process, the City of South San Francisco started developing the El Camino Real (ECR) Mobility Plan in the summer of 2025.

Caltrans Project Development Process

Since El Camino Real is owned by the State, any proposed changes to the street must be reviewed and approved through the Caltrans project development process.

Through the Grand Boulevard Initiative, SamTrans will incorporate the input and proposed designs for El Camino Real from each jurisdiction along the corridor into a comprehensive vision for the street. SamTrans will then lead the first phase of the Caltrans project development process, called a Project Initiation Document (PID), for all of El Camino Real in San Mateo County. The associated resolution (Legistar File 26-1981) will support SamTrans in working with Caltrans and City staff to advance the South San Francisco alternatives through the Caltrans’ PDP process.

Community Engagement

Community engagement and outreach were a cornerstone of this process. The project team hosted a variety of engagement opportunities for residents, business owners, Commission and Board members, and other stakeholders to provide input. See Attachment 1: Community Input for information about the community engagement process and input, including recommendations from the Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Committee, Traffic Safety Commission, and the Commission on Equity and Public Safety.

DISCUSSION

The preferred outcome for the ECR Mobility Plan is to identify two alternatives to move forward to the Caltrans project development process - a preferred alternative and a secondary alternative. The Caltrans process requires that at least two alternatives are evaluated. The City will benefit from having a clearly-defined preferred alternative - this will allow the City to advocate for our vision for El Camino Real.

Proposed Design Alternatives

In early 2026, the project team created three draft design alternatives for the community’s review. These alternatives were based on policy guidance from the 2040 General Plan, the Complete Streets Policy, Vision Zero Policy, best practices in street safety, and community input.

All three alternatives share the following commonalities:

• Wider sidewalks and improved pedestrian crossings across El Camino Real.

• Sidewalk gap closure near South San Francisco High School from Ponderosa Road to Country Club Drive.

• Wider medians to accommodate a left-turn pocket lane and a pedestrian refuge island.

• More street trees and landscaping.

• On-street parking in key locations.

The main difference between the three alternatives is how the space in the outside lane is allocated. Additional details are provided about the three designs in the following section.

STAFF RECOMMENDATION

After careful consideration of the Commission’s recommendations, community and business input, and a review of the needs assessment, staff recommends moving forward with Alternative 2: Pedestrian & Bus Focus as the preferred option and Alternative 1: Pedestrian Focus as the secondary option to the Caltrans project development process.

Alternative 2: Pedestrian & Bus Focus - Preferred Option

Staff recommends Alternative 2: Pedestrian & Bus Focus as the preferred option because this alternative offers a Complete Street that provides dedicated space for all modes, as described below:

• Pedestrians are accommodated by the wider sidewalks on both sides of the street; shorter crossing distances across El Camino Real; and the sidewalk gap closure near South San Francisco High School.

• Bicyclists are accommodated by the Class I shared-use path on the west side and the existing Centennial Way Trail that parallels El Camino Real. Improved connections between the trail and El Camino Real are proposed as a part of this plan.

• Transit riders are served by the designated bus-only lanes for SamTrans buses, the Free South City Shuttle, and emergency vehicles, allowing for increased bus speeds and efficiency. Additional transit improvements are recommended such as bus bulbs and far-side bus stops.

• Drivers and delivery vehicles will have full use of two travel lanes with the middle lane being wider to accommodate commercial vehicles.

This option provides the greatest alignment with the 2040 General Plan policies, Complete Streets Policy, and Vision Zero Policy.

Alternative 1: Pedestrian Focus - Secondary Option

In this option, the outside lane remains a general purpose travel lane.

Staff recommends Alternative 1: Pedestrian Focus as the secondary option because this option serves all modes, similar to Alternative 2. However, it does not offer a dedicated lane for transit vehicles.

Alternative 3: Pedestrian & Bicycle Focus - Not Recommended

Alternative 3 proposes a Class IV bikeway on both sides of the street, in place of a general purpose travel lane.

Staff does not recommend moving Alternative 3 forward to the Caltrans process because it does not provide a Complete Street, as described below:

• The design would worsen bus speed and reliability from today’s conditions. When transit vehicles stop in-lane, this would also reduce the flow of vehicles.

• This option also provides less space for emergency vehicle access.

• While many respondents liked the Class IV bicycle lanes presented in this option, staff also heard concerns from bicyclists about the number of driveways, which presents frequent conflicts between bicyclists and drivers when motorists are turning into parking lots. Centennial Way Trail also provides an alternate Class I route, and Alternative 1 and 2 propose a Class I shared-use path to accommodate bicyclists.

On-Street Parking

Feedback from residents and business owners emphasized the need to maintain some on-street parking along El Camino Real, particularly in front of Kaiser Permanente and businesses that do not have off-street parking. In response, staff recommends maintaining parking in the locations shown in Map 1. Additional details about on-street parking can be found in Attachment 2: On-Street Parking Recommendations.

Map 1. Proposed On-Street Parking

Connections to Neighboring Jurisdictions

The Town of Colma and City of San Bruno are also participating in the GBI process. South San Francisco’s design alternatives tie into the proposed Class IV separated bikeways at the Town of Colma limits.

The City of San Bruno is currently in the process of defining their preferred and secondary alternatives. Once defined, City staff will work with the City of San Bruno and SamTrans, as the facilitators of the GBI process, to knit together the alternatives for a seamless transition between the two cities.

FISCAL IMPACT

Regarding fiscal impacts from the Caltrans Project Development Process, SamTrans anticipates that the process will be paid for by grant funding and is not requesting local funding.

Regarding fiscal impacts for the costs of construction, the cost of the improvements proposed in Alternatives 1 and 2 will be determined during the Caltrans Project Development Process. However, a very rough estimate for construction of either Alternative 1 or 2 is $175 million to $225 million based on the estimated construction year (i.e., in future dollars). This includes 2.41 miles and multiple signal upgrades.

The San Mateo County Transportation Authority (SMCTA) estimates the rough order-of-magnitude cost for the entire El Camino Real corridor as approximately $1 billion (in 2025 dollars). This estimate encompasses improvements on El Camino Real from Daly City to Menlo Park. SMCTA’s Measure A and W programs may fund up to 50% of the total project costs ($500 million).

Staff anticipates that Federal, State, and regional grants may address the funding gap. The Council may also consider allocating traffic impact fee funds to fill gaps in grant funding.

RELATIONSHIP TO CITY COUNCIL PRIORITIES ACTION PLAN

This item is in response to the following Council priority in the 2025 Priorities Action Plan: Quality of Life - Support a sustainable retail environment: Complete visioning study and community engagement for future multi-modal improvements to El Camino Real.

CONCLUSION

In conclusion, staff recommends that the City Council adopt a resolution advancing Alternative 2: Pedestrian & Bus Focus as the Preferred Alternative and Alternative 1: Pedestrian Focus as the Secondary Alternative to the Caltrans Project Development Process for El Camino Real.

Staff also recommends that the City Council adopt a resolution supporting SamTrans in working with Caltrans and the City of South San Francisco through Caltrans’ Project Development Process to plan, design, and implement Complete Street improvements on El Camino Real in South San Francisco.

ATTACHMENTS

1. Community Input

2. On-Street Parking Recommendations

3. Frequently Asked Questions

ASSOCIATED DOCUMENTS

Legistar File 26-1980: Resolution advancing the preferred and secondary alternatives to the Caltrans’ Project Development Process.

Legistar File 26-1981: Resolution supporting SamTrans working with Caltrans and the City of South San Francisco through Caltrans’ Project Development Process to plan, design, and implement Complete Street improvements on El Camino Real in South San Francisco.

Legislation Details