Venetia Valley Elementary School Travel Plan
TABLE OF CONTENTS 1. PURPOSE... 1 1.1. SR2S PLANNING, IMPLEMENTATION AND MONITORING... 1 1.2. MARIN COUNTY MEASURE A... 1 2. VENETIA VALLEY ELEMENTARY SCHOOL PROFILE... 2 2.1. SCHOOL LOCATION... 2 2.2. ENROLLMENT AND DEMOGRAPHICS... 2 2.3. SCHOOL LUNCH PROGRAM... 2 2.4. EXISTING CONDITIONS... 3 2.5. POLICIES... 3 2.6. CLASSROOM EDUCATION... 4 2.7. ENCOURAGEMENT PROGRAMS... 4 2.8. STUDENT SURVEYS... 4 3. BARRIERS AND OPPORTUNITIES... 5 3.1. PARENT SURVEY... 5 3.2. WALKABOUT NOTES... 6 4. PROGRAMS AND PROJECTS... 6 4.1. ENGINEERING DESIGN CONCEPTS... 6 5. IMPLEMENTATION MATRIX... 7 APPENDIX A: WALKABOUT NOTES... 8 APPENDIX B: ENGINEERING DESIGN CONCEPT... 10 Tables Table 1: Enrollment by Grade, 2008-09... 2 Table 2: Racial and Ethnic Subgroups, 2008-09... 2 Table 3: How Students Got To School... 4 Figures Figure 1: How Children Got To School... 5 Figure 2: Golf Avenue to Gallinas/Venetia Valley Elementary School (Sheet 1 of 3)... 11 Figure 3: Gallinas/Venetia Valley Elementary School to Meadow Way (Sheet 2 of 3)... 12 Figure 4: Meadow Way to La Pasada Way (Sheet 3 of 3)... 13
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1. Purpose 1.1. SR2S Planning, Implementation and Monitoring The Venetia Valley Elementary School Travel Plan is the blueprint for identifying and prioritizing Safe Routes to School (SR2S) programs, resources, and capital improvements. The Travel Plan also documents program activities and impacts on school-related travel that can be used to assess the success of the SR2S program over time, and important school-specific transportation policies and operations. The Travel Plan differs from most plans in that it is not a snapshot in time but a living document; one that is repeatedly updated and modified to reflect school staff, community, and parent input along with technical information and lessons learned. This input is primarily captured by a SR2S task force that meets periodically to identify and address new concerns. For more information on Safe Routes to School partnerships in Marin County, visit www.saferoutestoschools.org 1.2. Marin County Measure A The Transportation Sales Tax Measure Expenditure Plan approved by voters as Measure A in November 2004 dedicates an estimated $332 million in local sales tax revenues to transportation needs in Marin County. Approximately $36.5 million (11%) of the sales tax expenditure has been earmarked to reduce school related congestion and safer access to schools. These funds are allocated to three sub-strategies, or programs: o Safe Routes to School (SR2S) o Crossing Guards o Safe Pathways to School The Safe Pathways infrastructure program is integral to the success of the overall strategy; it is the capital improvement element of the Safe Routes to School program. As a stated policy in the Transportation Authority of Marin (TAM) Measure A Transportation Sales Tax Strategic Plan Update (2009), all projects eligible for Safe Pathways funding must be identified in Safe Routes plans. The Venetia Valley Elementary School Travel Plan qualifies as such a plan and identifies potential capital projects eligible for Safe Pathways funding. Page 1 of 15 Revised February 8, 2011
2. Venetia Valley Elementary School Profile 2.1. School Location 177 North San Pedro Road San Rafael, California 2.2. Enrollment and Demographics Table 1 shows the number of students enrolled per grade. Table 2 shows the ethnicity of the student population in 2008-2009. Table 1: Enrollment by Grade, 2008-09 Grade Level Enrollment Kindergarten 100 Grade 1 93 Grade 2 76 Grade 3 80 Grade 4 79 Grade 5 72 Grade 6 63 Grade 7 60 Grade 8 60 Total 683 Table 2: Racial and Ethnic Subgroups, 2008-09 Racial and Ethnic Subgroup Number of Students Percent of Students African American 20 2.9% American Indian or Alaska Native 0 0% Asian 30 4.4% Filipino 2 0.3% Hispanic or Latino 491 71.9% Multiple or No Response 38 5.6% Pacific Islander 1 0.1% White (Not Hispanic) 101 14.8% 2.3. School Lunch Program Information not obtained. Page 2 of 15 Revised February 8, 2011
2.4. Existing Conditions This section describes the physical conditions around Venetia Valley Elementary School. Physical conditions include school entrances, traffic controls, crosswalks, crossing guards, transit, and bicycle racks. School Entrances o School entrances consist of one main vehicular entrance and three bike and pedestrian entrances. Traffic Controls o Information not obtained. Crosswalks o Information not obtained. Crossing Guards o TAM Funded Crossing Guards: Directly across the street on San Pedro Road and one block down. o School Funded Crossing Guards: None. Transit o School Bus Availability: Yes. o Public Transit Availability: Yes. o Special Transit Needs Offered: Special Transit needs offered for special education students. Bike Racks o Location of Bike Racks: There is one bike rack in the middle school and one in the elementary school. The racks are located in the front of classrooms. o Number of Bike Spaces: The bike racks provide parking for 30 to 40 bicycles. 2.5. Policies Pick Up and Drop Off o Location: There is a drop off and pick up lane in front of the school. Parents are not allowed to park in this lane. Page 3 of 15 Revised February 8, 2011
Parking o Staff and public parking: There are two parking lots. One is located in front of the school and the other is located on the side of the school. 2.6. Classroom Education Venetia Valley has received the basic safety classes including: o Stop Look and Listen and Walk Around the Block for 2 nd grade o Helmet Safety, Traffic Safety Game Show and the bicycle rodeo for 4 o Middle school students have had Greenhouse in a Bottle and the Bike Street Skills classes th grade 2.7. Encouragement Programs Venetia Valley has participated in International Walk to School Day and in the spring contest on and off since 2003. 2.8. Student Surveys Since 2006, teachers have asked their students how they got to school in the fall and spring. Table 3 shows the survey results through 2010. Blank cells indicate data that was not collected. Table 3: How Students Got To School Fall Year Walk Bike Bus Drive Alone Carpool Transit Other 2002-03 10% 3% 23% 55% 10% 2006-07 4% 1% 29% 35% 31% 2007-08 2008-09 9% 2% 30% 50% 8% 0% 2009-10 14% 4% 24% 47% 10% 1% 0% 2010-2011 15% 2% 21% 51% 9% 1% 2% Spring 2006-07 5% 4% 39% 42% 10% 2007-08 9% 2% 30% 50% 8% 0% 2008-09 8% 2% 35% 54% 2% 0% 0% 2009-10 Figure 1 charts the data presented in Table 3. Over the course of the survey years, roughly half of children were driven to school. Riding the bus has been the second most common way to get to school, with approximately one-third of students indicating they take the bus. Transit and other were offered as choices starting with the 2007-08 surveys. Page 4 of 15 Revised February 8, 2011
Figure 1: How Children Got To School 3. Barriers and Opportunities 3.1. Parent Survey A parent survey has not been conducted at Venetia Valley Elementary School. Page 5 of 15 Revised February 8, 2011
3.2. Walkabout Notes A walkabout was held at Venetia Valley Elementary School on May 20, 2003. Several locations were identified for improvements, including North San Pablo Road. The issues identified included narrow sidewalks, lack of crosswalks, poor sightlines, and desire for improved signing, traffic control and pathway repaving. Detailed notes from the walkabout are contained in Appendix A. 4. Programs and Projects 4.1. Engineering Design Concepts A series of design concepts have been prepared based on the walkabout and Task Force meetings. These concepts are summarized below and presented in more detail in Appendix B. Recommendations to improve pedestrian conditions along the North San Pedro Road pathway include: Intersection Improvements: o Construct curb extensions at flared intersections to reduce turning radii of vehicles to slow speeds, reduce pedestrian exposure time in roadway, and improve sightlines between motorists and pedestrians o Install curb ramps at intersections where they are currently absent to meet ADA accessibility guidelines o Install crosswalks where absent to connect pathway segments o Realign existing crosswalks that are excessively long and/or have poor sightlines between drivers and pedestrians Sidewalk Improvements: o Sidewalks that are missing or in poor condition should be given priority when repaving o Landscaping maintenance is recommended along the length of the pathway Other key improvements endorsed by the Venetia Valley Elementary School include: o Closing a 250-foot sidewalk gap across the school on North San Pedro Rd o Providing crosswalk improvements at the school s two driveways along North San Pedro Rd Future walk audits may identify additional potential improvements. Page 6 of 15 Revised February 8, 2011
5. Implementation Matrix Implementation plans for the San Rafael School District are summarized in the District Travel Plan. Please refer to that plan for implementation efforts. Page 7 of 15 Revised February 8, 2011
Appendix A: Walkabout Notes May 20, 2003 Attendees: David Parisi Jason Nutt Community members from the Gallinas School Safe Routes to Schools Task Force o There is a back road (Madison?)from the Civic Center that goes to the school. To make this road usable it needs an access from Civic Center Drive. The school would need to pave its access point on school property which could be done during the re-construction in 2004. o The lighted crosswalk in front of the school is not always effective. The committee members have requested flashing warning lights on either side. The group also discussed installing a median island which would need to be designed for a left hand turn into the JCC. o The palm tree at the school end needs to be trimmed or eliminated. There is also a conflict at the driveway that needs to be addressed. o The pathway along NSP road is adequate but has problems with root intrusion and it needs a better surface material. Recommend that the repaving of NSP road include improvements to the pathway. o The narrow NSP sidewalks are intermittently obstructed by telephone phone polls, and traffic signs. There are also few lights for night safety because there is currently no room for them. Recommend intermittent islands to cluster such necessities and remove them from obstructive placement on/beside sidewalks. Islands would occupy minimal segments of onstreet parking and biking lanes. Each island would split the current parking lane depth, allowing for a 4-foot bike lane and 4-foot landscaping, utility, lighting, etc, allowing a biker to traverse from a segment on-street parking lane, along the island, and back into the on-street parking lane, which would remain intact except for the intermittent islands. The presence of islands also would increase safety because they reduce the chances of cars swerving into uninterrupted parking/biking lanes and hitting bikers, a common accident in uninterrupted on-street parking lanes shares with bikers. o At Oakcrest there needs to be a way to slow the bikes down so they don t just run right into the street. o At Crestview there is no crosswalk and kids go all the way to the 7-11 to get across. o La Pasada has a long intersection with no crosswalk. o La Brea has no stop signs and is very busy. Page 8 of 15 Revised February 8, 2011
o The path ends and we then cut into Adriane Way which offers an alternative back road. However, there are a lot of complaints about speeding on Adriane and this would need to be addressed with some kind of traffic calming. o The last stretch of houses needs access. There is a way through McPhail School but it requires a great deal of improvements and the building of the bridge. There is a possibility that there might be enough right-of-way to create a path along NSP road at this stretch. o Coming back there is a pathway that could take kids to the school, however, the homeowners have constructed poles that block access to the path. Recommend working with the neighborhoods to increase access for kids to use this pathway. Follow Up Meeting to Discuss the Improvement Recommendations Attendees: Crista Cheap Bruce Winchell Harriot Manley Michael Perani Tracy Smith Wendy Kallins Goal: To prioritize the projects as highlighted in the engineer survey completed of the routes to Gallinas School. The group discussed the back route to school and it was felt to be expensive to improve, does not serve the entire community and not justified with the poor condition of the bike path along North San Pedro. So the consensus was to first look at improving the following: o The surface of the bike path along North San Pedro Road (from La Pasada to Gallinas School) o Intersection at Schmidt and the entrance to the Northbridge Neighborhood (Meriam Street) o Add crosswalks to parallel streets along North San Pedro Road. Mabry, Birch, La Pasada and La Brea. Secondary improvements to reduce speed on Adrian would be accomplished by phasing in traffic calming measures, adding stop signs on La Brea at Adrian and on the west side of the school paint striping on Madison. o Two of the problems highlighted on the survey, the crosswalk in front of the school has a palm tree blocking the view and Tracy Smith offered to take care of that issue by trimming or removing the tree and the removal of the posts between Marin Cove and Northbridge neighborhood will be pursued by CSA 18. Page 9 of 15 Revised February 8, 2011
Appendix B: Engineering Design Concept Page 10 of 15 Revised February 8, 2011
Figure 2: Golf Avenue to Gallinas/Venetia Valley Elementary School (Sheet 1 of 3) 11
Figure 3: Gallinas/Venetia Valley Elementary School to Meadow Way (Sheet 2 of 3) 12
Figure 4: Meadow Way to La Pasada Way (Sheet 3 of 3) 13