Third Street overhaul in design phase
A plan to renovate San Rafael’s Third Street, which is among the most heavily-trafficked roads in Marin, calls for widening sidewalks, narrowing driving lanes, resurfacing the road and creating a bike path.
After a $300,000 study of the project’s feasibility, which was completed this year, San Rafael is poised to move forward with the renovation plans. The City Council on Monday approved a $926,000 contract with a consulting firm, CSW/Stuber-Stroeh Engineering Group, Inc., to design the project and assess its environmental impacts.
The city hopes to break ground on the project in the summer of 2021, according to Public Works Director Bill Guerin. He estimates the construction will take at least a year, causing major traffic delays in some cases.
“The street itself will be torn up,” Guerin said. “We’ll do everything we can to keep traffic flowing and keep two lanes open, but there will be times when traffic is disrupted.”
Plans call for renovating Third Street between Lindaro Street and the Miracle Mile, where Third and Fourth streets intersect. The one-way, westbound road is among the city’s busiest thoroughfares, carrying 30,000 cars daily, according to city officials. It serves as a major connecting point between Highway 101 and communities in West Marin.
In addition to wider sidewalks and narrower driving lanes, the revamped Third Street is set to have improved crosswalks and handicap- accessible curbs, according to project plans. The road, which is ridged with ripples in many areas, will be resurfaced, and traffic lights will be replaced with larger ones that include pedestrian timers.
A bike path will run along the street between the Miracle Mile and Miramar Avenue, where it will connect with First Street.
Though Third Street is heavily used by drivers, city officials say it’s imperative to create safer pedestrian access along the road.
Third Street sits between one the city’s major commercial hubs along Fourth Street and the homes and businesses to the south.
“We believe (the project) is going to improve both traffic and pedestrian safety,” Guerin said.
Bill Carney, director of the environmental advocacy group Sustainable
San Rafael, said that creating a more pedestrianfriendly Third Street could help encourage people to get around without cars.
“Biking, walking, using transit — the more attractive those alternatives can be made, the better for everyone, including those using their cars,” he said.
The total estimated cost of the project will be determined during the design process, according to Guerin.
Funding for the project
comes primarily from Measure A, a sales tax approved by voters in 2004 that pays for major road improvement projects in Marin. The sales tax revenue, which is administered by the Transportation Authority of Marin, will contribute $11 million toward the Third Street overhaul. An additional $ 1.5 million has been awarded to the project through a state grant.
A $1.5 million federal grant is set to pay for new
for traffic lights at several Third Street intersections between Lindaro and Union streets, according to Guerin. The grant was awarded because the intersections are near public transit, Guerin said. The city is seeking a consulting firm to complete design work for that project separately, but CSW/StuberStroeh Engineering Group, Inc. will complete the environmental review as part of the contract approved on Monday.