Union Street Bikeway Project Contract Approved

The City Council on Monday finalized a contract with California Professional Engineering, Inc. for work on the Union Street Two-Way Protected Bikeway project, which would open a 1.5-mile protected bicycle lane along Union Street from Hill Avenue to Arroyo Parkway.

Currently, Union Street is a one-way westbound roadway with three travel lanes. The project will get rid of one travel lane and put in place a protected two-way bicycle facility on the south side of Union Street, with raised islands, bollards and traffic signals that separate bicyclists from vehicular travel movement.

The cycle track project will serve as an alternative mode of travel connecting Metro Gold Line stations to major institutions and employment centers in the City. In addition, the project includes a 0.3-mile bicycle boulevard along Holliston Avenue from Union Street to Cordova Street.

The project also includes improvements at the intersections so that all modes of traffic, including pedestrians, could safely interact, the Public Works Department said in an agenda report for Monday’s City Council meeting.

The project will consist of improvements at 14 signalized intersections, including six new traffic signals, traffic signal equipment, conduit, conductors, pull boxes, traffic signal controller and cabinet upgrades, fiber optic communications, Ethernet switches, and splice enclosures. It will also include tighter corner radii at intersections, ADA curb ramp upgrades, pavement resurfacing, curb and gutter repairs, striping and signage.

The contract will cost $7.685 million.

The project was conceptualized in 2016 after the city came out with the 2015 Bicycle Transportation Action Plan. After receiving a Metro grant for the project in 2017, the Public Works Department hired a consultant for design and preliminary engineering work, and started public outreach and consultations to help with the design.

Community workshops were held at every stage of the design process, with two in-person workshops held in 2018 and 2019. Even through the pandemic, the city continued virtual public engagement and published regular updates through the project’s website in order to gather public input to be able to refine the project.

The Department of Transportation and the design consultant, OKS Associates, completed the project design in the summer. The project was first advertised on October 28, and the City received three bids on November 30.

Since the project utilizes federal grant funding, bidders are required to meet the established Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE) goal of 12 percent. The requirement resulted in all three bids being rejected and a second bid notice being published on January 20.

The Public Works Department said a total of seven bids were received by the bid opening date, including California Professional Engineering, Inc. which came out as the lowest responsive and responsible bidder.

California Professional Engineering, Inc., based in La Puente, has been contracting with Pasadena since 2016 and has completed seven contracts totaling more than $2.3 million.

The Public Works Department said construction is expected to begin in June and should be completed by April 2023.