Item 12 - Select Locally Preferred Alternative for the First Street Multimodal Boulevard Study

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FN City of Santa Ana i First Street Multimodal Corridor Technical Memorandum General Traffic Condition° Based on the existing conditions analysis, the following general conditions exist along First Street: • Daily traffic volumes along most of the corridor fall below the LOS D threshold for a six-lane arterial. • Eastbound volumes are higher than westbound volumes on all segments for both peak periods. • All study intersections operate at LOS D or better. • The highest congestion occurs eastbound between Grand Avene and Zoo Lane (approaching the 1-5 freeway southbound ramp) • Speeds are at or near the posted speed limit during the peak hour. Outside of the peak hour, speeds tend to increase with a greater occurrence of speeds 10 mph or more above the posted speed limit. • Crash data indicates that speed and right-of-way issues along the corridor account for approximately half of the crashes reported over an eight-year period. Rear-end crashes and broadside crashes are the most common types of crashes,which align with the causes identified. • Pedestrian and bicycle involved crashes make up approximately 23% of all crashes reported indicating a higher than average crash rate for the most vulnerable users. Equ tv Assessment This section summarizes key equity findings from the demographics, transportation, and land use analyses within the study area and identify disparities in access and/or barriers to quality of life parity experienced by marginalized communities, compared to more resourced, abled, and affluent neighbors and communities. Key data sources for this analysis include Southern California Association of Governments(SCAG) and the United States Census Bureau. Marginalized groups and vulnerable road users are among those at risk of being most adversely impacted by changes to infrastructure and operations of a public right-of-way.This risk is due to these populations being less likely to have additional mobility options, less likely to be included in public decision-making, and more likely to have other existing barriers and challenges to accessing resources or navigating changes to the local environment. The Equity Study prepared determined that the study area has a proportionately higher poverty rate than the City and Orange County as a whole, and especially high rates of seniors living in poverty, especially on the northwest side of the corridor(refer to Figure 9). This area of the study also overlaps with proportionally higher populations of residents that speak an Asian/Pacific Island language (likely Vietnamese) and English "less than well." The corridor study area also has proportionally higher populations of residents that speak Spanish as well as English "less than well" than other parts of the City and Orange County as a whole, primarily on the south side of the First Street corridor(refer to Figure 10). Over 40%of the City's residents identify as immigrants, and the study area reflects this trend. Notably, more than half of residents in Census block groups north of First Street identify as immigrants. These demographics demonstrate significant populations that are likely to have fewer mobility options and fewer opportunities to be civically engaged (in transportation investment decisions,for example) in a welcoming language or format compared to other residents in the City. 21