On April 28, 2017, the Governor signed SB1, which is known as the Road Repair and Accountability Act of 2017. SB1 creates the RMRA, which provides much needed transportation funding for California to address basic road maintenance, rehabilitation, and critical safety needs on both the state highway and local streets and road system.  
  
SB1 includes new performance and reporting requirements in order to be eligible for the RMRA funds. The TWIC reviewed the project list for Fiscal Year 2018/2019 on April 9.  
  
SB1 Funds were available to cities and counties starting in Fiscal Year 2017/2018. The California State Association of Counties has provided the estimated revenues the County can expect that will be generated from this transportation bill. The first year of the program was a partial year and the County expects to receive about $4.9 million from the RMRA program under SB1. We expect the RMRA amount to increase to $13.8 million for Fiscal Year 2018/2019 and steadily grow with the built-in inflationary index in future years.  
  
SB1 emphasizes the importance of accountability and transparency in the delivery of California’s transportation programs. Therefore, in order to be eligible for RMRA funding, state statute requires cities and counties to provide basic RMRA project reporting to the California Transportation Commission (CTC).  
  
Prior to receiving an apportionment of RMRA funds from the State Controller in a fiscal year, a city or county must submit to the CTC a list of projects proposed to be funded with these funds. All projects proposed to receive funding must be reviewed and approved by the applicable city council or county board of supervisors at a regular public meeting.  
  
The list of projects must include a description and location of each proposed project, a proposed schedule for the project’s completion, and the estimated useful life of the improvement. The project list does not limit the flexibility of an eligible city or county to fund projects in accordance with local needs and priorities so long as the projects are consistent with RMRA priorities as outlined in the applicable code sections. Some example projects and uses for RMRA funding include, but are not limited to the following:  
  
• Road Maintenance and Rehabilitation  
• Safety Projects  
• Railroad Grade Separations  
• Complete Streets Components (including active transportation purposes, pedestrian and bicycle safety projects, transit facilities, and drainage and stormwater capture projects in conjunction with any other allowable project)  
• Traffic Control Devices  
  
Streets and Highways Code Section 2030(b)(2) states that funds made available by the program may also be used to satisfy a match requirement in order to obtain state or federal funds for projects authorized by this subdivision.  
  
Staff has developed a recommended list of projects for the Transportation Water and Infrastructure Committee and the Board of Supervisors to consider for submitting to the Commission.  
  
When developing the recommended project list for RMRA funds, staff considered:  
• Eligibility criteria for RMRA funds  
• Emergency storm damage projects that exceeded existing road fund revenue capacity  
• Maintenance and rehabilitation priorities  
• Roadway safety  
• Expiring grants where local funds are necessary to complete the funding package  
• Geographic equity  
• Projects where expenditures had already occurred for design of the project and had been shelved due to declining gas tax revenues  
• Multi-modal benefits in accordance with the Board of Supervisor’s Complete Streets policy  
• Positive impact to Road Program performance metrics  
• Clearing the queue of delayed projects that were a result of declining gas tax revenues  
• Meeting customer expectations  
  
It should be noted that this project list is a small subset of the proposed project delivery list that is outlined in the adopted Capital Road Improvement and Preservation Program document and only focuses on how the RMRA funds will be expended as required by the Commission.  
  
PROPOSED PROJECTS (Total RMRA = $13.8M)  
  
Proposed Project No. 1: Road Drainage Maintenance (RMRA = $1.1 M)- Countywide  
  
• Ditch Cleaning – This routine maintenance item is to perform drainage ditch cleaning to remove debris and vegetation which may obstruct the passage of stormwater and cause local flooding. (RMRA = $200k) County Project No.: 0672-6U2303  
  
• Clean Catch Basin – This routine maintenance item is to perform cleaning of sediment and prevent obstructions of catch basins (drainage inlets) and related pipe systems. The county has over twenty thousand catch basins throughout the unincorporated portions of the County. (RMRA = $600k) County Project No.: 0672-6U2308  
  
• Inspect Catch Basin – This routine maintenance item is to perform inspections of catch basins and associated systems. This includes a visual inspection of the drainage inlet and any clean water inserts. Follow-up video inspections may be required for deeper inlets and/or suspected structural issue concerning the inlets. (RMRA = $300k) County Project No.: 0672-6U2308  
  
Proposed Project No.2: Traffic Safety Devices Maintenance (RMRA = $800k) - Countywide  
  
• Traffic Signing – This routine maintenance item is to perform sign repair, replacement, and installation along the unincorporated County roadways. (RMRA = $300k) County Project No.: 0672-6U2504  
  
• Traffic Striping – This routine maintenance item is to perform new painting, routine painting and replacement of pavement striping along the unincorporated County roadways to enhance public safety. (RMRA = $500k) County Project No.: 0672-6U2504  
  
Proposed Project No. 3: Pavement Repairs and Preparation (RMRA = $5.0M)- Countywide  
  
• Pot Hole Patching – This routine maintenance item is to perform spot pavement repairs of pot holes along the unincorporated County roadways to eliminate surface hazards. (RMRA = $700k) County Project No.: 0672-6U2101  
  
• Pavement Fabric Patching – This routine maintenance item is to perform pavement fabric patching along the unincorporated County roadways to correct minor pavement defects and prevent further cracking. The patch will remove an area of existing damaged asphalt and excavate to the roadway fabric portion. The roadway base will be compacted and leveled to support the new fabric layer and asphalt layer. (RMRA = $500k) County Project No.: 0672-6U2102  
  
• Pavement Failure Repair - Backhoe – This routine maintenance item is to conduct pavement failure repair along the unincorporated County roadways. This task requires the removal of a larger area of cracked or damaged pavement with a backhoe. The roadway base will be compacted and overlaid with new asphalt. (RMRA = $600k) County Project No.: 0672-6U2103  
  
• Pull Box Paving – This is a roadway paving operation to place asphalt on localized roadway depressions to provide a smooth riding surface for the motorized public along the unincorporated County roadways. (RMRA = $625k) County Project No.: 0672-6U2104  
  
• Hand Patching – This is similar to pot hole patching to conduct spot pavement repairs along unincorporated County roadway, but on a smaller scale. (RMRA = $600k) County Project No.: 0672-6U2105  
  
• Crack Sealing – This pavement preservation task is to seal cracks in the roadway. Cracks are typically filled in to seal the roadway structural section from water penetration. The goal is to prolong the service live of the pavement and/or prepare the roadway surface for an overlay. (RMRA = $700k) County Project No.: 0672-6U2106  
  
• Leveling – This task is associated with leveling of large settlements, depressions, surface irregularities and recent large pavement repairs. This is to provide a smooth riding surface for the motorized public along unincorporated County roadways. (RMRA = $500k) County Project No.: 0672-6U2107  
  
• Grinder Follow-up Paving – This task is associated with placing roadway asphalt on localized settlements and pavement repairs. This is conducted as a follow-up to grinding operations to provide a smooth riding surface. (RMRA = $80k) County Project No.: 0672-6U2107  
  
• Pavement Failure Repair – Grinder – This task is to remove badly cracked or broken pavement. The roadway is then replaced with new asphalt and roadway base rock. This task supports pavement preservation operations and also extends the service life of the roadway pavement. (RMRA = $600k) County Project No.: 0672-6U2123  
  
• Pavement Grinding – Bobcat – This task is to remove flaws and tripping hazards in the roadway or curb edge through machine grinding. (RMRA = $90k) County Project No.: 0672-6U2108  
  
Proposed Project No. 4: County-Wide Surface Treatments (RMRA = $5.3M)  
  
Countywide:   
• Double Chip Seal Project (2018) – This project will apply a double chip seal to various roads as a pavement preservation project in the unincorporated Contra Costa County. Work will also include surface preparation and pavement striping and markings. (RMRA = $1.30M) County Project No. 0672-6U2162  
  
• Slurry Seal Project (2018) – This project will apply a slurry seal to various roads as a pavement preservation project in the unincorporated Contra Costa County. Work will also include surface preparation and pavement striping and markings. (RMRA = $500k) County Project No. 0672-6U2163  
  
• Single Chip Seal Project (2018) – This project will apply a single chip seal to various roads as a pavement preservation project in the unincorporated Contra Costa County. Work will also include surface preparation and pavement striping and markings. (RMRA = $500k) County Project No. 0672-6U2162  
  
Bay Point Area and Central County:   
• Asphalt Rubber Cape Seal Project (2018) - The project will apply an asphalt rubber chip seal covered with a type II slurry seal to various roadways in the Bay Point (76 streets), Martinez (6 streets), Walnut Creek Overlook (24 streets), Parkmead (33 streets) areas and a type II slurry seal on roadways in Bay Point and Clyde areas (18 streets) and the Bella Vista and Clyde Trails. Work will also include surface preparation and pavement striping and markings. (RMRA = $3M) County Project No. 0672-6U2154  
  
Proposed Project No. 5: Pomona Street Pedestrian Safety Improvement Project – Phase II (RMRA = $175k)- Crockett area  
  
• The project will improve two pedestrian crossings on Pomona Street near three schools and a community center. At Pomona Street and 3rd Avenue, Pedestrian-Actuated Rectangular Rapid-Flashing Beacons (RRFB) and other pedestrian improvements will be added. At Pomona Street and Rolph Avenue, bulb outs and ramps will be added. County Project No. 0622-6U4090  
  
Proposed Project No. 6: Tara Hills Pedestrian Infrastructure Project (RMRA = $420k)—Tara Hills area  
  
• The project will construct 20+ ADA compliant curb ramps on the roads surrounding the Tara Hills Elementary School and North Campus Continuation High School. County Project No. 0662-6R4211  
  
Proposed Project No. 7: Pedestrian Crossing Enhancements Project – Central & East County (RMRA = $350k)  
  
• The project will install ten Rectangular Rapid-Flashing Beacons at uncontrolled crosswalks at seven school sites in Central and East County. County Project No. 0662-6R4112  
  
Proposed Project No. 8: Blackhawk Road Bikeway Project (RMRA = $210k)—Blackhawk/Diablo area  
  
• The project will stripe a class 2 bike lane for 3.3 miles and class bikeway for 0.3 miles (a portion at each end of the project) and connect to existing class 2 and class 3 bikeways using thermoplastic striping. The bikeway will also use green pavement markings at transition areas. County Project No. 0662-6R4018  
  
Proposed Project No. 9: Alhambra Valley Road Embankment Repair ($450k)—Alhambra Valley area  
  
• The project will reconstruct the creek embankment and the roadway. The creek embankment that supported Alhambra Valley Road eroded during a severe storm event several years ago. Since then, traffic has been routed to one lane with stop control in both directions. The remainder of Alhambra Valley Road is a rural two-lane roadway winding through the hills between Martinez and Pinole. The proposed project length is about 800 feet with a road widening to support two 12-foot wide travel lanes and 4-foot shoulders for bicyclists. County Project No. 0662-6U4095  
  
The overall strategy for this partial year of RMRA funds was to 1) clear as many delayed projects as possible from the queue with 2) a balanced approach that met the road program mission to provide a safe, efficient, reliable, and accessible transportation system.  
  
With the annual reporting requirement, the Department will begin strategizing how the County can allocate the new funding to achieve the Road Program’s mission and improve the program’s key performance metrics for safety, efficiency, reliability and accessibility.  

If a project list is not reviewed by the TWIC, forwarded to the Board of Supervisors for approval, and submitted to the CTC by the May 1, 2018 deadline, the County will not be eligible to receive its portion of RMRA funds and the projects listed above will not be constructed.