Pleasant Hill | 511 Contra Costa - Part 2

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Tag: Pleasant Hill

Announcing the Buskirk Avenue Improvement Project (2013)

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Buskirk Avenue in Pleasant Hill will be undergoing an improvement, reconstruction and widening project. In addition, drainage improvements, new pedestrian and bike facilities, new pavement and striping will be added to the Avenue.
As part of this project:

  • Buskirk Avenue will be realigned with a new traffic signal at the Buskirk Avenue/Clarie Drive intersection.
  • A new traffic signal will be installed at the new Buskirk Avenue/Contra Costa Center southwesterly driveway access intersection.
  • A new, free sweeping 90 degree roadway curve and traffic island calming feature will be added to the eastern section of Hookston Road north to the new Buskirk Avenue/Clarie Drive intersection.
  • New ornamental street lighting, sidewalks and landscape features will be incorporated into the project in order to enhance the appearance of the corridor.

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511 Contra Costa will be providing updates on the project status within the Buskirk Project section of this Blog. The City of Pleasant Hill’s website provides a way to get text or email notifications about the project. Additional info about the project can be found on the official Buskirk Avenue Phase 2 Improvement page.

Pleasant Hill Man drives a half million miles in vanpooling between Pleasant Hill and San Francisco

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Roger Matoba’s of Pleasant Hill was honored by MTC for operating a commuter vanpool for 29 years.  Roger proudly named his vanpool vehicle after the Japanese word Ichivan, meaning Number One.  Departing from Pleasant Hill early each morning, Roger drove over 100 varpoolers to/from work in San Francisco for nearly three decades. It is estimated that the IchiVan traveled an estimated half million miles before retiring earlier this year.
Matoba and his ItchiVan vanpool was recently honored by the Metropolitan Transportation Commission with the Miriam Gholikely Public Service Award for his 29-year contribution to Bay Area transportation.

511 Contra Costa is proud to have nominated Roger and his IchiVan as an example to live by in reducing congestion and auto emissions saved by carrying many passengers!

City of Pleasant Hill Bicycle and Pedestrian Master Plan meeting January 11, 2011 6-8 PM

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What: Public Meeting for Pleasant Hill citywide bicycle and pedestrian master plan project
When: Tuesday, January 11, 2010 from 6-8 PM
Where: Pleasant Hill City Hall, 100 Gregory Lane, Pleasant Hill, CA 94523 – Large Community Room
The City of Pleasant Hill will host the second public meeting on its citywide Bike/Ped Master Plan project next Tuesday (January 11th) between 6pm and 8pm.  Meeting location:  at the City Hall Large Community Room.  The draft list of recommended bicycle and pedestrian projects will be presented. Meeting materials will posted on the project website (www.walkandbikepleasanthill.com) at the end of this week.

Bike and Pedestrian Master Plan in the Works for Pleasant Hill

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The city of Pleasant Hill is working on a master plan to develop comprehensive bike and pedestrian friendly routes and facilities. Increased bicycle lanes should encourage more people to bike, instead of drive, to work, school, or to shops.
Consultants will work to determine which areas attract the most pedestrian traffic, which areas would benefit from connecting routes, and which areas have the highest rate of bicycle crashes. Routes and facilities will be implemented in accordance to priority based on the consultants’ findings.
The city will hold workshops in order to gather public input about the plan. To learn more about the project and to find out when the next public workshops are, visit the City of Pleasant Hill Bicycle and Pedestrian Master Plan‘s website.
In the meantime, try out the 511 Contra Costa Bike Mapper to map bike friendly routes in the Bay Area!
(Image by yvon.liu)

Pleasant Hill BART Station will Undergo Name Change

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After some debate, the BART board of directors decided to change the name of the Pleasant Hill station to Pleasant Hill/Contra Costa Centre. Members of the Contra Costa County Redevelopment Agency, Contra Costa Centre, and the Walden District Improvement Association requested the switch in name, claiming that they have “created a community; a community of residents and property owners [that] have embraced the name of Contra Costa Centre.”
The Contra Costa County Redevelopment Agency and developer AvalonBay Communities will pay for changes to maps, train schedules, station signs, brochures, and BART’s website. To read more, visit the Contra Costa Times’ website.
(Image by DaveFayram)

This Week’s Headlines in Transportation & Transit: Sept. 18-24, 2010

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Public outreach meeting in Pleasant Hill for citywide bike and ped project

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What: The first public outreach meeting for the Citywide Bicycle and Pedestrian Master Plan project
When: September 29, 2010, 6–8 PM
Where: City Hall Large Community Room at 100 Gregory Lane
The City of Pleasant Hill is developing its first comprehensive Bicycle and Pedestrian Master Plan. The purpose of the plan is to:

  • Develop a network of bicycle and pedestrian facilities that will provide better access to transit, schools and shopping destinations
  • Develop policies to provide ample bike parking and other support systems for bicycling and walking in Pleasant Hill
  • Include recommended education and encouragement programs to help Pleasant Hill residents learn to bicycle and walk safely

For more information, visit: http://www.walkandbikepleasanthill.com/

Iron Horse Trail Pedestrian Bridge Near Completion

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Update: According to project engineers, the crossing will be accessible by September 27th, with the grand opening set for October 2nd.


After months of construction and more than a decade of planning, the Iron Horse Trail Pedestrian/Bike Bridge is near completion. The bridge spans eight lanes of Treat Boulevard in the Pleasant Hill BART area, linking discontinuous sections of the Iron Horse Trail. Upon its opening (rumored to be Friday, August 27th), the overcrossing will allow for pedestrians and bicyclists to safely cross the heavily trafficked road.

Construction on the $6.8 million bridge over the eight lanes of Treat Boulevard began in September of 2009 (see project timeline below). More than 1 million people per year use the Iron Horse Regional Trail, a 24-mile stretch from Dublin to Concord that runs along an old railroad right of way.

From the Contra Costa Times:

Beverly Lane, who represents Central Contra Costa County on the East Bay Regional Park District board, said she thought the bridge would have been completed 10 years ago.
“I am really ecstatic. It’s just going to be so good for the trail users and the people driving down Treat; it will enable people to go over without stopping traffic,” Lane said.

What do you think of the new bridge? Tell us by taking the short survey below.

For more information:

This Week's Headlines in Transportation & Transit: May 8-14, 2010

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This Week’s Headlines in Transportation & Transit: Mar. 6-12, 2010

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This Week’s Headlines in Transportation & Transit: Feb. 20-26, 2010

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CBS5 Video Coverage of Unveiling of Pleasant Hill Electric Vehicle Charging Stations

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A couple of weeks ago, we blogged about Pleasant Hill’s new electric vehicle charger stations, unveiled on Dec. 10th.
The charging station is the 2nd to be built in Contra Costa County and the 4th in the Bay Area, serving vehicles such as the Wheego, GEM (Global Electric Motorcar), Prius, and new EVs such as the Tesla Roadster and Chevy Volt to be released in 2010. Funding for the project was provided by TRANSPAC and 511 Contra Costa in partnership with the City of Pleasant Hill.
For more information, read the press release: Pleasant Hill Becomes 4th Bay Area City to Install Coulomb Charging Stations for Electric Vehicles or contact Corinne Dutra-Roberts at: 925-969-0841 x204.

Pleasant Hill's New Plug-In Electric Vehicle Chargers

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ChargePoint-bollard-clean511 Contra Costa in partnership with the City of Pleasant Hill is unveiling the City’s electric charging stations today, December 10, 2009.  The chargers allow for any plug-in electric vehicle to recharge at one of three locations in Pleasant  Hill; City Hall Visitor Parking lot, the public garage on Crescent Drive, and the City’s corporation yard (for city fleet vehicles only).
The charging stations are sleek bollards, some free standing that look like hi tech parking meters, and one wall mount.  To use the chargers, you will need to Coulomb ChargePoint key fob (a.k.a.  smart card) which provides secure access to the charger.  The City of  Pleasant Hill is the 4th Bay Area City to install the charging stations, and is another link in the charging station chain with Walnut Creek’s installation last spring, and the anticipated charging stations in Martinez and Hercules in 2010.
Contact Corinne Dutra-Roberts at 925-969-0841 x 204 for more information.