ACCMA Selects TJKM for the Webster Street
SMART Corridor Project

The Alameda County Congestion Management Agency (ACCMA), the City of Alameda and the Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC) have chosen TJKM for the implementation of the Webster Street SMART Corridor Management Project. 

Future development and redevelopment plans along the western estuary and within the cities of Alameda and Oakland will significantly increase traffic demand in the Posey and Webster Tubes, the two parallel underwater tunnels connecting the cities of Oakland and Alameda.  A study of expected 2030 conditions anticipates traffic volumes in the Posey Tube will increase by 45 percent during the p.m. peak hour and traffic in the Webster Tube will increase by 75 percent in the a.m. peak hour.  Current traffic conditions within the tubes result in significant traffic congestion as traffic backs up into both Alameda and Oakland. 

The primary goals of the project are to address current traffic congestion, improve transit service, enhance emergency access, be proactive in planning for the future, provide better traveler information, and improve air quality through reduction of vehicle emissions – without widening roadways.  The Webster Street SMART Corridor project will achieve these goals through implementation of advanced signal system technology and Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) strategies. 

To enhance the efficiency of the existing transportation network, including both the Posey and Webster Street Tubes, TJKM will:

• Develop a Transit Signal Priority (TSP) system to reduce travel time along five  AC Transit lines
• Design traffic signal coordination systems along Webster Street and for Constitution Way/Lincoln Avenue
• Design a new traffic signal at Webster/Pacific Avenues and signal modifications at five intersections
• Design and implement a Vehicle Counting Device system (VCD) to monitor traffic conditions along the corridor and alert the public of current travel conditions
• Design and implement a closed-circuit television camera (CCTV) system to assist with incident removal or equipment failures
• Implement Advanced Traveler Information System (ATIS) to disseminate traveler information via http://www.smartcorridors.com/, and
• Implement Incident Management System (IMS).

Project Manager Joy Bhattacharya states:
“We are pleased to have started work on the Webster Street SMART corridor project, which is a multi-modal ITS project including signal optimization, CCTV monitoring, ATIS, Changeable Message Signs, Transit and Emergency preemptions along the three major corridors of Alameda.  The Smart Corridor will use advanced technologies and real-time system management techniques to help keep the City of Alameda corridors and the Posey/Webster tubes operating at maximum efficiency, even after a major incident.  The SMART corridors with coordinated signals, transit priority and other ITS features will reduce traffic congestion and travel times, but will also prevent millions of pounds of greenhouse gases from entering our atmosphere each year.”

Contact Joy Bhattacharya, P.E., PTOE, to learn more about the ITS strategies of this project, or to learn about dozens of additional high-tech strategies available to improve all modes of travel in your community.