Vallejo park-and-ride on Curtola Parkway may get $10.5M expansion

A SolTrans bus hub improvement project in Vallejo would get a boost if legislation introduced by state Sen. Lois Wolk is passed by the Legislature.

Wolk, D-Davis, is Benicia’s representative in the Senate. Her Senate Bill 1368 would modernize and expand the existing SolTrans Curtola park-and-ride through the transfer of state-owned property to SolTrans, said Mona Babauta, SolTrans executive director.

Babauta called the park-and-ride at the intersection of Curtola Parkway and Lemon Street in Vallejo “a vital transportation hub in Solano County.”

The improvement project is considered important to Regional Measure 2 goals of mitigating congestion and creating bus rapid transit operations that become attractive alternatives to using individual automobiles. according to information provided by SolTrans.

Bids on the $10.5-million bus hub project will be opened at Vallejo City Hall on May 8. The project calls for building a bus transit area, a solar array, a passenger waiting area, canopies and a transit center building.

The project also expands parking for commuters and improves traffic signals, landscaping, lighting and casual carpool and passenger drop-off and waiting areas.

It also adds new electric vehicle charging stations.

Wolk’s bill would authorize the California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) to transfer its property surrounding the Curtola park-and-ride to SolTrans, the public transportation operator for Benicia and Vallejo, for a new transit center.

In addition, the bill would give SolTrans the full authority to make improvements to the hub, Babauta said.

Wolk said her bill would “expedite the tedious process” that Caltrans and SolTrans usually must follow to undertake such improvements to the park-and-ride hub.

“This measure will enable SolTrans to provide local commuters improved and expanded services, and will encourage more Solano County residents to carpool, use public transportation and other environmentally friendly methods of transportation,” Wolk said.

Each day, the existing Curtola park-and-ride hub is used by about 600 commuters who travel to and from San Francisco, Alameda and Contra Costa counties for work, school, and other purposes, Wolk said.

She said her bill would benefit not only SolTrans but also other California Joint Powers Authorities that are responsible for building, operating and maintaining public transit and other transportation modes.

The legislation also encourages “environmentally friendly technologies, such as electric-powered vehicles,” she said.

Benicia City Councilmember Mark Hughes is currently chairperson of the SolTrans Board of Directors.

He said the board has praised Wolk for writing a bill “that recognizes the importance of allowing local jurisdictions to respond to citizen needs in the most efficient and expeditious manner.”

He added, “SolTrans prides itself on delivering safe, reliable and efficient transportation services that link people, jobs and communities.”

If Wolk’s bill succeeds, SolTrans would gain full ownership of the property at the Curtola park-and-ride hub, Hughes noted.

If that happens, he said, “the agency will be able to focus solely on and respond to local transportation needs.”