Caltrain just doesn't understand

After a decade of planning and negotiations-and deaths too-Caltrain's San Bruno Grade separation is finally under construction.

After a decade of pleading on behalf of neighbors' safety, Caltrain and its contractor(s) have shown safety is not a number one priority.

San Bruno B.A.R.T., a staunch advocate for Caltrain safety over more than 15 years, has unwaveringly pleaded with Caltrain executives and engineers to make the construction site safe for numerous families who walk their children to and from Belle Air Elementary School.

The scene: Parents living west of the railroad tracks cross them four times daily getting their children to and from the school located at 500 Third Avenue. They make a round trip around 8 in the morning and do so again later to retrieve their children.

The count: On a typical day eight little girls and 10 little boys made the trek across the tracks and that was only at the northern end of the station platforms. More crossed at the other end. Fourteen adults, three toddlers and four in strollers made for three dozen plus risking life and limb crossing between commuter trains. One youngster ventured the trip unaccompanied.

The history: In the past eight years alone there have been four deaths by train at this station, three of them, from this particular pedestrian crossing and one, a young boy who had not long before been promoted from Belle Air.

The path: There are normally (they have been seen to not function) operating pedestrian crossing gates on both sides of the two sets of track. Going to school, students cross their second Caltrain parking lot and walk around a raised landscaping isthmus. They then proceed--in the street--to a sidewalk installed by BART, all of this still on First. The school is two city blocks away via a municipal parking lot. To get a visual lay of the land google 502 First Avenue, 94066.

This week JMB Construction, out of South San Francisco, began installation of a new storm drain line for the grade sep prime contractor Granite Construction beneath First Avenue's 500 block. To bring in the needed concrete pipe, JMB blocked the public street, unfortunately, right at the entrance to Caltrain's eastern parking lot.

With the use of the customary two flagmen, the project would have only slightly hampered the heavy school traffic that is permanently directed there by the city. On Wednesday, JMB was observed to have only one flagman working; he was stationed at the northern end.

This caused complicating delays and complicated situations, especially in the afternoon when parents arrived to pick up their students. One privately-owned-vehicle was seen making a three-point u-turn rather than wait for construction equipment to clear the path.

Those kinds of slip-up are not uncommon at construction sites on public throughways. What made this incident particularly harrowing were those pedestrians mentioned above in "The count." They needed the street to walk to the school and JMB provided them no protection. They were forced into shortcutting through the shrubbery even with their strollers.

San Bruno B.A.R.T. contacted the Transit Police emergency number and was informed by a Sergeant that he was familiar with the area and had found no safety anomalies. Furthermore, since the blockage was on a public street and not on Caltrain property there was nothing he could do.

Caltrain's public affairs person assigned to the grade separation was also informed of the problem and was sent photos. He said he would look into it. More than 53 hours later he responded with:

"In checking with our project management team, it appears as if the pedestrian with the stroller is attempting to access a dirt path that is on private property across from the north side of the station. This would require her to pass over a raised median there at the connection of First and Second avenues."

For the record, there is no "median there at the connection of First and Second Avenues." The two neighborhood streets are parallel throughout their length and, as in being taught in the nearby school, parallel lines extended to infinity NEVER meet whether a median is raised or lowered or imaginary.

Had Caltrain sent a person out to observe the situation they would have clearly found this "median" to be a landscaped area between the Caltrain parking lot and First Avenue. As for JMB.............

One of the first stages of construction will involve building of a temporary shoofly (additional tracks) so the primary two tracks can be elevated. At this end of the project, the shoofly will go right through this area and parents will be diverted a thousand feet to a temporary station where they will be able to access the school. For that to happen, the temporary station must be built and operational before the shoofly. It is not built yet.

At at least two public neighborhood meetings and in numerous emails San Bruno B.A.R.T. (Belle Air Residents for Truth) has asked Caltrain to make sure the area is safe for these families going to and from school.

Early this past summer Disney Construction did prep work further up First Avenue for Caltrain and it took neighbors a couple weeks to have that work site fenced in to protect the children.

We are still at the beginning of a project expected to last several years and now a second contractor, JMB, shows how it endangers neighbors. On their website, JMB states "We pride ourselves on fast, efficient, courteous service." The question to be asked may be "Courteous to whom?"

Caltrain added "Our team will work with the City to delineate a defined pedestrian crossing at First Avenue." This is from the same people who could not find the temporary station on their own model? This is from the same people who think First and Second Avenues meet at a median?

From this neighborhood it looks like the horses have already left the proverbial gate. If we could only get the iron horses to the gate we might eventually get this grade separation on the right track.