Agency Talks Parking Upgrades For Amtrak Station

Parking and access improvements in the waterfront-train station area are on the agenda of a Wednesday morning meeting.

The Martinez Shoreline Joint Planning Agency meets at 10 a.m. Wednesday in the council chambers of Martinez City Hall, 525 Henrietta St., Martinez. The agency includes members from the Martinez City Council and the East Bay Regional Park District.

The project envisions these improvements, according to the staff report prepared by Martinez City Engineer Tim Tucker:

• A new parking facility north of the railroad tracks to provide an additional 300 parking spaces for the Amtrak station. Officials hope to discourage train patrons' use of existing Martinez Regional Shoreline Park parking.
• A realigned entrance road from the Ferry Street-DiMaggio Drive intersection with new landscaping and trail improvements.
• A pedestrian bridge across the railroad tracks from the new parking facility to the Amtrak station.
• Preliminary design of a future vehicular bridge linking Berrellesa Street to the project site. Further regulatory agency approvals will be needed for that bridge.

The parking/access improvements are intended to dovetail with city plans to upgrade Waterfront Park. Schematic designs are just beginning. "It is anticipated this project will be under construction next year," Tucker reports.

The Berrellesa Street bridge is a less expensive alternative than other plans that envisioned a downtown bridge soaring over the railroad tracks to connect downtown with Waterfront Park, the Contra Costa Times reported.