Cal Park Hill Tunnel Receives Another $908,591.00 Grant from Caltrans To Create a Bikeway Connection from San Rafael to the Ferry

The County of Marin was recently awarded another $908,591.00 grant through the Caltrans Bicycle Transportation Account to re-open the Cal Park Hill Tunnel for bicycle and pedestrian transportation. This news comes on the heels of last month's $3 million award for the same project by the California Transportation Commission.

The Cal Park Hill Tunnel will directly link San Rafael with the Larkspur Ferry Terminal along the Northwestern Pacific railroad right-of-way, closing an important gap in the planned North-South Greenway, which will run from Sausalito through Sonoma County along the right-of-way, making Marin County a model bicycle community for the nation and also serving pedestrians, joggers, and persons with disabilities.

The grant requests submitted last year by the County Department of Public Works indicated that the cost for restoring Cal Park Hill tunnel was an estimated $5.7 million. Funds secured thus far for this project include the $3 million grant from the CTC (through State Transportation Enhancements funds), this $908,591.00, and $300,000 that has been set-aside by the County for capital bicycle projects between San Rafael and Wornum Drive. Additional grants for the Cal Park Hill Tunnel are pending with MTC, the State, and the Federal government.

Supervisor Steve Kinsey has been instrumental in making this project happen. He emphasizes that this key link has been in City and County plans for nearly three decades, and that the project is moving forward in collaboration with the City of San Rafael, the City of Larkspur, and with the Golden Gate Bridge, Highway and Transportation District (a co-owner of the railroad right-of-way). The double track tunnel is wide enough to also accommodate future transit.

Debbie Hubsmith, executive director of the Marin County Bicycle Coalition says, "This is big news for bicycle transportation. We are cautiously optimistic that the Cal Park Hill tunnel will be fully funded by the end of this year. When the tunnel is opened in 2005, it will be faster to bike from San Rafael to the Larkspur Ferry Terminal than it will be to drive. This will be a demonstration project for the Nation. " The project will shorten the bicycle commute from San Rafael to the Ferry from 20 minutes to 5 minutes.