San Francisco County Transportation Authority - Regular Meeting

Good morning, colleagues. Welcome to the September 15 regular meeting in 2026 of the San Francisco County Transportation Authority. Happy Independence Day to all my Central American sisters and brothers. I am Commissioner Myrna Melgar, chair of this board, along with Vice Chair Danny Sautter. Welcome, everyone. Our clerk today is Amy Sayoung. And also, I would like to acknowledge Jaime Echeverry at SFGov TV for staffing us during this meeting.

Madam Clerk, please call the roll and then make your announcements. Commissioner Chan. Chan absent. Commissioner Chin. Chin present. Commissioner Dorsey. Dorsey present. Commissioner Fielder. Fielder present. Commissioner Mahmood. Mahmood present. Commissioner Mandelman. Mandelman absent. Chair Malgor. Present. Malgor present. Vice Chair Sauter. Sauter present. Commissioner Sherrill. Present. Cheryl, present. Commissioner Walton? Walton, absent. Commissioner Wong? Wong, absent. Chair, we have quorum. Also, the Transportation Authority welcomes your attendance here in person at the Legislative Chamber, room 250, second floor of City Hall. When you can't be here, the proceedings are streaming live at sfgovtv.org or airing on SF local cable channels 2670, 7178, or 99, depending on your provider. Written public comment may be submitted by sending an email to clerk at sfcta.org or by mailing comments via U.S. Postal Service to SFCTA 1455 Market Street, 22nd Floor, San Francisco, California 94103. Thank you. Thank you.

At this time, I'd like to excuse Commissioner Walton from this meeting and also Commissioner Mandelman from the parts of the meeting that he will miss, although we are expecting him at some point. Before calling the next item as chair, I'd like to invoke Rule 3.26 from the Rules of Order to limit total public comment per item to 30 minutes for today's meeting. Each speaker will have two minutes to speak on a given item. Madam Clerk, please call our next item.

Item two, approve the minutes of the July 28, 2026 meeting. This is an action item.

I don't see anyone with questions or comments, so let's go to public comment on this item, please.

Is there anyone in the chamber who wishes to speak on item two, the minutes? There is not.

OK, public comment is closed. Colleagues, may I have a motion and a second to approve the minutes, please? Moved by Fielder, seconded by Sherrill.

Madam Clerk, please call the roll. On the motion to approve item two, Commissioner Chan. Chan absent. Commissioner Chin. Aye. Aye. Aye. Aye. Aye. Aye. Aye. Aye. Aye. Aye. Aye. Aye. Aye. Aye. Aye. Aye. Aye. Aye. Aye. Aye. Aye. Aye. Aye. Aye. Aye. Aye. Aye. Aye. Aye. Aye. Aye. Aye. Aye. Aye. Aye. Aye. Thank you so much. Let's go to the next item, please. Item 3, Community Advisory Committee Report. This is an information item.

And we are joined by CAC Chair Kat Segal, who is here remotely to present. Welcome, Chair Segal.

Thank you. Good morning, Chair Melgar, Vice Chair Sautter, and Transportation Authority Commissioners. The CAC has met twice since my last report to you. In July, we received a state and federal legislation update and voted to approve the recommended support position on State Senate Bill 1246, the AV Regulations Bill. Members overwhelmingly expressed that while they supported the legislation, it didn't go far enough, with multiple members focusing on the 30-minute threshold for blocking emergency vehicles being too high, and citing recent incidents throughout the city where ABs have blocked both emergency vehicles and community service. The CAC also received an update on the San Francisco Transportation Plan 2050+, Member feedback emphasized wanting to see greater emphasis on transit service expansion, major transit improvement projects, and reimagining the transit network for changing travel patterns. At our September 9th meeting, the CAC voted to approve the allocation of $22,500,000 in Prop L funds to the TJPA for the portal project engineering phase. Members wanted to know whether FTA or state GGRF funds are at risk. and staff reaffirmed the strong partnership with FTA for this project while acknowledging the significant risk to TIRCP funds planned for this project due to recent changes by the California Air Resources Board. The CAC also voted to support the OBAG Cycle 4 project nominations recommended by staff. During discussion, members expressed surprise at some of the relative project scores, particularly the high score assigned to the Treasure Island electric ferry project compared to the 16th Street Mission BART station elevator modernization project, noting the BART station's high usage and the importance of reliable elevators for accessibility. Staff clarified that project readiness was heavily weighted and that prior OBAG-funded BART elevator projects had experienced delivery issues and remained incomplete. This led to a follow-up discussion from members about what key barriers BART has faced in elevator project delivery and how the Transportation Authority might be able to help BART complete these critical projects more quickly.

Thank you, and I can answer any questions.

Thank you so much, Chair Siegel. Madam Clerk, I also want to note that we've been joined by Commissioner Walton. We had excused him, but he's very much here. So I don't see any questions or comments from my colleagues on the chair's report.

Let's go to public comment on this item, please. Is there anyone in the chamber who wishes to speak on item 3, the CAC report? There's not. OK. Public comment is now closed. Let's go to item number four, please. Item four, appoint Abigail Pontilha as the District 11 representative to the Community Advisory Committee. This is an action item.

We have Amelia Wally here to present on this item.

Good morning, Chair. Good morning, Commissioners. The Transportation Authority has an 11-member community advisory committee, which members serve a two-year term on. And the board appoints members to the CAC, each commissioner nominating one member to the committee. Neither staff nor the CAC make recommendations on appointments. Applicants must be San Francisco residents, and they must appear before the board at least once to describe their interests and qualifications. The District 11 seat is open as the result of the prior representative resigning, and Commissioner Chin has indicated her intent to nominate Abigail Pantoja for the position, who I believe has joined us remotely today to speak about their interest and qualifications.

Thank you. Welcome, Ms. Pantoja. Hello, thank you.

Good morning, everyone. Let me start the video. Thank you. Yes, good morning, everyone. My name is Abigail Pantoja. I'm very honored and excited to be considered for the Community Advisory Committee to represent District 11. I've called San Francisco my home for the past 12 years, and Muni is my ride. I feel incredibly lucky to live in a city where just outside my doorstep I've had the 49, the 49 and even the 52 bus lines connecting me to so many parts of the city. That connection and mobility is what made me first interested in getting involved in local government and becoming an advocate for my community in the transportation world. Throughout my career, I've had the opportunity to work in different fields and also work with so many different people from different backgrounds. I've worked at a local nonprofit serving immigrant women and children who were new to the city, and I helped them connect them with resources all across San Francisco. I've worked in the food service where I heavily relied on Muni to get to work even as early as 5 a.m. And today I work at the University of San Francisco where I interact with students and support them in their day-to-day experiences. And transportation and mobility has touched every one of these experiences. I ride the bus daily and I've seen the changes over the years throughout my time here. And it has been definitely felt when lines are shortened, frequency slows down, and alternative routes need to be considered. Even what may seem like small inconveniences for one person can have a much greater impact on someone who relies on public transportation every day, myself included. Union may be a choice for some people, but for many people, it's their only option. Public transportation isn't just about getting from one place to another. It connects people to their jobs, schools, families, resources, and communities. It's a constant reminder of how important accessibility, reliability, and connection are to our everyday lives. I hope to bring that perspective to the committee, listen to the needs of District 11 residents, and do my due diligence to be a thoughtful, engaged, and dependable representative of our community. Thank you so much.

Thank you so much. Commissioner Chen, would you like to say a few words about your nominee? Great.

Thank you, Chair Malaga. Colleagues, I'm very excited to extend my support for this appointment of Abigail Pantoja. Abigail is a longtime Excelsior resident, a community worker, and a daily transit writer. In conversations with my office, Abigail emphasized her strong commitment to community engagement and amplifying the voices of transit riders. As a member of the Community Advisory Committee, she looks forward to representing the experiences of working family, navigating the city on public transportation, and uplifting themes of affordability, equity, and protecting public transportation services. She is rooted in the community and has a big spirit. And I look forward to her collaboration as a member of Community Advisory Committee. Thank you.

Thank you, Commissioner Chen. Madam Clerk, let's go to public comment on this item, please.

Is there anyone in the chamber who wishes to speak on item four, the appointment of Abigail Pantoja to the CAC? There's not.

Okay, public comment on this item is now closed. Commissioner Chen, would you like to make a motion?

Yes, thank you, Chair. I would like to make a motion to appoint Abigail Pantoja to the seat representing District 11 on the Community Advisory Committee.

seconded by Fielder. No, we can't take this.

Can you please take a vote? On the motion to approve item four, Commissioner Chan. Chan, absent. Commissioner Chin. Aye. Chin, aye. Commissioner Dorsey. Aye. Dorsey, aye. Commissioner Fielder. Aye. Fielder, aye. Commissioner Mahmood. Aye. Mahmood, aye. Commissioner Chair Malgar. Aye. Malgar, aye. Vice Chair Sautter. Aye. Sautter, aye. Commissioner Sherrill. Aye. Sherrill, aye. Commissioner Walton. Aye. Walton, aye. Commissioner Wong. Wong, absent. There are eight ayes. The motion is approved. Thank you. That motion passes. Congratulations, Ms. Pantoja. Let's go to item number five, please. Item five, state and federal legislation update. This is an action item. Welcome, Ms. Crabb.

Great. Thank you. Amber Crabb, senior public policy manager. And I'm joined by Martin Reyes, who's a principal planner for government affairs remotely. So we are recommending support on one federal bill, and I'll provide an update on state legislation as well as near the end of the session. So the position we're recommending is a support position on HR 10033, and this is Representative Mullen's AV Emergency Response Coordination Act. So it was announced in July, and it would require the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration to set minimum safety standards for autonomous vehicle interactions with emergency responders. And this is currently a gap, one of the many gaps in federal policy. So we did work with Representative Mullen on the legislation. And while there's been kind of bipartisan interest in the issue, we do not expect the bill to move forward this year. However, supporting it does allow us to continue the work that we're doing at the federal level to educate, build coalitions, and help inform the development of federal policy. Then on the state level, so August 31st was the last day for the legislature to act on bills. And the bills are now on the governor's desk to either approve, veto, or allow them to become law by the end of this month. So we wanted to note three bills that we have support positions on that are currently on his desk. The first is Assembly Bill 2308, and this is Assemblymember Haney's bill related to net tax increment financing, authorizing an extension of it, hopefully in order to raise additional funding for the portal project. The second bill is Senate Bill 1167 from Senator Blakespear, and this would clarify and revise definitions of e-bikes. basically, and other devices, making it unlawful to label things like e-motos and other devices that are not really e-bikes but being marketed as such. It also clarifies that kind of existing restrictions on the use of those bicycles with respect to use on pathways and things like that do apply to the bikes that do not meet the e-bike definition. And then the final bill that is on his desk is Senate Bill 1246. This is Senator Cortese's autonomous vehicle bill that is related to remote driving and emergency response requirements for commercial AV operators. This is a bill we had a support and seek amendments position on the bill, and we were seeking amendments to make some of the data they're collecting regarding response times and other data points. We wanted to make them required reporting quarterly to the state and to make them public. And the senator did incorporate those amendments into the final version of the bill. So we thank him, we're grateful, and we're excited and crossing our fingers that it moves forward. So then I also wanted to provide an update on cap and invest. And this is something we gave you a detailed presentation in July, I guess it was. So the legislature took action in August to finalize the proposal and the remaining budget items that weren't addressed in June. So this does include action on cap and invest. And as we reported in July, it's still going to be significantly lower revenue levels due to the California Air Resources Board action earlier in the year. So the biggest impact to this, unfortunately, with respect to transportation is on the transit programs. So a little bit of good news. There was a slight increase in revenue for the program due to higher than anticipated auction revenues. And some other measures were included that may increase the overall funding in future years, such as recommitting interest earned into the program. However, oh, I guess one other good piece of news is that there was some transit funding added back. And these were prior year commitments to regional operators or regional planning agencies. So for the Bay Area, these funds were committed to the BART to Silicon Valley Phase II project in BART core capacity. So those were restored, which frees up some capacity at the local level that otherwise could have been needed by those projects. However, the legislature did not restore two important programs in the cap and invest expenditure plan, and they remain funded far below the target levels at about 25% is the estimate. And that kind of puts at risk important future investments. So one program is the Low Carbon Transportation Operating Program. And this provides operating funds directly to transit operators. SFMTA receives or has received about $17 million a year. uses it for its free muni for seniors, youth, and people with disabilities. So MTA is currently exploring how to address that as part of its overall budget process, the lower funding for that program. Then the other big program that is cut significantly is the Transit Intercity Rail Capital Program. And this is a program that the Portal Project had been seeking $750 million this year in grants. Now, with the far reduced levels, it's going to be very challenging to see that commitment, even if it's over several cycles. So we are working with TJPA, MTC, other transit operators, and CTAs that... basically to figure out how to maybe address this next session, either restoring this funding or finding additional funding for transit. And it's going to be a key priority in our advocacy program for next year, which we'll be bringing to you either in December or January. So with that, I'd be happy to take any questions you have.

I don't see any questions or comments from my colleagues. Ms. Grab, thank you so much for a very thorough overview. I just hear hot off the presses that AB 2168 has been signed by the governor, so that's a good thing. So thank you so much. Let's go to public comment.

Thank you. On the, I'm sorry, is there anyone in the chamber who wishes to speak on item five, the state and federal legislation update? There is. Just a moment. And your two minutes begins now.

Thank you, Chairman, Amalgam members. Alita Dupree, for the record, she and her with Team Folds representing Skirt Folds. There's a lot here. I support reasonable regulation for any transportation system interacting with emergency responders, whether autonomous or not. It's interesting to see what remote driving looks like. But automated driving is like 94% safer than human driving. So is it really going to be any different when somebody is driving a car remotely from a screen? We have to look at that. And I hope we can get our money, get our money to build the portal. And I think we're going to talk more about the portal later. And certainly there has to be clarifications about e-bikes. And I love e-bikes. I don't know how good prohibition of sale of some of these bikes is going to be, because people can always drive into the next state over and bring them home. So I don't know how that's going to work. It's like if you try to ban selling cars in California, they're just going to drive over the state line and drive them back. So there has to be a sense of reason in this. And I hope we can get more money. It looks like the LC TOPS. It's kind of like ETOPS. ETOPS is an airplane certification. I guess it's very similar. In being able to get the money, we need to keep our systems going. I'm not happy about the vote that CARP took a few months ago with that as far as air permits went. So we have to get our money. And lastly, I'm concerned about publicly available data. I don't want my name out there. Thank you.

Thank you for your comment. Is there additional public comment in chambers? There is not.

Thank you so much. And again, thank you, Ms. Graub, for the thorough presentation. I would just ask that my colleagues follow the issue of the cap and invest closely. It is how we fund some of the programs that we are so fond of or have in the past, free muni for youth and discounts to seniors. So we need to work with our state delegation and our governor and ex-governor to make sure that that continues. So thank you so much for staying on top of it. Let's go to item number six, please. Oh, before we go there, I just want to acknowledge that we have been joined by Commissioners Wong and Chan. Thank you for joining us. Oh, I'm sorry. Yes, I forgot. This is not just an informational. We actually have to support the recommendations of staff. May I have a motion, please, and a second to support the recommendations? Moved by Vice Chair Sautter, seconded by Commissioner Chen.

Okay. On the motion to approve, Item 5, Commissioner Chan. Chan, aye. Commissioner Chin? Aye. Chin, aye. Commissioner Dorsey? Aye. Dorsey, aye. Commissioner Fielder? Aye. Fielder, aye. Commissioner Mahmood? Aye. Mahmood, aye. Chair Malgar? Aye. Malgar, aye. Vice Chair Sautter? Aye. Sautter, aye. Commissioner Sherrill? Aye. Sherrill, aye. Commissioner Walton? Aye. Walton, aye. Commissioner Wong? Aye. Wong, aye. There are 10 ayes. The motion is approved. The motion passes. Thank you. Let's go to item number six now, please. Item 6, allocate $22,500,000 in Prop L funds with conditions to the Transbay Joint Powers Authority for the portal project engineering phase activities starting October 1, 2026, and appropriate $3,500,000 in Prop L funds with conditions for the portal project oversight engagement and work program for initiation of pre-construction. This is an action item. Thank you.

We have Carl Holmes here today. Thank you, Mr. Holmes, for presenting on one of the most important things that is going on in transportation in our city. I also want to acknowledge that the executive director of the TJPA, Adam Vandewater, is here with us in case there is any questions or comments. Go ahead, Mr. Holmes. Thank you.

Thank you, Chair Milgar. Good morning to you. Good morning to Vice Chair Sautter and Commissioners, Carl Holmes, Deputy Director at Capital Projects, and please, as of GovTV, share the slides. So as you stated, Chair Milgar, there's two items that are part of this, two actions that are requested as part of this item. The first is a request to allocate $22.5 million to TJPA as they are advancing this project. The second is to request an appropriation for $3.5 million to SFCTA, to us, as well as to our consultants as we engage in our oversight and other activities that we lead and co-lead. Next slide, please. You all have seen this before, but just as a reminder, overview of the project, essentially extending Caltrain as the initial operator from the 4th and King Station to the Salesforce Transit Center, which currently has the train box in the basement of the Transit Center awaiting rail extension. The second operator is the future operator of California High Speed Rail. And then the other members of the six agency membership are MTC as another funder, and then also the city and county of San Francisco. Next slide. Our role is captured in four different categories, so funding, governance, enhanced oversight, and our work program. With regards to funding, of course, that's what brings us here today. That funding also brings with it oversight, and we have increased our oversight over the last several months as the project gets closer to awarding different contracts to proceed into advancing design and construction. And then with regards to governance, Board of Supervisors President Mandelman serves as vice chair of the TJPA board, just as an example. Our executive director, Tilly Chang, also serves on the executive working group. And then we have staff and consultants that are also part of the integrated project management team. With regards to the work program, It pertains to activities that we lead and co-lead with regards to the funding and funding advocacy, as well as activities such as ridership forecasting. Next slide. Here you can see the timeline and currently we're in the dot that shows the 2024 to 2026 as the project again is advancing. Right now it is in the engineering phase with FTA. There's also currently a live procurement right now on one of the largest of the different contracts that TJPA will be letting the next year or two. If TJPA is successful, and so far it's been going well, if they're successful, they plan to take that procurement to their board to request award in early 2027. Also in the next dot shows that right-of-way acquisition. So there's three different, three or so tranches of right-of-way acquisitions that TGPA is processing. And so the first of those is expected to come to the Board of Supervisors as a separate body early 2027 as well. Next slide. So here you can see the cost and funding plan. The project budget was back in 2023 at $8.25 billion. It has been revised as of 2025 to a $7.5 billion project. That includes $730 million that is part of expenditures from phase one. Again, referencing back to that train box that was constructed, ready to receive the extended rail. So FTA allowed for TGPA to gain credit for that. So we're glad that they're able to include that in this process. There is still a $2.2 billion funding gap. And you heard from Ms. Crabb with regards to, Some of the funding that we are monitoring, for example, the TERSIP, which has been impacted by recent decision of California Air Resources Board. So we know that the funding is not fully restored. in terms of the recently approved fiscal year 2027 budget. But we continue to monitor this. And we're working with our stakeholders and continue to advocate for trying to restore or make sure that funding can be provided. Next slide. This here shows a three-year work plan valued at about $600 million. So of course, this allocation request does not capture or cover all of these items, but it just references the activities. And I mentioned the right-of-way acquisition. I mentioned the engineering phase. But as funding becomes available, TGPA may look at starting some early works construction. So an example of that is utility relocation that's needed to help with the civil and tunnel contract. Next slide. For context on the funding request for TGPA, again, what we're requesting today is $22.5 million. In the past, Prop L has provided $21.5 million. And of that, there was $12.5 that was recently allocated in February. And so again, this request today is to cover a 12-month period. With that, About $19 million is for program and construction management consultants under TGPA. And then the remaining $3.5 or $3.7 million is for Caltrain and their consultants. Next slide. Then for context on our appropriation, so in the past we have received Prop K $3.3 million back in 2023, and at that time we were expecting it to last 18 months, but we were able to stretch it for about three years. So again, we are requesting today $3.5 million for us to continue the work that we're doing, including our enhanced oversight and things such as the ridership forecasting. Next slide. So to close, we are recommending the allocation of $22.5 million to TGPA and $3.5 million to SFCTA. And with that, I'll turn it back to you, Chair Melgar.

Thank you. This is a very important project. It is happening in District 6. Commissioner Dorsey.

Thank you, Chair Malgar. Colleagues, I'm really excited to be supporting this. I'm excited to see it being brought forward and hope you'll join me in supporting it. The portal project, formerly known as the Downtown Rail Extension or DTX, will extend Caltrain from 4th and King Street to the Salesforce Transit Center and accommodate future California high-speed rail service. As Chair Melgar said, this is San Francisco's top rail capital priority, and this funding keeps the project moving forward through the engineering phase. Just as important, the $3.5 million of our own oversight work is something that will make sure that the Transportation Authority stays closely engaged on funding strategy, risk management, and interagency coordination as we head into pre-construction. With federal, state, and local funding all in motion, this package and the work it funds really matters. So I want to thank TJPA and our own SFCTA, also colleagues, especially Chair Melgar and President Mandelman for all their work in getting the project to the state.

Stage I'm happy to support it and hope you will all join me Thank You Commissioner Dorsey I just wanted to chime in you may remember that last year the MTC on which I represent you Recommended the portal for funding to this day to the tune of 750 millions and alas the pot that that was coming from is the cap and invest that we have spoken about that the governor's staff recommended for other things. So it is a little bit of a hiccup. And nevertheless, we are approving this funding because we believe in this project. We believe in this beautiful vision of a connected San Francisco that will be the hub of transportation for someday high speed rail, but other regional rail, bus, that will connect not just San Francisco and the Bay Area, but really all of Northern California and the rest of the world. I want to thank Director Vandewater for being here and for the work that he and his staff does every day. Thank you, Mr. Holmes. And above all, I want to thank our Executive Director, Tilly Chang, who along with President Mendelman has been so involved in all of these things. But Director Chang has always championed this. and also Jesse Kaler for all of his work. Thank you so much for everything.

Let's go to public comment. Is there anyone in the chamber who wishes to speak on item six, the portal funding item? There is. Your two minutes begins now.

Thank you again, Chair Melgar and members. Alita Dupree for the record. She and her team folks. This is very important to me. as one who goes back and forth between here and the East Bay. It's cumbersome getting between Embarcadero and Forth and King. I actually went to a TGPA meeting in 2010. It might have been the, I forget what we talked about. And it was in this room. So I have some history with this. But there is precedent in this project that's very near to me, coming from New York. There is this place in New York called Grand Central Madison. It is part of the Grand Central ecosystem. It's located about 100 feet below the historic Grand Central Terminal. It's an eight-track terminal that allows for people to go between Long Island and the east side of Manhattan. And about 40% of Long Island Railroad traffic Users who go in and out of Manhattan are using this new Grand Central Madison. I have pictures of it on my phone. I've used it a number of times, and it works really well. It's also really nice. You got to see it. It's kind of like our Transbay Terminal. So it is wise that we built that train box. I must have spoken on it back in the day. So we can be ready. I don't think it's as big as Grand Central Madison. I think it's a six-track facility. But we need to have a world-class public transportation facility in the heart of San Francisco that will allow for connections between East Bay and the peninsula. This will shorten the distance to about a block and a half. between Bard and Caltrain. So let's keep this work going. I'm on it. I'm with it. Thank you.

Thank you for your comment. Is there additional public comment on this item? There is not.

Okay, public comment is now closed. I think I heard Commissioner Dorsey make a motion.

Thank you, Chair Melgar. I would like to at this time move to approve item number six to allocate and appropriate Prop L funds as described to advance the portal project.

Thank you. Do I have a second? Seconded by Chen. I think we can do the same house, same call now. Let's do that. It's same house, same call. Thank you so much. Congratulations.

Let's go now to item number seven. Item seven, adopt San Francisco's one Bay Area grant cycle for project nominations. This is an action item.

Okay, another really important action item. We have Nicolette Chen here. She's your transportation planner to present.

Welcome. Thank you. Good morning, Chair, Vice Chair, and Commissioners. SFGov TV, I'm sharing my slides. Here today to present San Francisco's One Bay Area Grant Cycle 4 project nominations. The One Bay Area Grant Program, or OBAG, consists of federal funds distributed through MTC through a series of programs that support implementation of Plan Bay Area. OBAG 4 continues the approach from previous cycles of balancing regional priorities with local needs. MTC divides OBAG funds up into a regional bucket and a county program bucket, and the subject of today's item is the county program. The OBAG 4 County Program provides funds over four fiscal years from 2027 to 2030. As the Congestion Management Agency, or CMA, for San Francisco, the Transportation Authority is responsible for conducting a call for projects for the OBAG County Program and submitting a rank nomination list to MTC. MTC will then evaluate nominations for the region and select projects for funding. MTC can fund projects out of the submitted rank order, and I'll speak more about that in a few slides. A wide variety of project types are eligible for OBAG including transit reliability and access improvements, pedestrian safety, and transit and roadway maintenance projects. Earlier this spring, the board adopted a funding framework for San Francisco's OBAG IV county program. Since the OBAG county program is competitive, MTC requested that CMAs submit a project nomination list for 120% of available funding capacity to ensure there is a sufficient pool of project nominations to select from. San Francisco's 120% target is 56.6 million spread over the four-year cycle. The framework includes $2.1 million to augment our base CMA planning funds that we receive from MTC and $5.8 million for the Safe Routes to School non-infrastructure program to continue the program over the next four years. The remaining $48.7 million was used for the Obag County program call for projects and is the subject of today's board action. These are the board-adopted OBAG screening criteria, most of which come from MTC. Projects must be all of these criteria to be eligible for OBAG funding. I won't go into detail on these in the interest of time, but I'm happy to answer questions afterwards. After we screened for eligibility, we used these board adopted criteria to prioritize project applications. Projects could receive a maximum of 75 points across all the evaluation criteria for the county program. Project readiness and deliverability criteria was the most heavily weighted to assess if projects could meet project delivery requirements associated with federal OBAG funds, since these funds could be lost to San Francisco or the region if projects are not able to meet federal and regional deadlines. MTC also considers this factor in their scoring process. After we submit our board-adopted project nominations to MTC, MTC will evaluate and score projects at the regional level. MTC will normalize the county program scores across the region and layer on up to 25 additional points based on delivery and risk, regional alignment, and federal system performance goals. In addition, CMAC-eligible projects can receive up to 10 bonus points for air quality benefits. MTC asked CMAs to submit a ranked project nomination list. However, MTC does have the discretion to fund projects out of rank order to ensure a balanced program of projects. While MTC will aim to get each county close to their 100% target when selecting projects, there is no guarantee projects will be funded as this is a competitive program. We hope to get at least San Francisco's 100% target, which is 39.2 million, if not a bit more. In general, we found that projects that scored well demonstrated that they would be ready to proceed as proposed in the application with minimal delivery risks, provided benefits for pedestrians, bicyclists, transit, and automobiles, improved safety on the high-injury network or in areas where there's a known safety issue, and were identified through a community-based planning process with documented diverse community support. We released our call for projects on April 17, and by the July 7 deadline, we received 14 applications from six agencies with requests totaling 89.2 million in comparison to our 48.7 million nomination target. We made applications available to the board and to the public back in July by posting them on our website. Before reviewing the staff recommendations, I'd like to draw your attention to the fact that we received three applications for projects that have pending grants from other sources. Mission Street Safety has a pending grant application and may receive an award from that source. Howard Streetscape was awarded federal raised funds in 2022, but SFMTA is still waiting for the grant agreement to be executed. Lastly, some very exciting news. We were notified last week that Caltrain's 22nd Street ADA project received the full funding requested from the FTA ASAP program. We are confirming next steps for Caltrain to secure the funds through FTA. The pending grants for these three projects total 46.4 million, and this means that if these pending grants are secured, their OBAG requests would be reduced. Timelines for hearing about the remaining two pending grants is from later this calendar year to early 2027, which is after we submit our OBAC nominations to MTC. This puts San Francisco in a unique situation, and so with MTC's guidance, we plan to submit a contingency list along with the 120% nomination target list so that MTC has enough San Francisco products to choose from in the event that any of these pending grants are secured. Finally, here we have our staff recommendations. We are recommending six projects within the 120% nomination target. And as I'll cover in the next few slides, we're also recommending seven projects on a contingency list and two projects to be prioritized for funding from other Transportation Authority-administered sources. One of the ways we are able to geographically balance projects is by strategically looking across other funding programs that the Transportation Authority prioritizes, and this includes Prop D, T&C tax, and Prop AA, which have upcoming calls for projects, and of course, Prop L. I'll give a very brief description of each project, and I'm happy to answer questions after. First up is Mission Street Safety Improvements, which will construct multimodal safety improvements on Mission Street from the Embarcadero to 3rd Street. Howard Streetscape will construct traffic safety improvements benefiting all modes on Howard Street from 4th to 11th Streets. 16th Street Plaza will redesign the two plazas at the BART 16th Street Mission Station with a focus on improving transit access and rider experience. Access For All will construct curb ramps, accessible pedestrian signals, and restriped crosswalks at six priority intersections with sub-sidewalk basements in downtown north of Market Street. Bayview Caltrain Station will advance pre-environmental work to restore Caltrain access in the Bayview neighborhood. And Treasure Island Electric Ferry Pilot will use the requested funds to support the first three years of electric ferry service. This is the only project we are recommending at a partial level in order to stay within the 120% target. I'll also note that the West Portal Horseshoe project scored high enough to be included on the 120% target list. We are recommending to fund this project with Prop D TNC tax funds, which avoids having to federalize the project, which brings a lot of additional requirements and allows the project to move forward as soon as it is ready. And strategically, funding this project with local sources also allows us to get closer to the full amount requested for the Treasure Island ferry pilot project, which is on our 120% target list. This table shows the projects we recommend nominating for our contingency list. If any of the projects with pending grants mentioned on the previous slide secure funding from those sources, we will coordinate with MTC to consider applying those additional funds to unfunded projects in rank order. Treasure Island Ferry is first on the list to meet the full requested amount should additional funding become available. 22nd Street ADA Improvement will install accessibility improvements at this station, which is the only non-wheelchair accessible station on Caltrain's weekday rail line. Improvements for this project include ADA compliant ramps to access the platform from street level, improved lighting, and installing tactile warning tiles to the platform to help low vision passengers board safely. Geary 19th Avenue, oh, assuming the ASAP grant award is confirmed, we will be able to drop this project from the contingency list. Geary 19th Avenue subway would advance planning to develop a rail rapid transit subway oriented underneath Geary Boulevard and 19th Avenue, as noted in the recently adopted study. 16th Street mission elevator modernization will upgrade the two elevators at the BART 16th Street mission station to ensure reliable transit access from the plaza to the platform. For the Chinatown Community-Based Transportation Plan, SFMTA would work with the CBOs and community partners to develop a comprehensive transportation plan to improve multimodal access within and to Chinatown. California Street Transit and Safety will construct transit priority and pedestrian safety improvements along the One California bus route from Steiner Street to 32nd Avenue. Traffic signal cabinet and fiber communications upgrade program will replace outdated traffic signal cabinets and network devices along the high injury network to maintain infrastructure in a state of good repair and enable future integration of transportation systems. We have already started identifying other potential funding sources for all projects in case they don't receive OBAG funding, and we'll continue those discussions with project sponsors. Lastly, we recommend prioritizing these two projects for other Transportation Authority-administered sources. As I mentioned previously, we recommend funding the West Portal project from the Prop D T&C tax program. The digital wayfinding and paratransit project will implement digital wayfinding that benefit the visually impaired along five to be determined muni bus lines and all underground muni stations. It is coupled with the procurement of billing software that will track non-emergency medical trips that qualify for reimbursement from managed care providers. This project is not competitive for OBAG, but this is an important project for disadvantaged groups that we can advance using local Prop L funds. Sufficient funds are available in the Prop L paratransit program to fund the OBAG request and meet future annual requests for the program. We plan to bring a staff recommendation to program these Prop D and Prop L funds later this fiscal year. Next steps in the OBAG 4 schedule are shown on this slide. MTC will announce awards in early 2027. And after project selection, MTC requires sponsors to provide local resolutions, committing sponsors to comply with MTC project delivery and other requirements. We will work with sponsors to support those resolutions going to their respective boards and support our MTC representatives as OBAG 4 county program nominations go through the MTC process. With that, happy to answer any questions. Project managers are in attendance from all the agencies that submitted applications. And lastly, I would like to send an appreciation to all our sponsors' efforts in preparing the applications and fielding questions from us over the last couple of months. Thank you for listening. Thank you. Commissioner Dorsey.

Thank you, Chair Melgar. I am really thrilled to see several District 6 projects scoring high in this, and I strongly support the recommendations for the Mission Street safety improvements, Howard Streetscape, and the Treasure Island electric ferry pilot. Mission and Howard are key arterials connecting growing residential areas, affordable housing, offices, small businesses, and transit. The maintenance and improvements of these corridors is crucial to supporting both downtown recovery and continued residential growth. I want to especially re-emphasize my strong support for the Treasure Island electric ferry request. We need to keep investing in the transportation options that will meet and support the growth of this neighborhood, especially as we work on plans to expand the number of housing units on Treasure Island. The city is holding firm in its commitment to making Treasure Island a transit friendly neighborhood I think we are seeing some very promising trends in new residents use of ferry service So we need to continue investing in that this package has my strong support And I hope the MTC will support it as well, and thank you to everybody who has supported and worked on this

Thank you, Commissioner Dorsey. I'm also very excited about the electric ferry service to Treasure Island. Looking forward to it. It's a great list of projects. I do wish there were more west side projects, but that will come as we progress on our plans. I'm excited to support. I just wanted also my colleagues to know that the OBAG policy has been worked on by MTC commissions over the years. It hasn't always been easy to align nine counties into a policy that makes sense for everyone. And it has evolved and incorporated climate change and transit-oriented communities and also preservation of existing residents. So it's all been a collaborative effort with all our neighbors. I'm so excited to be presenting and moving forward these recommendations. I think I heard Commissioner Dorsey make a motion, right? No? Move it. We'll take your motion after a public comment. But it is very exciting.

Let's go to public comment. Is there anyone in the chamber who wishes to speak on item 7, the One Bay Area Grants Cycle 4 project nominations? There is. Your two minutes begins now.

Thanks again, Chair Mirna and members. Alita Dupree, for the record, she and her with Team FOLDS. There's a lot here. Hopefully I'll read it all on my phone. Some of this is very near and dear to me. The 22nd Street ADA program is especially important to me. All of our stations should be accessible. I remember the days when virtually every New York City subway station was only accessible by stairs. And there's still about 200-something of them that are still only accessible by stairs. So we really have to work on that. I would like to ride that electric ferry. I hear they have lots of them up in Norway and something different. Because I've never been on an electric ferry before. I've never even been on one of those electric trolling motor bass boats. So that's a big thing for me. And this Bayview station sounds interesting. I think I've only been to Bayview once. But in New York, there are lots of people who use commuter rail to travel within the city of New York. I think it's still called the city ticket. I do it all the time because it's faster than the subway, even though it costs a little bit more. So this will help people to use Caltrain to get to that southeast neighborhood much more easily than making lots of stops on light rail or buses. So there's a lot here. I'm interested in this Geary subway. Maybe it'll look like the Second Avenue subway in New York. It's a two-track line. Maybe we could put some artwork in there, some historical mosaics and tiles like they do over in New York. Because I want to get across the city more quickly and easily. Thank you.

Thank you for your comment. Is there additional public comment on this item? There is not. Okay. Public comment is now closed.

Commissioner Dorsey.

Thank you, Chair Melgar. At this time, I would move to adopt item seven, adopting San Francisco's OBAG cycle four project nominations.

May I have a second, please, colleagues? Seconded by Chen. And I think we can take this same house, same call. It's approved. Thank you.

Let's go on to our next item, please. Item eight, introduction of new items. This is an information item.

I do not see anyone on the roster with new items to introduce.

So let's go to public comment, please. Item nine, public comment. Is there anyone in the chamber who wishes to speak on item nine? There is. And your two minutes begins now.

Thanks again, Chair Marner and members. Alita Dupree for the record. She and her team Folds representing Skirt Folds. Good meeting today. Brief and succinct. You can go out and get my lunch. I don't actually live in the city of San Francisco, though. Back in 2010, I stayed in the outer sunset for six months, had a temporary census job here. I worked in the office. I didn't have to go out on the road. It was fun. But I advocate that we should be regional in our thinking. I went to a symposium at MTC, and we had some honored guests there. in transportation. And a special visit from former Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi. I heard the word regionable. So how can we be regionable? I'm learning more about that word. Because this should not just be about the city and county of San Francisco. I come over from the East Bay all the time. Today I came from Pleasanton. That's a long BART ride. I've never used that part of the BART before. And BART is very important to me. And I like BART almost as much as I like the New York City subway. But BART has a very unique distinction of being the people system. So I come here. in wanting to enjoy San Francisco transportation in its fullest. I can't claim real technical expertise. I just barely made it out of high school. You know, when people were doing their subjects and doing well in school, I was skipping fare on the subway. Now I pay for the subway with Omni. That was 45 years ago. San Francisco is an important part of this region, which is my beloved Bay Area, my second home. Thank you.

Thank you for your comment. There is no additional public comment.

Okay. Public comment disclosed. Madam Clerk, let's go to the next item. Item 10, adjournment. We're adjourned. Thank you.