Organized Labor

Developers Submit Proposals for New Transbay Terminal

Proposals for development of the new Transbay Terminal were submitted to the Transbay Joint Powers Authority (TJPA) in December by several teams of architects and developers. Plans call for a new Transit Center to replace the existing bus terminal at First and Mission and construction of three towers with a mix of residential, office, hotel and retail space.

Development of the towers is expected to generate revenue to help fund the Transit Center. The tallest, at 1,000 feet, would be an 80-story mixed-use skyscraper 150 feet taller than the Transamerica Pyramid. (A separate 1,200-foot tall tower across the street from the Transit Center on privately owned land has also been proposed. If approved, it would be the tallest on the west coast, and third tallest in the U.S.)

For the Transit Center and Towers, a jury of transit, development and design professionals will review the proposals and name finalists on Feb. 15. Full proposals by the finalists must then be submitted by August and a winning bid selected by the TJPA. Construction would begin in 2009.

The current Transbay Terminal was built in 1939. It houses a Greyhound bus station and serves as a connection point for MUNI busses and AC Transit’s transbay busses. It’s large waiting area with old wooden benches serves as an unofficial daytime shelter for transients.

At one time the terminal was a bustling train station for commuters crossing from the City to Oakland when the Bay Bridge’s lower deck was for trains only.

Originally the Terminal was designed to handle as many as 35 million people annually with a peak 20-minute rate of 17,000 commuters that were transported in 10-car trains at headways of 63.5 seconds. In its heyday at the end of World War II, the terminal’s rail system was transporting 26 million passengers annually. After the war ended and gas rationing was eliminated, the Terminal’s use began to steadily decline. In 1958, the lower deck of the Bay Bridge was converted to automobile traffic only, the Key System was dismantled, and by 1959, the inter-modal Transbay Terminal was converted into a bus-only facility.

City planners hope to bring back that heyday and return the terminal to its former status as an intermodal transportation hub. It would serve as a terminal for Caltrain, MUNI, AC Transit, Greyhound, SamTrans, Golden Gate Transit, and BART as well as a future High-Speed Rail from San Francisco to Los Angeles. An underground people mover would link to the Embarcadero BART and MUNI station one block away. Plans also call for extending Caltrain 1.3 miles from Fourth and King Streets into the new Transit Center. Construction of the Caltrain Downtown Rail Extension would be the second phase of the project, estimated to begin in 2012 and be completed and operational by 2018.

Plans also call for development of a new neighborhood with 3,400 new housing units, including 35 percent, or 1,200, set aside as affordable housing, and mixed use commercial development with 1.2 million sq. ft. of office/ hotel space, restaurants, and 60,000 sq. ft. of retail space.

The Transit-Oriented Development (TOD) is part of a trend in urban planning to site housing near public transportation—theoretically to eliminate the need for using cars and reduce pollution and traffic congestion. A similar project is planned in San Mateo County. Oakland’s Fruitvale Village, near the Fruitvale BART station, includes residential and retail space. San Francisco’s would be the largest TOD in the state. The Transit Center is also within walking distance to existing residences and high-rise condominium complexes under construction.

The first phase of the project is set to begin next year with construction of a temporary terminal to serve passengers while the new Transit Center is under construction. The new Transit Center and Transit Tower is scheduled to break ground in 2009 and be completed in 2014. Thousands of construction job hours will be generated over the next ten to twenty years by the development, as well as new jobs in retail, hospitality, maintenance, and restaurants. The first phase of the project includes design and construction of the Transit Center building, the rail foundation, bus ramps, and bus storage facilities, and design of the underground rail level component of the Transit Center. The new Transbay Terminal is expected to cost about $3 billion.

The project is funded through a combination of regional, state and federal money. Additionally, Proposition K, a half-cent sales tax extension for transportation passed by San Francisco voters in 2003, earmarked $270 million for the Transit Center. Regional Measure 2, which passed in 2004 and raised Bay Area Bridge tolls, allocated $150 million in project funding.

The Transbay Transit Center/Caltrain Extension Project received $56.2 million in federal funding from the Federal surface transportation bill in August 2005.

The agency hopes to gain additional funding if a statewide High-Speed Rail bond measure passes next fall. Originally proposed for the 2006 ballot, the High-Speed Rail measure will appear on the November 4, 2008 ballot.

The Transit Tower will be directly connected to the Transit Center and is expected to become a “Gateway to the City,” as a new civic landmark. The 1.245 million square foot structure would include 90 residential units totaling 200,000 square feet; a 280,000 square foot, 260-room hotel; 550,000 square feet of office space; 25,000 square feet of retail space and 190,000 square feet of below grade parking.