STA 10th Annual Awards
The 10th Annual STA Awards were held at the recently renovated Empress Theatre in downtown Vallejo on November 14, 2007. More than 190 people attended the event, which was hosted by Vallejo Mayor and STA Chair Tony Intintoli, and emceed by KUIC’s Traffic Reporter, Cynthia Seats.
 Winners
View the Empress Theatre History Presentation
Download the Vallejo History/Redevelopment Presentation (665 KB, PDF)
Download the 10-Year Award Retrospective Presentation (1.63 MB, PDF)
Agency of the Year
City of Vacaville
• The efforts of the City in designing and constructing projects, along with Vacaville’s political efforts to secure funding for STA priority projects and local street maintenance funding, has been exemplary.
• The City of Vacaville delivered projects aimed at reducing emissions in City and residential vehicles.
• The City provided reliable and convenient transit service for seniors, disabled, students and adults while building transportation infrastructure that enables the safe and non-congested flow of local and regional traffic.
 Advisory Committee Member of the Year
Pat Moran, Pedestrian Advisory Committee
• A citizen’s volunteer from Fairfield on the Pedestrian Advisory Committee since 2005, Ms. Moran’s enthusiasm and participation on the PAC this past year has been an inspiration to the PAC and STA Staff alike at all meetings.
• This past year, Ms. Moran volunteered to participate in
a subcommittee to update the pedestrian priority projects list. This has been an ongoing task of the PAC since
October 11, 2006. Ms. Moran remained dedicated to the end goal, devoting numerous hours to complete the task.
 Project of the Year
Downtown Transit Plaza, City of Vacaville
• The new Downtown Transit Plaza provides a safe, comfortable bus transfer site within the heart of Downtown Vacaville.
• Located adjacent to East Monte Vista Avenue, the Transit Plaza showcases City Coach operations and the convenient transportation options that public transit can provide.
• Combined with regular 30 minute bus service, the Transit Plaza will serve the citizens of Vacaville as the downtown hub of transit activities for many years to come.
 Safety Project of the Year
Safe Routes to School Program, City of Benicia
• Benicia was the first city in Solano County to begin working with the STA on a Safe Routes to School Program.
• Over the last 18 months, staff from Public Works and Police Departments conducted school site audits and community workshops, hearing first-hand the traffic and safety concerns for each school site in Benicia.
• These audits resulted in a Safe Routes to School plan for Benicia, recommending street improvements, traffic enforcement changes, educational needs, and funding requests.
 Transit Employee of the Year
Crystal Odum Ford, City of Vallejo/Vallejo Transit
• As the Transit Superintendent, Crystal Odum Ford manages the multi-modal Vallejo Transit system which includes local and intercity fixed-route bus service, Baylink Ferry service and local and intercity paratransit services of the City of Vallejo.
• Vallejo Transit endured large budget cuts resulting in large service cuts and fare increases. Crystal has provided outstanding leadership to the Vallejo Transit team at a very challenging time in its history.
• Ms. Odum Ford has worked hard and consistently with the STA and other agencies to maximize the funding opportunities to Vallejo Transit while supporting the needs of other agencies. Most importantly she kept the needs of Vallejo Transit’s riders (many transit dependent) at the forefront when making decisions.
 Business of the Year
Genentech, Vacaville Campus
• Genentech Vacaville Campus continues to take a pro-active approach to encourage the use of transportation alternatives among their employees.
• Over the past year, Genentech has actively promoted Bike to Work Week and the Solano Commute Challenge, enrolled in the Emergency Ride Home program, and worked with the City of Vacaville to distribute Vacaville City Coach passes.
• Genentech is the county leader with 64 employees participating in the Solano Commute Challenge.
Partner of the Year
California Highway Patrol (CHP), Solano Area Office
Highway 12 Association, Rio Vista
 California Highway Patrol (CHP)
• CHP is one of several partners that joined together to take immediate actions to improve Highway12 safety earlier this year. As a result, vehicle speeds have dropped with drivers more aware of the safety issues concerning State Route 12.
• The CHP, in partnership with the STA and the cities of Rio Vista, Suisun City, and Fairfield, was successful in obtaining an Office of Traffic Safety grant to fund additional officer hours for increased CHP presence on Highway 12.
• CHP’s attendance at numerous State Route 12 press conferences, Steering and Safety meetings in 2007 demonstrated CHP’s commitment to making Highway 12 a safer corridor.
 Highway 12 Association
• The Highway 12 Association is a group of concerned citizens, businesses and organizations that deal with issues related to Highway 12 in Rio Vista. Meetings also include representatives from the Sacramento and San Joaquin County side of the Sacramento River, as well as Solano County and the Cities of Suisun City and Fairfield.
• In 2007, the Highway 12 Association has been very involved in the STA-led efforts to improve safety on State Route 12. One of the most important steps in obtaining passage of AB 112 was having a large public turn-out at the legislative hearings. The Highway 12 Association was instrumental in getting citizens to Sacramento on multiple occasions to attend these hearings.
• The Highway 12 Association letter writing campaign produced dozens of letters to state legislators, and many people at legislative committee hearings. The large number of people present to support the bill had a visible impact on the legislators, and their comments and votes reflected this impact.
 Project Delivery of the Year
City of Vacaville Public Works
• The Department’s organizational motto is “Service is our Business.”
• Over this past year, the City Public Works Department has successfully designed, bid and delivered over seven important transportation projects including the Leisure Town Rd. Overcrossing, the Nut Tree Overcrossing, the Ulatis Creek Bike Path, and the Downtown Transit Plaza to name a few.
• The City of Vacaville’s Mayor and Council have consistently provided the Public Works Department with the funding, staffing and necessary resources for the timely construction of transportation infrastructure and facilities that enables the safe and non-congested flow of local and regional traffic, and promotes alternate forms of transportation for the public.
 State/Federal Elected Official of the Year
The Honorable Lois Wolk, 8th Assembly District
• Assemblymember Wolk successfully sponsored legislation to improve safety on State Route 12 and increase public awareness of this state highway’s critical safety concerns.
• Assembly Bill 112 establishes a double fine zone on Highway 12 from I-80 in Solano County to I-5 in San Joaquin County, providing a needed deterrent for drivers exceeding the speed limit or driving recklessly. AB 112 also establishes statewide criteria for the double fine zone designation.
• Assembly Concurrent Resolution (ACR) 7 dedicates a segment of Highway 12 in memory of Rio Vista Police Officer David Frank Lamoree, who died as a result of a head-on collision while driving on Highway 12. This action will help to increase and sustain public awareness of the safety concerns on State Route 12 and the importance of practicing safe and defensive driving practices.
 • Assemblymember Wolk’s efforts in support of Highway 12 helped the STA successfully lobby Caltrans to initiate several interim safety improvements. These efforts combined with the efforts of Caltrans, the CHP, STA, and local agencies and local law enforcement have resulted in a decrease in the number of accidents and fatalities during the past 5 months on Highway 12.
• On two separate occasions, Assemblymember Wolk has supported STA’s requests to Caltrans for accelerated delivery of state-funded projects. Through her support of STA’s efforts, Caltrans has accelerated the delivery of several interim safety improvements and signage on Highway 12, and the schedule for resurfacing I-80 through Fairfield and Vacaville.
Special Awards
 New Benicia Martinez Bridge, Caltrans
• Caltrans completed construction of the new 1.4 mile long Benicia-Martinez Bridge in May of this year.
• Complicated environmental and construction issues were overcome with creative solutions such as liquid nitrogen cooling of high-performance lightweight concrete and bubble curtains to protect sensitive fish species.
• After modifications to the existing bridge and the completion of the new bridge, Caltrans will have more than doubled the previous capacity of I-780 and will have added bicycle and pedestrian access over the Carquinez Straight.
 New Benicia Martinez Bridge, Bay Area Toll Authority (BATA)
• BATA, the Bay Area Toll Authority, administers, operates and maintains the seven state-owned bridges that span the Bay Area.
• BATA funded and jointly oversaw the construction of the New Benicia-Martinez Bridge by providing oversight of over $1 billion dollars in Regional Measure 1 funding.
• A 9-lane toll plaza with one carpool bypass and two FasTrak® open road tolling express lanes were built as part of the project.
 Anthony J. Intintoli, Jr., STA Board Chair
• Mayor Anthony Intintoli has represented the City of Vallejo on the STA Board since 2003. He served as Chair of the STA Board in 2007 and as Vice-Chair in 2006.
• During his tenure, Mayor Intintoli has been a Board leader in advocating for critical federal transportation funds for priority projects such as the Vallejo Ferry Intermodal Station, the Ferry Maintenance Facility, the I-80/I-680/SR 12 Interchange, and the Jepson Parkway.
• Mayor Intintoli personally participated in seven successful STA lobbying trips to Washington, D.C., which have collectively resulted in STA landing more than $44 million in federal earmark funds for these projects.
 • While serving as STA Chair, Mayor Intintoli identified improving safety on SR 12 and improving safety for children as the STA top priorities which has resulted in the passage of special double fine zone legislation, the acceleration of several safety projects, the initiation of a median barrier study and a three-region corridor study, increased traffic enforcement resulting in a decrease in traffic accidents and fatalities, and the initiation by the STA of a Countywide Safe Routes to School Plan and Program.
• As the Mayor of Vallejo, the City of Vallejo has successfully operated Solano County’s largest and most efficient transit service with over 890,000 annual ferry riders and over 2 million annual riders utilizing its bus service.
• Mayor Intintoli has consistently been a strong supporter of pursuing additional state, federal and regional funds by passing a measure for a dedicated local source fund match that would provide critically needed transportation services, improve local roads, provide senior and disabled transit, commuter transit, and improve travel mobility and safety for Vallejo and all of Solano County.
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