Sunnyvale launches East Channel Trail study to map nearly 6-mile north–south path; no construction funding yet

Sunnyvale city staff and consultants on Thursday introduced a formal study to plan the East Channel Trail, a nearly 6-mile north–south bicycle and pedestrian route that would run along the Santa Clara Valley Water District’s East Channel maintenance road and connect the San Francisco Bay Trail to Homestead Road.

The study, presented by Kevin Chen, senior traffic engineer with the City of Sunnyvale, and Jeff Knowles, project manager with Alta Planning and Design, will map alternatives, analyze crossings and rights-of-way, and develop a concept plan for City Council review. "Nothing is going to be constructed at the end of the study, but it will help the city better be prepared for future rounds of funding, design, and permitting along with what it needs to do for construction," Knowles said.

Why it matters: the trail is identified in Sunnyvale’s 2020 transportation plan and would link parks, schools and transit centers across the city. Passable alignments and major crossings — including El Camino Real, Central Expressway, Highway 101, the Caltrain corridor and Tasman Drive (with VTA light rail) — present technical, property and safety constraints that will determine whether the trail can be co-located on Valley Water’s maintenance road or must use on-street detours.

Study scope and schedule - The study will evaluate which side of the East Channel is feasible for a shared-use path, how it would cross roads and rail lines, and where on-road alternatives are required. It will also identify infrastructure needs, maintenance responsibilities and funding paths. Chen said the project is a city priority for building a lower-stress north–south bike network. - Schedule presented by Alta: Phase 1 (Fall 2024–Spring 2025) — existing-conditions fieldwork, stakeholder outreach launch and initial data collection; Phase 2 (Spring–Fall 2025) — alternatives analysis and draft concept designs with public input; Phase 3 (Winter 2025–Summer 2026) — concept design finalization and an implementation strategy to bring to Council for adoption. - The study will produce a plan suitable for seeking construction funding; the city has not set aside construction money and does not plan immediate building at study completion.

Opportunities and constraints - Route: roughly 5½–6 miles connecting the Bay Trail north to Homestead Road at the Sunnyvale–Cupertino border, with potential park and school access points at Ortega Park, Braley Park, Sunnyvale Community Center Park, Fair Oaks Park and the John W. Christian Greenbelt. - Corridor width: the maintenance road ranges from about 12 to 20 feet in places, sufficient in many segments for a Class I shared-use path but with several pinch points. - Major crossing barriers called out in the presentation: State Route 237, Tasman Drive and its VTA light-rail line, the Caltrain corridor (including new electrified catenary), Highway 101 and Central Expressway. Alta noted overhead high-voltage power lines and vertical clearance issues at some culverts, and erosion in places along the levee. - Right-of-way complications: staff flagged local conflicts south of Inverness Way, near the Tesla dealership on El Camino Real, and overlapping parcels near North Britton Avenue and The King’s Academy. The city will explore easements and coordination with property owners and Valley Water.

Community engagement and early feedback - Outreach will be conducted in English, Spanish and simplified Chinese and include surveys, pop-ups, field walkshops, stakeholder meetings and a technical advisory committee with partners such as VTA, Caltrans, Caltrain and Valley Water. Alta and city staff noted they have recruited trail ambassadors and conducted tabling at community events. - Early engagement metrics provided by staff: about 14,000 mailers went to residents within 500 feet of the corridor; 941 people had completed the online survey as of the presentation, with a goal of 1,000 responses. Survey geography: 35% of responses from ZIP code 94087 (Homestead to El Camino), 20.8% from 94086, 14% from 94085, 9% from 94089 and 14% from other ZIP codes. Respondent proximity: 16% live directly adjacent to the corridor, 47% within one to three blocks, 35% elsewhere in Sunnyvale and 2% outside Sunnyvale. - Top benefits reported by survey respondents: closer-to-home exercise, improved commuting options and better outdoor access. Top concerns: homeless encampments, personal safety and noise.

Related coordination and technical work - The study team includes hydrology and hydraulics analysis to ensure trail elements do not worsen flood risk; Alta said ESA is conducting that work and the team will model impacts with Valley Water. - The presentation cited recent South Bay precedents built on Valley Water property — Permanente Creek (Mountain View), San Tomas Aquino (Santa Clara) and Regnart Creek (Cupertino) — as possible design references.

Commissioner and public comments - Commissioners pressed the team on specific crossing challenges at Tasman (VTA tracks), the Caltrain corridor and Highway 101; asked whether the city can phase construction to open useful segments sooner; and sought clarity about nighttime use, lighting and ADA accessibility across different surfaces. - Staff said segments might be phased and opened in portions but that ADA compliance and coordination with Valley Water will be required before formal openings. Staff and Alta emphasized the study will identify which segments are feasible to build sooner to maximize early connectivity. - Public comment included a request to treat the trail as part of the countywide Bicycle Superhighway network and to aim for paved, physically separated facilities where possible; the commenter emphasized reaching users beyond the 500-foot mailer area because commuters will come from outside Sunnyvale.

Next steps - The team will finalize alignment alternatives and scoring criteria this spring, present draft alternatives to the Bicycle & Pedestrian Advisory Commission later in summer 2025, and return with a draft study in winter 2025 or early 2026 for recommendation to Council. Staff said it will share commissioner feedback with the consultant and continue outreach events including walkshops.

Implementation risk and outlook - Staff and Alta characterized implementation risk as medium to high: major constraints (rail, highways, utility lines), required Valley Water approvals, property easements and the need to secure construction funding make full-build implementation uncertain in the short term. The study is explicitly scoped to produce the technical documents and strategy needed to pursue grants and design funding.

Ending - The presentation closed with an invitation to subscribe to project updates and to take the online survey; attendees were given staff contact names and the project web link to follow study progress.