Rich Payne, Joseph Ortega

Sidewalk

Inspection and

Trip Hazard

Mitigation

TODAY’S AGENDA • City Ordinance vs. Streets and Highway Code

• Liability

• Program Components

• Inspections

• Funding

• Challenges

• Precision Concrete Cutting

City Ordinance vs. Streets & Highway Code

Walnut Creek Ordinance

• Owners Duty to Maintain

Sidewalks (WC Muni Code

7-2.102)

• States the “Liability for Injury

is the Property Owners”

• Exception - “Street Trees” as

Defined

Streets & Highway Code

• Owners Responsible to

Maintain Fronting Sidewalk

(Sect. 5610)

• City Still has an obligation to

make the hazard safe

• Extensive Notification

Process

• Property Owner Responsible

for the Cost to Repair

Liability • Sidewalk Trip and Fall Claims - Approx. 26% of Total

Claims

• 3-year City Paid Out > $360,000

(Administration/Staff Time NOT Included)

• ADA Compliance

Program Components

o Annual Inspection Program

o Document

o Prioritize Backlog

o Repair

Documentation

Backlog

Incident

Response

Funding

Temporary

Mitigation

Annual

Inspection

Program Outreach

Permanent

Repair

Reported Incidents • All Reported Sidewalk Incidents

o 24 Hr Response

o Document, Record and Photograph

o Temporary Mitigation:

• Ramping or Planing

o Identify Responsibility: City vs. Private

• Owner Responsibility (Fronting Owner Put on

Notice)

• City Responsibility

o Identify Repairs

o Prioritize Remove and Replace

Inspection Program • City Divided into 3 District/15 Zones

• Inspect Downtown Core Area & 1 District Annually

o Location, Condition, Photo

• Temporarily Ramp/Plane Displacements

• Document Information

• Prioritize Repairs

Downtown • High Pedestrian Travel

• Shopping and Commercial

• Ascetics important

• Annual inspection and

repair

• Plain lifts ½” greater since

2009

• 2014 Significant decline

trip/fall claims

Funding • Operations - ~$300k

o Respond, Document, Temp Ramp

o Remove and Replace 10,000 -15,000 sqft

• CIP ~ $250k

o Permanent Repairs on Hold (Backlog)

o Contractual Plaining

o ADA – Transition Plan

Challenges • Growing Back Log

• Maturing Trees/Removal

• Proper Tree Selection

• Determining Responsibility

• Balancing Operational Demands

• More work than resources

Precision Concrete Cutting

• Global Leader in Sidewalk Asset Management

• Over 40 Franchise that specialize in sidewalk

repair/inspection

• 6 patents awarded by the U.S. Patent and Trademark

Office

• PCC NorCal operating for 13 yrs. and services over 70

cities and thousands of HOAs/Schools

*PCC NorCal repaired 80,000

sidewalk panels in 2015 alone

District B Zones 6-10 PCC Technicians Inspected District B-Total of 110 Sidewalk Miles and

Identified the Following:

The specifications for this project were as follows:

o Inspect all sidewalks 3/4 inch and greater

o Map and photograph all locations

o Identify & record all locations that require removal & replacement (R&R)

o Inspect all curb ramps

Cost Savings “Precision” Saves an Estimated $773,852 or 77%,

Compared to Traditional Removal and Replacement*

*Based on an Average Sidewalk Panel Size of 6 x 6 ft. at ~$14.00 per Square Foot

Environmental Savings ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS

• Precision Concrete Cutting is a proud member of the U.S. Green

Building Council (USGBC)

• Removing and replacing 2,007 identified panels would have resulted

in 1,358 tons of waste concrete in landfills.

• Removal using PCC - less than 1.5 ton of concrete and everything is

recycled at “SRDC”

• PCC’s method saves an estimated 4,126 gallons of gasoline and

prevents the release of about 36 metric tons of Carbon Dioxide (CO2)

gas emissions.

Inspection Process • Precision's Survey Technicians Walked/Used Motorized

Scooter

• Inspected Every Sidewalk Panel in the Project Area

• Used Proprietary Survey Application on Hand-Held

Devices

• Located & Recorded Every Hazard According to City

Specs

• Captured GPS Coordinates and Photographed Each

Location

Examples of Uneven Sidewalks

Examples of Sunken Utility Boxes

Examples of Curb Ramps

Examples of Replacement Locations

Examples of Replacement Locations

What Do We Do with the Data?

• Data Imported Into GIS Using

GPS Coordinates

• Confirmed City Sidewalk

Locations

• Organize Ongoing Sidewalk

Maintenance & Completed Repairs

• Map Shows Location of Uneven

Sidewalk Panels Identified-

Includes Photos &

Measurements

GIS Layer

• Efficient GIS

Uploads

• Minimal Staff

Time

• Manageable

Data

GIS Detail

Import Includes:

• Photo of

Displacement

• Repair Photo

• Inspection/Repair

Dates

• Measurements

• Sortable Data

Repairs

• Manage Ongoing

Activities

• Visual Management

• Track Progress

• Share with Stake

Holders

Remove and Replace Layer

Data

includes:

• Photo of

Site

• R&R SQFT

• Location

Partnership Goals • Establish a More Accurate Budget

• Inspect and Repair 1 District Per Year

• Identified Sidewalk Off-Sets Annually by District

• 2017/2018 inspect/repair sidewalk off-sets in Districts C &A

• Once sidewalk off-sets in all zones have been repaired

budget $50,000 for offset maintenance and divert

remaining funds to removal and replacement

• Utilize City’s GIS to track and manage the inventory of

repairs

Examples of Sidewalk Repairs

Before After

Before After

Examples of Other Repairs

Before

After

Before After

Curbs Tree Well

Sidewalk

After

Before

Precision Results • 1,051 Panels Repaired

• 20 Working Days

• No Safety Incidents

Benefits • Increase Walkability/Accessibility

• Attractive Alternative to Grinding

• Preserve the City’s Sidewalk Infrastructure

• Foster Good-Will Amongst Residents

• Reduces Liability

• Improves Pedestrian Safety

• Maintains an Active Program

• Maintains Detailed Records/Tracking in Virtual Setting

• Effective Tool to Leverage Funding

• Manage Sidewalk Inventory/Resources

Questions?