E 21st Street Safety Project

About

The E 21^st Street Safety Project will make improvements to prevent vehicle speeding and other dangerous driving behaviors on E 21^st Street between 14^th Avenue and 23^rd Avenue. The project will also evaluate improvements to improve safety and accessibility for people walking, biking, and riding the bus. The project will be informed by previous community organizing around traffic safety in the San Antonio neighborhood and developed in consultation with stakeholders.

This project is being implemented in coordination with an upcoming Oakland Public Works Sewer Project on E21st Street, and in coordination with the planned maintenance of roadway pavement on E21st Street as identified by the City’s 5 Year Paving Plan (5-Year Paving Plan Map Link).  

Timeline

Spring-Summer 2026: Community Engagement and Conceptual Design

Summer-Fall 2026: Detailed Design

Late 2026-Early 2027: Construction

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Scope

The E 21^st Street Safety Project will make improvements to E 21^st Street between 14^th Avenue and 23^rd Avenue. The project has the following goals:

• Prevent drivers from speeding.
• Prevent sideshows and related dangerous driving behaviors.
• Improve pedestrian crossings.
• Improve transit stop accessibility.
• Improve bike network connections.

To achieve these goals, OakDOT proposes a combination of the following changes, pending public engagement and feasibility analysis:

• Add new speed cushions to slow drivers, especially those travelling much faster than the speed limit.
• Construct new pedestrian refuge islands and/or curb extensions at intersections to shorten pedestrian crossing distance and reduce space within the intersection.
• Construct new concrete traffic circles to force vehicles to slow down and reduce space within the intersection.
• Add new median islands at mid-block locations to discourage reckless passing.
• Stripe new crosswalks, upgrade curb ramps to ADA standards.
• Evaluate adding Rectangular Rapid Flashing Beacons (RRFBs) at strategic locations
• Evaluate transit stop accessibility upgrades.