What We've Been Reading
San Diego Pledges $130M to Fight Climate Change
From: Court House News Service
“One of the biggest pieces of the pie — $14.5 million in new funding and $12.7 million in indirect funding — was allocated toward "supporting actions" including developing a transportation master plan, implementing community-planning studies and several safe routes to school projects and the Vision Zero plan for zero traffic-related deaths by 2025.”
We’re backpedaling here!
From: La Jolla Light
“A few bike lanes exist in La Jolla. […] But the ones in La Jolla lack the separation, and Andy pointed out that for bike lanes to be safe, they need that separation.”
Bike Lanes In Downtown San Diego Mean Fewer Parking Spaces, Car Lanes
From: KPBS
“Hanshaw said the plan actually increases the number of parking spaces in the short term, and that by the time spaces are eliminated and the new bike lanes are built he hopes fewer people will be driving.”
San Diego Council OKs Adding 9 Miles Of Bike Lanes Downtown
From: KPBS
“The San Diego City Council on Tuesday unanimously approved a plan for downtown San Diego that will add nine miles of new bike lanes and more than five miles of widened sidewalks.”
Ambitious Plan Would Transform Downtown Streets
From: San Diego Union Tribune
“’It will improve mobility choices by what we call “right sizing” the streets — by using the extra capacity that exists now for cars to make way for people walking and biking,’ she said. ‘It will improve safety and get more people out of their cars and on their feet and their bicycles.’”
Uptown Bikeways Project Rides to a Milestone Moment
From: San Diego Uptown News
“‘Losing 12 to 16 parking spaces is not a lot,’ Jamason said, noting that there are 700 off-street parking spaces in that area. [….] ‘There is no safe biking route through Hillcrest. To say people’s lives are worth less than a few parking spaces is ludicrous.’”
Power Plants Are No Longer America’s Biggest Climate Problem. Transportation Is.
From: Vox
“Oil remains by far the dominant source of fuel for cars, trucks, and planes, and there’s no readily available substitute here.”
But How Many Downtown Bicycle Thefts?
From: San Diego Reader
“Part of the increase in thefts, according to Karimi, is because more people are riding bikes.”
BTA Will Change Name, Expand Mission to Walking, Transit and Political Action
From: Bike Portland
“[T]he BTA could lead a new political action committee (PAC) that could have wide-ranging impacts on elections and policy measures statewide.”
Two injured in suspected DUI hit-and-run in Solana Beach
From: CBS 8
“A 24-year-old woman who was arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence and felony hit-and-run allegedly struck and seriously injured a man and a boy riding bicycles with family members and friends in Solana Beach, the San Diego Sheriff's Department reported Sunday.”
What Jane Means: 4 Women Urbanists Reflect on Their Relationship to Jane Jacobs
From: Metropolis
“[T]he idea of ‘multiplicity of choice,’ which Jacobs mentions frequently, is a perception more often than a reality. People will try a different form of transportation when they can see that it works. Maybe someone sitting on a bus will notice a cyclist pedaling down a bike lane. Or a driver sees a light rail train rocket while stuck on an offramp.”
Uptown Parking District Board Members Just Can't Stand Bicycle Riders
It seems like its always Groundhog Day in Uptown. Last year, SANDAG board members voted to create the Uptown Hole as shown below:
Since that vote, many of our supporters have banded together to ensure that when it comes time to implement the Uptown Bikeway, the gap ceases to exist. The SANDAG board is scheduled to determine if the project can be exempted from a CEQA review, since the rationale used to justify the hole was based on the archaic Level of Service justification—or rather, the old car-centric view that the only form of traffic worth analyzing and planning for was vehicle traffic.
But in the meantime some board members at the Uptown Parking District, a city sanctioned (and funded) entity to manage Uptown's parking supply, want to chip away at the existing proposed routes (highlighted in purple above).
Below is an email from our board member, Paul Jamason that will give an insight on this continued shortsightedness by the Uptown Community Parking District whose mission is to:
improve availability and supply of parking for residents and businesses, by re-investing its portion of parking meter funds with fiscal responsibility. The district will also consider traffic circulation, transit effectiveness, biking, and pedestrian mobility in its neighborhoods and develop creative collaborations to support a vibrant local economy.
One way to "improve the availability and supply of parking for residents and businesses" is to offer choices that prevent the need to drive, increasing supply doesn't always mean building more parking. But without a connected bikeway network, the only option to get around will be the vehicle which requires far more land for parking.
The email from Jamason below was sent to Mayor Faulconer and Councilmember Gloria:
Hi, I'm writing to inform Mayor Faulconer and Councilman Gloria's offices of Monday's Uptown Community Parking District Board meeting regarding the SANDAG Uptown Bikeway. The Board will be voting again on whether to recommend removal of the Bikeway on 4th and 5th Ave north of Robinson, so I'm asking that representatives of your offices attend..This motion was previously voted on, and failed, at the April UCPD Board meeting. Adriana Martinez from Councilman Gloria's office informed UCPD that SANDAG would be proceeding with this segment of the Bikeway regardless of UCPD's advisory vote (1 minute mark here: http://bit.ly/1WKzLgc). However, the Hillcrest Business Association is determined to remove this segment, and its UCPD board members have forced a second vote - when the current UCPD President is unable to attend due to illness..Monday's motion from UCPD/HBA board member Cecelia Moreno includes new language stating that this Bikeway segment should not be exempt from CEQA because it removes 12 street parking spaces (there are 700+ off-street spaces on these blocks). The notion that removing a small amount of parking for a bike lane is a "negative environmental impact" is dubious at best..As your offices are aware, UCPD has been directed to "facilitate the use of alternative forms of transportation to reduce parking demand" (https://www.sandiego.gov/sites/default/files/newsrelease150630.pdf). The Bikeway is an alternative form of transportation, and it is needed to help achieve the city's Climate Action Plan bike more share goals..UCPD has also been sitting on millions of dollars in unspent parking funds. At the April meeting, Executive Director Elizabeth Hannon was asked what this balance was but has not provided an answer. Instead, UCPD is wasting public parking funds on staff resources for ad-hoc group meetings and unnecessary votes..Your constituents' safety is also being disregarded by UCPD HBA members. HBA Executive Director/UCPD board member Ben Nicholls told me, "(Some) cyclists give all riders a bad name by riding up on sidewalks… with complete disregard for any rule or procedure at all“, but the sidewalk bicyclist in the attached photo told me it is too dangerous to ride on University. Moreno told me SANDAG would implement pedestrian improvements in the University bikeway gap, but a SANDAG representative confirmed no changes are planned. Due to the above, Uptown Planners voted to recommend SANDAG close this bike network gap.
.I am asking that representatives from your offices attend Monday's meeting to reaffirm the City's commitment to its Climate Action Plan, parking district bylaws, public safety, and the remaining Bikeway. Unnecessary votes and criticisms of SANDAG and UCPD members who work together with them (http://sdgln.com/news/2016/03/15/sandag-wants-remove-parking-bankers-hill-uptown-bike-way) are not part of UCPD's mission..Thank you,Paul Jamason
Dinner and Bikes is this Thursday
This Saturday, we are hosting the sixth annual Dinner and Bikes event. Tickets are very limited, so please get them today.
Here’s what happens at a Dinner and Bikes event:
As the audience arrives, they serve themselves from chef Joshua Ploeg’s seven-course gourmet vegan and gluten-free buffet spread. While the audience is eating, local advocates discuss their work and local issues and initiatives over the first fifteen minutes.
Then, Elly Blue and Joe Biel co-present a new interactive discussion and presentation including eight short films about Groundswell movements—incidences where people demanded better neighborhood conditions and successfully implemented them. Stories include how Reading, PA came to be 13th on the East Coast for bike commuting without any advocacy or government spending; former gang members riding bikes to raise awareness about gang violence, Mexico City’s superhero of the streets, Peatonito; the story of the League of American Bicyclists’ equity council; how the City of Portland’s Sunday Parkways worked as a response to gentrification; and how cyclists are representing themselves and creating their own voices all over the world.
Throughout the evening there are plenty of opportunities for discussion, questions, and browsing the Microcosm pop-up book and t-shirt store. We wind down and pack up around 9 PM and everyone is tucked away in bed by 10...or creating an off-site after party!
Curious about more? Check out this cool promotional video:
Dinner & Bikes Tour from Microcosm Publishing on Vimeo.
Seating (and the gourmet vegan dinner) is limited. So get your tickets today.
BikeSD Endorses Kevin Faulconer for Mayor
No one has greater influence over the safety and design of San Diego’s streets than its mayor. Former Mayor Filner’s (very brief) tenure gave San Diegans a true taste of the power of the mayor’s office and its possibilities. Between Plaza de Panama, the city’s first open streets event, CicloSDias, and a quick (if not perfect) solution on Montezuma Road after a preventable traffic fatality, San Diegans began to get a sense of the sheer power behind the Mayor’s office and the mayor’s ability to improve traffic safety in the city of San Diego. Faulconer is definitely no Filner, both in his governing style nor in his rhetoric, but he is a proponent of safer streets.
San Diego’s streets are slowly, but surely, undergoing a transformation. The city is becoming a safer and more pleasant place. But much work still remains.
After careful consideration of both Faulconer’s and Ed Harris’ records, public statements and responses to our questionnaire*, we are endorsing Kevin Faulconer for mayor in San Diego’s primary election. Mayor Faulconer’s has shown commitment to the following:
- Reducing vehicle miles traveled and sprawl.
- Implementing the Bike Advisory Committee’s six highest priority projects from the draft Strategic Implementation Plan.
- Training City staff on Complete Streets and Vision Zero planning and design.
- Accelerating community plan updates so that their mobility elements reflect best practices in multi-modal transportation and are consistent with recent planning documents such as the Climate Action Plan and Bike Master Plan.
- Annual monitoring of the Climate Action Plan to ensure achievement of the plan’s targets.
- Revising Council Policy 800-14 regarding Capital Improvement Project Prioritization to incorporate Climate Action Plan transit priority areas and environmental justice considerations such as CalEnviroScreen.
- Increasing mobility and economic opportunities for working families who cannot afford automobile ownership.
- And funding 80 cameras in transit priority areas to gather improved bicycle commute data.
These commitments all played a key role in our decision as it was not only consistent with our organizational mission, but also consistent with our Strategic Framework.
“Of all the Mayoral candidates, Kevin Faulconer has laid out the most ambitious vision to continue making San Diego’s city streets safe and accessible for everyone, regardless of mode of transportation,” said Jeff Kucharski, BikeSD’s board president.
BikeSD’s choice of Mayor Faulconer was not made without careful consideration of his chief rival in the primary race, Ed Harris. Clearly, Harris has given transportation and regional planning issue serious thought. However, Mayor Faulconer outlined a more complete and compelling vision for bicycling in San Diego.
In addition to making streets safer, Mayor Faulconer is committed to making them more accessible and equitable, especially in historically underserved neighborhoods. With Faulconer’s commitment to ensure the successful implementation of the Downtown Mobility Plan and achievement of his Climate Action Plan goal of 6% bicycle mode share by 2020, San Diego will compete for the most bike-friendly U.S. city. “Mayor Faulconer clearly understands that a successful city of the future is one that embraces safe and complete streets,” said BikeSD board member and BikeSD’s Policy Committee chair, Kristin Blackson. “It’s fundamental to not only our region’s economic development, but also to a vibrant and great quality of life.”
*As mentioned earlier, mayoral candidate Lori Saldaña didn’t respond to our questionaire.
BikeSD will help elect its endorsed candidates with volunteer support.
BikeSD Inc, is a 501(c)(4) California corporation. Our Endorsement Policy is available for you to read here. Please consider becoming a member or renewing your support so that we can elect strong leaders that will implement our vision in office.
2016 Election: Ed Harris' Vision to Improve Bicycling in San Diego
Our board sent a list of questions to Mayor Kevin Faulconer, and mayoral candidates Ed Harris and Lori Saldaña who are running to be the Mayor of the city of San Diego. We will be posting their responses here. Below is mayoral candidate Ed Harris' responses to our questions. Candidate Lori Saldaña declined to respond to our questionaire as her campaign didn't have the staff capacity.
1. Thanks to your support, San Diego is now a Vision Zero city and we are well on our way to fully implementing our city’s Master Bicycle Plan, yet we still aren’t a world – class city for bicycling – an activity that has multiplier effects on our economic, societal health and social cohesiveness. One of the biggest barriers to safe cycling and walking are the high speed differentials on our city streets. Recently, Cities, including Boston and New York City have lowered the city speed limits. Would you be willing to sponsor and support state legislation to allow for speed limits on city streets to be less than 25 mph?
Most definitely. The speed law trap needs to be addressed, and policy at the state level needs to be changed to protect our neighborhoods and facilitate more walkable and bikeable communities. There is an issue with the current 85% speed determination. Twenty is plenty! We should be actively addressing that issue, instead of simply saying “We support biking” and then doing nothing as a government to move that support into action. We can tackle safety issues from multiple angles. First, we need to advocate for reducing the speed of vehicles traveling through neighborhoods. Second, we should be advocating for more bike boulevards in neighborhoods, especially those that do not currently have last-mile access to mass transit. Third, I will advocate for stricter legislation towards DUI offenders and distracted drivers, because our current system does not deter offenders enough, and it keeps cyclists in a precarious environment on our roads. I also am in support of the vision zero corridors that aim to keep cyclists safe, so the decision to bike as a form of transit is not limited by the fear of being struck by a vehicle.
2) San Diego is a large and geographically diverse city. Another barrier to safe walking and cycling are the last mile gaps - the missing safe connectivity to bike and transit infrastructure. Land use decisions cause the last mile of trips to intersect with uninviting high speed roads for transit users and bicyclists. How will you work to ensure that Caltrans and SANDAG to invest the funds necessary to minimize and eliminate these last mile gaps as the designated representative on SANDAG board?
As Mayor, I would represent San Diego at SANDAG, and I would install the resources we need as a city within the mayor’s office to move forward towards alternative transit. There are numerous tangible changes we can make as a city to move us towards a bike-friendly city. First, I will establish a transportation (or Mobility) commissioner, like Janette Sadik-Khan, who is fully committed to tackling transit issues within the city. This would be a position that can own the decisions we make towards a bike friendly city, and it would be a position of accountability, so we can actually get things moving forward. Currently we have separate departments working on oversight (Stormwater dept, etc).
Second, I will have a city staff engineer work specifically and directly with CalTrans and SANDAG to work on projects, and seeing them through. We must thing BIG about these issues. Without staff that can be directly accountable for transit decisions being put into action, it is too easy to pass the blame and delay progress. Caltrans is a huge stakeholder for San Diego to become a world class bike friendly city. The highway interchanges present many missing links of our current bike network and are the most challenging and dangerous areas for active commuters. The most dangerous are those highway interchanges that have extremely fast vehicular speeds.
As San Diego is making strides to re-purpose streets after they are resurfaced, the city is missing the opportunity to not have those bike lanes continue through Caltrans row. Bike lanes are being discontinued as they hit Caltrans row and the long process to get approval for paint treatment on Caltrans row is timely and takes allocating staff members to see it through. This is where a city staff engineer would be able to focus on these issues and move the repurposing efforts forward. As new bike corridors (like Adams) are being constructed, we must collaborate with Caltrans to provide for safe access after a rider exits the corridor paths. Having dedicated city staff that focus solely on mobility and transit would also allow for newer safer access to trolley stations like the Midcoast trolley, and others that lack safe access to the trolley via bike.
SANDAG is also an extremely important agency. To move SD forward, we need to commit to the goals of innovative mobility, healthy communities, and a vibrant economy. Bikes mean business and can help support the three SANDAG goals. As mayor, I will provide San Diego with a strong voice for San Diego to change the direction that SANDAG continues to default to. I suggest that we re-look at funding for infrastructure and start implementing our bike networks now, along with the current potential we have for mass transit avenues and last-mile routes through neighborhoods. Big transit projects do cost money, but we can get there. We get there by stopping the typical measures we continue to see (ones that only address the short-term), and change the way SANDAG and the City of San Diego does business. SANDAG should be responsible for implementing complete streets and should be able to design mobility hubs for the new proposed stations (Balboa Park and Clairemont).
3) Too often, our local schools prioritize vehicle drop offs rather than encouraging school children to ride, walk or skateboard to school. How do you intend to encourage more kids to get to school by foot, on a bicycle or other non-automobile means as mayor?
This answer is easy for me to approach, because I have seen the potential for alternative commutes to school first hand. My son Brian was a part of a Dana Middle Bike to school group, and I believe that with city support, programs like this can be created, and existing programs can be vastly improved. The primary issue with our children biking, walking, or skateboarding to work is safety. As a parent, I understand the concerns families have with allowing their children to share the road with dangerous drivers who are commuting to work. We need Safe Routes to Schools for every school in San Diego. If we can provide safe and comfortable access to neighborhood schools, then we will have a great bike network in San Diego. Because safety comes first, we need to prioritize safer routes to neighborhood schools. If bikeways are safe, riders will ride them. To start, there should be protected bike lanes feeding into all avenues of our city schools. Additionally, I will advocate for, and see through the implementation of, more protected crosswalks at schools, like I did while I was a councilmember in District 2. Once safety is addressed, I would encourage our city schools to fund and implement a bicycle education program at the 4th grade level, where our children begin to develop the personal abilities and capacity to bike to school. If we educate children at a young age about the health and environmental benefits of biking to school, we can widely change the way our society views transportation. I would work with the school district to implement education for every 4th grade class, which would fall into the Wellness Initiative that has a tremendous amount of support.
4) As mayor you will be responsible for appointing the second city representative to the SANDAG board. This appointment will influence whether the city meets goals of the Climate Action Plan, Bicycle Master Plan, and the state policy SB 743. What qualifications will this individual have that would make them the ideal candidate to vote on planning and transportation decisions?
Like I mentioned in question #2, I would have a representative that is dedicated 100% to transit and mobility. This person would be a strong, bold, inspiring advocate with a vision to make San Diego a world-class bicycle city—a Janette Sadik-Khan of San Diego. This person would be one that is willing to fight for safety, healthy residents, and a sustainable future. That person would be knowledgeable of the current conditions in San Diego, and would be a user him/herself of the bicycle network in San Diego. San Diego is large and diverse. Every community, from Rancho Bernardo to San Ysidro, has its own needs. To approach these issues, that commissioner would need to collaborate with local advocacy groups. By doing this, we can work with groups to address Vision Zero and how it relates to the goals set forth in the climate action plan. Additionally, Disadvantaged communities have had freeways destroy their neighborhoods, so we must address the issues with equitable priority.
5) San Diego’s parking districts encompass some of San Diego’s densest communities that include Downtown, La Jolla, Mid-City, Old Town, Pacific Beach, and Uptown. Does the city have an obligation to provide curbside parking for residents? How should the city regulate the public space devoted to car storage? What changes do you believe are needed in the city’s current curbside parking rates and policies? Should a bikeway project be built even if it causes a net loss of curbside parking spaces?
Curbside parking is a use of public space, so it is time we go to the table with the interested parties and address the amount of space we dedicate for parking. Parking cannot be the only reason for not providing cyclists with protected bike lanes or facilities. I understand the needs for parking, so it would be naïve to promise to do away with it. However, as we tackle our infrastructural needs with roads, we can be re-allocating and re-thinking our priorities towards making San Diego a place that will function in 10, 20, and 50 years. I am not opposed to alternative parking projects, instead of parallel (angled parking, parking structures where it is necessary). I do not think all drivers are going to get out of their cars and get on a bike, but with a leader who makes these things a priority, there will be a shift in momentum and public understanding for projects that will get us to where we need to be. We must all understand that protected bike lanes provide for more access to a greater amount of people. This is going to be necessary to implement in the future, so it is time we begin the conversation, and start moving forward. With protected bike lanes, businesses are visible, and the fight over a few parking spaces becomes less necessary.
In doing so, we must initiate Collaboration between MTS and bike share to create last mile transit from transit & mobility hubs… Last mile is the most difficult, & that is perfect for it. There is plenty of brainpower and willingness behind an effort to move SD in a bike friendly direction. We just need a leader who is dedicated to putting the right people in the positions to start moving this city forward.
BikeSD Inc, is a 501(c)(4) California corporation. Our Endorsement Policy is available for you to read here. Please consider becoming a member or renewing your support so that we can elect strong leaders that will implement our vision in office. Our endorsement for mayor will be posted later this week.