Changes are finally coming to Montezuma Road
It has taken one serious injury, one death and then one memorial ride to finally get some changes implemented on Montezuma Road.
Sara Kazemi posted this earlier this afternoon,
Back on August 1st, we learned about the Montezuma Road Restructuring which would make Montezuma Road a safer and bike-friendly road by making bike lanes more visible by standardizing and widening their width and painting them green, indicating where bikes will merge with traffic, and creating protected lanes closer to San Diego State University. The plan was drafted up by KTU+A and presented to SANDAG in late July. As of today, this plan is becoming a reality.
I contacted Tim Taylor from Councilmember Marti Emerald's office earlier this week about an update to make Montezuma Road safer and he stated the following,
A draft has been drawn up and will be shared with the public soon. The plan is to seek input at the Oct. 10 meeting of the College Area Planning Group. I think the draft will be made available ahead of the meeting.
College Area Community Planning Group and College Area Community Council
Meets the 2nd Wednesday every month at 7 pm
College-Rolando Branch Library, Community Room, 6600 Montezuma Rd.
Chair: Doug Case, (619) 594-2939, doug.case@sdsu.edu
Have you had a chance to ride on these newly painted lanes? What was your experience like?
Update on Chuck Gilbreth's Ghost Bike
Despite the message from Councilmember Marti Emerald's office to not have Chuck Gilbreth's ghost bike removed, the City of San Diego did so anyway. The Storm Water Department Spokesperson, Bill Harris, chose to instead make up facts about where Gilbreth's ghost bike was placed insinuating that Gilbreth's ghost bike was blocking wheelchair access or right-of-way regulations - when the ghost bike wasn't blocking any sort of access except serving as a grim reminder that our city streets aren't safe for bicycle riders.
A couple of local advocates including Penelope Robles then tracked the ghost bike down and reported back that the ghost bike was now located downtown and that after chatting with with Harris, Robles learned that the Storm Water Department would return the bike if someone went down to the City Administration Building to pick it up.
I contacted Forrest Brodsky who is one of the many volunteers at SDSU's Bike Cooperative, The Bike Stand, to learn whether his organization intended to pick up the ghost bike to return it to its original location. The Bike Stand was the group that originally placed the ghost bike to honor Gilbreth's life. Brodsky said that he would first contact Gilbreth's family to ensure that replacing the ghost bike would be in line with and respectful of the Gilbreth family's wishes.
This morning Brodsky informed me that Chuck Gilbreth's widow, Ginny, was more than willing for the ghost bike to be replaced at its original location on Montezuma Road - a road that has yet to see any road design improvements that would make it a safe corridor to ride on.
Protest of the Removal of Chuck Gilbreth's Ghost Bike
Angered that the City of San Diego plans on removing the ghost bike placed to honor Chuck Gilbreth's life, riders and other supporters will be protesting all day tomorrow (July 12) at the location where Gilbreth was killed.
This will be an all-day affair. Please feel free to come earlier or later than the posted time.
Chuck Gilbreth was a cyclist who was tragically killed on Montezuma Dr near Collwood when an impatient motorist decided to pass a city bus on the right, in the bicycle lane, plowing into him and knocking him into the road. In memoriam of Mr. Gilbreth, there is a Ghost Bike chained up to a pole near the site of the incident. The City of San Diego now wants to remove this bike. As the story states, this would not be such a huge slap in the face if the City had taken the steps to make this street safer for cyclists to bike on in light of Gilbreth's death. Please join us in protesting the removal of his bike at the site of the ghost bike (just West of Montezuma and Collwood)
UPDATE: If you are unable to attend please feel free to send this email to Councilmember Marti Emerald at
(MartiEmerald@sandiego.gov)
Dear Councilmember Marti Emerald,
Chuck Gilbreth was tragically killed by a pickup truck on April 18, 2012 while riding his bicycle in the east bound bicycle lane on Montezuma Road. Please ask your City Staff to not remove the ghost bike on Montezuma Road near Collwood Boulevard until the road safety improvements have been made to Montezuma Road.
The city Transportation Department is studying the traffic road conditions relative to bicycle rider safety and should submit a report to you shortly. Please do not remove the ghost bike until bicycle safety improvements have been made to Montezuma Road.
Thank you.
Update 12:00pm: Just got a call from Cynthia Harris at Marti Emerald office. Gilbreth’s memorial will not be removed. Thank you to all who called. More soon
City to Study Ways to Improve Bicycle Safety on Montezuma Road
In a city that was built around the automobile, it has taken a recent death and a subsequent memorial ride honoring the dead rider in order to get our elected representatives and the city staff to note that our existing transportation network does not accommodate all San Diegans in a manner that is safe, efficient and comfortable.
In addition to Councilmember Todd Gloria, the latest champion for a more livable San Diego is Councilmember Marti Emerald. In a May 25, 2012 Memorandum to Mayor Jerry Sanders, Councilmember Emerald requested that the City study Montezuma Road to improve bicycle safety in the wake of Charles Gilbreth's death on April 18:
I request that you initiate a study of the roadway design of Montezuma Road between Fairmount Avenue and 55th Street, with regard to bicycle safety. Montezuma Road is a very important link in the City's bicycle network, providing one of the few routes for bicyclists traveling east to west to/from a large area of the City and County of San Diego.
As you may know, a cyclist was killed on this stretch of road on April 18, 2012. While to my knowledge, the preliminary reports on the accident indicate that roadway design was not to blame, I find there is significant evidence and testimony that this area is dangerous for cyclists. I believe this corridor is in need of study to determine if additional measures are warranted to improve bicycle safety.
The use of bicycles for commuter and recreational travel offers public benefits for those who ride and for those who do not. The City needs to do everything it can to protect bicycle riders and thereby encourage more people to ride.
On June 5, Garth K. Sturdevan, Director of the Transportation and Storm Water Department that oversees bicycle projects and issues responded, in part, as follows:
This is in response to your May 25th, 2012 memo regarding bicycle safety on Montezuma Road. As requested, staff will perform an assessment of Montezuma Road between the limits of Fairmount Avenue and El Cajon Boulevard to determine if further measures can be implemented to improve bicycle safety. We will respond within 90 days with the results of our investigation.
Much thanks to Tim Taylor, Council Representative for Councilmember Emerald, for both following up on my initial request and ensuring that this one death would not be forgotten.
I will post subsequent updates as I learn of them.
News and other links from San Diego
Here are a few stories from around the county that caught my attention.
- San Diego's mayoral candidate, Nathan Fletcher, wrote this commentary in the U-T on the San Diego he envisions for future generations. This morning he released his environmental plan that he will implement as mayor.
- Pacific Beach's bike patrol team has some new fancy gadgets to help them patrol better.
- Local leaders kicked off bike month by nervously riding around Civic Center Plaza.
- Although predictions stated that about 6,000 riders would be hitting the streets on Bike to Work Day, I just learned that over 8,500 San Diegans rode to work.
- The city's first bike corral still brings smiles to everyone who wants a decent place to lock their bike securely.
- Good news on the bike theft front as three thieves arrested in Rancho Cucamonga will pay for having made some of you bicycle-less and miserable.
- The U-T's owner, Doug Manchester, will do something good for the riders wishing to traverse Mission Valley along the river: he will be paying for the bike path's extension through his property.
- Were you mystified by all the happy chatter surrounding Bike to Work Day? You're in luck as two San Diegan women have demystified the commute.
- A new crossing along the Escondido Creek beneath Ash Street opens allowing safer crossing for anyone walking or bicycling.
- Encinitas City Council, scared off by eight vocal residents, reject plants to make Manchester Avenue safe for all its users.
- While some people were discovering or re-discovering the joy of biking to work last Friday, one company in Carlsbad raised the bar and offered their employees the option to bike or work.
- District 9 candidates who want a more bike friendly district now have the luxury in deciding which of the two candidates they'd like to represent them in City Council. Who would you like in office and why?
- The Port of San Diego is about to get a lot more friendlier and much more aesthetically pleasing for anyone riding along Harbor Drive.
- The annual (not quite naked) naked bike ride will soon be here. For more about the organizer (whose name is a delightful aptonym), Sarah Bush, read this story from VOSD.
- The City of Vista having solved all its other problems has decided to go after its most vulnerable road users who are terrified of using Vista's dangerous roads: the skateboarders, roller bladers and bicycle riders. Maybe Vista wants to chase these individuals away to Carlsbad who is doing everything it can to be more welcoming to everyone.
- Good news to all Lakeside drivers who habitually speed, the law enforcement will be more accommodating in catering to your need for speed. Everyone else, head for Carlsbad.
- While Carlsbad works on making its transportation network truly efficient they have another benefit to look forward to, a fit and healthy populace.
- Local marines have identified the biggest threat in San Diego: mountain bikers who ride local trails and often serve as the trail's stewards. These marines have ensured that San Diegans have one less protected space to ride in, in San Diego. Perhaps Carlsbad has some options for you to ride in, if not I'm sure Bryan Jones is working on it.
- On a more somber note: Grant Fisher who was struck by a driver from behind while he was riding in the bike lane is now paralyzed from the waist down. If you'd like to help him financially, here is some more information at the bottom of the story.
- It's been a month since Charles Gilbreth died, and the ghost bike placed on Montezuma to commemorate Gilbreth's life has not been confiscated by the local police, this time.