Bike, Pedestrian Allies Call for More County Action
If Alameda County expects to take climate change seriously, it must talk less and do more to develop a safe, connected, and continuous bicycle and pedestrian network, bike advocates said last week.
At the Unincorporated Alameda County Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Committee (UCBPAC) meeting on June 27, county planning department representatives presented the Community Climate Action Plan (CCAP) and Safety Element Update. The 149-page report outlines ideas for getting people out of their cars, encouraging mass transit, biking, and walking, reducing greenhouse gas emissions, and improving sustainability.
According to the report, the county “continues to eliminate gaps in the existing network and improve bicycle and pedestrian connections to transit, schools, parks/trails, retail and employment centers, community/senior centers, and libraries.”
Alameda County Community Development Agency spokesperson Ali Abbors said the CCAP and Safety Elements have had extensive public input, including hosting two open workshops and four Climate Action Team Meetings. The Board of Supervisors is scheduled to get the final report later this summer.
UCBPAC Member Bruce Dughi said he was a bit flustered that the report was vague on the community’s next steps and recommended some action items.
“We had a discussion on how to get decision-makers to follow the Climate Action Plan since the last version was soundly ignored,” Dughi told the Forum. Ali suggested more public outreach with frequent progress reviews. I suggested taking action and repairing washed-out roads due to heavy rains, which totaled $11 million of extra expense for the 2017 storms alone, including A Street, Redwood Road, Tesla, Palomares Road, and the Vallecitos Bridge.
In a letter to the Board of Supervisors, Roy Taylor said the county must Increase and improve access to walking and bicycling throughout the unincorporated parts of the county, including incentives to promote bike and/or scooter sharing.
“Rather than dismiss the bike lanes, let’s try them since Alameda County Planning staff have identified the bicycle and pedestrian network as the highest priority Climate Action for greenhouse gas reduction and resiliency,” Taylor told the Forum. “I see middle-aged people on scooters and e-bikes cruising up/down Santa Maria. Bike lanes are especially important in Castro Valley since we have a BART station, which massively extends the range of a cyclist.”
Alameda County’s connected bike and pedestrian plan is a projected 400-mile network of walkways and bikeways that overlaps with existing streets like East 14th, Hesperian Boulevard, and San Leandro Boulevard. It also includes well-traveled paths such as Castro Valley Boulevard and Redwood Road in Castro Valley. The network includes the existing Bay Trail along the shoreline and the proposed East Bay Greenway, a plan to convert 10.6 miles of Union Pacific Oakland Subdivision tracks near BART lines into a walkable and bikeable path between Oakland and Hayward.
The Next UCBPAC Meeting is Thursday, September 26.