#complete streets

“On Monday, Vancouver City Council voted to support a plan for protected bike lanes on Columbia Street. They did so knowing their decision would impact 393 auto parking spaces.

The Westside Bike Mobility Project aims to improve cycling access on Vancouver’s key north-south corridor. Columbia Street connects residential neighborhoods to downtown, Esther Short Park, and the I-5 bridge to Portland.

above: existing. below: street section of approved redesign for columbia st. 

“According to City of Vancouver Principal Transportation Planner Jennifer Campos, Monday’s vote endorsed a plan that will create about 3.5 miles of protected bike lanes and a host of other upgrades to the existing bikeway between the I-5 bridge and NW 45th Street.

E Mill Plain Blvd to 45th: Protected bike lanes in both directions

13th to Mill Plain: Buffered bike lane northbound, sharrows southbound

8th-13th: Protected bike lanes in both directions

Columbia Way–8th: Existing bike lanes to remain, add improvements to shared use path

The new bikeway will be implemented as part of repaving projects this year and next. It will be completed by the end of 2021.”

The automobile has ruined our cities — choking our streets and making our communities less livable.

But Americans who care about cities saw it coming from the very first days of the Age of the Automobile. Residents wrote to their local newspapers, begging lawmakers to not capitulate to motorists or car makers as they sought to turn public streets into free parking lots. Reporters covered the rise of private ownership of cars as a scourge on our cities. Judges decried what too many people today think is normal: streets clogged by privately owned single-occupancy vehicles in the public right of way.

It may be normal today, but it was very abnormal back then. That’s worth remembering every time some member of the car-owning minority fights a street safety plan because it would require the removal of some on-street car storage.

Jen Pizzolo

47, Development & Outreach at Sustainable Claremont, Upland

1) Describe your relationship with your bike.

Ever since I was a young child, my bicycle meant freedom. It still does! It's exhilarating to ride through new cities and towns and go exploring. I've bicycled all over the US, Europe and even in Russia! There's no better way to get to know a place and meet people.

2) Why do you ride your bike? What are your main motivations?

I love to go exploring on my bike. I discover so many hidden treasures! As much as possible, I use my bicycle to run errands in order to keep my car off the road so I don't contribute to pollution. My dream is to one day ditch my car forever! Riding my bike keeps me young at heart and also keeps me active. I feel so much healthier when I'm outside in the sunshine, pedaling fast, breathing deeply, feeling the beating of my heart. And for a moment or two, I feel like I'm actually flying!

3) Describe one of your earliest cycling memories- how did you get started?

As a child, my bicycle was my main form of transportation. My grandmother took care of me most of the time, and she didn't drive. So, if I wanted to go to a friend's house, I needed to get there myself. As a teenager and into my early twenties, every job I had needed to be within biking distance because I couldn't afford a car. My bike has always been my ticket to freedom, independence and self-determination.

4) Favorite place you’ve ever biked- a) in the SGV? b) elsewhere?  

My favorite group to ride with in the San Gabriel Valley is Bike SGV. Even on my very first ride when I didn't know anyone, they made me feel at home. They make every ride feel like a party! My favorite ride so far has been the Spooky Bike Train right before Halloween. I brought my dad with me on this ride and we had so much fun.  

5) What do you envision a more sustainable SGV to look like and include in the next 5 years?

Reducing Speeding-Related Crashes Through Design

According to the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), speeding is one of the most common factors in motor vehicle crashes in the US. The NTSB reported that more than 112,500 people died in speeding-related US highway crashes from 2005–2014. Speeding is the cause of 10,000 deaths on US roadways each year.

Lots of nice visual examples in the article, of things like curb extensions, roundabouts, raised crosswalks, and more.

construction on “myfigueroa” complete streets project, LADOT.