$350 million for transit and bicycling!

Submitted by Dave Campbell on September 2, 2010 - 6:14pm
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Date: 
September 8, 2010 - 10:00am - 12:00pm

bart logoOakland Airport Connector: Crucial Vote
The MTC votes Wednesday on whether to continue subsidies for the half billion dollar people mover to the Oakland airport parking lot. It's our best chance to stop this boondoggle and save $350 million of local money, almost all of which are locally controlled funds that can be reprogrammed for better uses. While most of it will go to public transit improvements, which is indirectly good for bicycling, some could be used for better access to BART, like more bike parking. Watch this fun video to learn and new study shows just how bad this project is. Send a note to the MTC Commission.

You may have thought this project was dead when the U.S. DOT pulled stimulus money from the project. But NO, BART is just asking for a bigger subsidy, threatening transit even more. If you can go to Oakland for Wednesday's meeting, we need you.

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EBBC Valet Bike Parking at Oakland Pride, Sunday, Sept 5

Submitted by Carrie Harvilla on August 26, 2010 - 1:29pm


Please enter your contact information below and select one or more shifts you'd like to volunteer during in order to register. Volunteers will be helping out with valet bike parking and Bicycle Coalition outreach. Thanks for your help!

Bike Vote 2010: Yes on Proposition 21; No on Proposition 23; Yes on Vehicle Registration Fee Increases

Submitted by Dave Campbell on August 10, 2010 - 10:31am
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I Bike/I Vote logoAlong with the weather, the November 2010 election is starting to heat up and the East Bay Bicycle Coalition is urging your support for several State and County ballot propositions/measures. As a 501(c)(3), the EBBC is allowed to take a position on legislation, but is not allowed to endorse candidates for office. At our August board meeting, our Board of Directors discussed and approved taking a position on the following voter initiatives.

Vote Yes: County Vehicle Registration Fee for Local Streets & Roads

Measure F in Alameda County; Measure (undesignated as of yet) in Contra Costa County. Both the Boards of the Contra Costa Transportation Authority and the Alameda County Transportation Commission approved placing on the November ballot a $10 County Vehicle Registration Fee to fund improvements for local streets and roads, transit and bicycle/pedestrian safety. Both Counties included "Complete Streets" language in their ballot measures, thanks to the work of the East Bay Bicycle Coalition and our partners at Transform and Save Mount Diablo. For these reasons, EBBC is supporting the County Vehicle Registration Fees for Local Streets & Roads.

Bike Lanes to West Oakland BART Coming Soon

Submitted by Dave Campbell on August 26, 2010 - 9:51pm
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new bike & ped improvements on 7th Street
from Union to Wood Streets

7th street construction for new bike lanesConstruction is moving forward swiftly on the 7th Street Streetscape Project in West Oakland, which will include new bike lanes from Union to Wood Streets, wider sidewalks, new street lighting that may look really nice, bike racks, and a Blues Walk of Fame commemorating the heart of the West Coast blues scene from the 40's, 50's and 60's.

The 7th St Streetscape project is funded by the Air District and was born out of a community based transportation plan that started back in 2006. The Project is also part of a larger West Oakland BART Transit Village being developed to attract new housing and businesses to the area.

The project area was once home to numerous forms of transit and transportation, commerce and cultural institutions, but has suffered greatly from the negative impacts of freeways and BART since the 1950's. While it once thrived from its connections to the rail and the Port of Oakland and benefited from employment and industry, it has been physically divided by freeways and the overhead BART structures and continues to suffer today from noise and shadow from the BART structure and bad air quality from diesel truck traffic and freeway pollution.

EBBC Valet Bike Parking at the Solano Stroll, Sunday, Sept 12

Submitted by Carrie Harvilla on August 26, 2010 - 1:35pm

Solano Stroll logoPlease enter your contact information below and select one or more shifts you'd like to volunteer during in order to register. Volunteers will be helping out with valet bike parking and Bicycle Coalition outreach. Thanks for your help!

Oakland's Measure DD Improves Lake Merritt

Submitted by Rick Rickard on August 21, 2010 - 9:16pm
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world's shortest freeway demiseMany are no doubt aware of the construction going on to replace the "World's Shortest Freeway" at the south end of Lake Merritt. The EBBC was a major supporter of Measure DD in 2002, which is paying for the construction of a neighborhood boulevard to replace the Eisenhower-era freeway stub. Along with new bike lanes on Lakeshore Avenue, we are seeing the results of our advocacy!

Here's a good article from KQED's Quest series about the work going on around the Lake: Measure DD Accomplishments

See some great aerial photos of the construction at the Oakland 12th Street Blog

Tuesday Topics: Shared Spaces–the Ultimate Public Realm

Submitted by Dave Campbell on August 2, 2010 - 2:29pm
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photo by Ben Hamilton-Baillie

shared space photoThe videos below tell the story of "shared spaces." After watching them, you may agree that they give us hope of one day bringing back the public realm and a sense of place to our roadways. At the end of the 3rd video is the following quote from a famous Dutch traffic engineer:

"A safe street is one that tells a rich story about it's past, its context, and the future hopes of its residents."

Hans Monderman, Dutch traffic engineer (1945-2008)

Shared spaces are a European concept that started in the Netherlands and spread to England, Sweden, Denmark, Belgium and Germany. We hope to bring these wonderful concepts to Berkeley as part of Berkeley's Downtown Streets and Open Space Improvement Plan.

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Bike Lanes to Mills College

Submitted by Dave Campbell on July 29, 2010 - 10:11am
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MacArthur Blvd at 580: badly in need of bike lanes

Photo of MacArthur Blvd at 580Oakland is busy designing new bike lanes on MacArthur Blvd beween High St & Seminary Ave

The Maxwell Park neighborhood is well-organized and is championing some serious roadway improvements on the mile-long stretch of MacArthur Blvd between the Laurel District and Mills College. As a result, Oakland is dedicating over $300,000 in planning grants to redesign the roadway to improve walkability and provide bike lanes.

Are we agressive enough in reducing Greenhouse Gas Emissions?

Submitted by Dave Campbell on July 28, 2010 - 3:20pm
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andy singer cartoon of cars and light railAt its July 28, 2010 meeting, the Metropolitan Transportation Commission approved targets of 7% Greenhouse Gas (GHG) reductions by 2020 and 15% reductions by 2035, thanks to the urging from a coalition of organizations lead by Greenbelt Alliance (including the East Bay Bicycle Coalition). The Commission was ready to approve a lower 2035 target of 10%, but raised that to 15% thanks to the organized turnout at the Commission's meeting. Numerous advocates spoke in favor of the higher targets, and several EBBC members wrote letters and signed on in support online. Commissioner Tom Bates (Mayor of Berkeley) voted in support of a 15% target, while Commissioners Amy Worth (Contra Costa) and Federal Glover (Antioch) voted no for the 15% target. Commission Scott Haggarty (Tri-Valley) was absent.

Issues:

  • What do 'Per Capita' reductions achieve?
    The Commission and the Air Resources Board have changed their approach to GHG reductions by looking at "per capita" reductions, i.e. reduction amounts per every person in California. However, AB 32, Governor Schwarzenegger's landmark greenhouse gas reduction legislation, calls for absolute GHG reductions by the year 2020 of the levels that occurred in 1990.

Niles Canyon Roadway Widening Project: EBBC submits public comments

Submitted by Dave Campbell on July 23, 2010 - 12:28pm
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before and after of Niles CanyonAugust 23, 2010 Update:
The East Bay Bicycle Coalition has submitted formal comments on the draft Environmental Impact Report for the Niles Canyon Roadway widening project. We shared our appreciation for wider shoulders for cyclists to use, but also expressed our serious concerns about the expressway-like conditions being exacerbated by the project, the increased speeds, and most importantly the rumble strips.

Read our August 23 letter to Caltrans

This Project will be on the next Caltrans District 4 Bicycle Advisory Committee Meeting Agenda on October 20, 2010. Interested members are encouraged to attend. Thank you to everyone who contributed their comments, concerns and suggestions-you helped make EBBC's official comments much stronger.

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