Wednesday, September 25, 2019

TODAY Urge Cal Governor Sign SB-127 Complete Streets

Laguna Canyon Road SR-133 and South Coast Highway Hwy-1 are under Caltrans jurisdiction. Senate Bill 127 pushes CalTRANS to build Complete Streets for SR-133 and Hwy-1 - the TRANSPORTATION part of CalTRANS.

Tell Governor Newsom to please sign this legislation, three step request here.
  1. Zipcode
  2. Name
  3. eMail
GO! 

(To call Governor Newsom staff (916) 445 2841.)

UPDATE: October 12 Governor Newsom VETOED SB-127.   
-LS

Monday, September 16, 2019

Complete Streets Bill SB-127 ready for Governor

SB-127 Applies to Laguna Canyon Road and PCH

Caltrans claims to make streets safer when they make roadway improvements, like the $39 million Caltrans improvement planned for Laguna Canyon Road beginning 2021.

Caltrans often claims to make streets safer when they repair them, but in practice they prioritize fast traffic over more livable streets. The Complete Streets for Active Living Bill will provide Caltrans stronger direction, and force the safety improvements necessary to reverse the poor safety record on SR-133.

246 Collisions 5-Killed 311 Injured, 2015-2018 

"In California from 2007-2013, nearly 1.7 million people were injured in traffic incidents, including 95,758 while walking along or across the street. In those crashes, 22,117 people were killed, with pedestrians accounting for one-fifth of the total persons killed." The problem is often concentrated around Caltrans roads that go through low-income neighborhoods where more people get around via transit, biking, and walking."

SB 127 Co-Sponsors:
California Bicycle Coalition, California Walks, American Heart Association, AARP, Safe Routes Partnership
Bill Supporting Organizations:
350 Bay Area Action, 350 Silicon Valley, Active San Gabriel Valley, American Lung Association in California , Alameda County Transportation Commission , Berkeley Climate Hub, Bike Bakersfield, Bike Concord, Bike East Bay, Bike Monterey, Bike San Diego, California Alliance for Retired Americans, California City Transportation Initiative/NACTO, California Democratic Party, California Interfaith Power & Light, California Park and Recreation Society, California ReLeaf, CALSTART Inc., CALPIRG, Catholic Charities of the Diocese of Stockton, Cedars, Center for Climate Change and Health, Central California Asthma Collaborative, City of Encinitas, City of Half Moon Bay, City of Long Beach, City of Sacramento, City and County of San Francisco, City of Santa Monica, City of San Luis Obispo, Climate Action Campaign, ClimatePlan, Climate Resolve, Coalition for Clean Air, Coalition for Responsible Transportation Priorities, Compton Unified School District, Cultiva La Salud, Davis Bike Club, Day One, East Bay Recreational Park District, Elders Climate Action (NorCal), Environment California, Fossil Free California, Inland Empire Biking Alliance, Latino Coalition for a Healthy California, La Verne Bicycle Coalition, Leadership Counsel for Justice and Accountability, Local Government Commission, Los Angeles County Bicycle Coalition, Los Angeles Walks, Lyft Inc., Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District, Napa County Bicycle Coalition, Natural Resources Defense Council, Natural Resources Services Division Redwood, Office of the Mayor, San Francisco, Orange County Bicycle Coalition, Office of the Mayor, San Francisco, Pasadena Complete Streets Coalition, Planning and Conservation League, PeopleforBikes, PolicyLink, Public Advocates, Redwood Community Action Agency, Rails-to-Trails Conservancy, Rural Counties Representative of California, San Diego County Bicycle Coalition, San Francisco Bicycle Coalition, San Francisco Transportation Municipal Agency, San Francisco Department of Public Health, San Francisco Planning Department, SFBA Families for Safe Streets, Santa Monica Spoke, Save The Bay, Seamless Bay Area, Shasta Living Streets, Sierra Club California, Silicon Valley Bicycle Coalition, Silicon Valley Leadership Group, Sonoma County Bicycle Coalition, Sunflower Alliance, Transform, Transportation Agency for Monterey County, Trust for Public Land, Walk Bike Berkeley, Walk & Bike Mendocino, Walk Sacramento, Walk San Francisco, and Walk Long Beach.
-LS

Thursday, September 5, 2019

Carfree Cities: Cinque Terre, Italy


Cinque Terre Italy located on the Italian Mediterranean has a population of roughly 6000 residents manage up to 5 million visitors per year with NO PARKING. Maybe we should ask the Italians how to do that. 

Walking paths, trains and boats connect the five villages, cars cannot reach any village from remote inland cities.

Genoa and Livorno. Day-trippers from cruise ships that stop there stream into the villages of Riomaggiore, Manarola, Corniglia, Vernazza, and Monterosso. Auto drivers park at La Spezia and take a train to reach the five villages.

A walking trail, known as Sentiero Azzurro ("Azure Trail"), connects the villages. The section from Riomaggiore to Manarola called the Via dell'Amore ("Love Walk") is temporarily closed but   alternative trails remain open.

Here is a Google Map of Cinque Terre, below a comparison of the five villages to Laguna Beach. The HD videos take you on a walking tour so use full-screen!

The table shows visitors pay for access to Cinque Terre, there is a fee for using the trains, the walking path even for using the beach. Cinque Terre shows us how to manage local tourism with public transportation and pay for it.

-LS