8 22-0510 Subject: ACTC's San Pablo Avenue Corridor Project
From: Transportation Department
Recommendation: Adopt A Resolution Authorizing The City Administrator To Sign A Letter Of Support For The San Pablo Avenue Corridor Project Led By The Alameda County Transportation Commission To Begin The Detailed Design Phase
My family lives a block from San Pablo Ave, and I fully support the recommended improvements, specifically the dedicated bicycle and transit lanes. San Pablo is a dangerous roadway dominated by fast-moving car traffic, and it essentially divides the community in two. I would like to be able to run errands to schools and businesses along the street on my bike (or a bus) efficiently and without fearing for my life.
I strongly support a redesign of San Pablo Avenue. I live a half block off the street and have been nearly hit by cars countless times, so much so that I was truly frightened to cross the street when I was pregnant. San Pablo has the potential to be like Berkeley's 4th St or SF's Valencia/Mission streets, but the street redesign needs to come first. Right now San Pablo optimizes for high speeds and an alternative to the interstate, long-term parking (no meters in some places!!!) and trash discards. Let's make it better for businesses and safer for pedestrians with protected bike lanes and dedicated bus lanes.
i live in north oakland near san pablo. increasing public transit service and bicycle infrastructure would be a huge quality of life improvement for my family and help us reduce car usage.
We live in North Oakland and my kids prefer to walk to the part in Emeryville rather than the Golden Gate Rec Center, much nearer to us, because they have to cross San Pablo- having bus lanes and protect bike lanes will make the pedestrian access on San Pablo much better. There are also multiple schools along San Pablo and so many people drive their kids to school, probably because San Pablo is so busy and feels unsafe to send your kids to school along that road. We don't have a car and getting from our corner of North Oakland to downtown Oakland is tricky by bike. The 72 comes relatively regularly, but it would be nicer if it could be a lot more reliable with bus lanes. San Pablo should not be built like a highway- people live there.
My wife and I are environmentally-centered textile artists. We own a small business at 6328 San Pablo Ave and we own the building. We are happy to see in addition to all the other wonderful goals one is "support a strong local economy". We have been at 6328 San Pablo for 12 years. It is important to us that our neighborhood is safe and people from diverse backgrounds are supported. Our block is wonderful because it has four thriving LGBTQ / BIPOC women-owned businesses all of which have been built on access to parking on San Pablo. Our block has two wonderful schools on the adjacent blocks of Alcatraz and 63rd that provide significant challenges to parking and flow of traffic during student drop-off. We are concerned with the changes to San Pablo and its impact on our business, customers (including those who have ADA needs), delivery people, and our neighbors. We'd like parking to be available on our block. Having handicapped parking and a loading zone is necessary: We have handicapped customers who depend on their vehicles for transportation. During school dropoff, 63rd is impassable with traffic. Delivery truck drivers stop by our store daily. It is unrealistic for them to use the side streets. Street sweeping two times a month on 63rd and Alcatraz makes parking problematic. We have customers who come from all over who need to park. These changes will hurt our business and is another challenge amidst the multiple already posed by the pandemic to our livelihood.
I strongly support this project and the recommended improvements. My family has lived a 1/2 block from San Pablo Avenue at the intersection of 65th St. for ten years. We've always obeyed crosswalks and right of ways and have been in SO many near accidents as pedestrians and bicyclists. It is a dangerous street as designed. I would urge the City Council and all stakeholders to slow the speeds down on the street to avoid more deaths and approve the multimodal design to take more climate action.
Slower speeds are better for businesses and placemaking along the corridor. It's the responsibility of the City to acknowledge that high speeds results in more deaths. San Pablo Avenue is a community, and not an extension of I-80. Thank you for approving this Corridor project.
My family and I live one block off San Pablo Avenue in Oakland. We frequently shop on the avenue, but it is a dangerous and loud speedway for cars. I am terrified to walk or bike with my daughter on the avenue.
Please support the plan that includes protected bike lanes, side running bus lanes, and other safety improvements for pedestrians. We urgently need this built as soon as possible. Please make San Pablo Ave safe for families, make it a pleasant place to stroll and bike and shop. This will be good for local businesses and the climate.
Please install protected intersections along San Pablo. Intersections are where there is the most potential for conflict, and are where pedestrians and bikers need the most protection from drivers.
If you cars and bikes have to share a right turn then San Pablo will be too dangerous for families to use and it will not be an all ages and all abilities accessible bike lane.
It's absolutely necessary to move away from car-centric streets and towards transit-oriented, bikeable, and walkable streets. We know protected bikeways save lives, that frequent and reliable transit saves time, and that both help clean our air. I urge you to support the project and help our neighbors live safely and thrive.
Please adopt this resolution. Even though I mostly use San Pablo Ave in a car, I want Oakland to be a place where it's safe and easy for people to get around via any mode, especially more sustainable modes. Too many people are dying on our streets, and a huge percentage of California's emissions come from car transportation - the need for these improvements is painfully clear.
If nothing changes, nothing changes. Every city I'm aware of that has undertaken these changes, prioritizing public transit, cycling, and pedestrians in neighborhoods, has thrived as a result. It will not be easy, and yes, slowing driving time down is a challenge, but we are resilient and adaptive and we can do it. If for no one else, for the kids and the parents of kids who have to risk their lives to go to school on this street. Thanks for your hard work and consideration on this. Please, please, choose human scale, humane transportation over high-speed, gas-fed, short-term convenience.
I live and work off of San Pablo Ave. It is scary to cross as a cyclist and a pedestrian with too few visible crossways and a culture of driving fast without regard for the health and safety of our community. Please move forward with plans to make the corridor safer for pedestrians, cyclists and bus riders. It is essential.
Please adopt this resolution. I live a few blocks from San Pablo in Oakland and drive, walk, and bike on it multiple times a week. The proposed changes would be a major improvement. They’ll make biking on and across the avenue safer and more enjoyable. They’ll make businesses on the street more accessible to all. They’ll speed transit, improving wait times. They’ll make the street a more pleasant place to be. All this will help us shift away from car trips to alternative modes that reduce carbon emissions and they’ll improve the quality of life in Oakland!
I live on San Pablo Ave and would be thrilled to see this happen. I bike both north and south and have almost been hit by drivers speeding around me. People speed all the time and the traffic noise is oppressive. Most people who live on San Pablo don’t even park on SPA anyway because of the twice a week nighttime street cleaning! Giving up a traffic lane to gain a bus lane and a bike lane like has been done for Telegraph in Rockridge would be a huge win for people and the planet.
Living a block off San Pablo, I share some of Bob Bobson's concerns about parking and increasing bus service and trash, but something desperately needs to be done with the street sooner rather than later, it's basically a 4 lane highway going through our neighborhoods right now, and this plan seems solid. If traffic engineers think this plan won't mess up the neighboring streets too much, and will improve safety and get people to slow down and use bikes or public transit, I'm all for it. Biking on SP is a harrowing experience right now and it's time to start moving away from cars for local traffic.
I live on San Pablo Ave. and strongly support this project for two reasons: First, it will make this vital housing corridor more livable; Second, it will advance the City's climate goals by making it easier and more convenient for residents to bike and take public transportation in the area. With respect to livability, I have noticed that loud cars and motorcycles frequently drive fast and dangerously along San Pablo. Adding dedicated bike and transit lanes will serve as a much needed traffic calming device. There is also ample street parking in the area (I am near 65th Street). And having more foot traffic in the area would help with neighborhood safety and vitality. With respect to biking and public transit, I am currently deterred from riding my bike along San Pablo due to safety concerns--there's simply no enough room for cars and bikes to share a lane. I would love to ride my bike, or enjoy a smooth bus ride, along this important arterial. Please support this project!
This proposal does not address the many valid concerns community members have raised. Eliminating a traffic lane and parking will push more traffic onto residential side streets. There don't seem to be any plans or budget for increased bus service to make use of the dedicated transit lane. A transit lane that sits empty most of the time serves no one. There don't seem to be any plans or budget for regular trash pickup/sidewalk cleaning or other sorely-needed neighborhood beautification. There are good ideas for a multimodal corridor here, but the kinks still need to be worked out. If this project over-promises and under-delivers, it will make it that much more difficult to get future corridor improvements approved and funded. Take the time to get it right.
I live near San Pablo Ave. (Oakland) and I use the bike to get to drop off my kids to school, grocery shopping, restaurants, etc.
I avoid San Pablo as much as possible because of all the aggressive drivers. This project could bring life to San Pablo businesses in my neighborhood.
This is a poor idea for both businesses and residents. There is insufficient side street parking
My family lives a block from San Pablo Ave, and I fully support the recommended improvements, specifically the dedicated bicycle and transit lanes. San Pablo is a dangerous roadway dominated by fast-moving car traffic, and it essentially divides the community in two. I would like to be able to run errands to schools and businesses along the street on my bike (or a bus) efficiently and without fearing for my life.
I strongly support a redesign of San Pablo Avenue. I live a half block off the street and have been nearly hit by cars countless times, so much so that I was truly frightened to cross the street when I was pregnant. San Pablo has the potential to be like Berkeley's 4th St or SF's Valencia/Mission streets, but the street redesign needs to come first. Right now San Pablo optimizes for high speeds and an alternative to the interstate, long-term parking (no meters in some places!!!) and trash discards. Let's make it better for businesses and safer for pedestrians with protected bike lanes and dedicated bus lanes.
i live in north oakland near san pablo. increasing public transit service and bicycle infrastructure would be a huge quality of life improvement for my family and help us reduce car usage.
We live in North Oakland and my kids prefer to walk to the part in Emeryville rather than the Golden Gate Rec Center, much nearer to us, because they have to cross San Pablo- having bus lanes and protect bike lanes will make the pedestrian access on San Pablo much better. There are also multiple schools along San Pablo and so many people drive their kids to school, probably because San Pablo is so busy and feels unsafe to send your kids to school along that road. We don't have a car and getting from our corner of North Oakland to downtown Oakland is tricky by bike. The 72 comes relatively regularly, but it would be nicer if it could be a lot more reliable with bus lanes. San Pablo should not be built like a highway- people live there.
My wife and I are environmentally-centered textile artists. We own a small business at 6328 San Pablo Ave and we own the building. We are happy to see in addition to all the other wonderful goals one is "support a strong local economy". We have been at 6328 San Pablo for 12 years. It is important to us that our neighborhood is safe and people from diverse backgrounds are supported. Our block is wonderful because it has four thriving LGBTQ / BIPOC women-owned businesses all of which have been built on access to parking on San Pablo. Our block has two wonderful schools on the adjacent blocks of Alcatraz and 63rd that provide significant challenges to parking and flow of traffic during student drop-off. We are concerned with the changes to San Pablo and its impact on our business, customers (including those who have ADA needs), delivery people, and our neighbors. We'd like parking to be available on our block. Having handicapped parking and a loading zone is necessary: We have handicapped customers who depend on their vehicles for transportation. During school dropoff, 63rd is impassable with traffic. Delivery truck drivers stop by our store daily. It is unrealistic for them to use the side streets. Street sweeping two times a month on 63rd and Alcatraz makes parking problematic. We have customers who come from all over who need to park. These changes will hurt our business and is another challenge amidst the multiple already posed by the pandemic to our livelihood.
I strongly support this project and the recommended improvements. My family has lived a 1/2 block from San Pablo Avenue at the intersection of 65th St. for ten years. We've always obeyed crosswalks and right of ways and have been in SO many near accidents as pedestrians and bicyclists. It is a dangerous street as designed. I would urge the City Council and all stakeholders to slow the speeds down on the street to avoid more deaths and approve the multimodal design to take more climate action.
Slower speeds are better for businesses and placemaking along the corridor. It's the responsibility of the City to acknowledge that high speeds results in more deaths. San Pablo Avenue is a community, and not an extension of I-80. Thank you for approving this Corridor project.
My family and I live one block off San Pablo Avenue in Oakland. We frequently shop on the avenue, but it is a dangerous and loud speedway for cars. I am terrified to walk or bike with my daughter on the avenue.
Please support the plan that includes protected bike lanes, side running bus lanes, and other safety improvements for pedestrians. We urgently need this built as soon as possible. Please make San Pablo Ave safe for families, make it a pleasant place to stroll and bike and shop. This will be good for local businesses and the climate.
Please install protected intersections along San Pablo. Intersections are where there is the most potential for conflict, and are where pedestrians and bikers need the most protection from drivers.
If you cars and bikes have to share a right turn then San Pablo will be too dangerous for families to use and it will not be an all ages and all abilities accessible bike lane.
This is extremely necessary to create a safe environment for bikers and support the city's climate and environment goals
It's absolutely necessary to move away from car-centric streets and towards transit-oriented, bikeable, and walkable streets. We know protected bikeways save lives, that frequent and reliable transit saves time, and that both help clean our air. I urge you to support the project and help our neighbors live safely and thrive.
Please adopt this resolution. Even though I mostly use San Pablo Ave in a car, I want Oakland to be a place where it's safe and easy for people to get around via any mode, especially more sustainable modes. Too many people are dying on our streets, and a huge percentage of California's emissions come from car transportation - the need for these improvements is painfully clear.
If nothing changes, nothing changes. Every city I'm aware of that has undertaken these changes, prioritizing public transit, cycling, and pedestrians in neighborhoods, has thrived as a result. It will not be easy, and yes, slowing driving time down is a challenge, but we are resilient and adaptive and we can do it. If for no one else, for the kids and the parents of kids who have to risk their lives to go to school on this street. Thanks for your hard work and consideration on this. Please, please, choose human scale, humane transportation over high-speed, gas-fed, short-term convenience.
I live and work off of San Pablo Ave. It is scary to cross as a cyclist and a pedestrian with too few visible crossways and a culture of driving fast without regard for the health and safety of our community. Please move forward with plans to make the corridor safer for pedestrians, cyclists and bus riders. It is essential.
Please adopt this resolution. I live a few blocks from San Pablo in Oakland and drive, walk, and bike on it multiple times a week. The proposed changes would be a major improvement. They’ll make biking on and across the avenue safer and more enjoyable. They’ll make businesses on the street more accessible to all. They’ll speed transit, improving wait times. They’ll make the street a more pleasant place to be. All this will help us shift away from car trips to alternative modes that reduce carbon emissions and they’ll improve the quality of life in Oakland!
I live on San Pablo Ave and would be thrilled to see this happen. I bike both north and south and have almost been hit by drivers speeding around me. People speed all the time and the traffic noise is oppressive. Most people who live on San Pablo don’t even park on SPA anyway because of the twice a week nighttime street cleaning! Giving up a traffic lane to gain a bus lane and a bike lane like has been done for Telegraph in Rockridge would be a huge win for people and the planet.
Living a block off San Pablo, I share some of Bob Bobson's concerns about parking and increasing bus service and trash, but something desperately needs to be done with the street sooner rather than later, it's basically a 4 lane highway going through our neighborhoods right now, and this plan seems solid. If traffic engineers think this plan won't mess up the neighboring streets too much, and will improve safety and get people to slow down and use bikes or public transit, I'm all for it. Biking on SP is a harrowing experience right now and it's time to start moving away from cars for local traffic.
I live on San Pablo Ave. and strongly support this project for two reasons: First, it will make this vital housing corridor more livable; Second, it will advance the City's climate goals by making it easier and more convenient for residents to bike and take public transportation in the area. With respect to livability, I have noticed that loud cars and motorcycles frequently drive fast and dangerously along San Pablo. Adding dedicated bike and transit lanes will serve as a much needed traffic calming device. There is also ample street parking in the area (I am near 65th Street). And having more foot traffic in the area would help with neighborhood safety and vitality. With respect to biking and public transit, I am currently deterred from riding my bike along San Pablo due to safety concerns--there's simply no enough room for cars and bikes to share a lane. I would love to ride my bike, or enjoy a smooth bus ride, along this important arterial. Please support this project!
This proposal does not address the many valid concerns community members have raised. Eliminating a traffic lane and parking will push more traffic onto residential side streets. There don't seem to be any plans or budget for increased bus service to make use of the dedicated transit lane. A transit lane that sits empty most of the time serves no one. There don't seem to be any plans or budget for regular trash pickup/sidewalk cleaning or other sorely-needed neighborhood beautification. There are good ideas for a multimodal corridor here, but the kinks still need to be worked out. If this project over-promises and under-delivers, it will make it that much more difficult to get future corridor improvements approved and funded. Take the time to get it right.
I live near San Pablo Ave. (Oakland) and I use the bike to get to drop off my kids to school, grocery shopping, restaurants, etc.
I avoid San Pablo as much as possible because of all the aggressive drivers. This project could bring life to San Pablo businesses in my neighborhood.