LA County Bicycle Coalition www.la-bike.org

From LA City:

For Immediate Release

Contact: Jordann Turner (213) 978-1379 Michelle Mowery (213) 972-4962

City of Los Angeles Bicycle Plan Update Public Meetings to be Held October 2009 at Four Neighborhood Locations

Los Angeles (September 24, 2009) – The City of Los Angeles will be holding the second series of public workshops to present the full draft 2009 Bicycle Plan for public comment and discussion, in October 2009. The proposed draft Bicycle Plan is a comprehensive update of the current Bicycle Plan first adopted in 1996 and re-adopted by the City Council in 2007. The draft Bicycle Plan proposes approximately 696 miles of new bikeways and new policies related to implementation, education, enforcement, engineering, parking, transit integration, maintenance and evaluation.

The proposed draft Bicycle Plan incorporates comments and suggestions from the first series of public workshops held in February and March 2008, public survey and best practices from cities around the nation.

The draft 2009 Bicycle Plan is available for download on the project website [www.labikeplan.org]

The public is invited to attend meetings at one of four (4) neighborhood locations, during the month of October.

The meetings will be held at the following dates, times, and locations:

Harbor Area Date: Thursday, October 22, 2009

Location: Peck Park

Address: 560 North Western Avenue, San Pedro, CA 90732 Time: 5pm-7pm

Central/South Los Angeles Date: Saturday, October 24, 2009

Location: Exposition Park – Dr. Mary McLeod Bethune Regional Library

Address: 3900 S. Western Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90062 Time: 10am-12pm

San Fernando Valley Date: Monday, October 26, 2009

Location: Marvin Braude-San Fernando Constituent Services Center, Conference Room 1B

Address: 6262 Van Nuys Blvd, Van Nuys, CA 91401 Time: 5pm-7pm

West Los Angeles Date: Wednesday, October 28, 2009

Location: Felicia Mahood Multi Purpose Center

Address: 11338 Santa Monica Blvd Los Angeles, CA 90037 Time: 5pm-7pm

The public can submit comments at the public workshops, via the project website [www.labikeplan.org] or by mail on or before November 6, 2009 to:

City of Los Angeles, Department of City Planning

Attn: Jordann Turner 200 N. Spring Street, Room 721 Los Angeles CA 90012

Public comments and testimony will be addressed in the staff report transmitting the proposed 2009 Bicycle Plan to the City Planning Commission for its consideration and subsequently to the City Council for adoption at a later date. The Los Angeles Bicycle Plan Update is a joint project of the Department of City Planning and the Department of Transportation. For more information about the Bicycle Plan Update meetings, maps, and other aspects of the Plan, please access the website at www.labikeplan.org.

SB 734 would add statutory definitions of “bicycle path” and ”bicycle path crossing” to clarify the types of facilities that bicycles are permitted to use.

Because current state law does not specifically define these facilities, some bicyclists who use bike-only crosswalks (i.e., where a bike path crosses a street) have been cited for violating the prohibition against riding across a pedestrian crosswalk when pedestrians are present.

Defining bike paths and bike path crossings in state law will help eliminate some confusion about where bicyclists may and may not lawfully ride.

For more info: http://calbike.org/legislation.htm#SB734

Here’s what you can do:

1)  Use the template below to write a letter to Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger urging him to sign SB 734 into law.

[Date]

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger
State Capitol
Sacramento,  CA  95814
Fax: 916-558-3160

Re:  Support for SB 734 (Lowenthal)

Dear Gov. Schwarzenegger,

I am a part of Los Angeles County Bicycle Coalition.  I’m writing to urge you to sign SB 734, the Omnibus Transporation Bill. Provisions that add statutory definitions for “bike paths” and “bike path crossings” will help clarify for bicyclists and law enforcement personnel where bicyclists may and may not lawfully ride. With more Californians using bicycles for everyday transportation, this clarity is essential for ensuring everyone’s safety.

Sincerely,

[Name]
[Organization (if representing an organization)]
[Address]
[City, state, zip]
[Phone]
[Email]

CC:  Senator Alan Lowenthal
Capitol Building, Room 2032
Sacramento, CA 94248-0001

Fax: (916) 327-9113

Assembly Bill 1464, the California Bicycle Routes of State or Regional Significance Act would enable local and regional community groups to nominate bicycle routes that have special historical, scenic or recreational value.  A statewide network of designated bike routes would benefit bicycle tourism in California as well as the health of those who choose this form of recreation. The additional signage along designated routes would improve roadway safety by alerting motorists to the presence of larger numbers of bicyclists.

1)  Use the template below to write a letter to Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger urging him to sign AB 1464 into law. If you can, write the letter in your own words using the template as a model, however, be sure to keep it brief (3-4 sentences max) – long letters aren’t necessary for showing support and may not get read.

If you have a favorite bike route in your area that you think should be designated, briefly describe it in 1-2 sentences.

[Date]

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger
State Capitol
Sacramento,  CA  95814
Fax: 916-558-3160

Re:  Support for AB 1464 (Smyth)

Dear Gov. Schwarzenegger,

I am part of Los Angeles County Bicycle Coalition.  I’m writing to urge you to sign AB 1464, the California Bicycle Routes of State or Regional Significance Act. Adopting a process for designating significant bike routes will benefit the state’s tourism industry as well as the health of those who choose this form of recreation. Special signage along designated routes will also improve roadway safety by alerting motorists to the presence of bicyclists.

Sincerely,

[Name]
[Organization (if representing an organization)]
[Address]
[City, state, zip]
[Phone]
[Email]

CC:  Assemblyman Cameron Smyth

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                  Contact: Allison Mannos w. 213-629-2142 or c. 323 706 8320

Allison@la-bike.org

KAISER AWARDS LACBC $25,000 FOR CITY OF LIGHTS

• New program receives grant to empower advocates within the Latino cyclist community to implement bike-friendly changes in their neighborhoods 

LOS ANGELES, Calif. – Kaiser awards LACBC $25,000 for City of Lights–Kaiser Permanente, Southern California Region, announced on August 24th that Los Angeles County Bicycle Coalition (LACBC) would be receiving $25,000 from the Community Benefit Grants Program to develop its City of Lights program.  This grant marks a milestone in LACBC’s education and advocacy program to empower the Latino cyclist community,, an oft-ignored segment of the mainstream cycling scene, to eventually lobby for bike friendly changes in the streets and sidewalks of their neighborhoods.

Concretely, the grant will fund more bike safety supplies including bike lights and helmets to give to the day laborer cyclists and other Latino cyclists. It also allows LACBC to spend significant time on developing workshops and campaign strategies to work in the community. The grant will enable LACBC to leverage partnerships with organizations such as CARECEN, the Bicycle Kitchen, the UCLA Labor Center, and State Senator Cedillo’s office.

“Los Angeles is home to many Spanish-speaking bicyclists who ride to work each day. Riding a bike has many economic, environmental, and health benefits.” says City of Lights co-founder Allison Mannos. “But, Spanish-speaking cyclists lack many resources that other communities may have to improve their communities’ bike facilities. City of Lights attempts to bridge the gap.”

According to Metro and LACBC’s 2004 report, “Enhanced Public Outreach Project,” bicyclists in lower-income communities use safety equipment less frequently, are more sensitive to obstacles such as lack of bike facilities and are often uninformed about their rights and responsibilities as bicyclists.

Founded in 1998, LACBC is a membership supported advocacy organization working to improve the bicycling environment and quality of life in Los Angeles County.

For more information about LACBC, visit: http://www.la-bike.org.

For more information on City of Lights, visit: http://la-bike.org/current_projects/current_projects.html

Last weekend, hundreds of cyclists were put in harm’s way on Pacific Coast Highway when a CalTrans contract crew left the right lane and shoulder on the northbound, downhill section between Heathercliff and Zuma Beach cut away and strewn with gravel, with no cones or special signage in place to warn these legal roadway users of the hazard.  Many crashed upon encountering this dangerous section at speed, including several hospitalized with serious injuries; dozens of others were lucky to get away with only flat tires. Since then, LACBC, Velo Club LaGrange, and others have been in contact with CalTrans and the Sheriffs Department, and here is how the problem is being addressed (special thanks to Jay Slater of Velo Club LaGrange for this summary):

(special thanks to Jay Slater of Velo Club LaGrange for this summary):

Of course, this is probably little comfort to the cyclists who crashed out there last weekend.  We wish them all a speedy and thorough recovery.  Members of VeloClub LaGrange have offered legal assistance to those injured.

PCH is a very popular cycling destination that presents some unusual challenges, and warrants special attention.  In light of this and other recent tragedies on this stretch of highway, LACBC would like to see the (now inactive) PCH Task Force re-convened, so that all stakeholders (residents, law enforcement, cycling clubs, elected representatives) can meet to discuss such issues on a more regular basis, in hopes that PCH never sees another weekend like this last one.

For more than five years, L.A. County Bicycle Coalition has been campaigning for the City of Los Angeles to implement Shared Lane Markings (sharrows). Many Angelenos are familiar with sharrows; they are a shared lane marking featuring a bicycle and a directional chevron. They are generally used on bike route streets where bicycles and cars share the same lane. The chevron point indicates where cyclists should position themselves to ride safely, out of the car door zone.

The LACBC’s Sharrows Campaign has been an ongoing slow process to gather political and community support. Last week brought some promising new developments in LACBC’s campaign. After many delays, all the necessary pilot funding is finally secure! A collaborative partnership of advocates, elected officials, and agency staff are now set to proceed with a sharrows pilot in the city of L.A., with the intent that the city paint its first sharrows by the end of 2009/early 2010.

This pilot is a collaborative effort between several partners, including Council President Eric Garcetti, Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, the Los Angeles Department of Transportation (LADOT,) LACBC, the David Bohnett Foundation, the East Hollywood Neighborhood Council, and the Southern California Association of Governments (SCAG.) The pilot is to be funded by the East Hollywood Neighborhood Council, the Bohnett Foundation, SCAG, and LADOT.

SCAG, the 6-county regional planning agency for Southern California, has indicated that they are interested in the replicability of sharrows. They are investing in portions of the data accumulated from the study, so that sharrows can be implemented by any municipality in the region, without time-consuming additional studies. 

A major component of the city-wide sharrows pilot project is to identify street types that are best suited for sharrow installation. LACBC and LADOT collaborated to come up with the following draft list of streets planned for the initial sharrows pilot. Each of these streets will be considered to receive sharrow road markings as part of the study:

4th Street from Wilton Pl. to Commonwealth Ave. in mid-Wilshire,

9th Street from Gaffey St. to Pacific Ave. in San Pedro,

9th Street from Pacific Ave. to Beacon St. in San Pedro,

Adams Blvd. from Western Ave. to Hoover St. in South L.A.,

Fountain Ave. from Western Ave. to Vermont Ave. in East Hollywood,

Polk Street from San Fernando Rd. to Sunrise Ridge Rd. in Sylmar,

Lankershim Blvd. from Moorpark St. to Oxnard St. in North Hollywood,

Verdugo Road from Eagle Rock Blvd. to City Limit in Northeast L.A.,

Westholme Ave. from Santa Monica Blvd. to Hilgard Ave. in Westwood, and

Workman Ave. from Alhambra Ave. to Ave. 28 in Lincoln Heights.

When the pilot gets underway later this year, LACBC will work with our volunteers to provide educational materials to cyclists and to motorists in the selected locations.  If you’re interested in volunteering with LACBC’s Sharrows Campaign, email us at aurisha@la-bike.org.

Dear Councilmember Smith,

In September, a one mile section of Reseda Blvd. from Devonshire St. to San Fernando Mission Rd. will be repaved. LADOT has stated that this repaving is an opportunity to add already-approved bike lanes, but LADOT will only add bike lanes if you support them. Extending the bike lanes on Reseda Blvd. is good for business, good for pedestrians and cyclists, and supports safe and healthy neighborhoods. Join Neighborhood Councils, businesses, bicyclists and many others in supporting these bike lanes. Please use your leadership to add bike lanes to Reseda Blvd. this September. Sincerely,

Signature: ______________________

Name:_______________________

Zipcode: _____________________

Los Angeles City Councilmember Greig Smith
200 North Spring Street, Suite 405
Los Angeles, CA 90012
councilmember.smith@lacity.org
Associate Planning and Transportation Deputy: hannah.lee@lacity.org

Honorable Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa
200 North Spring Street
Los Angeles, CA 90012
mayor@lacity.org

LA City Mayor Deputies: Borja Leon Borja.Leon@lacity.org and Heidi Sickler heidi.sickler@lacity.org and jamie.delavega@lacity.org

_

Please write to Councilmembers Smith and Zine and let them know that you would like to see the completion of the whole Bike Lane on Reseda Blvd striped by the end of 2009. No more gaps!

We have included a sample letter.  Please add your personal voices and stories.

Please send in and email your letters to:

Honorable Los Angeles City Councilmember Dennis Zine
200 North Spring Street, Suite 450
Los Angeles, CA 90012
councilmember.zine@lacity.org

Honorable Los Angeles City Councilmember Greig Smith
200 North Spring Street, Suite 405
Los Angeles, CA 90012
councilmember.smith@lacity.org

Jonathan Brand, Planning Deputy for Dennis Zine
jonathan.brand@lacity.org

Honorable Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa
200 North Spring Street
Los Angeles, CA 90012
mayor@lacity.org

LA City Mayor Deputies: Borja Leon Borja.Leon@lacity.org and Heidi Sickler heidi.sickler@lacity.org and jamie.delavega@lacity.org

Sample letter:

Honorable Los Angeles City Councilmember Greig Smith
200 North Spring Street, Suite 405
Los Angeles, CA 90012

Honorable Los Angeles City Councilmember Dennis Zine
200 North Spring Street, Suite 450
Los Angeles, CA 90012

Honorable Councilmember _______

______________________________ (optional: If possible, state who you are and your connection to the Reseda Bike Lanes. Such as “I am a bicyclist who lives and works in the San Fernando Valley.”)

I urge you to work with the Los Angeles Department of Transportation to complete the implementation of bike lanes on Reseda Boulevard this year. The lanes were approved the city’s bicycle master plan, but have been stalled for too long.

Extending the bike lanes on Reseda Blvd. is good for business, good for pedestrians and cyclists, and supports safe and healthy neighborhoods. Join Neighborhood Councils, businesses, bicyclists and many others in supporting these bike lanes.

Please use your leadership to complete the  bike lanes to Reseda Blvd by end of 2009.

Thank you for considering this important matter.

_____________ (name)
______________ (address)

cc:
Honorable Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa
200 North Spring Street
Los Angeles, CA 90012

LACBC is working to make 4th Street a true Bike Boulevard!

Background

4th Street refers to the stretch that goes from Hoover Street in Koreatown to Cochran Avenue in Hancock Park

The good news is that 4^th Street has a lot of potential. 4th Street is currently a well-used bicycle route and cyclists have already campaigned for it.  In addition, 4^th street from Hoover to Norton has already been repaved and it is designated in the new city Bike Plan Map as a “Bike-Friendly Street.”

For more info on past work on 4^th Street go to: 4sbb.com

Last Campaign Meeting

We had a successful campaign meeting at Pure Luck in the Bicycle District  on Tuesday, June 30th where we discussed various outreach and design strategies.  The attendees were Alexis Lantz, Aurisha Smolarski, Roadblock, Paul from killradio.org , Joe Linton, Ingrid Peterson, Dorothy Le, and Will Campbell.

We talked about some issues with 4^th Street now, which include cracked concrete west of Norton to La Brea, the collection of water due to an underground creek at Hudson, and general traffic calming and intersection needs.

Check out LACBC’s Flickr page for detailed pictures of bad potholes and cracked concrete on 4^th Street.

After discussing 4^th Street issues, we had some ideas on treatments, which include chokers, sharrows, bulb-outs at corners, adding mini-parks at Catalina and installing a flashing crosswalk at Highland.

We then discussed how to sell these ideas to the public.  Some ideas we came up with were that a 4^th Street Bicycle Boulevard would cut through traffic, kids can ride through it, and it works to increase safety on the street.

Current Action Plan

Currently we want to engage the broader public and find potential supporters and develop a more concrete plan.  We decided to contact LACBC members who live in the area, local Neighborhood Councils, schools, planners and architects in the area.  We also are developing renderings that will illustrate what kind of positive changes we envision for the area.

We need you! How can you help?

If you’re a design professional, we need help with creating renderings.  If you’re in the area or know people in the area who would support this project, we need political and public support.  If you know any funding sources, we need help with that.  And of course if you have ideas, input, creativity, we need all the help we can get!  The bigger this campaign the better!

Join us at our next meeting!

When: Thursday August 6^th, 6:30pm

Where: Shatto Park, 3191 W 4th St, Los Angeles

The meeting will be picnic style, bring food and drink!

Contact Dorothy@la-bike.org to get involved with this exciting campaign!