Bicycle/Pedestrian Advisory Committee

City of Mountain View Minutes Bicycle/Pedestrian Advisory Committee Wednesday, October 26, 2022 6:30 PM Video Conference with No Physical Meeting Location 1. CALL TO ORDER Chair Fenwick called the meeting of the Bicycle/Pedestrian Advisory Committee (BPAC) to order at 6:32 p.m. 2. ROLL CALL Staff members present: Transportation Manager Ria Hutabarat Lo, Crime Analyst Kelly McKeel, Lieutenant Dan Frohlich, Economic Vitality Manager John Lange, Principal Civil Engineer Robert Gonzales, Transportation Planner Priyoti Ahmed, Transportation Demand Management Analyst Ben Pacho, and Assistant Public Works Director Damian Skinner. Present 5 - Committee Member Lada Adamic, Committee Member Terry Barton, Committee Member Kalyanaraman Shankari, Vice Chair James Kuszmaul, and Chair Valerie Fenwick 3. ORAL COMMUNICATIONS FROM THE PUBLIC Thirteen members of the public were present. Jesse Cupp expressed hope that Castro Pedestrian Mall will be a bicycle/pedestrain mall. He stated he thinks that will help the area be more vibrant and more people going to those stores. He citied the positive experience of business owners in San Jose in relation to Vive Calle. He stated that if we want to maintain our status as a bike-friendly city, we should not prohibit bikes downtown. He asked that the designs make it safe for pedestrians and bikes. Finally, he requested separate space for both bicyclists and pedestrians be provided. Yakov Shkolnikov asked if there is a plan to assess how people living on Ortega could travel safely by bike. He stated large vehicles parking on this street are forcing bicyclists to move toward the center of the street; he felt this situation made things unsafe. Matthew Stangl was interested in the El Monte Corridor. There was a public meeting on July 21, 2022, and he expected a follow-up in September but has not received a postcard. He was concerned about whether there was adequate study on the amount of traffic. He also felt that the team was not taking the road-diet option seriously and that a road-diet would make the road more friendly toward pedestrians. Finally, he requested that the webpage reflect the actual plan in progress. Vanina Champenois thanked the City for improving crossing conditions on Middlefield Road on the northwest side of Mountain View. She noted that she had trouble crossing due to a bush, and the City trimmed the bush. She also stated that there were a couple of places in Monta Loma that could do with crossing improvements, such as red curb at Anna Ave. She requested more ways for the public to be able to report minor City of Mountain View Page 1 Bicycle/Pedestrian Advisory Minutes October 26, 2022 Committee improvements such as this. 4. MINUTES APPROVAL 4.1 Approve Meeting Minutes MOTION: Approve the BPAC meeting minutes of September 28, 2022, and express appreciation for the more detailed BPAC minutes in the recent years. Shankari/Barton - 5/0/0 -passed Yes: 5- Committee Member Adamic, Committee Member Barton, Committee Member Shankari, Vice Chair Kuszmaul, and Chair Fenwick 5. UNFINISHED BUSINESS 6. NEW BUSINESS 6.1 Active Transportation Collision and Bicycle Theft Report McKeel provided a presentation on pedestrian/bicycle collisions as well as new data on bicycle theft. Public comment: None. Committee comments: Fenwick expressed appreciation for the work on bike recovery. 6.2 Personal Delivery Device Pilot Program Update Lang provided an update on the Personal Delivery Device (PDD) Pilot Program and discussed the latest program augmentations. Public comment: Bruce England asked what staff is doing to explore on-street autonomous delivery devices. Lang indicated that devices in the roadway are faster and heavier than PDDs, and would require an encroachment rather than a vendor agreement. Committee comment: Shankari and Adamic noted that the assumption of CO2 reduction is optimistic and not born out by research. Shankari and Fenwick asked that PDDs provide data to the City on sidewalk conditions. Shankari suggested asking vendors to survey users regarding what mode of trip was replaced. Adamic was surprised and disappointed that the evaluation did not assess whether people liked the program or whether it improved or reduced their pedestrian experience. City of Mountain View Page 2 Bicycle/Pedestrian Advisory Minutes October 26, 2022 Committee She stated her concern that fewer people may be walking due to this program. She stated her support for requiring PDDs to get out of the way for pedestrians, noting that this has not been her experience with the PDDs. Fenwick stated that it is important to reserve the pedestrian space for pedestrians, stating that sidewalks were not an appropriate place for the PDDs. She noted that she had been pushed off the sidewalk by a Starship PDD and that she was displeased with the Tortoise PDDs on the Stevens Creek Trail. Finally, she requested an AskMV category for PDDs. MOTION: Require PDD vendors to be mandated to provide data on sidewalk quality, including width, slope, gaps in the curb, and other sidewalk characteristics. Shankari/Fenwick - 2/3/0 - failed Yes: 2- Committee Member Shankari, and Chair Fenwick No: 3- Committee Member Adamic, Committee Member Barton, and Vice Chair Kuszmaul 6.3 Pavement Management Plan Gonzales provided a presentation on the Pavement Management Plan. Public comment: Bruce England strongly supported the inclusion of sidewalks in the repaving program. He also requested that the bike logo be painted over the top of bike detectors. Matthew Stangl asked if there was a final design for El Camino Real. He also noted that there was a lot of variation in bike crossing treatments, such as for making left turns. Committee comments: Kuszmaul and Adamic supported taking advantage of the repaving program to make planned improvements. Barton and Fenwick stated their appreciation for the partnership between City divisions on repaving. Adamic requested that sidewalks, trails, and bike facilities be treated as a high priority for repaving because these facilities serve the most vulnerable users. Kuszmaul stated that he felt the Active Transportation Plan was the best place to provide input for future repaving projects. Fenwick indicated that she would appreciate more repaving budget so we could improve pavement conditions. 6.4 Transportation Policy and Legislative Updates Lo provided information on transportation-related policy and legislative updates. Public comments City of Mountain View Page 3 Bicycle/Pedestrian Advisory Minutes October 26, 2022 Committee Bruce England stated he was curious about how these laws connect to Council legislative priorities. He expressed interest in future bills supporting the Idaho stop, green complete streets, and no right-turn-on-red. Matthew Stangl noted that parking minimums increased the cost of housing. He also asked how parking minimums affect ADA and whether zero parking minimums would make neighborhoods less accessible to people with disabilities. Committee comment: Shankari, Fenwick and Kuszmaul all expressed support for potential legislation to prohibit right-turn-on-red movements in order to make the leading pedestrian intervals legislation more effective and reduce pedestrian conflicts caused by motorists turning right. Fenwick asked for information on carve-outs for ADA parking under AB 2097 [Parking Requirements]. Shankari also noted her support that the density and parking changes would fundamentally change the way the City looks to better align with climate change goals. She requested that the City make these changes pleasant with positive framing. Kuszmaul encouraged the City to be proactive and not wait for state legislation for things like implementing Leading Pedestrian Intervals and no right-turn-on-red at City intersections. Fenwick expressed appreciation for the summary and noted that with zero minimum parking requirements, there will be a need to be more innovative in thinking through parking. 6.5 BPAC Fiscal Year 2022-23 Work Plan Lo provided information on the Work Plan. No public comments. No committee comments. 6.6 Santa Clara Valley Transportation Agency (VTA) Bicycle & Pedestrian Advisory Committee (BPAC) Update Adamic provided an update, including information on Measure B scoring criteria. She also stated that VTA BPAC discussed a Guaranteed Ride Home program. Finally, she reported that VTA has hired the Silicon Valley Bicycle Coalition to create educational videos for adults. No public comments. No committee comments. 7. COMMITTEE/STAFF ANNOUNCEMENTS, UPDATES, REQUESTS, AND COMMITTEE REPORTS 7.1. Staff Comments City of Mountain View Page 4 Bicycle/Pedestrian Advisory Minutes October 26, 2022 Committee Ahmed provided information on a recent bike ride and discussed how the City uses private development to fund bike improvements. Next, she discussed improvements to Fairchild Drive. Additionally, she highlighted the planned Bike Circus for October 29, 2022. Lastly, she provided an update on the Castro Pedestrian Mall ordinance adopted by Council on October 25, 2022. No public comments. No committee comments. 7.2. Committee Comments Adamic provided a presentation about her travels in Europe and their bicycle and pedestrian facilities. Kuszmaul noted that the Mid-Peninsula Open Space District is looking to improve access to Rancho San Antonio. He stated that there is a survey open now. Barton asked about employers charging for parking and what would help create this change. Fenwick noted that she had been biking around Indianapolis. She noted that there were no trail bollards or gates in this big metropolitan city. She also traveled along a new trail in Truckee, which also had no gates. Finally, she expressed appreciation to Shankari for serving on the BPAC and for her service to the City. 8. SET DATE AND TIME FOR NEXT MEETING: 9. CALENDAR 10. ADJOURNMENT The meeting was adjourned at 9:37 p.m. Submitted for approval by Brandon Whyte. Approved on November 30, 2022. City of Mountain View Page 5