Bicycle/Pedestrian Advisory Committee

City of Mountain View Minutes Bicycle/Pedestrian Advisory Committee Wednesday, November 30, 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 6:30 p.m. 2. ROLL CALL Staff members present: Transportation Manager Ria Hutabarat Lo, Active Transportation Planner Brandon Whyte, GIS Specialist May Kao, 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 Ten members of the public were present. Bruce England stated that rumble strips can be used on existing paving, and that he supported signaling for pedestrians. He then welcomed Isaac Stone as a new BPAC member and also thanked Shankari for her service. He suggested that Personal Delivery Devices should use the bike lane. Finally, he requested that the link for the meeting be included in the invitation for single click entry. 4. MINUTES APPROVAL 4.1 Approve Meeting Minutes MOTION: Approve the BPAC meeting minutes of October 26, 2022. Adamic/Shankari - 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 Update on Transportation Dashboard Kao provided an update on the Transportation Dashboard. City of Mountain View Page 1 Bicycle/Pedestrian Advisory Minutes November 30, 2022 Committee Public comment: Bruce England requested that the comment editor take up less space, that the text in the left panel be optimized for people without a large monitor, all layers have a timestamp, that markups could be provided in a list version, and an alert option be provided for the public when a new one is created or a different symbol for new comments. He also asked if the information would be shared across cities; he suggested using schoolroutes.org. Finally, he appreciated the inclusion of public restrooms and requested water fountain locations be added. Mary Dateo asked if the collisions shown were only those involving pedestrians and bicycles. Staff indicated that this included bike and pedestrian crashes and near-miss data. Lastly, she requested that definitions be provided for each layer. Committee comment: Fenwick, Barton, and Adamic expressed appreciation for the new tool. Adamic requested integration with AskMV. She supported the ability to know what others have requested. She also mentioned that she had difficulty entering her name and email address when making a comment. Finally, she requested more space to comment. Barton requested that existing publicly accessible paseos and future paseos be included. Fenwick requested comment moderation from staff prior to comments becoming public. She also requested that different layers have different line widths. 6.2 Transportation Development Act Article 3 and Active Transportation Funding Whyte provided a presentation on Transportation Development Act Article 3 (TDA3) and Active Transportation Improvement (ATI) funding. Public comment: Bruce England requested consideration of equity between bicycle and pedestrian infrastructure considerations. He also requested efforts be made to engage the Spanish-speaking and other underrepresented communities. Additionally, he requested consideration of rumble strips on Dana Street near State Route 85. Finally, he stated he was in favor of whatever project provided the most “bang for the buck.” Silja Paymer stated she supported all the options presented. She indicated her preference for “bang for your buck” projects but also options that are spread across the City, like the enhanced pedestrian crossings project. Lastly, she preferred funding an existing project, but if we did do a new project, she preferred the conversion of buffered bike lanes to protected and the marking of all bicycle boulevards in the City. Committee comment: BPAC stated their appreciation for all of the projects under consideration. Shankari and Adamic suggested asking for more funding to accomplish all of the projects. Adamic and Kuszmaul asked staff to consider No Right Turn on Red improvements. City of Mountain View Page 2 Bicycle/Pedestrian Advisory Minutes November 30, 2022 Committee Adamic suggested reserving funding to remove pinch points into the bike lane, such as along Calderon and Rengstorff. She stated her preference for using ATI funds for small high-reward projects, projects near schools, and projects that support pedestrians. However, she stated that it is rare to be somewhere in the City that does not have pedestrian facilities; that the provision of bikeways might create more of a mode shift than a pedestrian-only project. Barton suggested the removal of pinch points on Rengstorff. He suggested the Enhanced Pedestrian Crossing project for funding. Kuszmaul suggested prioritizing “bang for the buck” projects in terms of safety and near schools. He did not favor the bicycle roundabout. He suggested using ATI funds for new small projects like the Middlefield Protected Bikeway, the conversion of buffered bikeways to protected bikeways, and all thermoplastic-based projects; he stated he did not want the little projects to “fall through the cracks.” For TDA3, he suggested funding the Miramonte Improvements. Shankari stated her preference for the Middlefield Protected Bikeway and the Miramonte Improvements because they address access to middle schools. She did not like the green thermoplastic paint options because she felt they were ineffective. Finally, she stated her support for the conversion of buffered to protected bikeways project. Fenwick indicated that the City is limited by staff resources and needs to prioritize projects. She supported funding the Miramonte Improvement project and the Enhanced Crossings project due to safety impacts and proximity to schools. For new projects she supported the Middlefield Protected Bikeway and the provision of green thermoplastic markings near freeway ramps. Finally, she disagreed with member Adamic stating that nicer pedestrian facilities will increase walking. 6.3 Update on Proposed Public Rights-of-Way Accessibility Guidelines (PROWAG) Lo provided a presentation on PROWAG. Public comment: None. Committee comment: Kuszmaul indicated that improvements that help persons with disabilities also help people with typical abilities. He also stated anyone can become disabled. Fenwick appreciated the information, particularly advisory information on directional rather than diagonal ramps. She also stated that pinch points are very difficult with wheelchairs or strollers. She requested the City take this information very seriously. Shankari stated that most people will need accessibility accommodation at some point in their lives and should not be special but designed up front. 6.4 BPAC Fiscal Year 2022-23 Work Plan Whyte provided information on the Work Plan and Tentative Agenda List. City of Mountain View Page 3 Bicycle/Pedestrian Advisory Minutes November 30, 2022 Committee Public comment: None. Committee comment: None. 6.5 Santa Clara Valley Transportation Agency (VTA) Bicycle & Pedestrian Advisory Committee (BPAC) Update Adamic indicated that this month’s VTA BPAC was canceled. 7. COMMITTEE/STAFF ANNOUNCEMENTS, UPDATES, REQUESTS, AND COMMITTEE REPORTS 7.1. Staff Comments Whyte provided an update local bike rides, the Castro Pedestrian Mall Ad Hoc Committee, Safe Routes to School, and new AskMV tickets. Lo noted that the City is evaluating proposals for consultant help on the Transportation Demand Management (TDM) ordinance. Finally, Whyte thanked Shankari for her service on the BPAC. Public comment: None. Committee comment: None. 7.2. Committee Comments Shankari shared her research on e-bikes in Colorado which found that e-bike trips replace both driving and walking trips, with a net benefit effect in terms of energy and emissions. The research found that people in US will ride bikes if it is comparable to the alternatives and even more so if positive infrastructure is provided. Fenwick thanked Shankari for her service and noted that she used bike infrastructure around parliament in London and that e-bikes are being used for delivery services. Adamic noted that she read an article that Fremont has been making excellent progress with biking. Adamic also noted that she met a member of a different committee, which made requests at Council meetings. Barton expressed appreciation to Shankari for her service. Public comment: None. 8. SET DATE AND TIME FOR NEXT MEETING: 9. CALENDAR City of Mountain View Page 4 Bicycle/Pedestrian Advisory Minutes November 30, 2022 Committee 10. ADJOURNMENT The meeting was adjourned at 9:38 p.m. Submitted for approval by Brandon Whyte. Approved on January 25, 2023. City of Mountain View Page 5