Donut Ride in support of City Council D3 candidate Chris Olsen

The BikeSD family met at Nomad Donuts, the first stop on a sweet bike ride for Chris Olsen, our endorsed District 3 City Council candidate. Who knew that D3 has the best donut shops in all of San Diego? Nomad Donuts (gourmet donuts inspired by the world yet created with local ingredients) in North Park has amazing donuts. A small business in North Park, Nomad Donuts is very supportive of creating more bike infrastructure in North Park. From Nomad we rode west on University to Texas (quick stop at Golden Donuts for a group shot) and on to the  new bus and bike lane on El Cajon Blvd. We rode over the wonderful Vermont Street Bridge (we need more bike and pedestrian bridges) and got on University Ave to get to our next stop, Copper Top Coffee & Donuts (where donuts are made fresh every 30 minutes).

After more donuts and coffee, we rode down First Ave to Curlew and then on to Reynard Way.  Reynard Way has great potential to be a north/south connector and part of complete bike network. Reynard Way has light traffic and is wide enough to accommodate at least a buffered lane and maybe even a protected lane. It connects to Little Italy and our last stop Devil’s Dozen Donuts (carefully curated selections of donuts made using only the highest quality ingredients available.)

In Little Italy, people riding bikes have a distinct advantage when it comes to parking. We parked more than a dozen bicycles right in front and there is no way you could park a dozen cars in front of any business in Little Italy. Devil’s Dozen has an amazing second floor with a spectacular view to the bay and really cool furniture and a little picnic table for kids. And super donuts with shiny dripping glaze.

Why does BikeSD support Chris Olsen for City Council D3? Because he has the experience to get the job done. As a City Budget Analyst for six years with a Masters in Public Administration, Chris is also a lecturer of fiscal policy at the School of Public Affairs at San Diego State University. Chris Olsen has the experience and skill set needed to deliver results. He has seen first-hand where the City has fallen short and how we can spend limited resources most effectively. He listens to us. Bike the Vote. Vote for Chris Olsen. 

 

 


Gilman entrance of UCSD

Letter on new UCSD campus policy on micromobility devices

Dear Vice Chancellor Matthews,

We appreciate the opportunity to provide feedback on UCSD’s proposed campus policy on the use of micromobility devices, announced on November 5, 2019 [1]. The policy would establish several new rules and regulations regarding the operation of scooters, bicycles, and other small devices on UCSD campus. The need to create a safe environment for all members of the campus community and UCSD visitors is clear: with expected growth reaching 65,000-plus students, staff and faculty, getting into and around campus will be increasing complex. This policy represents an important opportunity to set expectations of campus users — through commonsense stipulations such as being able to operate safely under different conditions and yielding right of way to pedestrians — but could be expanded to help address many underlying issues that result in conflicts on a daily basis.

First, well-recognized principles of urban infrastructure design inform us that providing safe facilities where people want to walk and ride is vastly more effective and equitable than outlawing and diverting these modes [2]. Modern urban transportation plans thus aim to provide balance among the various uses of public roadways, and in particular separate traffic moving at vastly different speeds, such as through the use of off-street paths and protected bicycle lanes. Currently, UCSD campus facilities do not provide a level of ease of circulation for people regardless of whether they are walking, riding or biking. Most destinations are not connected by bike paths where riders can avoid mingling with pedestrians, and main desire lines either prohibit riding or are shared use without any signed or designated areas for riders. Construction activity throughout campus is not fully mitigated, leaving narrower and less convenient paths for everyone. We therefore urge the administration to adopt proactive infrastructural approaches to provide physical and/or marked separation between pedestrian and micromobility modes on campus, facilitating all desire lines.

Second, due to the sprawling footprint of campus, entry points via public transit are far from many campus destinations. While parking is a perennial complaint, it remains the case that most buildings have parking options within five minutes walk, while bus stops of high-volume routes can be 15 or more minutes away. As the growing community opts to take public transit, using micromobility to and from these entry points will be increasingly attractive, adding to the complexities with enforcing restrictions on their use. The trolley extension will only intensity this conflict: the nearest stop to The Village dormitory, Pepper Canyon, will be more than 25 minutes away. We propose that safe and convenient paths for micromobility are established from all existing and future transit entry points to all major campus destinations, taking advantage of both perimeter and throughcampus routes. 

Finally, major roads surrounding campus for the most part lack adequate facilities for micromobility users. Genesee Ave, Gilman Drive, and N. Torrey Pines Road, among others, have dangerous, unprotected lanes next to fast-moving traffic. The UTC area, where a large fraction of off-campus students live, is only two miles from campus and yet lacks safe routes to get to class. In spite of these drawbacks, the University community sees rates of bicycle use over two times the city and county of San Diego [2]. This need must be met with sustained support and encouragement for people to leave their cars at home when commuting to campus. Best practice for roads with speeds regularly exceeding 25 mph and 6000 cars per day is to establish protected bicycle lanes with vertical barriers or raised elevation from motor vehicle traffic [3]. We urge UCSD to work with the City of San Diego and SANDAG to create safe, protected micromobility routes for all ages and abilities to all destinations within at least two miles of campus. 

Let us reiterate that we strongly support ensuring the safety of all people traveling around campus. We believe this can be done in a non-punitive manner that creates and reinforces a welcoming environment for everyone to commute to and around campus via a range of alternative transportation modes. We look forward to working with you to achieve this vision. 

Sincerely,

Michael Davidson, Assistant Professor, UC San Diego
Paul Jamason, IT Services, UC San Diego; Board Member, BikeSD

On behalf of BikeSD, an independent, non-governmental, nonprofit advocacy organization. Our mission: To establish San Diego as a world-class bicycling city and create a more livable urban community by promoting everyday riding and advocating for bicycling infrastructure. https://bikesd.org/ 

 

References

[1]: “Proposed Addition to UC San Diego Policy and Procedure Manual (PPM).” November 2019. UC San Diego. http://adminrecords.ucsd.edu/ppm/micromobility.html

[2]: Toole, Jennifer, & Bettina Zimny. “Transportation Planning Handbook, Ch. 16: Bicycle and Pedestrian Facilities.” Federal Highway Administration, US Department of Transportation, Washington, DC. https://nacto.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/Transportation-Planning-Handbook-Bicycle-and-Pedestrian-Facilities.pdf

[3]: University Community Plan Update: Existing Conditions Summary. April 2018. City of San Diego. https://www.sandiego.gov/sites/default/files/final_university_cpu_ecr_report.pdf

[4]: Designing for All Ages & Abilities: Contextual Guidance for High-Comfort Bicycle Facilities. December 2017. National Association of City Transportation Officials. https://nacto.org/wpcontent/uploads/2017/12/NACTO_Designing-for-All-Ages-Abilities.pdf


2020 SD City Council District 7 Candidate Responses

2020 City Council Questionnaire - District 7: McIntyre, Wheatcroft

2020 SD City Council District 7 Candidate Responses

 


Candidate: Monty A. McIntyre

 

1) What are your top 3 priorities for improving the biking experience in District 7 for residents and families?

1. Maintain bike lanes so they are free of potholes, ruts or significant cracks.
2. Coordinate restriping when streets are resurfaced.
3. Support the continuing construction of proposed bike lanes.

 

2) San Diego’s Bicycle Master Plan needs updating and projects need prioritizing in order to create a complete bicycle network. A large number of street resurfacing projects need to be re striped with bicycle infrastructure. How would you propose to fund the full build-out of the bicycle network needed to achieve the Vision Zero goals and meet the Climate Action Plan mode share targets?

We need to make the project approval process more predictable, faster and customer-friendly.
We will need to find new revenue sources to build-out the bicycle network.

 

3) Transportation is the largest source of San Diego’s greenhouse gas emissions (55%). The City’s Climate Action Plan bicycle mode share goals are 6% of commuter trips by 2020 and 18% by 2035, from about 1% today. What steps will you take to make sure these goals are met or exceeded?

We need to creatively look for ways to incentivize people to move to neighborhoods where they can work, work at home, or work at a place close to their home that they can bike to.

 

4) Safe bike lanes often face opposition due to slower road speeds or reduced street parking. How would you work with the community to address concerns without compromising safety or delaying bike infrastructure in the name of consensus?

We need to educate our citizens about the benefits of bike lanes and using bikes for transportation as an alternative to cars. Also, we need to make the project approval process more predictable, faster and customer-friendly, while ensuring all impacted residents have an opportunity to be heard.

 

5) Please share a memorable experience(s) you have of bicycling.

When I was in college, a firefighter friend named Ken, who rode his bike to work every day, suggested that we go on a bike ride from where I lived near Avocado Boulevard in La Mesa to Auga Caliente Hot Springs. Thinking I was in great shape because I exercised and ran regularly, I agreed. I rode my bike a little to get ready, but not regularly like Ken did. I had no idea, however, what I was getting myself into!
One weekend morning we made the ride. We rode from La Mesa up to Julian. There were many times going up the mountain to Julian that I had to stop and rest. I wondered if I would ever make it. I hung in there, Ken was patient with me, and we ultimately made it to Julian. We then rode full speed down Banner Grade to get to Auga Caliente Hot Springs. That was a blast! I don’t think I’ve ever gone so fast on a bike! By the time we made it to Auga Caliente Hot Springs I was exhausted. We enjoyed camping there for the weekend, but we decided to put our bikes in the truck and enjoy the drive home when we returned to San Diego!

 


Candidate: Wendy Wheatcroft (ENDORSED BY BIKESD)

 

1) What are your top 3 priorities for improving the biking experience in District 7 for residents and families?

  • Expanding Vision Zero street, sidewalk, and intersection safety surveys to include and emphasize safety improvements at the network-scale, to create Vision Zero Neighborhoods.
  • Coordinating the City of San Diego, San Diego Unified School District, and MTS to create an enhanced Safe Routes to School vision.
  • Implementing a “Twenty is Plenty” campaign, while improving the built environment with significant traffic calming, to slow and divert traffic from neighborhood streets, and promoting travel-alternatives to cars, which are the number-one danger to bicyclists.

 

2) San Diego’s Bicycle Master Plan needs updating and projects need prioritizing in order to create a complete bicycle network. A large number of street resurfacing projects need to be restriped with bicycle infrastructure. How would you propose to fund the full build-out of the bicycle network needed to achieve the Vision Zero goals and meet the Climate Action Plan mode share targets?

  • Repeal the People’s Ordinance. An approximately $50 million influx to the City general fund would present fresh bonding opportunity to create sustainable, long-term infrastructure for current and future generations.
  • Street infrastructure revenue from increasing the Transient Occupancy Tax should be directed first to improving the material condition of streets that also are identified for new cycling facilities in the Bicycle Master Plan.
  • Future state and federal transit revenue assistance looks likely to come with strings attached related to increasing housing. Master planning neighborhoods must include Complete Streets requirements that ensure a transit station/bicycling infrastructure “hub and spoke” make-up at community scale as a community benefit.

 

3) Transportation is the largest source of San Diego’s greenhouse gas emissions (55%). The City’s Climate Action Plan bicycle mode share goals are 6% of commuter trips by 2020 and 18% by 2035, from about 1% today. What steps will you take to make sure these goals are met or exceeded?

  • Implementing my previously listed top three priorities to unlock the latent demand for active transportation.
  • Lobby to ensure SANDAG’s “5 Big Moves” once and for all includes the full funding and implementation of the SANDAG Regional Bike Plan Early Action Program.
  • Reconstitute and fund the Civic Innovation Lab in the Mayor’s office to identify pedestrian thoroughfare, plaza, and cycling superblock opportunities to promote active transportation.
  • Create and incentivize active transportation, not just through the built environment, but in a civic credit program for reduced fare access to MTS, Balboa Park museums, the San Diego Zoo, and other institutions throughout the city.

 

4) Safe bike lanes often face opposition due to slower road speeds or reduced street parking. How would you work with the community to address concerns without compromising safety or delaying bike infrastructure in the name of consensus?

  • First, reducing roads speeds to improve safety is foundational to better neighborhoods and business districts. I will say so explicitly over and over again. It’s a feature, not a bug of what these projects are trying to do.
  • We must educate the public, not just on outreach as it pertains to what we want to do here, but what has been successful at improving the quality of life in other cities. Education is the most effective tool for changing hearts and minds. Our city needs to meet our Climate Action goals, and part of that relies on making bicycling safer for our residents. The safety of the community comes before the ability to drive to your destination 30-seconds faster.
  • It will be important to present proposed changes that may inconvenience residents and solutions to the above-named objections at that same time, early in the process, and build consensus across all stakeholders.

 

5) Please share a memorable experience(s) you have of bicycling.

I love renting bikes and riding in other cities. Most recently, I took a night time bike tour of Washington, DC, this summer while I was there for a conference. It was incredible to have such a different perspective of all the monuments. I also love a good bike ride on a warm summer night.

A couple of years ago when I took my oldest daughter to San Francisco for her 6th grade trip, we rented bikes one day and rode around the entire city. The end goal was to ride over the Golden Gate Bridge, but by the time we got to the bridge, we were so exhausted from riding all day long that we could not continue. However, we saw more of the city that I had seen in an entire lifetime. Even though she complained most of the way, she still talks about it and how much fun we had. The bridge will be for another trip!

My family loves riding bikes and I know many others do too. I am fully committed to improving bike routes across San Diego.

 



District 5 questionnaire banner

2020 City Council Questionnaire - District 5: von Wilpert, Wang

 


Candidate: Marni von Wilpert —

 

1) What are your top 3 priorities for improving the biking experience in District 5 for residents and families?

My top 3 priorities to improve the biking experience are (1) building upon the existing infrastructure to increase the amount of dedicated and protected bike lanes, (2) ensuring that our transit hubs have adequate space for bike storage so people can take their bikes to transit centers, and (3) promoting biking as a mode of transportation in addition to a recreational activity.

 

2) San Diego’s Bicycle Master Plan needs updating and projects need prioritizing in order to create a complete bicycle network. A large number of street resurfacing projects need to be restriped with bicycle infrastructure. How would you propose to fund the full build-out of the bicycle network needed to achieve the Vision Zero goals and meet the Climate Action Plan mode share targets?

I view the bicycle network as a key part of our City’s infrastructure. As a deputy city attorney, I see lawsuits every day that cost our City much more to repair our broken infrastructure than had we invested in the front to properly maintain our streets, sidewalks, and storm drains. When I’m elected, I will prioritize fixing our most vulnerable infrastructure problems first that could subject the City to the greatest liability, so that we save money on unnecessary lawsuits that we can invest in important priorities such as the bicycle network in our City. 

 

3) Transportation is the largest source of San Diego’s greenhouse gas emissions (55%). The City’s Climate Action Plan bicycle mode share goals are 6% of commuter trips by 2020 and 18% by 2035, from about 1% today. What steps will you take to make sure these goals are met or exceeded?

Making sure the City meets its Climate Action Plan goals is one of the main reasons I am running for office. I take the 110 Express Bus to work from Scripps Ranch to downtown, and I see how we can improve service and accessibility for commuters. I will prioritize making sure our City has a world class transportation system, to get cars and trucks off the road and reduce our greenhouse gas emissions.

 

4) Safe bike lanes often face opposition due to slower road speeds or reduced street parking. How would you work with the community to address concerns without compromising safety or delaying bike infrastructure in the name of consensus?

In many instances, street parking does not need to be reduced to accommodate a protected bike lane, which is a great win-win for motorists and cyclists alike. One of my important campaign priorities is ensuring that people have options for transportation, and that we meet our environmental protection goals. I will work to help educate the community about the importance of alternate transportation options

 

5) Please share a memorable experience(s) you have of bicycling.

I first learned to ride a bike at Miramar Lake in Scripps Ranch where I grew up. I biked all throughout college at UC Berkeley as my primary mode of transportation, and I didn’t even own a car then. When I worked in Congress in Washington D.C., I commuted on a bike every day using the Capital Bike Share bikes located throughout the district. I highly value biking as a favorite recreational activity, mode of transportation, and just plain fun!

 


Candidate: Isaac Wang

What are your top 3 priorities for improving the biking experience in District 5 for residents and families?


1.
Mobility hubs connected by bus-only lanes (Biking serves as the last mile solution in a sprawled district)

I do believe biking should be the dominant mode of transportation to solve the last mile problem for transit stations (mobility hubs). Given the location of District 5 and it’s distance from our major job centers (La Jolla, Kearny Mesa, and Downtown), I don’t believe biking can be the near term solution for travel to jobs.

I’ll discuss bike superhighways in point #2. But I do think we can reduce most of the 5-10 minute trips (local services, parks, libraries) by switching to bike.

We should be creating Class IV separated bikeways in the minor arterials and collector roads (Class III and Class IV road classifications). Doing this would make traveling to transit stations much more feasible by bike. We also need to ensure bike storage at all transit stations.

With that being said, City Council makes decisions for entire city, not just their own district.
In denser districts like 3 + 9 + 7, we should take away lanes from cars and create much more extensive networks of Class IV bikeways in the arterials and collectors and even the neighborhood roads.

I will unequivocally vote yes on any protected bike lane or separated bikeway, even if it makes the city council member in that respective district unhappy. Don’t expect an urbanist in a blue city council district. Not everyone gets it.

2. Bike Superhighways (aka Bike Freeways)

I believe we need bike superhighways as a major transit priority and in the pipeline of projects.
We’re aware of how long these projects can take, and how terrible CalTrans is.
These projects needed to have been in the pipeline 20 years ago, but here we are.

I’m going to aggressively push for Bike Superhighways like no previous Councilmember ever has.
This doesn’t need any road widening! We need to take lanes away from cars, reallocate them to bicycles, and create physical separators.

These super highways need to connect both mobility hubs + dense residential areas to dense job centers.

In my ideal configuration, bike superhighways (if using highway lanes reallocated from cars) ought to be buffered by a physical barrier and a bus-only lane. Get me as far away from a car as possible.

||||| Travel Lanes ||||| Bus-only Lane ||||| Bike Superhighway |||||

Exit lanes might be a little tricky, but we’d need some bike traffic lights and use of shoulders.

There’s additional places where I’d like to see a ban on cars and a comprehensive bikeway network: Gaslamp, Little Italy, Park Blvd, Liberty Station, Point Loma

3. Creating disincentives for driving

Contrary to many elected officials and candidates who are cautious with their language to not upset drivers, I do believe we need a war on cars.

I’m very vocal about the war on cars. If we don’t reduce GHG emissions, our planet is going to suffer catastrophic consequences. This is scientific consensus.

We need to ensure there is no more free parking. We need congestion pricing. We need to reduce lanes. We need to aggressively shrink the footprint of cement in our cities.
We need an aggressive policy to convert parking lots and roads into something else. I believe the term is “Street Vacations”.

 

Question 2:  San Diego’s Bicycle Master Plan needs updating and projects need prioritizing in order to create a complete bicycle network. A large number of street resurfacing projects need to be restriped with bicycle infrastructure. How would you propose to fund the full build-out of the bicycle network needed to achieve the Vision Zero goals and meet the Climate Action Plan mode share targets?

Answer: Any way possible
Where there’s a will, there’s a way.
If we can find hundreds of millions for a stadium or convention center, we can find a way for anything.
It’s rarely a matter of not enough money, it’s a matter of priorities.

If I can re-divert funds from car infrastructure, I will.
If I have to use money from capital improvement funds.
If I have use money from the gas tax, I will.
If I have to raise taxes through a ballot measure, I will.
If I have to sell lottery tickets to create funds for bicycle infrastructure, I will.

 

Question 3: Transportation is the largest source of San Diego’s greenhouse gas emissions (55%). The City’s Climate Action Plan bicycle mode share goals are 6% of commuter trips by 2020 and 18% by 2035, from about 1% today. What steps will you take to make sure these goals are met or exceeded?

I think those goals are terrible and underwhelming.
The city with the best weather ought to have 25% cycling within 10 years, and 50% within 20 years.
This is doable, but you have to DESIGN for it and fight for it. I outlined in my top 3 priorities how to do it.
I think every city council staff needs an urban planner / designer on the team.

If you really wanted to increase mode-share, you have to create disincentives for driving as I mentioned in #3 above.

Every able-bodied City or County employee should be required to commute by transit or bike or walking. Or get rid of parking garages for city and county.

That will dramatically increase the sense of urgency to improve infrastructure for cycling and bus.
I will aggressively push for disincentives for driving. And I KNOW you know I will.

 

4) Safe bike lanes often face opposition due to slower road speeds or reduced street parking. How would you work with the community to address concerns without compromising safety or delaying bike infrastructure in the name of consensus?

We can significantly increase parking in a neighborhood by using angled parking instead of parallel. It gets a road diet in there and automatically serves as a traffic calming measure.
Slower road speeds is the point. I want it slower, because cars kill 30,000 people a year.

If they complain about a loss of parking, pair it with enough angled parking in nearby streets to compensate. If you have to walk a little, deal with it.

We may have to add some drop off zones for disabled folks; that’s always a legitimate concern.
But if you’re able bodied and can walk, you get zero sympathy from me.

 

Question 5: Please share a memorable experience(s) you have of bicycling.

Vienna, Austria
I rode down a mountain and cycled along a river surrounded by restaurants and public orchestras and people enjoying public spaces.

Do I want America to look like Europe? Hell yes.

There is nothing edifying about designing our cities for cars and having our cities look like cement jungles with gigantic billboards and strip malls.

Cities are best enjoyed and explored by bike. You can see much more than walking, but not have to be in a stupid car.

Urban design is key to all of this. Support a city council member who gets it.


2020 SD City Council D1 candidate questionnaire

2020 City Council Questionnaire - District 1: Brennan, LaCava, Moore, Puentes, Rodolico

2020 SD City Council D1 candidate questionnaire

Candidate: Aaron Brennan —

1) What are your top 3 priorities for improving the biking experience in District 1 for residents and families?

The entire city needs to be made more bike friendly. That said, I would like to identify main bike transit routes, then ensure that they receive signage and markings similar to what I’ve seen in Pacific Beach on Fanuel St. Perhaps they exist somewhere in D1, but I have yet come across them. In a Vision Zero world, we would have dedicated lanes of travel for bicycles throughout the city, this is complicated to pull off in our currently car centric world, but when there’s a will there’s a way. I think particular attention should be paid to the UCSD/UTC area because of high number of students, a population that is more inclined to use bicycles as transportation.

 

2) San Diego’s Bicycle Master Plan needs updating and projects need prioritizing in order to create a complete bicycle network. A large number of street resurfacing projects need to be restriped with bicycle infrastructure. How would you propose to fund the full build-out of the bicycle network needed to achieve the Vision Zero goals and meet the Climate Action Plan mode share targets?

I guess I would need to know what the estimated cost for these changes/buildout is in order to give a better answer. Regardless, funding for City of San Diego comes from 4 major sources, Sales Tax, Property Tax, TOT (Hotel Tax on visitors) and Franchise Fees (fees charged to utility/telecommunications  providers  - Cox Cable, SDGE etc). The TOT and Sales Tax are the ones that can be changed the easiest, but even those are are difficult, as it requires a 2/3 vote of the residents of San Diego. Ultimately, we, as a city will have to figure out how to fund this because it is enforceable under CEQA as part of the City’s General Plan. That may mean “cinching the belt” on other funding needs, or “increasing revenue” ie, raising taxes somewhere. Some other cities have implemented “congestion fees” with success, perhaps we could implement one here, and use the revenue to fund GHG reduction tools delineated in the CAP.

 

3) Transportation is the largest source of San Diego’s greenhouse gas emissions (55%). The City’s Climate Action Plan bicycle mode share goals are 6% of commuter trips by 2020 and 18% by 2035, from about 1% today. What steps will you take to make sure these goals are met or exceeded?

We have to update the Bicycle Master Plan and build out the bicycle network so that this mode of transportation is considered desirable (ie safe, convenient, practical). When we have safe, dedicated lanes of travel, that intersect with mass transit (connect to transit hubs, easy, efficient method for cyclists to bring their bike on the train/bus, secure place for cyclists to store their bikes at their destination, etc), when it become truly feasible to commute via bicycle, we will reach these CAP goals.

 

4) Safe bike lanes often face opposition due to slower road speeds or reduced street parking. How would you work with the community to address concerns without compromising safety or delaying bike infrastructure in the name of consensus? 

It is not possible to make everyone happy. That said, you have to make the effort to include everyone at the “table.” I think you have to hold community informational meetings and lay out why the change is necessary. Where there is the possibility of addressing concerns of those who might be opposed to a safe bike lane, you should do so, but never that the reduction of safety for the cyclists. There are many examples where members of a community were opposed to something that turned out to have little or none of the feared effects. I would point to the “roundabouts” in Bird Rock for a small local example, and banning smoking in restaurants as a large scale example. There are many cities that have implemented bike friendly changes with great success, I think you highlight those, and combined with the requirements of the CAP, I think you’ll be able to push these things through.

 

5) Please share a memorable experience(s) you have of bicycling.

My “Car” was a bike (Specialized Rock Hopper Comp) for about two years while I was attending Mesa College, living at San Diego State, and lifeguarding in Ocean Beach. I can say with first hand experience we are not a very bike friendly city. The route from SDSU to OB is relatively safe, compared to trying to get from SDSU to Mesa. I dropped down Montezuma Road/Fairmount, transitioned to Camino Del Rio South, crossed the freeway at Mission City Parkway to Camino Del Rio North, headed to Friars by cutting through Fashion Valley Mall, then rode the bike path along the San Diego River (instead of being on Sea World Dr) and then crossed the Sunset Cliffs bridge to get into OB. One day on my way to work, I was in the bike lane near the Mission Valley YMCA, as I approached the driveway I saw a Mercedes preparing to exit the YMCA, they had a stop sign, the bike lane had “right of way”. Well, I slowed some, and it appeared that the driver was going to stop , but she did not, I had to lay my bike down to avoid being hit. She didn’t stop even after seeing me go down. I still get a little twinge whenever I drive past there. I have many other biking experiences, I’ve done the Solvang Century multiple times and I’ve completed two Ironman triathlons. My kids have bikes, we enjoy riding around our neighborhood. As a former firefighter (I’ve seen too many cyclist vs vehicle), and long time cyclist, as well as an environmentalist, I will advocate whole heartedly for safe bike lanes so that we can make Vision Zero a reality while helping achieve our CAP goals.

I would be proud to earn the Bike San Diego endorsement. I am happy to meet in person, just let me know!

 


Candidate:  Joe LaCava —

 

What are your top 3 priorities for improving the biking experience in District 1 for residents and families?

1. Ensure that dedicated bike lanes are pothole and rut free, bike lanes are protected from city, construction, and delivery vehicles, and maximizing restriping when streets are resurfaced.

2. Complete the Coastal Rail Trail from Pacific Beach through District 1 to Sorrento Valley (currently held up at SANDAG,) especially the segment along Gilman Drive.

3. Ensure that the City/SANDAG are moving forward with all proposed bike lanes.

 

2) San Diego’s Bicycle Master Plan needs updating and projects need prioritizing in order to create a complete bicycle network. A large number of street resurfacing projects need to be restriped with bicycle infrastructure. How would you propose to fund the full build-out of the bicycle network needed to achieve the Vision Zero goals and meet the Climate Action Plan mode share targets?  

City Hall has failed to understand the cost of the Climate Action Plan and identify the budget for full implementation. Bundling the bike network as part of other infrastructure projects (street resurfacing) is cost efficient but will not go far enough to build out the network. We need to streamline the process to move projects from concept to shovel-ready. This includes integrating SANDAG projects into the city’s capital improvement program rather than forcing them to go through the more tedious process as a private applicant. The good news is that as the city does more dedicated bike lanes the process will become more efficient. 

Despite those improvements, the bottom line is that we will need new revenue streams beyond what is provided by SANDAG, the state, and the city.

 

3) Transportation is the largest source of San Diego’s greenhouse gas emissions (55%). The City’s Climate Action Plan bicycle mode share goals are 6% of commuter trips by 2020 and 18% by 2035, from about 1% today. What steps will you take to make sure these goals are met or exceeded?   

While the goals were aspirational, they are legally enforceable. Improving the infrastructure to make biking safer will not be enough to achieve those percentages; nevertheless, we must resolve to complete that infrastructure. I believe those percentages will be achieved only if there is an external pressure (extremely high gas prices or shortages); a financial incentive; or, as is my hope, a cultural shift. A cultural shift will require commuters to “work where they can efficiently bike from where they live;” an increasingly realistic option as work becomes more flexible and we continue to build complete neighborhoods. That cultural shift is happening now, but we still have a long way to go.

 

4) Safe bike lanes often face opposition due to slower road speeds or reduced street parking. How would you work with the community to address concerns without compromising safety or delaying bike infrastructure in the name of consensus? 

We have to get in front of this conversation. Presenting the “solution” to the public before they have reached consensus that there is a “problem” leads to the difficult dialogues we see too often. We must change expectations about on-street parking. We have built a culture that fronting property owners *do* have the right to say what happens on their street; for example, requiring property owners and the planning group to have a voice in changes. We have also built a culture that retailers’ success is based on ease of customer parking. Expectation can meet reality as retailers can often validate that out- of-area customers are supporting their business and not residents who live within walking, biking, transit distance. If we do not change that equation, we will always encounter resistance and it will be difficult to ignore.

We must change both cultures if we are to implement bike infrastructure in a timely and cost-effective manner. Before we change reduce/eliminate on-street parking, we must affirm with the neighborhood that it is for the common good and that will have other benefits. Before we convert a retail street to a Complete Street, we must help businesses thrive by proving their success can be met by local customers.

 

5) Please share a memorable experience(s) you have of bicycling.

One summer when our daughters were little, we booked a family camp at a UC campus. We had brought my daughter’s bike as we thought it was a good opportunity to teach our oldest how to ride her bike. That day it was my wife’s turn to teach our daughter; for me, it was a chance to spend time with our youngest. I borrowed a bike with a child’s seat in the back to tour the campus with my youngest on board. In touring the unfamiliar campus, I came to a tee intersection, not sure which way to turn. I slowed down and came to a near stop. I forgot my daughter was on board and the bike begin to tip as I lost balance. I jerked the bike to keep us from falling, gasping as I did. Righting the bike, I heard a tiny voice say, “Daddy, are you alright?” We were safe, my oldest daughter learned to ride a bike, but I will never forget the sound of that tiny voice.

 

 


Candidate:  Will Moore —

 

1) What are your top 3 priorities for improving the biking experience in District 1 for residents and families?

A) We need a network of protected bike lanes and bike paths that commuters can ride at a relaxed pace. People will not adopt biking as a way to get around town if they have to ride bicycles unprotected among or immediately exposed to high speed car lanes, as with Sharrows and Striped Lanes. 

B) We must ensure that University City Community Plan Update, which is currently being updated and will be voted on when I would be serving on the Council, provides for good bike infrastructure from protected lanes to separate trails- including building on the recent improvements in connectivity with Sorrento Valley. This neighborhood is an opportunity to implement good bike policy that will serve as an example for the city. Community input to the UC Plan update has been strongly in favor of bicycle infrastructure and we must listen to that input.

C) Integration of Cycling and Transit. This includes both ensuring that bikes are easy to carry onto busses, trolleys and trains, and more user friendly and efficient bicycle storage facilities at transit stations. For example, as a train commuter for several years, I repeatedly tried to use the bike storage at the Sorento Valley train station, called the number, went to the website, but could not get them to work for me. Using our bike infrastructure in conjunction with our transit infrastructure should not require an entirely separate life expertise. 

 

2) San Diego’s Bicycle Master Plan needs updating and projects need prioritizing in order to create a complete bicycle network. A large number of street resurfacing projects need to be restriped with bicycle infrastructure. How would you propose to fund the full build-out of the bicycle network needed to achieve the Vision Zero goals and meet the Climate Action Plan mode share targets?

A) We can align statewide transportation funding with our alternative mobility goals by redirecting wasteful road infrastructure spending to more economically efficient bicycle and pedestrian infrastructure. Heavy vehicles depreciate roads more quickly than lighter ones, and bicycle infrastructure is simply a cheaper way to get people around than car infrastructure. Much of our needs here can be met if we simply recognize that cycle infrastructure is a massive long term cost saving mechanism instead of an additional cost. B) Further, we can use new revenues from licensing of dockless mobility companies, most of which require bike infrastructure to function effectively. 

 

3) Transportation is the largest source of San Diego’s greenhouse gas emissions (55%). The City’s Climate Action Plan bicycle mode share goals are 6% of commuter trips by 2020 and 18% by 2035, from about 1% today. What steps will you take to make sure these goals are met or exceeded?

A) Transportation Demand Management. Vehicle driving is subsidized in dozens of ways, including free and low-rate street parking. Other jurisdictions such as Seattle that have implemented such strategies have seen both transit ridership and bicycle ridership increase and auto trips decrease.

B) Increased housing density near job centers, with mixed use zoning and safer bike lanes.

C) More protected lanes and bicycle paths, to encourage casual riders and commuters.

 

4) Safe bike lanes often face opposition due to slower road speeds or reduced street parking. How would you work with the community to address concerns without compromising safety or delaying bike infrastructure in the name of consensus?

Nothing Succeeds Like Success. People in San Diego haven’t seen successful bike infrastructure because the paltry efforts we have historically made have taken the form of dangerous fake infrastructure like sharrows and striped lanes. Many people simply won’t support bike infrastructure until they are convinced it will work. And most of those won’t really be convinced until they see it.

Therefore, we should not and cannot allow opponents of good projects force us to compromise until they become bad projects. This city has had a deficit of leadership for years. One of the major reasons I’m running is to provide that leadership - not with an eye towards avoiding a hard conversation today, but with an eye towards what will make San Diego the best place to live tomorrow.

 

5) Please share a memorable experience(s) you have of bicycling.

A) I did not have a car in college, and exclusively rode my bike to get around Atlanta, GA. So I know the challenges that people face when they try to navigate non-existent bicycle infrastructure in a topographically challenging city. Not only that, I understand the dangers cyclists face from hostile motorists - including one time that a motorist pulled a gun on me for riding legally in the road.

B) In 1994 I rode solo from Brussels, Belgium to Bordeaux, France over the course of eight days - on a $325 KHS Hybrid bike that is still my bike today.

C) When I first moved to San Diego, I was shocked to learn that I could not ride from Sorrento Valley to University City without riding LITERALLY ON THE FREEWAY. I am very pleased that the connectivity between these neighborhoods has been enhanced by the new separated and dedicated bike trails. As I have talked to thousands of voters during this campaign, I am gratified to frequently find people who report taking advantage of that new safe corridor.

 


Candidate:  Harid Puentes —

 

 1) What are your top 3 priorities for improving the biking experience in District 1 for residents and families?

Building Protective Lanes
Update Current Infrastructure
Bike Share Program

 

2) San Diego’s Bicycle Master Plan needs updating, and projects need prioritizing in order to create a complete bicycle network. A large number of street resurfacing projects need to be restriped with bicycle infrastructure. How would you propose to fund the full build-out of the bicycle network needed to achieve the Vision Zero goals and meet the Climate Action Plan mode share targets?

We need to reprioritize city funding, find alternative revenue streams, and identify state, federal, and private opportunities to fund a complete bicycle network.

 

3) Transportation is the largest source of San Diego’s greenhouse gas emissions (55%). The City’s Climate Action Plan bicycle mode share goals are 6% of commuter trips by 2020 and 18% by 2035, from about 1% today. What steps will you take to make sure these goals are met or exceeded?

By providing protective bicycle lanes, safety lighting, and promoting and supporting bicycle share programs San Diego can meet its bicycle goals. I support SANDAG’s 5 big moves, and I look forward to seeing a detailed plan by Hasan Ikhrata this fall when it is presented to the Board of Directors. Additionally, San Diego needs to lead by example by moving to ensure the City’s fleet and infrastructure is powered by 100% renewables.

 

4) Safe bike lanes often face opposition due to slower road speeds or reduced street parking. How would you work with the community to address concerns without compromising safety or delaying bike infrastructure in the name of consensus?

We need to educate the community about our current climate crisis, and how critically important it is that we reduce our GHG, and VMT, by presenting the community with the data that shows how getting more people to ride bikes has a positive impact on our community.

 

5) Please share a memorable experience(s) you have of bicycling.

I have many fond memories that have involved bicycling over the years, when I was attending school in London bicycling was how I got around and how I got to know the city. But my most memorable experience I have had involving bicycling would have to be biking with my wife through University City to La Jolla and back home soon after learning she was pregnant with our first child.

 

 


Candidate:  Louis Rodolico  —

 

1) What are your top 3 priorities for improving the biking experience in District 1 for residents and families?

Complete our road system in University by building the Regents Road Bridge and the planned Governor to Gillman connector. Both projects with bike and pedestrian lanes. Segregate; bikes, pedestrians and cars as much as possible.

 

2) San Diego’s Bicycle Master Plan needs updating and projects need prioritizing in order to create a complete bicycle network. A large number of street resurfacing projects need to be re striped with bicycle infrastructure. How would you propose to fund the full build-out of the bicycle network needed to achieve the Vision Zero goals and meet the Climate Action Plan mode share targets?

SANDAG has bike projects in their plans but they keep putting these projects off. Complete our road system in University by building the Regents Road Bridge and the planned Governor to Gillman connector. Both projects with bike and pedestrian lanes.

 

3) Transportation is the largest source of San Diego’s greenhouse gas emissions (55%). The City’s Climate Action Plan bicycle mode share goals are 6% of commuter trips by 2020 and 18% by 2035, from about 1% today. What steps will you take to make sure these goals are met or exceeded? 

The Climate Action Plan is turning out to be a talking point. Bikes are not for the wealthy so bikers have little clout in San Diego. Stop removing bike and pedestrian access. Also there is no direct route from University to La Jolla. Add a bike pedestrian link along route 52 partially through Marian Bear Park aka San Clemente Canyon. Complete Regents Road Bridge and Governor to Gillman connector with bike and pedestrian lanes.

 

4) Safe bike lanes often face opposition due to slower road speeds or reduced street parking. How would you work with the community to address concerns without compromising safety or delaying bike infrastructure in the name of consensus?

I would remind voters that we are talking about their families and their children using these bike lanes. Providing a barrier or distance between cars and bikes is a priority, consider pushing parking out next to car traffic and having bikes between parked cars and the pedestrian sidewalk.

 

5) Please share a memorable experience(s) you have of bicycling.

Walking my dog in Rose Canyon I saw a cyclist approaching me so I moved to one side. I did not see three bikes approaching from my rear. The cyclist approaching me from the front did not slow down and damaged my shoulder when he passed, he continued on and did not stop. We need to segregate; cars, bikes and pedestrians and we need to do it as soon as possible.

 


Candidate:  Lily Zhou  —

 

1) What are your top 3 priorities for improving the biking experience in District 1 for residents and families?

Creating more bike lines, safety rules, and promote our residents to use bikes more. 

 

2) San Diego’s Bicycle Master Plan needs updating and projects need prioritizing in order to create a complete bicycle network. A large number of street resurfacing projects need to be restriped with bicycle infrastructure. How would you propose to fund the full build-out of the bicycle network needed to achieve the Vision Zero goals and meet the Climate Action Plan mode share targets?

Government grants and funding as well as corporations funding.

 

3) Transportation is the largest source of San Diego’s greenhouse gas emissions (55%). The City’s Climate Action Plan bicycle mode share goals are 6% of commuter trips by 2020 and 18% by 2035, from about 1% today. What steps will you take to make sure these goals are met or exceeded?

Promotions.

 

4) Safe bike lanes often face opposition due to slower road speeds or reduced street parking. How would you work with the community to address concerns without compromising safety or delaying bike infrastructure in the name of consensus?

N/A

 

5) Please share a memorable experience(s) you have of bicycling.

N/A