Quote From:
Maria Gutzeit
Santa Clarita Coordinator
LA County Bicycle Coalition
History in the making - the process for our Bicycle Master Plan is starting!
Please pass this on to ALL cyclists that you know in the Santa Clarita area.
On June 26th, from 6-8 pm, the City will be hosting an open house to take input on bike issues to be included in the Master Plan. It is important that as many cyclists as possible show up. The Plan will also have pedestrians, and, oddly, I hear horses....addressed. As you know, part of the problem is peds/horse are TRAIL oriented and as cyclists we are EVERYWHERE - road and trail - oriented. We need to be vocal on the ROAD accommodations or they will get left out/overshadowed by trails - even dirt trails not usable by bikes, like those unusable ones along Sand Canyon that have gotten so much press.
Second, whether you can make the meeting - or not - I urge you to complete the online survey at the City's website.
http://www.santa-clarita.com/cityhall/pw/traffic/nonmotorized/index.htmKey is to explain what changes are needed. Like:
1. Traffic signal sensors that pick up bikes and make lights change for us. 2. Bike lanes on the roads when they are built and/or restriped. 3. 15 feet + wide outer lanes (shoulders) so bikes can use the roads. 4. Trails that connect to eachother and don't isolate any communities. For example, the area in front of Lowes/Best Buy on Bouquet is necessary for us to travel on a very busy/narrow road to get from the trail to the bike lanes on Bouquet that start near Central Park. Also, those bike lanes on Bouquet have been strongly
considered for removal to accommodate more cars. They need to give
us either bike lanes or a bike trail that goes through this area - or nobody's going to be safe going north/south on Bouquet in the future.. 5. Trails should have below-grade crossings. At grade crossings, and short "token" stretches of trail, like on Newhall Ranch Road between McBean and Bouquet, mean trails that aren't used and/or are less safe than "through" trails that go under roads. 6. Get rid of the "stop walk bike" signs everywhere! Anybody walking their bikes through crosswalks? This is a liability issue for us - if a car hits you there, they will point to the sign and say "but they weren't walking, so it's not my fault." Contrary to what the City line is - these signs are NOT mandatory and are NOT used in many other areas of the state., 7. Trails that separate bikes from ped/horses are best, like the South Fork Trail around Valencia/Newhall. Paved trails are necessary for bikes - soft dirt trails like those in Sand Canyon or around Master's College should not count as "bicycle accommodation."
Anyway - please participate in this WONDERFUL opportunity. For eternity, this plan will be used to set policy and also to decide which projects get funded. If issues aren't raised now - they won't be handled in the future. It's time for bikers to speak up!
Maria Gutzeit
Santa Clarita Coordinator
LA County Bicycle Coalition
661-670-0332
661-670-0344 (fax)
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