North Oakland’s Children’s Hospital is planning a major expansion, which is good for healthcare and could help to revitalize the neglected MLK corridor, but it could also bring a lot more car traffic to the area.
As part of the draft plan, bike lanes could be added to parts of 52nd Street connecting the neighborhoods on both sides of Highway 24, but the proposed designs are not continuous and don’t do enough to encourage the average person to bike or walk there. This plan is not yet a done deal, though, so we need you to write in and demand continuous, safe bike facilities.
The draft plan can be found online here (number 8 on the list). You can email HKlein@oaklandnet.com and rmerkamp@oaklandnet.com with your own comments, or use our suggested points included below. Please make sure to include your full name and address in your comments.
Our request to the city and developers is as follows:
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Ensure that this plan includes a continuous, separated bikeway throughout the entire project area
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Provide better safety accommodation for bicyclists and pedestrians at conflict points along 52nd Street, especially the Highway 24 on and off ramps
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Adjust on-street car parking under the Highway 24 to create a buffered, parking-protected bikeway
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Implement the City of Oakland’s guidelines throughout this project for green paint in bike lanes
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Fund Oakland’s proposed bike boulevard treatment for the 52nd/Genoa Street bikeway, which will discourage cut-through car traffic on this bike-priority corridor (see image of proposed changes below)
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Extend the project area to ensure safe bicycle connections between 52nd Street, Shattuck Ave, and Telegraph Ave in all directions
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Provide great biking, walking, and transit facilities and incentives for hospital employees and guests, including but not limited to:
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Long and short term bicycle parking in convenient locations and in excess of the city’s minimum standard
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Free bike share bikes, locks, and helmets made available to hospital staff on site
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Bike commuting classes for employees and guests, hosted at the hospital
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Bicycle accommodation on the free Children’s Hospital MacArthur BART shuttle, made available to hospital staff, guests, and neighborhood residents.
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You can check out the existing plan for the 52nd Street bikeway here, and one of our suggested alternatives here: