After years of public advocacy and grant writing, Public Works is presenting 3 options for safety improvements along Somerset in Castro Valley (Stanton to Redwood).
1) sharrows without parking removal [BAD]
2) standard bike lanes with parking removed from 1 side [OK]
3) buffered bike lanes with parking removed from 2 sides [better, but politically super difficult]
4) Bike East Bay prefers a 2-way cycle track with parking removed from 1 side [PREFERRED]. This option should be studied.
On-street parking is not fully utilized, and all homes have driveways, but will be difficult to remove for safety improvements. Public Works held an April 26 public meeting, plans a June 20 Castro Valley MAC (Municipal Advisory Committee) meeting and a future BPAC (Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Committee) meeting, before choosing a preferred option. They need to hear from you.
Email Public Works Director Daniel Woldesenbet
Make supportive public comments at the Municipal Advisory Committee meeting, Monday June 20. Zoom link here. Agenda here.
Talking Points:
- Somerset Ave needs protected bikeways. Please study a 2-way cycle track on the north side of Somerset
- Parking is not a goal of the project, as your own staff reported April 26. Please don’t sacrifice safety for parking
- Climate Change is urgent. Getting more people bicycling is critical and protected bikeways are documented to increase bicycling the most
Public Works took an online poll, with 104 respondents voting to remove parking and 96 to maintain parking. Of those who reside on Somerset, 13 voted to remove parking while 64 voted to retain it. Public Works also presented a parking analysis, using peak rather than average parking demand. The April 26 analysis show that most cars fit on 1 side of the street.
Our preferred 2-way cycle track option. Somerset is heavily used by students going to and from Castro Valley High School and many other nearby local schools.