Uphill, both ways

While I’m not going to get into the whole Transportation Master Plan EIR, I’ll leave that to the wonkier amongst us bloggers.   Other than to say, I watched the joint Planning Board and Transportation Commission meeting a few weeks ago and it was as exciting as a meeting about the TMP EIR can be.  One of the speakers was Richard Bangert, who recently posted a guest commentary on Alamedans about the very subject, he also spoke during public comment and said something very similiar to what he wrote.

I found this closing line of Richard B.’s to be very common sense in light of the fact that Alameda is prized for its walkability as opposed to being prized for cars being able to move quickly across the island:

…I would echo the observation that was made in the EIR about Alamedans being willing to give up speed for livability.  I do not expect traffic volume or congestion to go away.  What I do expect of city officials is to safely and efficiently regulate traffic and place safety on par with traffic flow.  I can accept congestion that is well regulated.  I don’t mind waiting at a light, taking my turn or going slow.  I do mind unnecessarily being forced into a state of hyper vigilance while driving in Alameda.  Compromising safety is not a trade-off we should be making in return for reducing congestion at a specific intersection or on a specific street…

I also found interesting a comment made by the Planning Board member Art Autorino who mentioned that he has been making an effort to bike to work at least once a week.  Which dovetails nicely with an interesting article in the Christian Science Monitor which talks about the upsurge in bicycling for commuting purposes and folks taking bicycle safety courses in preparation for hitting the road without tons of steel wrapped around them for safety.  Highlights:

…The high price of gas is creating a surge in bicycle commuting across the country, not just in West Coast cities but in places like Louisville, Ky., and Charlotte, N.C. The rush of newbies has triggered tensions with drivers unaccustomed to sharing the road, and driven cyclists to seek out traffic training.

“I’m getting hammered by mayors asking, ‘What are you doing about all these new bikers on the street and nobody knows the rules of the road?’ ” says Robert Raburn, executive director of the East Bay Bicycle Coalition in Oakland. When the organization started classes in 2003, it offered maybe two a year. Now, it has six slated for September with two more to be announced.

…

High gas prices are changing transportation habits. For eight straight months, Americans have driven fewer miles than they did over the same period a year earlier, according to the US Department of Transportation.

…

[Bert] Hill disagreed with one instructional video that seemed to sanction a cyclist turning left on a red light. “If we look at car-bike crashes and who’s at fault, in a sense it doesn’t matter,” Hill said. The cyclist suffers either way.

For the Alameda hook, Bike Alameda also provides bike safety classes, the next couple are coming up on September 20 and October 11 from 2 – 5 p.m. Space is limited so make sure you register ahead of time.

Of course, there are those that have taken ditching their cars to the extreme and have taken up using good old-fashioned leg power to get them to work.  The Wall Street Journal has a few profiled of folks who run the double digit miles to work.   The most extreme is Bay Area (of course) resident and attorney, Alan Geraldi.  I wonder if the reporter ran with him or tailed him in a car.