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135 | and he can now ride his bicycle with his family. He stated that his children will start Franklin Elementary and crossing Central Avenue is a barrier to get to the school. He also explained that he would patronize the businesses on Webster Street more, but he does not want to take the car. Overall, he supported the plan. Karen Ratto, Caroline Street near Central Avenue resident, said she rides her bike around and felt the grant money could cover the EIS. She also feared that San Antonio Avenue will take on more traffic and she didn't hear much about the viability of using Santa Clara Avenue as a bicycle route. Dave Kimball, Advocacy Director for Bike East Bay, said safety is a huge reason to support this project and the community receives a net gain of parking which is a first. He explained if the City received an endorsement from Caltrans then that says something, so they need more partnerships like that including working with the schools. He said his organization conducted shopper intercept surveys to see how modes of travel relate to consumer spending when consumers walk, bike or take public transit. There were two studies conducted locally in downtown Berkeley and Oakland's Temescal neighborhood in order to have local shopper data which support projects like this. Jeffrey Berneford stated that two lanes in both directions offer a lot of flexibility for garbage and delivery trucks to move around vehicles. He felt once the project is in place, a 1.6 minute delay will produce a domino effect because there are three 20-second traffic signal cycles. He suspected that the plan will be very unusable and he did not support the plan. Benty Peterson, Burbank Street resident, said she has two children and she enjoys living in Alameda because they can bicycle. Therefore, she supported the plan, but she had concerns with the gap. Carol Gottstein, disabled Alameda resident, said she was struck by staff's lack of outreach towards the disabled community. She explained that the disabled rely heavily on vehicles and she had concerns about the 7 foot wide parking strips. She wondered what the City would do if a disabled resident requests a blue curb in front of their residence. She explained the City would have to construct a bulb-out of their parking space into the bicycle lane because that is what the resident is legally entitled to have. She also agreed with the other speakers who said the data and reference to the data were vague. Michele Elson, Bike Walk Alameda Board Member and south side of Central Avenue resident, said she is the parent of Franklin Elementary and Academy of Alameda students. She said she supports the plan and felt staff did the work to show the plan is needed. She felt the plan should be focused on safety because where Central Avenue comes into Sherman Street she observed motorists flying through the traffic signal as soon as the light turns green. She stated if motorists could slow down and drive the speed limit that may be easier to get off Bay Street or St. Charles and get on to Central Avenue or Sherman Street. Also, the plan will help young and older pedestrians cross the street easier. Additionally, she said having dedicated bike lanes will provide a continuous route on an arterial that is best equipped to handle it. Overall, she supported the plan. Page 10 of 17 |