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18651 | from doing SO. He requested that staff provide the number of cars heading eastbound in both lanes. Susie Hufstader, Bike East Bay staff member and Alameda resident, thanked Alameda staff for providing a beautiful design given all the complications and constraints surrounding the area. She said when she moved to Alameda, she was impressed with the protected bike lanes on Shoreline Drive and Fernside Avenue. She mentioned that Alameda has always been a front- runner for these types of facilities and the City providing protected intersections would take it to the next level. She pointed out that this design would allow all types of bicyclists to use the protected bike lane. She noted that the city of Oakland's bike projects, especially on Fruitvale Avenue, would allow the entire Cross Alameda Trail to continue into Oakland and towards the Fruitvale BART Station. Denyse Trepanier, Bike Walk Alameda representative and Alameda resident, said she would be a big consumer of the bike facility because she resides near the project. She voiced her full support towards staff's presentation and she felt this project is very forward thinking. She explained that this project would allow bicyclists to connect from Jean Sweeney Park to the Cross Alameda Trail from the west end. She also said having bicyclists ride in the door zone is dangerous and a stripe of paint does not suffice. She pointed out that the plan is very forward thinking because it offers protected facilities at the intersections where cyclists need the most protection. She thanked Alameda staff, the engineering firm and everyone who worked on the design for being creative because there were a lot of challenges to overcome. Additionally, she said the project was critical if Alameda is going to provide safe passage for bicyclists along the northern end of the island. Therefore, she asked the Commission to approve the design to close the Cross Alameda Trail gap. Brian McGuire, Alameda resident, thanked staff and said it may seem like a small effort, but this was important when connecting Seaplane Lagoon to Fruitvale BART and beyond. He stated that connecting these segments was not only important, but it rebalanced the equity of the bicycle infrastructure within Alameda and that is important for residents in the west end. He explained that the biggest users of this path would be students going to and from Jean Sweeney Park to the Ralph Appezzato segment. He exclaimed that the bike path would also alleviate congestion in and around the tube by moving users from cars to bicycles. He felt the project area was complicated, but staff got it right. Also, staff provided a safe bicycle facility without sacrificing too much from vehicles. So, he urged the Commission to approve the plan. Commissioner Vargas complimented staff for bringing AC Transit, and Alameda Police and Fire Departments into the conversation when they were not initially engaged. He felt this is not just a multimodal corridor, but also a combination of funnels that are concentrated at a couple of points. He said a lot of attention should be placed on the design, so that staff do not favor one mode of transportation. He pointed out that the flow of freight trucks was mentioned briefly and he wanted to hear more about it. He indicated that he attended a conference in the Central Valley and he explained that the last mile of getting freight to the destination was a constant concern. He told Staff Wheeler that it was good to see the traffic lane widths were not substandard. He also echoed Commissioner Bertken's concerns about bicyclists' safety. He noted that the southeast corner of Atlantic Avenue and Constitution Way contained many opposing movements. So, he wondered if there's a way for staff to go beyond the standard traffic operations analysis for an Page 4 of 14 |