City of Mountain View

Minutes

Bicycle/Pedestrian Advisory Committee

Wednesday, March 27, 2024

6:30 PM

Plaza Conference Room and Video Conference,

500 Castro St., Mountain View, CA 94041

CALL TO ORDER

Stone called the meeting to order at 6:30 p.m.

ROLL CALL

Staff members present: Transportation Manager Ria Hutabarat Lo, Active Transportation Planner Brandon

Whyte, Transportation Planner Priyoti Ahmed.

Twelve members of the public were present, all were online.

5 -

Present

Committee Member Lada Adamic, Committee Member Valerie Fenwick, Committee Member

James Kuszmaul, Vice Chair Terry Barton, and Chair John Stone

ORAL COMMUNICATIONS FROM THE PUBLIC

No public comment.

CONSENT

(00:02:04)

(00:02:44) Adamic requested that the meeting minutes be removed from the consent calendar.

MOTION (00:03:42) Approve the remainder of the consent calendar.

Kuszmaul/Fenwick – 5/0/0 passed

Yes:

5 -

Committee Member Adamic, Committee Member Fenwick, Committee Member Kuszmaul, Vice

Chair Barton, and Chair Stone

Meeting Minutes January 31, 2024

(00:04:24)

4.1

Adamic indicated that the minutes did not capture her concern that the pilot will negatively impact the use of

pedestrian and bicycle facilities and this impact should be studied.

MOTION: (00:07:39) Approve the minutes from the BPAC meeting on January 31, 2024 with the following

edits:

Change “how it affects their enjoyment of sidewalks” to “how it affects their enjoyment and the useability of

sidewalks”.

Add “but became negative after the pilot due to difficulties navigating the sidewalk” after “She indicated that

she had been neutral before the pilot”.

Adamic/Kuszmaul – 5-0-0 passed.

Yes:

5 -

Committee Member Adamic, Committee Member Fenwick, Committee Member Kuszmaul, Vice

Chair Barton, and Chair Stone

Safe Routes to School Final Report 2019-2023

Approved via consent calendar.

4.2

UNFINISHED BUSINESS

NEW BUSINESS

Vision Zero Action Plan and Local Road Safety Plan

(00:09:08)

6.1

Ahmed provided a presentation on the VZAP/LRSP Final Report.

Public comment: (00:35:45)

Bruce England noted that near misses are not shown and explained that community members would like to

elevate Dana Street (S-19). He suggested Office of Traffic Safety funding for non-infrastructure

recommendations and requested that reflective straps and lights be added to giveaways. In addition, he

requested staff to continue providing legislative updates to BPAC and asked when the VZAP update would

start. He also asked how the Neighborhood Traffic Management Program could be strengthened and

suggested that bike repair include bikes in the custody of the Public Works or Police Department. Finally, he

requested consistency in collision reporting and near-miss data.

Nicholas Hargis thanked staff for the plan and upcoming work on Rengstorff. He suggested that staff explore

right-on-red turn restrictions during school hours, such as in Menlo Park. He also supported high visibility

crossings, especially on routes to school, and advanced stop bars before crosswalks.

Silja Paymer suggested motorist education on window tinting restrictions, which affect children’s ability to

make eye contact. She also requested crosswalk enforcement along Cuesta Drive and converting traffic

circles into roundabouts to slow motorists.

Holger Isenberg noted the high number of collisions involving drivers going parallel to bikes and asked about

collisions caused by distraction with drivers on the phone. He suggested that the first step toward

no-right-turn-on-red (NRTOR) would be enforcing stopping on red as required.

Emil Abraham appreciated the data and the work with Caltrans. He also supported NRTOR restrictions and

more roundabouts.

Mary Dateo appreciated the work on this report and requested a strategy to adopt narrow lanes where

possible to reduce speeds.

Committee comment: (00:47:30)

Barton appreciated the data-driven approach. He noted that a bicyclist who was knocked over by a motorist

was informed that the Police do not take collision reports if there are no apparent injuries and requested that

the Police always file a report if someone is knocked off their bike since they may not notice injuries

immediately.

Adamic appreciated the report. She noted that she regularly encounters vehicles parked in the bike lanes

and was informed that the City had issued 113 red curb and 13 bike lane citations. For a project tracker, she

would like information on the project stage so the public can find out what is being worked on. She has heard

many requests for NRTOR and requested an opportunity for the committee and public to discuss strategies

to restrict turning-on-red. Finally, she appreciated that the SRTS Report addressed all schools and asked if

there could be similar efficiencies in delivering design treatments everywhere.

Fenwick expressed shock that bike collisions do not routinely generate police reports since insurance would

request that report when injuries become apparent. She asked how autonomous vehicles appear in this plan

and expressed concern about new vehicles with sharp, pointy corners. She also noted that the City has

NRTOR in a few locations, such as Montecito and Rengstorff, and suggested NRTOR along the High Injury

Network (HIN), Leading Pedestrian Intervals at signalized intersections and narrower lanes in residential

neighborhoods and along the HIN. She also noted that trees will help to reduce speeds and suggested

additional enforcement, including at stop signs. Additionally, she supported detached sidewalks to improve

pedestrian daylighting and suggested an action to complete the sidewalk network, such as on Wright

Avenue. She feels that the excuse about not completing sidewalks due to lack of redevelopment is outdated

since people will cross the street at these locations. She also noted that some projects, such as Shoreline

Pathway, take many years to complete, and would like Public Works to focus on completing projects

sequentially to shorten time.

Kuszmaul asked about red light cameras and requested further information on how to implement them. He

appreciated the crash and project maps and is concerned that the City will not achieve the Vision Zero goal

by 2030. He also wonders which current projects are not on the HIN. He appreciated CC-5, including

evaluation on crashes, and is glad that the police department is part of the VZWG. He hopes that

enforcement will be conspicuous and focused on the greatest issues.

Stone was concerned about BPAC receiving data on pedestrian- or bicycle-involved collisions and requested

information on police officers being called to a location due to a collision with a bicyclist or pedestrian. He

expressed concern about the speed of implementation and the likelihood of achieving goals by 2030 and felt

that updated standards, such as adopting MassDoT guidance, could help. He also requested rapid

implementation and periodic (quarterly or annual) progress reports on action items, as well as time and cost

estimates.

BPAC Fiscal Year 2023-24 Work Plan

(01:14:44)

6.2

Whyte presented information on the current Work Plan and Tentative Agenda List.

No public comments.

No committee comments.

Draft Fiscal Year 2024-25 Work Plan

(01:17:44)

6.3

Whyte presented information on the draft 2024-25 Work Plan.

No public comments.

Committee comments: (01:27:44)

Kuszmaul, Fenwick, and Barton suggested a joint meeting with the Parks and Recreation Committee to

discuss trails.

Stone and Adamic asked for a discussion of NRTOR.

Kuszmaul suggested that BPAC be consulted on precise plans.

Fenwick noted that she has been on BPAC for nearly eight years and has not seen a private development

project (item E) come to the committee. She appreciated that moving fast may make it difficult to squeeze

topics onto multiple advisory committee agendas and would appreciate a way for the Council to refer items

early in the process. For example, Pachetti in San Antonio could have benefited from review. Alternatively, if

developments do not come to BPAC, she would appreciate notice that important projects are going to the

Council. She also requested that projects be named in such a way as to make it easy for people to

understand what they are.

Adamic noted a recent parking lot development at 24 Hour Fitness that does not allow pedestrians or

bicyclists to access the site. She would be interested in expressing interest to the Council in being

consulted in relation to upcoming precise plans. Finally, Adamic requested transparency tools on City

projects (item D) to help understand the state of projects and advocate for planned improvements.

Stone hoped that larger private developments or City capital projects that affect a significant portion of the

roadway could come to the BPAC. He also hoped that good standards could be implemented with the Active

Transportation Plan.

Barton noted that development conditions are negotiated with the City, and he observed that the San Antonio

developer steered the discussion to bike racks, not pedestrian and bicycle circulation.

Motions: (02:00:11)

MOTION – Request a work item to discuss potential modifications to City ordinances related to NRTOR at

specific locations such as on the high injury network.

Fenwick/Adamic – 5-0-0 passed

MOTION – BPAC requests a presentation from Parks and Recreation staff about how they are planning for

and accommodating active transportation in their activities and facilities.

Kuszmaul/Stone - 3-0-2 passed (Fenwick and Barton abstain)

MOTION – BPAC requests that staff presents any precise plans that are in review include bicycle- and

pedestrian-related elements. 5/0/0 pass

Fenwick/Stone – 5-0-0 passed

MOTION – BPAC requests that staff maintains a list of active transportation projects that indicate their

current status and presents this information on the website with periodic updates at BPAC meetings. 5/0/0

passed

Fenwick/Adamic – 5-0-0 passed

Yes:

5 -

Committee Member Adamic, Committee Member Fenwick, Committee Member Kuszmaul, Vice

Chair Barton, and Chair Stone

Santa Clara Valley Transportation Agency (VTA) Bicycle & Pedestrian Advisory

Committee (BPAC) Update

6.4

(02:11:04)

Adamic reported on the VTA BPAC in March 2024, including a discussion on Equitable VMT Mitigation

efforts, 101/Zanker Road Highway Interchange project, Bascom Avenue Complete Streets Improvements, and

grant funding opportunities. Additionally, the February 2024 meeting included a a discussion of Design

Information Bulletin 94, Monterrey Corridor in San Jose, Highway 9 and Highway 17 improvements. She also

noted that she will be traveling and would suggest that someone take her place who can make more

meetings.

No public comments.

No committee comments.

COMMITTEE/STAFF ANNOUNCEMENTS, UPDATES, REQUESTS, AND COMMITTEE REPORTS

7.1. Staff Comments

Whyte provided updates on Evelyn Technical Assistance, a new 3-way stop at Del Medio/Milla, crossing

improvements at Mountain View/Ernestine, and staffing updates. He also highlighted upcoming bike rides on

March 30, April 20 and April 26, and he provided updates on AskMV to September 2023.

No public comments.

No committee comments.

7.2. Committee Comments

Fenwick noted many small improvements on Castro, with many people using it on the weekend. She also

noticed that the traffic signals for north-south movement have been removed and pedestrian signals trigger

vehicles immediately.

SET DATE AND TIME FOR NEXT MEETING:

April 24, 2024 at 6:30 p.m.

CALENDAR

10. ADJOURNMENT

Stone adjourned the meeting at 8:59 p.m.

Meeting minutes submitted for approval by Brandon Whyte.

Approved as amended on April 24, 2024