The Collector
August 30, 2024
Can Roundabouts Be for Everyone?
Roundabouts significantly increase safety for drivers, which is great. They also move more cars than other types of intersections, which may not be so great. But most importantly, people walking, biking and rolling have different needs than drivers, and many roundabouts fail to provide a safe and comfortable experience for non-drivers – especially for pedestrians with disabilities. As local planners and engineers increasingly turn to roundabouts as a solution to street safety problems, the safety and comfort of non-drivers must be central to their designs, not an afterthought. For more on this topic, check out CRTP’s article in the September issue of the EcoNews.
Help Encourage Your Friends & Neighbors to Use Street Story
We are looking for folks who want to film a short video with us about a location they want to highlight and make a report about on Street Story! These videos will be used on our social media to help promote Street Story reporting and give folks ideas for reports. Click here for an example!
We also have Street Story outreach materials we can provide, such as flyers and brochures for your business, workplace, or local bulletin board, or to share with friends, neighbors and co-workers.
If you’re interested in either of these opportunities, please email Kelsey@transportationpriorities.org.
Don’t Forget to Register for the Week Without Driving!
For the second year in a row, we are challenging elected officials, transportation and planning professionals, activists and advocates to try not getting behind the wheel for a week – and in the process to get a first-hand experience of what daily life can be like for local non-drivers. The 2024 Week Without Driving runs from September 30th to October 6th. But please note: if you already have commitments that week and know you’ll have to drive some, we still encourage you to take the pledge and stick to it when you’re able. We won’t be mad at you for not making it the whole week – we just want you to consider what you would have done if you didn’t have the option to drive, either because of age, or disability, or because you couldn’t afford a car. Click here to find out more and take the pledge.
News from Beyond the North Coast
Caltrans Complete Streets Bill Heads to Governor’s Desk
SB 960 has been amended numerous times during the legislative process. It may not be quite as revolutionary as it was before those amendments, but it would still introduce significant new accountability measures and direct Caltrans to provide more bike, pedestrian, and public transit facilities on state highways – including community main streets in our region from Eureka’s 4th and 5th Streets to Highway 299 in Willow Creek. Click here to ask Governor Newsom to sign the bill.
New Bill in Congress to Address Unsafe Pickups & SUVs
Bigger vehicles are more dangerous for people walking, biking and rolling, and the increasing size and height of pickup trucks and SUVs is resulting in the deaths of more and more pedestrians and bicyclists every year. A new bill introduced in the US House of Representatives would address this problem by finally forcing the federal government to develop vehicle safety standards that consider not just the driver and passengers, but people outside the vehicle too.
Complete Streets Are Good for Business
We have long known that retrofitting streets with bike lanes, bike parking, bulbouts, and other pedestrian features increases safety and encourages more walking and biking. A new study finds that these projects also spur job creation and attract more (and more diverse) residents to the area.
The Collector is CRTP’s weekly transportation news roundup, published every Friday. We focus on North Coast news, but we also include relevant state, national and international transportation news – plus other items that we just find kind of interesting! To submit items for consideration, email colin@transportationpriorities.org.