Community Walk to Identify Transportation Improvements

Posted on March 14, 2025 by Colin Fiske

The Collector

March 14, 2025

Community Walk to Identify Transportation Improvements

A satellite image shows part of Eureka's Broadway and surrounding areas, with the area bordered by Broadway, Henderson Street, Harris Street, and the alley behind Fairfield Street outlined in yellow. — *Sunset Heights project location. Image: City of Eureka.*

The city of Eureka and the non-profit Rural Communities Housing Development Corporation are applying for a big grant that would help fund the Sunset Heights affordable housing project as well as bike, pedestrian and transit improvements nearby. Following up on a recent community meeting about the project, the city and RCHDC are hosting a community walk along streets in the area next Thursday at noon to get more input on needed transportation improvements. CRTP is helping plan the walk, and we encourage anyone who lives, works or plays in this area to participate. And as always, we also encourage everyone to make reports on Street Story about hazards, crashes, and near-misses you’ve experienced in the area.

Arcata Committee Considers Important Safety Upgrades

A computer-generated overhead image shows an intersection of two two-lane streets with green bike lanes protected behind islands at all four corners and continuing through the intersection. — *A protected intersection concept for Alliance & Foster. Image: City of Arcata.*

As we previously reported, the Arcata Transportation Safety Committee recently began a new annual process of using Street Story and official crash reports as the basis for proposing specific low-cost safety upgrades to the City Council for implementation in the next year. The committee’s meeting next Tuesday will be devoted entirely to a discussion of possible safety projects. Committee members have submitted some exciting ideas for consideration, from buffered bike lanes on Giuntoli Lane to a protected bike intersection at Foster and Alliance and stop signs at 11th and Q Streets. We’ll be encouraging the city to fund as many upgrades as possible, and to make sure that they are well designed to achieve the goal of safe, comfortable transportation for people walking, biking and rolling.

Eureka’s Bay to Zoo Trail Project Reaches a New Phase

A satellite image of eastern Eureka shows the Bay to Zoo Trail proposed route in three sections: a green northern section, a yellow middle section, and an orange loop in the south. — *The proposed Bay to Zoo Trail route. Image: City of Eureka.*

Eureka’s Bay to Zoo Trail project, which the city has been planning for years and has secured millions in grant funds for development, is moving into a new phase: buying right-of-way to allow trail construction along portions of the route that traverse private property. At next Tuesday’s City Council meeting, Councilmembers are slated to award a contract to an outside company to help with right-of-way acquisition.

CRTP remains excited for this much-needed new bike and pedestrian connection between the Eureka waterfront and areas to the south, including the medical district and Sequoia Park Zoo. However, we also remain concerned that the part of the “trail” south of St. Joseph Hospital (orange in the map at left) is actually not a trail but just paint on the street, which does not provide the kind of safety and comfort required for users of all ages and abilities. We will continue to advocate for improvements to this section of the route, and to make sure that trail crossings of major streets are safely designed as well.

Regional Climate Action Plan Meeting on Tuesday

Next Tuesday evening at the Wharfinger Building in Eureka, Humboldt County will be hosting a public meeting about the Regional Climate Action Plan’s recently released Draft Environmental Impact Report. As we have reported previously, transportation accounts for about three quarters of the climate pollution covered by the plan, so improvements to walkability, bikeability and transit systems are critical parts of the plan.

News from Beyond the North Coast

Trump Administration Looks to Cancel All Bike Lane Funding

The US Department of Transportation has ordered officials to flag all federal grants for projects focused on bike infrastructure or other climate-focused or “green” transportation grants. According to the memo this week, bike lanes and related projects fall into the category of “climate, equity and other priorities counter to the Administration’s executive orders.” Experts expect any federally funded projects containing bike, pedestrian or zero-emission vehicle infrastructure to be canceled or forced to remove those elements.

Advocates Demand $2 Billion for Transit in State Budget

Transit agencies across California are still facing major funding shortfalls, and many of the state’s biggest transit systems could be forced to cut service next year without significant state funding.

When Driving is Less Convenient, More People Bike

American decision-makers have spent the last century overhauling communities and spending trillions of dollars to make it easy and convenient to drive – and inconvenient and unsafe to get around any other way. So while adding safer bike infrastructure is critically important, most people won’t choose to bike (or walk or ride the bus) unless we also address the historical inequities and make it a little less convenient to drive.

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.