The Collector
March 22, 2024
Cal Poly Humboldt to Hold Public Form on Campus Plans
Next Tuesday at 10 am, the university will host a forum to provide updates and hear feedback from the community on their campus development plans. We’re pleased that earlier plans to build expensive parking garages on campus were scrapped in favor of a focus on needed housing and academic facilities. But we still think the balance of housing to parking could be improved. There is also a need for more investments in safe bike and pedestrian infrastructure on and around campus, as well as expanded car-share and bike-share options.
Case Dismissed!
A local judge recently granted the Wiyot Tribe’s motion to dismiss one of the lawsuits seeking to block affordable housing on downtown Eureka parking lots. That means the tribe’s Dishgamu Humboldt Community Land Trust is free to continue pursuing its plans with the city to build housing on the lot at 5th and D Streets. Plans for the other lots, however – including the EaRTH Center housing and transit hub and the Linc Housing projects – are still threatened by the remaining lawsuits.
Senator McGuire to Host Humboldt Town Hall Next Week
It’s a great opportunity to let your representative in the state senate know about your transportation priorities! One important bill you could bring up is SB 960, the Caltrans Complete Streets Bill. This bill would significantly strengthen requirements for Caltrans to provide safe bike, pedestrian and transit infrastructure on state highways. Since many of our most dangerous local streets are technically state highways – think of Broadway, 4th and 5th Streets in Eureka, or Samoa Boulevard in Arcata – SB 960 would have a huge positive impact locally. The bill is scheduled for a hearing in a few weeks, and you can also take action to support complete streets by emailing Senate Transportation Committee members here.
Conversion of Arcata’s 8th & 9th Streets Completed This Week
The two streets were converted to single-lane, one-way streets from I Street to K Street, with added bike lanes and wider sidewalks. CRTP has participated in the planning for these changes since they were first proposed years ago as part of the Plaza Improvement Task Force. While we have a few quibbles with the final designs, we’re always happy to see more street space allocated to safe bike and pedestrian travel!
Report Bike Safety Issues on Street Story
If you have ever felt unsafe while biking because the street did not have a bike lane, or other bicycle facility, you are not alone. Many users have already begun reporting on the Street Story website about what streets they feel unsafe biking on due to a lack of bike facilities. This includes any bike lane gaps, a bicycle boulevard that needs to be a more rigorous designation, and any other issue or need for improvement you may come across. Join your fellow community members in making a report to get your concerns heard! – La versión de Street Story en español está disponible aquí.
News from Beyond the North Coast
How Can We Get Bike Lanes and Crosswalks More Quickly?
Let’s face it: we’re not building safe bike and pedestrian infrastructure nearly fast enough. Part of the problem is that each project is typically subject to its own long, drawn-out planning process that often sparks controversy without generating a productive outcome. One potential solution is the “quick-build” project, which is built quickly with materials that only last a few years. Quick-build techniques can get safety projects built fast, while allowing them to change over time in response to local experience – arguably a much better planning process than the one we have now.
More Than Half of Commuters Worldwide Use a Car
Car dependence is growing globally, and with that dependence comes a whole host of safety, public health, and environmental problems. But if you explore the data on how people in different cities commute, you’ll find plenty of inspiration – from Utrecht, Netherlands, where 75% of people commute by walking, biking or rolling, to La Paz, Bolivia, where 75% of commuters take public transit.
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.