Reed District Safe Routes to Schools Task Force
Reed District Safe Routes to Schools Task Force
Meeting Notes
Tuesday, February 2, 2016
Attended: Wendi Kallins- Safe Routes to Schools, Peggy Clark- Safe Routes to Schools, Pat Barnes- DPW Director, James Campbell-City of Belvedere, Alice Fredericks- Mayor of Tiburon, Kathy McLeod- Outreach Coordinator, Tricia Seyler- Chief of Police, Peter Winkler
Continued discussion on priority of infrastructure issues around and along routes to Reed Schools
Greenwood Beach Road
Pat Barnes identified this road as an important issue for the town BPAC and Safe Routes to Schools at this time. The residents of Greenwood Beach Road have expressed to the BPAC their opposition to designating it as a Class 2 route for cyclists. They do not want the recreational cyclists to be directed to cycle on this County road. It is not a private road. On Jan 19 a large group of residents attended a meeting; the BPAC listened to their protest to all recommendations. The residents do not want the riding clubs that tend to travel fast and in big groups on Greenwood Beach Road. They want signs directed to cyclists be removed.
Safe Routes to Schools contacts did not know there was a meeting, if they did they would have encouraged school parents to attend. In the future SR2S would like to know about future meetings at least 2 weeks in advance and invite the school community. It would be helpful for the residents to hear from students on why Greenwood Beach Road is a preferred route to school.
The town is committed to addressing the crossing onto Greenwood Beach road and making it safe for all road users.
Task Force members stated if the residents of Greenwood understood the road is a valuable and recommended safe route for students cycling to/from school they may support efforts to sign the street as a school route; while encouraging the faster cyclists to use Tiburon Blvd.
The BPAC believes that cycling clubs should proceed at promenade pace on Greenwood Beach Road or use Tiburon Blvd between Blackfield and Blackie’s Pasture. Tiburon Blvd. is not a safe route for tourists or students cyclists. There are areas on Tiburon Blvd that constantly have debris and glass in the lane cyclists travel. This does not encourage them to use Tiburon Blvd. It would be helpful to get volunteers to clean the road. Caltrans does not make it a priority; a volunteer effort would be good however the road is unsafe for people out picking up trash with so many vehicles. The section of road that needs to be cleaned is from the Cove to the town welcome sign. The town does tend to keep the roadside clear.
It was recommended:
● The police collect data on how fast vehicles are traveling and provide the community with current numbers.
●A letter be sent to the cycling groups and clubs reminding them of the laws and best safe practices.
●The town use road signage that is specific to identifying school routes. Remind vehicle drivers they are on a school route. Consider painting sharrow vs. posting street signs.
● SR2S asked if it would be a good idea to invite Greenwood Beach residents to a task force meeting to discuss their concerns.
Cove Plaza – Students are still passing through the parking lot unsafely. The future route maps will be helpful to directing students on a recommended route outside of the parking lot.
Crossing Guards-- TAM is addressing the issues with the crossing guards in Tiburon, additional training and recruitment is being conducted.
Bike storage-- Fifteen children from the Hilarita housing complex were recently awarded bicycles. The challenge is there is no secure storage for the bikes. It would be very helpful to construct an enclosure with a roof to protect the bikes for sun and rain; there is space on the property.
The Bay Area Management Quality program could be a resource to obtain bike racks. An estimated cost of $4,000 plus the foundation was suggested. Kathy has spoken with the President of the Board and he supports the idea if the Board approves. She will continue to work with the Board and resident group to build consensus on this proposed project and contact the Town if funds are needed to build the enclosure.
Route Maps-- The Town of Tiburon plans to have the Pedestrian and Bicycle Maps completed by May. These maps show the main bike routes through the town and proposed pedestrian projects. Safe Routes to Schools needs to identify the specific routes to and from the schools that are the preferred routes.. Most of the schools routes will be straightforward. Bel Aire School could have 2-4 routes identified.
There is a safety issue with students cycling on Stewart Drive. It is not a recommended route for students; when they get to Tiburon Blvd they are crossing unsafely at Stewart Dr.. The student riders do not take the time to go down to the crossing guard at Miraflores to get to Del Mar School. They do not want to wait; there is no crossing guard at Stewart Dr.
The “advanced flashing lights” do not help warn motorists of people crossing. Vehicle drivers have become numb to the flashing lights. It was suggested that Caltrans be contacted regarding the safety issues with these lights. The lights tend to flash longer than it takes the average person to cross the street and some drivers do not wait. Pat informed the group that this is required. Most people cross faster than slow people, but the lights must accommodate the slower people. Stewart Drive has the highest volume of recorded traffic collisions.
To move forward on developing the school routes, Wendi recommended that Kathy work with the parents leading the Bike Train to identify their preferred routes. She would like to start with the bike routes and then develop pedestrian routes to the schools. The 2008 Master Plan has a list of the paths, but there is no map that shows all of them. Pat offered to provide Wendi with the most current list.
Safe Routes to School's is experienced with developing official route maps, which include identification of key points like crossing guards and controlled intersections. The next Task Force meeting will be a working session on identifying the recommended safe routes.
Report on Yellow Bus Progress--
There has been a noticeable reduction in traffic congestion. One indicator is the public transit buses are experience a decrease in their travel time due to less traffic.
The bus service First Student has had several issues to provide the level of service agreed upon. Marin Transit is exploring developing their own fleet of yellow buses because of the lack of industry providers. There are other school districts exploring offering yellow bus service in the next year or two. Mill Valley coordinators have asked to meet with Tiburon to learn more about the service.
The next meeting will be Tuesday- May 3rd at 8:30AM