2019

BIBIMBAP! Innovative policy to Speed up Bike and Ped Improvements

Walk Bike Berkeley worked with Councilmember Rigel Robinson to develop, build support for, and pass the Berkeley Initiative to Build Improvements for Mobility, Bicycles, and Pedestrians (BIBIMBAP). This big win requires the city to

• use quick-build strategies to implement bike and ped plans when streets are repaved, and

• dedicate at least 50% of the city’s repaving budget to bikeways and pedestrian high-injury streets as a pilot from 2022-2025.

When it comes to bicycle and pedestrian safety, we’re making sure that the City puts its money where its mouth is.

FUNDING for MOre city staff

For years the City’s Transportation Division has been short-staffed, slowing down safe streets projects. Walk Bike Berkeley successfully advocated for adding six transportation-focused positions as part of the 2020-2021 budget. They included a senior planner to move the City toward its Vision Zero of eliminating severe and fatal road injuries.

2018

BUILT COMMUNITY

Regular Walk Bike Berkeley happy hours provided a space for members to get to know each other, discuss local walking and biking issues, and organize activities.

GOT THE CITY TO SPEED UP MILVIA BIKEWAY IMPROVEMENTS

More people bike on the Milvia St. bicycle boulevard than any other bikeway in the city. But, with high vehicle traffic volumes and the lack of protected bike lanes, it’s also the bikeway with the most bicycle collisions. The city plans to build protected bike lanes in 2021. They also plan to repave Milvia south of Blake (where the pavement is hazardous to people on bikes) in 2020. These timelines are unacceptable.

Walk Bike Berkeley held the East Bay’s first people-protected bike lane protest to kick off a campaign to speed up the Milvia Bikeway project. Working with Bike East Bay, our advocacy led the Mayor to commit the city to building pilot protected bike lanes by Bike to Work Day 2019 (May 9).

Walk Bike Berkeley also successfully advocated for repaving Milvia from Blake to Russell in 2019 rather than 2020.

FOCUSED CALTRANS' ATTENTION ON A BERKELEY BICYCLE BOULEVARD CROSSING

Walk Bike Berkeley was pleased to learn that in 2019 Caltrans will install a beacon at Virginia St. and San Pablo Ave. to improve pedestrian safety. But, Viriginia is an important bicycle boulevard and Caltrans wasn't planning to make the beacon work for people crossing San Pablo on bikes. That may change due to Walk Bike Berkeley's advocacy.

CITY COUNCIL WINS

Walk Bike Berkeley successfully advocated for

• Inclusion of high-priority pedestrian and bicycle-focused road projects in the city's 2018-2019 Strategic Plan.

• Adoption of a Vision Zero policy and development of a multi-department action plan to prevent all fatalities and serious injuries on Berkeley's streets.

• Incorporation of the city’s bicycle plan recommendations into the city’s repaving policy and plans. Council referred this issue to Transportation and Public Works Commissions.