Deb Hubsmith speaks to a large crowd celebrating the opening of the Cal Park tunnel.

Deb Hubsmith, a cycling zealot whose political savvy blazed many North Bay bike paths over the past 13 years, will step down as advocacy director for the Marin County Bicycle Coalition to focus on the national Safe Routes to School program she founded.

Hubsmith will remain an advisor to the Marin coalition while handing off most of her lobbying work in July to Andy Peri, who’s served on the group’s advocacy team for five years.

With bicycling growing rapidly in Marin — the number of weekday cyclists rose 135 percent during her tenure — Hubsmith said it was a good time to make a change in the local organization.

“At the national level, however, we’re struggling with a new Congress, many of whom are trying to eliminate bicycle and pedestrian funding,” she said in a statement. “It’s time for me to have an increased focus on national level policies.”

She expressed confidence her national work “will help bring more funding” for cycling facilities in Marin. Her efforts have already helped to bring $100 million in funding to Marin to build bikeways, tunnels and other projects.

As a founding board member, Hubsmith served as MCBC’s first executive director from 1998-2005, establishing the group’s position as an early leader in the national alternative transportation movement.

She championed the $27 million Cal Park tunnel project for 12 years. At its opening in December, she called it proof that “vision, tenacity and will can truly make miracles happen.”

She was also instrumental in securing $25 million in federal funding for Marin’s part of the Nonmotorized Transportation Pilot Program.

Train Advocate

For more than a decade, Hubsmith has helped promote the Sonoma Marin Area Rail Transit (SMART) project that initially promised to include a parallel bike path running from Larkspur to Cloverdale. The Cal Park tunnel project and the recently opened Lincoln Hill bike path in San Rafael are small sections of that route.

Although SMART is scaling back its ambitions due to deep budget deficits, Hubsmith managed to keep two-thirds of the bike path in the plan.

In 2000, Hubsmith proposed a pilot Safe Routes to Schools program to Rep. James Oberstar (D-Minn.), which resulted in a federal contract for MCBC to work with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration on a national model. That grew into the Safe Routes to School National Partnership, which now involves 550 organizations in all 50 states.

In 2005, as the Safe Routes and the nonmotorized pilot project were taking off, Hubsmith turned the job of executive director over to Kim Baenisch, who has run MCBC for the past six years.

In Hubsmith’s new role, she’ll continue to serve as MCBC’s representative on the Bay Area Bicycle Coalition while also serving as chair of the California Safe Routes to School network and as director of the Safe Routes to School National Partnership.

Peri’s Challenges

New MCBC Advocacy Director Andy Peri.

Peri’s five years in the coalition have put him at the forefront of numerous local cycling issues, including MCBC’s campaign to reopen the Alto Tunnel that would connect bike paths in Corte Madera and Mill Valley via a long-abandoned railway passage beneath the steep-but-popular Camino Alto route.

He’s also been the coalition’s point person in addressing the Golden Gate Bridge district’s proposal for a 10 mph speed limit for cyclists using the span.

“After five years on MCBC’s advocacy staff, I’m excited to be moving into the Advocacy Director position,” he said. “The transition has been smooth and virtually seamless due to my ever expanding roles within the organization and on projects throughout the county.”

Golden Gate Bridge District directors meet today. Photo: Tom Murphy

Golden Gate Bridge directors today tabled their staff’s surprise proposal for a 10 mph speed limit for bicycles after outraged cycling advocates denounced the plan as everything from a “half-baked idea” to a “solution in search of a problem.”

The bridge’s Building and Operating Committee received more than 60 complaints prior to the hearing, then heard another hour’s worth of criticism from several prominent bicycling organizations that were intentionally excluded from a year-long, $25,000 study of cycling safety.

“Creating controversy and outrage among cyclists is hardly the proper way to engage the community,” San Francisco Triathlon Club member Dino Piacentini told the committee. “I’m a little concerned about the anger and frustration in the community.”

After hearing concerns from the bicycle groups, and several more from district directors, the committee put off the vote indefinitely, directing its staff to work with the cycling community to refine the proposal, a process that is likely to take months.

While cyclists won a reprieve, they’ll still have to slow down on the bridge this summer. On May 9, the bridge will close its bike-only western sidewalks for four months of maintenance work, forcing thousands of daily cyclists to share the jammed eastern sidewalks with up to 10,000 pedestrians. Director Barbara Pahre suggested a need for an interim plan to deal with the crowding, but no ideas came forth.

Stealth Planning

This week’s sudden call for the speed limit came after what General Manager Denis Mulligan called a “confidential” study by Alta Planning & Design. Alta officials told Streetsblog they were instructed by the district not to discuss the report.

In addition to a 10 mph speed limit and $100 fines for most of the bridge, the plan would impose a 5 mph limit around the towers and when maintenance work is underway. Maintenance workers are a constant presence on the bridge on weekdays. The proposal also called for creating separate lanes for bikes and pedestrians on the bridge’s eastern sidewalk. Finally, the plan would also ban unicycles, bikes with seats more than 4 feet high.

Everyone at the hearing agreed safety is important. Mulligan drove that home by noting one cyclist became a quadriplegic after a high-speed, head-on crash. But the secrecy surrounding the planning project reflected a still-unexplained aberration for the district, which typically works closely with the bicycling groups on safety and transit issues.

“We were quite surprised to get our first notice of this study and proposal a few days ago,” Andy Thornley, policy director for the 12,000-member San Francisco Bicycle Coalition, told the committee. “We certainly could have helped change the proposal to avoid much of the negative media and public outcry … Shouldn’t you get a proposal that is properly developed instead of a half-baked idea that we’re going to spend months working on?”

Marin County Bicycle Coalition Advocacy Director Andy Peri said his group’s “primary” goal is to enhance safety, but it “doesn’t want to see policies that are going to discourage bicycling.”  He urged the committee to allow as much time as needed to come up with a better plan.

Similarly, Bike and Roll Policy Director David Hoffman noted his company rents 100,000 bikes a year to tourists, with 90 percent of them heading over the bridge.

“Frankly, I’m a little disappointed that I’m sitting at a table discussing this with the bridge district rather than having the bicycle rental companies involved in the process of this study,” Hoffman said.  “It’s incredibly important to involve your stakeholders – the people who are sending hundreds of thousands of bicycles over the bridge every year – in this process.”

Mission Cycling member Neil Gehani said, “I’m wondering if this is a solution in search of a problem rather than trying to solve a real problem.”

Although Mulligan hoped for a 30-day delay, the process is likely take months. When the plan does come back to the committee, there’s a good chance it will address a broader range of topics. Several of the organizations stressed that they were eager to work with the district on safety issues that go beyond the speed of the bicycle.

Crash Causes

The bridge sidewalk narrows to 5.5 feet at some points, leaving a narrow margin for oncoming bikes to pass one another or to maneuver around pedestrians. Image: Alta Planning & Design

The Alta report focused almost exclusively on speed, which was cited as a primary factor in just 39 percent of the 164 bike crashes on the bridge over the 10-year period from 2000-2009.  Absent from the discussion were the causes of the 61 percent of the crashes that weren’t attributed to speed, such as slippery metal plates on the bikepath or gusty winds around the towers – problems that could be mitigated through improved design.

District Director Dave Snyder said he’d like to know if the other cyclists hit something, were drunk or crashed for some other reason.

The bridge sidewalk is 10 feet wide with clear sightlines, but narrows to 5.5 feet near the pylons where the bridge cable is anchored, leaving little margin for error as two oncoming cyclists pass each other. The path is just 7.5 feet wide as cyclists roll into the blind turns at the towers, where some cyclists get distracted by the wind and the bumpy plates on the sidewalk.

While those conditions will surely be addressed in coming weeks, some directors already seemed amenable to compromises.  Snyder, for example, questioned whether it’s really necessary to ban unicycles, which was part of the staff proposal.  And Director Dick Grosboll suggested it might be possible to exclude early morning commuters from the speed limit, if one is ever adopted.

The proposed configuration for the east sidewalk. Image: Alta Planning & Design

The Golden Gate Bridge staff wants to impose a 10 mph speed limit on bicyclists – with a $100 fine for violators – following a year-long study that excluded input from local cycling groups.

The speed limit would drop to 5 mph around the blind corners of the bridge’s towers and in construction areas.  There currently is no speed limit for bicycles on the bridge.

The plan is intended to reduce bike-related collisions. With up to 6,000 cyclists using the bridge on busy days, the study says speed was cited as a factor in 64 crashes during the decade from 2000 to 2009.  The other 101 bike crashes during that time were attributed to causes like inexperience.

The proposal is likely to spark controversy among cyclists, in part because the speed limit is 15 mph on almost all other bike paths in the San Francisco Bay Area. The plan will be discussed at 10 a.m. tomorrow at a public meeting of the bridge’s Building and Operations Committee at the bridge toll plaza. If approved by the committee, the bridge district board would take up the matter on May 13.

“Our initial concern is that this was released, and a hearing scheduled, without us even knowing about it,” said Andy Peri, a spokesperson for the Marin County Bicycle Coalition. “We’re hoping we move forward to work collaboratively on this process because this was brought forward without any input from us at all, and we have a lot of comments we’d like to make on these recommendations.”

According to the study, most crashes occurred on the bridge’s bike-only west side, where the average speed of cyclists was estimated at 10-13 mph on flat portions and 13-17 mph on the downhill areas. Those speeds would put most cyclists in violation of the proposed limits.

Faster Riders

The report said the greatest “potential” for crashes involved experienced “road cyclists” who, on average, cruise at 17 mph on the uphills, 20 mph on the flats and 23 mph on the downhills of the bridge’s western sidewalks. However, the report doesn’t say whether this group, which makes up about 10 percent of all cyclists, was actually involved in more crashes. Nor does it break out the number of crashes involving tourists on rental bikes.

The speed limits would be enforced by bike-mounted California Highway Patrol officers, whose main goal is to reduce accidents, according to Officer Chris Rardin, a spokesperson for the CHP’s Marin office.

“We would prefer to do that through education and engineering, and to use enforcement as a last-ditch effort. We have not been approached by the bridge to provide that,” said Rardin. “We had no input on what the speed limit should be or what the fines should be or anything like that. Our only input in this entire matter was whether it was legal for us to enforce the speed limit.”

Neither the bridge district nor the CHP would receive the revenue generated by the fines, according to both Rardin and bridge spokesperson Mary Currie. That money would go to either San Francisco or Marin counties, depending on where the ticket was issued.

“I think a 10 mph speed limit would raise such an alarm among so many of us that the result could be a Bridge-specific Critical Mass,” said Roger Marquis, a former Northern California Coaching Director for the U.S. Cycling Federation. “It would be a powerful incentive to get together for many of us who otherwise avoid the Critical Mass crowd.”

Bike Lanes

The plan also would create separate lanes for bikes and pedestrians on the east sidewalk. That could ease the mid-day congestion that, while frustrating to both groups, currently helps to minimize the number of serious accidents.

“The congestion itself controls the bicycle speeds on the east sidewalk, and thus plays an important role in controlling the severity of injuries resulting from the bicycle accidents on the east sidewalk,” said the report, which was prepared by Alta Planning & Design.

Alta Project Manager Brett Hondorp declined to answer any questions about the study, saying his firm had been ordered by the bridge district not to comment.

According to the report, about 2,500 cyclists use the bridge on a weekday, including 600 who ride on the bike-only western sidewalk after it opens at 3:30 p.m. About 1,900 cyclists and 4,200 pedestrians share the eastern sidewalk on weekdays.

An estimated 4,600 cyclists ride on the west side on weekend days, according to the study. And the total of cyclists on the bridge soars to about 6,000 on the busiest days.

Of the 165 total crashes, 51 percent occurred on the west side and 48 percent on the east side. It wasn’t specified where the other 1 percent occurred.

“To be sure, the number of bicycle accidents on the west sidewalk is not increasing nearly as quickly as the number of cyclists on the sidewalks,” the staff report said. “Moreover, the vast majority of the incidents that do occur generally have not resulted in significant injuries.”

There were 16 head-on crashes on the west side, with just one resulting in serious injuries, in 2005, the staff said.

Past Discussion

The idea of a speed limit came up twice before, in 2000 and 2003. It was rejected both times, partly because speed “did not appear to be a dominant factor in the majority of bicycle incidents” and partly because neither the bridge district nor the CHP wanted to assume responsibility for enforcement, according to a staff summary.

At those times, the district worked with the local cycling groups and bike rental companies to develop safe-riding guidelines. The accident rate has risen slightly since then “as the number of bicyclists using the bridge rapidly has increased,” a staff report said.

Currie said local bike groups will have an opportunity to comment on the proposals, now that the district’s study is complete. Alta, the consulting group, worked only with other public agencies in preparing the data, she said, although several out-of-state cycling and transportation groups are cited among the report’s 30 references.

Currie said the 10 mph speed limit was proposed in deference to the “configuration and geometry” of the bridge’s design.  The main sidewalks are mostly 10 feet wide with clear sightlines, but narrow to as little as 5.5 feet near bridge pylons and 7.5 feet near the towers.

Asked why the report doesn’t address solutions for the 61 percent of crashes that aren’t caused by speed, Currie acknowledged there is a “data gap” in the report.

“Personally, I ride a bike on the bridge” with a cyclometer, she added. Asked if she typically stays under 10 mph, she said, “I probably could.”

Some of the first cyclists to ride through the tunnel after the ceremonial opening. Photos: Tom Murphy

Hundreds of joyous Marin County cyclists pedaled through the Cal Park Hill tunnel Friday afternoon as officials cut the ribbon on a $27 million holiday present that supporters hailed as a national model for green transportation.

The 124-year-old railroad tunnel, sealed after a fire in 1990, connects the Larkspur Ferry landing to San Rafael, trimming 10-15 minutes from the trip for the average cyclist. A separate, enclosed tube will allow light-rail trains to reach Larkspur when the SMART system is built years from now, the next step in what several speakers referred to as “the vision” for transportation.

“This is truly a testament for our vision of a multimodal transportation system for Marin County,” said San Rafael Mayor Al Boro. “It links bicycles, pedestrians, buses and passenger trains, ultimately with a choice of how they want to go to and from their destination.”

The striped bikeway features four video cameras, emergency phones, ventilation, LED lighting, cell service and fire alarms. In addition to the 1,106-foot tunnel, class 1 bike paths connect to Sir Francis Drake Blvd and Anderson Road, bringing the total length of the project to 1.1 miles. It will be open daily from 5 a.m. to 11 p.m. with expectations of up to 800,000 riders per year.

“It’s such a world-class facility that it’s going to be a model for the nation,” said Deb Hubsmith, the advocacy director for the Marin County Bike Coalition (MCBC) who led a twelve-year grassroots campaign to reopen the tunnel.

“It’s taken all kinds of collaborations and agencies to bring it together,” she told Streetsblog in an interview. “It shows that vision, tenacity and will can truly make miracles happen.”

At the opening, Hubsmith drew loud cheers by saying the vision is important “so that we can shift and get people out of their cars, so that we can be healthier, so that we can be fitter, so that we can use less oil, and so that we can be happier. Tell me, do you have more fun sitting in traffic, or do you have more fun bicycling?”

A Long Road

The tunnel’s re-opening was first proposed in 1993 by Transportation Alternatives for Marin (TAM), an organization led by Patrick Seidler, the president of Wilderness Trail Bikes. Seidler used to ride his Stingray bike through the old tunnel as a child. Over the last 17 years, rising costs, engineering challenges and political debates added to the project’s difficulty.

For Marin cyclists, the tunnel adds a critical link to the north-south bikeway that will eventually run from the Golden Gate Bridge to Cloverdale in Sonoma County. The route will include bike paths along the planned 70-mile SMART route. The tunnel project also connects with two east-west bike routes leading toward Larkspur and the Ross Valley.  A new north-south link provides a lighted class 1 path over Lincoln Hill from San Rafael to the Civic Center.

MCBC's Deb Hubsmith addresses the crowd.

“I think it took about eight minutes off my ride and it’s much safer,” said Bob Ulrich, a San Rafael cyclist who was among the first to complete the two-minute ride through the tunnel. “I absolutely love it.”

The tunnel is also a hit with disabled residents like Jessie Sandoval, a systems change advocate for the Marin Center for Independent Living. “It means more independence and having a better route to get around Marin,” she said after rolling through the tunnel at 9 mph in a motorized wheelchair that carries her 20 miles between charges.

The Next Tunnel

MCBC and TAM are also leading efforts to re-open the Alto Tunnel, which runs under Camino Alto between Mill Valley and Corte Madera. That tunnel is half as wide and twice as long as Cal Park, but is believed to be in much worse shape. It is filled with rotten timbers, mud and rock. Engineers also believe there have been multiple collapses inside.

While the Cal Park tunnel is in a commercial area, the Alto project would bring bicycling traffic into two quiet residential neighborhoods where many residents are worried about the environmental impacts. “For Alto, the Cal Park tunnel is going to open the door so people can see the Alto tunnel would work, too,” Hubsmith said in the interview.

Ironically, while voter approval of the SMART line helped justify re-opening the Cal Park tunnel, the rail project has been sidetracked by budget problems. A $350 million shortfall in anticipated sales-tax revenue forced the transit system’s board to scale back its plans. SMART now hopes to start service with trains between Santa Rosa and the Marin Civic Center.

Opponents are calling for a repeal of the sales tax, saying SMART is proving it cannot live up to the promises it made to voters. County supervisors have urged the SMART board to postpone any major expenditures pending an independent review of its finances. Supervisor Steve Kinsey, who pushed hard for the tunnel project for several years, recently said SMART now faces “a crisis of confidence.”

“We don’t have the high speed rail, but we do have the high-speed trail, and a low-speed walking trail,” Kinsey said at the tunnel opening. “This is for all of us to use in the way we want to use it.”

The Cal Park tunnel as it looked in July. Photo: Jeff Poskanzer

After 17 years of planning, the Cal Park tunnel will open to Marin County cyclists today, providing a shorter, safer route between San Rafael and the Larkspur Ferry for an estimated 800,000 riders a year.

The 1.1-mile project includes class 1 bike lanes to connect the 1,106-foot bore with Sir Francis Drake Boulevard on the south and Anderson Road in San Rafael. The bike tunnel itself is just 11 feet, 4 inches wide, but reflects state-of-the-art design that transformed the 124-year-old railroad tunnel into a 21st century model for green transportation.

“It has its own lights. It has its own ventilation system. It’s got its own fire alarm system,” said Erin Hohenshelt, a staff engineer for Jacobs Associates who has spent 11 months on the tunnel, which had degenerated into a crumbling cave filled with mud, rock and rotten timbers. Now, there’s even cell service.

In a real sense, the opening of the tunnel connects vision with reality for Patrick Seidler, president of Wilderness Trail Bikes and Transportation Alternatives for Marin. Seidler used to sneak rides on his Stingray through the tunnel when he was growing up in Marin. The tunnel was closed in 1990 after a fire started by drifters. But it wasn’t long before Seidler and others started talking about opening it for cyclists.

“In 1993, we published an article that laid out the vision for re-opening all the tunnels in Marin County with the old rail lines, because the rail lines provided direct connections throughout the county. The cities grew up around them,” he said. “Rail transportation really defined Marin County from 1884 to 1937 when the Golden Gate Bridge was built.”

He thinks today’s ribbon-cutting, scheduled for 3 p.m. on the tunnel’s southern end, will help others see the potential for using the old rail lines as transportation corridors.

Taken July 31, 2010. Photo: Jeff Poskanzer

Before. Photo: Jacobs Associates

“This is a section of the north-south bike route that connects people with a central transportation hub,” said Kim Baenisch, executive director of the Marin County Bicycle Coalition. She noted the tunnel path will connect with east-west routes to Larkspur and the Ross Valley. “The tunnel is saving a minimum of 15 minutes for bike commuters to get between San Rafael and Larkspur.”

Hohenshelt commuted by bike while working on the project and was the first cyclist through the finished tunnel. “I made it from the ferry to the north end in less than 10 minutes,” she said. “It used to take me 25 to 30 minutes, depending how tired I was.”

Long-term Planning

What was first estimated in 1998 as a $3 million project turned into an odyssey of political debates, engineering challenges and rising costs. As of Friday’s ribbon-cutting, the costs were estimated at $27 million. That includes a walled-off portion of that tunnel where budget-plagued SMART service may one day carry commuters on 70-miles of track from Larkspur Landing to Cloverdale. As envisioned, a bike path will parallel the entire light-rail line.

While the tunnel is ready for cyclists, SMART trains are sidetracked by financial problems. A $350 million shortfall in anticipated sales-tax revenue has forced the transit system’s board to scale back plans. Board members voted in November to start building the middle of the system first, with trains running from the Marin Civic Center to Santa Rosa at a cost of $395 million. But even that plan is under attack from critics, who say the sales-tax measure should be repealed because SMART is falling far short of its promise.

Marin County supervisors have called on the SMART board to put off a $56.9 million purchase of 18 rail cars along with all other major expenditures. Even Supervisor Steve Kinsey – a long-time champion of the Cal Park tunnel  – noted the system faces a “crisis of confidence.” A vote on the rail cars is scheduled for Dec. 15.

More Projects

The tunnel’s opening coincides with another high-quality bike project over Lincoln Hill from San Rafael to the Marin Civic Center. Cyclists who’ve been sharing a relatively narrow road with fast-moving commute traffic over a steep incline now have a complete separate bike expressway with class 1 paths and lighting.

The next big target for the Marin cycling community is the Alto Tunnel project, which is another abandoned rail tunnel running between Corte Madera and Mill Valley. That tunnel, which roughly parallels the climb over Camino Alto, is twice as long but half as wide as the Cal Park tunnel, and is believed to be in much worse shape due to collapses near both ends.

The county is in the midst of a series of public planning sessions to consider the Alto Tunnel along with other possible walk-bike routes. A number of local residents have opposed the reopening of the Alto Tunnel, saying it would bring a flood of cycling traffic into their bucolic neighborhoods at a cost that could be even higher than the Cal Park project. They’ve been greatly outnumbered by cyclists who point out the safety hazards of the steep, twisty Camino Alto route, which is impractical for novice riders, children and the handicapped.

MCBC’s Baenisch believes the Cal-Park tunnel will help show people the benefits of rebuilding the Alto Tunnel.

“I think it can be a positive precedent for opening up a tunnel that provides level direct transportation for bicyclists and walkers that separates you from traffic and allows any rider of any skill and any age,” she said.

Project Headlands engineer Brian Dobling of the Federal Highway Administration was among the cyclists enjoying crystal clear views from the Marin Headlands on Saturday. Photo: Tom Murphy

Despite the threat of thunderstorms, scores of cyclists climbed the Marin Headlands on Saturday as the Golden Gate National Recreation Area celebrated the completion of the first year of a four-year effort to upgrade roads for cyclists, cars and pedestrians.

Only about 20 riders showed up for a 9 a.m. group ride, but dozens of others enjoyed the stunning vistas and fresh blacktop along fast-rising Conzelman Road as the chill gray morning morphed into a sunny autumn afternoon.

“Throughout the day, there’ve been hundreds,” said Project Headlands engineer Brian Dobling of the Federal Highway Administration, who was among those who rode up aptly named Hawk Hill.

“This is a heavily used for training by recreational cyclists and hard-core users,” he added. “There was a guy who stopped by here this morning who was on his fourth lap.”

FHWA is pumping $8.75 million into Phase 1 of the project, which will continue in February, forcing more peak-season shutdowns on some of Southern Marin’s most popular bikeways.

The work just completed included the addition of bike lanes along East Road; repaving of McCullough road, which crosses the saddle into Rodeo Valley; and resurfacing of the dramatic, one-way plunge from the Hawk Hill tunnel to Fort Barry and the old Nike missile site.

While advanced cyclists will appreciate the improvements in the headlands, the improvements along East Road will probably affect more people, said Dave Dusterhoff, project manager for the Golden Gate National Recreation Area. “It’s en route to Sausalito, so all the rental bikes will take East Road,” he said.

East Road was closed most of the past year, forcing the day-tripping tourists on rental bikes to share Alexander Avenue with fast-moving cars, hardened bike commuters and small clusters of semipro riders training in matching team jerseys.

Instead, cyclists will have to take Bunker Road through the Baker-Barry Tunnel, then climb over McCullough Road to reach upper Conzelman. To make matters worse, delays of up to a half-hour are expected on the short stretch from Alexander Avenue to the tunnel and on Field Road.

The northwest bridge parking lot, where many cyclists park for rides over the bridge or up the headlands, will be closed from February to April for reconfiguration.

The engineering plans for the second phase of the four-year project are only about 30 percet complete, according to Gary Strike, project manager for FHWA. That work will be conducted in 2012-2013, possibly stretching into 2014.

Dusterhoff said Saturday’s celebration was intended, in part, to thank cyclists for their patience during the first year of improvements, patience that surely will be tested again as the project continues over the next three to four years.

Photo: MCBC

The $950,000 project closed a mile-long gap between Ignacio Boulevard and the Pacheco Pathway along Highway 101. About $850,000 of the funding came from a federal Non-motorized Transportation Pilot Program grant to the county.

"This is a project that's been needed by cyclists in the area for over 20 years," said Kim Baenisch, executive director of the Marin County Bike Coalition.

After the CalPark Tunnel renovation and Lincoln Hill pathway are completed this fall, cyclists in Marin will have an uninterrupted 10-mile bike path through some of the most congested areas of the county.

The project, which had been in the planning stage for over five years, was complex and expensive because it entailed narrowing of the median strip, undergrounding utility lines and paving bike lanes in each direction.

It was while replanting the median strip in June that a contractor, Baumann Landscaping, applied about 100 pounds of Ronstar G, a weedkiller that is banned from use on Marin County projects, according to a report Tuesday in the Marin Independent-Journal. The newspaper's plant sits at one end of the new bike path.

Ronstar G is widely used legally throughout California on both public and private lands, and is sold through home garden centers. However, in 1998, Marin County barred the use of pesticides on county projects that contain chemicals recognized by the federal EPA as a human carcinogen or possible human carcinogen. Ronstar G fall into that category.

Baenisch said her organization wouldn't take a position on the use of the pesticide, though she noted "it's unfortunate they used this particular chemical on a bicycling facility."

Ed Hulme, the county's Director of Parks and Open Space who oversees enforcement of the county Integrated Pest Management plan, said he believed the potential exposure to cyclists was "pretty minimal" because the use of the chemical was limited to the median strip, watered down and covered with mulch.

Hulme said the regulations are usually included when contracts are awarded. The problem in this case may have stemmed from the fact the project had been in planning long before the area around the bike path was added to the county's ordinance in June 2009. "This project has been in the planning stages for years," he noted.

Baumann said nobody was available to comment.

Paul Apffel, a politically active attorney and environmentalist, said he's "a little bit dubious" of the claim the pesticide was used only in the median, but said it would require further checking to find out for sure.

Apffel made headlines in Marin last year when he reported the county had violated its own pesticide ordinance 269 times between 1999 and 2008.

He said his earlier research showed the county had sometimes used pesticides along bike paths. In some cases, when the county said a pesticide had been used in a median strip, records showed it had also been applied along the shoulder of the road, Apffel said.

Hulme said he had seen nothing to suggest that had happened along the Alameda del Prado path.

Photo: AgentAkit

Last summer, the bike rental companies donated enough racks to hold 420 bikes and also paid for a cycling coordinator for the city. But that wasn't enough to appease the critics, who helped elect City Councilwoman Carolyn Ford as their voice on the council. Ford, who made "bicycle management" part of her platform, didn't return a call seeking comment.

So far, the council is only pondering a plan to convert four auto parking spaces near the ferry into free bike parking. But the thought of giving up four revenue-generating parking spaces for the rental bikes has prompted talk of an excise fee of $1 or more on each rental bike. To put that in scale, a typical parking space might generate about $3,500 a year in fees and fines; a $1 tax on rental bikes could produce that much in less than two days.



Even if there is a proposal at the meeting, there is no certainly it would succeed. Councilman Mike Kelly told Streetsblog "someone brought up the idea" in the past, but it was dropped. He said he would oppose it if it came up now because of the city's success in resolving conflicts over the past two years.

"I would view that [a tax] as a failure proposal - that we've failed to find a solution to a problem. I don't think we're there yet," he said. Instead, he said he'd like the city to work with the companies "so that they're happy and we're happy." Kelly said Sausalito "welcomes" the cyclists and "just has to ensure they don't interfere with everything else going on" in town.

In the past, there has also been discussion of impounding bikes parked on sidewalks, but cooler heads prevailed. The city has worked closely with cycling advocates to add a new bike lane along Bridgeway and is still looking for an alternate route that could cut down on accidents. In return, MCBC has worked with the city to get high-speed recreational riders to slow down, observe traffic laws and to ride single file through the busiest parts of town.



While there is no formal proposal for a rental bike tax on the council's agenda, MCBC Planning Director David Hoffman expects a discussion about the tax to surface at Tuesday night's city council meeting. 

"I applaud the City of Sausalito's efforts to keep bike parking and bike traffic organized. Last year was a positive experience, and I'm also hoping this year is a positive experience," said Hoffman. "I'm really hoping some of the anti-bike sentiments don't get a foothold."

Kelly said if the idea does come up, he will ask that the matter be put on the agenda for discussion at a future meeting.

UPDATED: 3:00 p.m.

A group of tourists visiting from Venezuela. Photo by Pam MacLean.

The council voted 4-1 last night for a plan that provides racks - lots and lots of racks - in three strategic locations so that cash-bearing cyclists can park-and-spend their way through the scenic city on the shore of Richardson Bay.

The city won't even have to pay for the $8,000 in racks; they're being provided by companies that rent the bikes to tourists, including Blazing Saddles, Bike and Roll, and Bay City Bike Rentals. Together, the racks will add about 360 new bike parking spaces to the 120 slots now available.

The council's action follows heated complaints from residents and merchants, who say the vacationers cause more problems than they're worth. About a quarter-million rental bikes rolled into Sausalito last summer, drawing comparisons to a swarm of locusts from many critics. Even some cyclists crossing the Golden Gate Bridge have complained about inexperienced bike renters who clog the narrow bike paths, stopping unpredictably to snap a picture or wait for a friend.

Although the city benefits economically from cyclists, bicyclists are a frequent target of complaints from city residents. Beyond the issue with the tourists, many complain about scofflaws from the city who soar through stop lights, drawing fines that run into the hundreds of dollars. Many local cyclists say the city is overreacting and should do more to restrict automobile traffic and better-educate drivers on how to share the road with the two-wheelers.

Separately, as reported here March 2nd, the city is currently studying new routes to get cyclists through town safely, and with less controversy.

'Aesthetic' Issue

In addition to installing racks, the city will also post signs instructing touring cyclists to ride single file and avoid riding on sidewalks. But the straightforward approach wasn't enough to appease Councilwoman Linda Pfeiffer, who, according to a report in the Marin Independent-Journal, worried the racks would create "aesthetic" issues in the city known for its million-dollar views. To be sure, the scenic bayside ferry plaza is now crowded with industrial-looking gray steel racks.

The racks also complicate the crowding issue near the ferry, where many townfolks like to stroll on lazy summer afternoons. With the racks, it now gets even more crowded when more than 100 cyclists line up for the next boat.

As we noted last Friday, parking is only one of the issues with the tourists. Another round of complaints stems from the homeward-bound ferry commuters in San Francisco, who saw boats running 30 to 60 minutes behind schedule last summer as the cyclists disembarked one-by-one from the ferry.

The slow offloading stems from the fact that the bikers can roll their bikes onto the lower level of the boat in Sausalito, but then must carry them up a steep and narrow staircase so they can leave the boat from the upper level.  With each cyclist taking about 20 seconds to mount the stairs, it can take an extra 20 minutes for just 60 cyclists to leave the boat.

The Golden Gate Transit District added a second boat last year to ease the problem, and plans to modify the docks in San Francisco to allow the bikes to exit from the lower level. District spokeswoman Mary Currie estimates that modification will take about two years, which could prove to be a case of too little too late. The number of cycling tourists has roughly doubled in each of the past three years.

The project includes a 1.2-mile Class 1 bike path and a self-contained “tunnel within a tunnel” replete with video cameras, lighting, ventilation, emergency phones and even fire hydrants, just in case. The bike passage will have its own walls and concrete ceiling, separating it from the 45 mph diesel trains a few feet away. The trains are expected to start rumbling through in 2012.

Construction crews have been busy removing the original redwood arches inside the tunnel and replacing them with steel braces. All went smoothly until the crews reached the south end, where they encountered loose dirt running through sinkholes and boulders the size of small cars.

“We have a lot of loose ground and cavities and we don’t see an end to it,” said Hohenshelt. But she cautiously predicted the south end would be opened up by May.

South side of the tunnel in Larskspur.

County planners stressed the workshop was intended only to gather community input on three possible routes as part of a $225,000 study that will be concluded this fall. But emotions shifted into high gear as cyclists cited reasons to restore the railroad tunnel that’s been decaying over the last four decades.

“The handwriting is on the wall. It’s only a matter of time,” said David Hoffman, planning director for the Marin County Bike Coalition. “There aren’t any issues with the tunnel that can’t be resolved.”

Like much of the existing bike network in Marin and Sonoma counties, the 16-foot-wide tunnel was built by the railroads. It opened in 1884 as redwood forests were being leveled to support urban sprawl in San Francisco. The passage was sealed in the 1970s, and portions have collapsed as its 12-by-14 redwood beams rotted in the dank, stagnant air trapped beneath the mountain. The southern end crumbled in a rainstorm 28 years ago. Several large portions have been filled. The north end is plugged with 125 feet of cement.

The old railway bed that approaches from either end has given root to lush, green foliage and stands of blossoming cherry, almond and magnolia trees, creating a natural haven for nearby residents who jealously guard the solitude and beauty. Some of them fear a wave of spandex-clad cyclists would threaten the seclusion of their sanctuary.

“There’s going to be a huge reaction from the neighborhood,” said one Scott Valley resident who declined to give her name. “It’s going to change the overall feeling of the neighborhood.”

John Palmer, secretary of the Scott Valley Homeowners Association, presented an 18-page bound report that included a number of dubious claims about cycling, such as: “Bicycles are impractical to use for anything more than light shopping, especially for families with children.”

Click for a larger image.

Although only about half the crowd wore green day-glo “I Support the Tunnel” stickers, they did most of the talking as county planners took detailed notes on the pros and cons of each of the routes under study.

Cyclists complained that Horse Hill, the existing bike route along US 101, was inadequate because it’s too steep for children, too dangerous for pedestrians and so close to the freeway that oncoming cars blind cyclists at night with their headlights.

Camino Alto, the serpentine road that winds up the 450-foot hill above the tunnel, is too narrow, too crowded and suitable only for those in top shape, they said.

“Camino Alto is a death wish. It’s too hard unless you’re a super athlete,” said Jane Chesson, a Corte Madera resident who brought her five children – ages 7-17 – to the workshop. She said her family can’t cycle to the Mill Valley Recreation Center over either of the existing routes. “It’s dangerous. It’s not fun. We’re not going to do it.”

The study is part of the county’s $25 million Non-motorized Transportation Pilot Program, which is designed to encourage residents to walk or cycle instead of drive a car. In addition to determining the best route, the study will also develop an estimate of what it would cost to reopen the badly damaged tunnel. The actual funds to restore the tunnel would come later, meaning that even if the tunnel option is favored, it would be years before the first cyclist could roll through it.

In his report, Palmer wrote: “…it’s easy to imagine the cost to reconstruct the 2,172 foot-long Alto Tunnel rising to $15 million or more.” He estimated $10 million would be enough to construct 53 miles of new bicycle/pedestrian paths.

Tunnel advocates estimate the cost at anywhere from $10 million to $25 million. But they say it would be worthwhile even at the higher cost because it’s a project that would benefit generations of area residents.

Click for a larger image

The tunnel between Mill Valley and Corte Madera is the focus of a transportation workshop tomorrow night in Marin County. 

The other two routes are well known to any cyclists who've ridden north of Mill Valley: an existing bike path over Horse Hill by Highway 101 and the twisty Camino Alto, which climbs to about 450 feet on the hill above the tunnel. Neither route is pedestrian-friendly, and many cyclists shy away from Camino Alto because of its narrow lanes, fast cars and afternoon traffic jams.

The 16-foot-wide tunnel would link existing bike paths on both sides of the hill. Southern Pacific sealed the 2,172-foot passageway in 1971, dooming its 12-by-14 redwood supports to rot in the stagnant, moist darkness. The southern entrance collapsed during a rainstorm in 1981 and several other portions have been filled to protect the homes on the hilltop.

“People are very, very excited about the tunnel," said Andy Peri, a spokesman for the Marin County Bike Coalition who predicted dozens of cyclists will show up. "One woman just called me and told me she’s bringing all five of her children from 7 to 17 years old.”

Patrick Seidler, founder of the nonprofit Transportation Alternatives for Marin (TAM) and a vocal advocate for the tunnel project, allows that "change is difficult" for people. But he noted that studies by Rails to Trails Conservancy (PDF) show the same local residents who oppose the reopening of tunnels often turn out to be their biggest fans when the projects are completed.

An even bigger obstacle may be the cost. The price tag on the shorter, wider Cal Park tunnel between San Rafael and the Larkspur tunnel is already up to $22-24 million, according to Peri. Nobody knows what kind of shape the Alto Tunnel is in, but the current guess is that renovation costs would be comparable. The study is intended, in part, to develop a better estimate.

Seidler, who is also president of Wilderness Trail Bikes, says the tunnel project would be worthwhile even at a cost of more than $20 million because it would help to complete the greenway, which, in turn, connects the communities that sprang up along the old rail lines during the 19th century.

"The essence of bicycle transportation is that, to work to its potential, there needs to be a complete system," he said. "The rail lines are the most direct and efficient paths of travel between the towns."

The workshop is Wednesday at 6:30 p.m. at Edna Maguire School, 80 Lomita Drive, in Mill Valley. 

The city has hired Alta Planning and Design to recommend options to keep bikes rolling along the two-mile stretch between its downtown ferry landing and the start of the bike path next to US 101. The money comes from a $25 million federal grant Marin County received through the Non-motorized Transportation Pilot Project, which is aimed at encouraging people to walk and bike more.

The current bike route along Bridgeway was widened and repainted last year, but neither cyclists or motorists are happy with it. The study will look at alternate routes, including a circuitous path along the waterfront or a route over an old railroad right-of-way. It also may simply recommend upgrades to the current bike lanes, such as new pavement, landscaping, signs and bike sensors at traffic lights. City officials will use the study, which is expected to be completed this year, to apply for $300,000 to $1 million in additional funding from the pilot project.

"The relationship between the cars and the cyclists is becoming increasingly worse," said Sausalito Police Sgt. Stacie Gregory. "Both are getting frustrated they're not given their fair share of the road." 

There have already been two crashes in 2009 that resulted in police reports, and Gregory said the bicyclists were to blame for both.  The latest came Thursday when a bicyclist "injured her face" by crashing into the back of a car that stopped suddenly. Police said she was "following too closely." The other came when a cyclist crashed into a car it was "illegally passing on the right," Gregory said.

There's no study to improve the bike route through the south end of town - from Alexander Avenue to downtown - because so much of the property is privately owned and would be too costly to acquire.

"Sausalito has the enviable problem of being a destination spot in the Bay Area," said David Hoffman, planning director for the Marin County Bicycle Coalition. "For the most part, the community likes the idea of keeping traffic to a fairly slow speed, which makes it reasonably good environment for cyclists to get through. I think where the frustration really comes from is residents who feel the town is being overrun by cyclists."

Both Gregory and Hoffman noted a weekend flood of recreational riders from San Francisco, including hundreds of tourists who rent bikes in San Francisco and ride back on the Sausalito ferry or continue along the bike path to Tiburon.

"The truth is all these people who are coming into Sausalito are adding to the tax base," said Hoffman. "If they get rid of the cyclists, they're going to see a lot less tax revenue. And, times being what they are, I can't believe any city is anxious to give up all that revenue."