Advocates Push Back Against Valencia Center-Running-Bike-Lane Bait-and-Switch
3:33 PM PDT on March 17, 2023
A 2017 protest for safety on Valencia between 16th and 17th. SFMTA wants to betray the years of protest and public support with its center running crap. Photo by Brandon Splane
At the rate things are going, in five years San Francisco will still be at the same pathetic mode share it is today. Vision Zero will remain unattainable, and some 150 more people will be dead, with many more injured.
Note what it says in the blue bubble: “the city is moving in the wrong direction” on mode share. From SFMTA’s Climate RoadmapNote what it says in the blue bubble: "the city is moving in the wrong direction" with mode share. From SFMTA's Climate Roadmap
SFMTA’s proposed center-running two-way cycle track sandwiches people on bikes between two lanes of driving cars, protected only by four plastic posts per block and a “bus lane curb” designed to be mountable by automobiles and larger vehicles. This proposed design won’t make more people feel safe riding bikes on Valencia — especially families, seniors, and people who are less confident riding bikes — which will result in fewer people shifting trips to sustainable modes and more cars (and car traffic) on our streets.
Instead, they are calling for more of the:
…identical design implemented on Valencia Street between Market and 15th Streets in 2018, after Mayor Breed issued a statement calling for those curbside parking-protected bike lanes to be installed within four months — including around parklets and in front of a school and a church. Data from SFMTA shows that safety significantly improved after the curbside parking-protected bike lanes were installed and vehicle loading/unloading significantly decreased on that section of Valencia.
SFMTA is proposing a center bikeway for Valencia Street, sandwiching people on bikes between two lanes of driving cars.
Valencia should have parking-protected bike lanes along the curb.
Shared spaces/eateries changed things. There are already parklets and boarding islands on the northern end of Valencia. The old protected bike lane pilot simply goes around them or down a channel between the islands and the curb. A similar design works well on Telegraph in Oakland’s Temescal district, which has both parklets and protected bike lanes. When staff make this argument, they’re just gaslighting.
Also, to anyone claiming motorists won’t shift their double-parking from Valencia’s current door-zone bike lanes to center-running bike lanes: motorists already park in the center of Valencia, as seen Friday afternoon:
Motorists won’t park in the center running lanes? Really? Photo: Streetsblog/RudickMotorists won't park in the center running lanes? Really? Photo: Streetsblog/Rudick
Mayor Thao Tweets "It's time to reach a critical juncture where tragedies don’t catalyze improvements." But when and how will we know if the city has really reached that point and is serious about safety for all road users?