Editor's note: on Friday, March 28, Streetsblog ran a short piece about a pending vote coming before the Sausalito City Council to execute a $500,000 grant to add bike lanes on Bridgeway. Unfortunately, the city council meeting on March 29 didn't go as hoped and the project was cancelled. Given that the safety recommendations of the city's transportation staff and the Pedestrian and Bicycle Advisory Committee (PBAC) were ignored, the entire PBAC resigned in protest and issued the following statement, written by its chair, Kieran Culligan:
The Sausalito Pedestrian and Bicycle Advisory Committee (PBAC) announced Monday the resignation of its entire appointed membership. That includes Vice Chair Jessica Penrod, Committee Member Regan Fulton, and Zip Code 94965 Community Liaison Jenny Silva.
I joined the Pedestrian and Bicycle Advisory Committee to work collaboratively and make our community safer, more welcoming, and more sustainable for everyone. However, I can no longer continue to serve in good conscience after witnessing a disturbing disregard for the documented safety hazards faced daily by pedestrians and people on bicycles – an attitude reflected not just in the City Council's decision-making, but in interactions with leadership in the Police and Fire Departments as well.
The core mission of the PBAC is to advise on making Sausalito safer for walking and biking. When clear safety recommendations, backed by data and expert opinion, are dismissed, known hazards allowed to persist, and concrete commitments absent, the committee's purpose is fundamentally undermined. Staying on felt like becoming an accomplice to maintaining a dangerous status quo in the face of clear evidence and recent injuries.
While the resignation includes all appointed members, outgoing members Culligan, Penrod, and Silva specifically cited deep concerns over the handling of critical safety issues affecting pedestrians and bicyclists by the Sausalito City Council, Sausalito Police Department, and Southern Marin Fire Protection District.
The mass resignation follows Saturday's City Council special meeting regarding proposed safety improvements on the Bridgeway waterfront, where the council declined to move forward with a grant-funded pilot project recommended by transportation experts and the PBAC. Instead of signaling intent for basic safety features like crosswalks or loading zones, Councilmembers requested further studies, including congestion analyses. Although this defers immediate commitments and leaves known safety hazards unaddressed for now, the outgoing committee members speaking out encourage Council to act expediently in pursuit of concrete actions that prioritize the safety of everyone using Bridgeway.
Several committee members expressed frustration that safety statistics and the real-world consequences of dangerous road design were repeatedly downplayed throughout the recent process. Concerns were amplified, they stated, when information surfaced suggesting the Sausalito Police Department may not have been fully reporting crash data into mandatory statewide systems, making it harder to evaluate the true scale of the safety problem.
The committee's recommendation in support of the proposed bicycle and pedestrian safety improvements on Bridgeway was not made lightly. It followed years of established city process: aligning with goals in Sausalito's General Plan and Bicycle Master Plan, inclusion in the Capital Improvement Program, successfully securing competitive grant funding specifically for this purpose, garnering unanimous support from City Council to accept the design grant and begin the study, and engaging professional transportation engineers for detailed analysis and design recommendations. It is therefore profoundly discouraging to those members speaking out that after adhering strictly to this data-driven process, the expert findings and documented safety needs failed to persuade City Council to act.
The resigning members speaking out emphasized that their commitment to improving safety in Sausalito remains unwavering, and they intend to continue advocating for necessary changes as private citizens. Further comments from my colleagues:
- Jessica Penrod (Vice Chair): "Serving on the PBAC requires a foundation of trust – trust that evidence matters, that resident safety is paramount, and that the city is committed to following through on its own stated goals. That trust has been broken. We cannot ethically endorse a process that appears to prioritize endless study with no action over the well-being of vulnerable road users."
- Jenny Silva (94965 Community Liaison): "As a liaison representing the broader 94965 community, I heard consistently from residents who desire safer streets – not just for personal safety, but as part of creating a more sustainable and environmentally sound community that encourages walking and biking. It was profoundly disappointing to see those voices, the clear need for basic safety infrastructure, and the urgency of the situation effectively disregarded in the final non-decision."
Committee's Advisory Role and Contributions:
The PBAC serves an important advisory function, providing input and recommendations on projects often led by the City's Public Works department. Despite the current circumstances, the resigning members speaking out expressed pride in the collaborative efforts the PBAC contributed to recently, demonstrating a commitment to positive change. These include:
- Nevada Street restriping (completed)
- Caledonia Street contra-flow bike lane (completed)
- Ferry Landside Pedestrian and Bicycle circulation improvements (near completion)
- North Street Steps repair (completed)
- Coloma Street safety design and grant funding efforts (designed and ready for construction)
- Napa Street to Johnson Street pedestrian safety improvements (designed and ready for construction)
- Traffic calming on Bridgeway between Spring and Napa streets, including a potential roundabout (concept phase)
- Extending the Sausalito-Mill Valley Multi-Use Path to Harbor Drive (preliminary design phase)
The outgoing committee members hope the City Council will reconsider its approach to pedestrian and bicycle safety and take seriously the need for protective infrastructure throughout Sausalito.
Kieran Culligan, former Chair, Sausalito PBAC
