Recap: Salvio to Todos Santos Plaza

This afternoon as planned, Kenji, Smitty, and I (Claire) met with outgoing City of Concord Transportation Manager Ray Kuzbari to discuss improvements on Salvio Street from Port Chicago Highway to Colfax Street.  Currently, the lanes on Salvio Street end at Port Chicago Highway.  This, combined with car-optimized signal timing and right turning traffic make the last two blocks difficult to traverse by bike.

We were pleasantly surprised to hear Mr. Kuzbari suggest for future capital improvement dedicated bike lanes (with removal of on-street parking to accommodate same), improved signal loops, and potentially Concord’s first bike box.  (In the short term, we can expect longer light cycles so bicyclists have enough time to get through the intersection.) This would change the current plan for Salvio from Colfax to Port Chicago Hwy in the Bicycle, Pedestrian and Safe Routes to Transit Plan from Class III sharrows (as discussed in today’s earlier post) to Class II dedicated bike lanes.  (The last block from Colfax to Grant would remain Class III as currently indicated in the BPSRT Plan.)  This is a far cry from the stencil-and-a-sign treatment originally planned by the City!

The bad news is that the pavement on Salvio between Colfax and East has deteriorated to the point that it would have to be replaced prior to installing the new detector loops and repainting – a costly repair, and one that will take considerable time to realize. Realistically, it may be a couple of years before this project is implemented.  But the good news is that persistent, targeted advocacy makes progress!

Working for a Salvio St connection to Todos Santos

You may have ridden in the new bicycle lanes on Salvio St between Port Chicago Hwy and Parkside Dr. Aren’t they nice? However, they don’t connect all the way west to Todos Santos yet. So far you have to ride alongside motor traffic without separation for the couple of blocks west of Port Chicago Hwy. That’s enough to deter a lot of people from bicycling to Todos Santos and persuade them to drive instead, taking up more car parking space and increasing traffic congestion.  (If you’ve ever been to the Thursday night Music in the Park series, you’ll be particularly familiar with this scenario.)

Unfortunately, BC learned recently that City staff have no intention of extending the lanes to close that gap. The plan is sharrows and signage, which as you probably know from experience, are just about meaningless for safety. We’ve discussed the matter with several members of City Council and believe there is support to direct staff to get serious and close this gap, which should never have been difficult in the first place.

BC Advocacy Committee members will be meeting at the site with Transportation Manager Ray Kuzbari late this afternoon to discuss options. Wish us luck!