Column: Serious Issue with Plans for Buchanan, Marin Path Project—Speak Out!

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The city is about to approve plans for a great project that will, among other things, bring a of Buchanan/Marin all the way from San Pablo to Pierce Street. It also includes bike lanes westbound on Buchanan/Marin and sharrows (share-the-road with cyclists arrows) painted on the road on eastbound Buchanan/Marin. This is wonderful.

But, to this bicycle and pedestrian project, the city has added a new extra right turn lane for cars turning from eastbound Marin to southbound San Pablo. And there's no accommodation for cyclists where the right turn lane begins—no sharrows, no bike lane, nothing. This lane is added likely because it is a needed mitigation for the Whole Foods project, and it needs to work in concert with the mixed-use path. It is still galling and ironic that UC is getting an *automobile* amenity for their project, for free, out of this project.

Notwithstanding the new extra lane, we are not willing to concede the lack of a bike lane placed here alongside the right turn lane. The staff report incredibly states that "the addition of the right hand turn lane from eastbound Marin to southbound San Pablo Avenue ... will also improve pedestrian and bicycle safety." How?? In fact it reduces safety for on-road cyclists and sets up additional conflict between right-turning motorists and crosswalk users. There is the possibility for addressing the crosswalk users later, but the bike lane must be added NOW because once the curb is laid, we can never add that lane later.

Please email the council at cityhall@albanyca.org asking it to either direct staff to include the cycling lane or eliminate the right turn lane and/or contact your favorite Council member directly in this regard. Sample text:

'Members of the City Council,

The addition of the eastbound Marin Avenue right-turn lane to this project makes the project less safe for cyclists without some accommodation. This lane must be either removed from the project or a bicycle lane must be added between the right-turn lane and the existing southernmost lane.'

For those who can, please attend the Council meeting Monday to comment directly to Council in support of this position. As this item is down the agenda a bit, you can monitor the meeting on KALB (cable channel 33 or webcast) to time your attendance.