Hello,
I would like to submit my comments/feedback to the city council members for the Middle Ave Complete Streets project meeting scheduled for February 14, 2023.
I’m a long-time resident of Middle Avenue and use the street daily for walking, exercise, visiting parks, and driving. We raised two kids who rode their bikes to school. I believe processes should be guided by the principles of meeting the needs of all our residents, giving extra consideration to our most vulnerable residents - young children and senior citizens. In addition, I’d like to see greater weight given to the input of those most affected by proposed changes and working outward from there to the input of other constituents/users.
Data collection on parking and usage was done during the pandemic. I believe additional data is needed rather than relying on data from a low usage time period, and would like to see current data now that traffic and parking are returning to “normal" usage. This would also allow better extrapolations to future trends.
Online user survey data from 2022 - If you look at question 1 of the quantitative results, the number of respondents who prefer to keep parking on one side or keep parking on both sides outnumber the respondents who prefer removing parking from both sides. But it appears that the city is working from the premise that is the opposite of that - that more people are in favor of removing parking from both sides.
I would urge the council to consider piloting a time of day restriction if the primary concern is the safety of children biking to school. That could be on one side of the street in the morning, and the other side in the afternoon, to accommodate the commute times for the bulk of the elementary and middle school kids. Kids should also receive bike safety instruction and ride single file. A pilot of this nature ought to be relatively budget-friendly. Consider treating the different sections of Middle Ave differently, as there are different conditions on the section closest to Olive, compared to the section closest to University.
I’m in favor of enforcement of the speed limit. I believe that once people know the limit is enforced, there will be less spending, leading to great safety for all. I’m in favor of the city exploring automated options that do not involve police officers making traffic stops.
If the council is deciding/voting solely on the currently proposed options for the bike pathway, I am in favor of Option 2, remove parking on one side and retain parking on the other. It appears to me that the side that is selected ought to align with the direction and timing of the greatest number of students using it. Elementary and middle school students tend to head to Oak Knoll and Hillview between 7:30 and 8:15 am. The afternoon return is much more dispersed time-wise, as there are after-school sports and activities, different release times for different ages, and hanging out with friends prior to heading home. Other users such as bike to work and recreation/exercise are more dispersed time-wise. I’d also like to see better options for vehicle parking at the Nealon Park/Little House area.
Whichever option is ultimately selected, I’m strongly in favor of piloting it with a data-driven evaluation and significant community outreach.
Thank you.
Barbara Gale
