Pilot Project Pitches Protected Bike Lanes on El Camino Real to South San Francisco Residents
South San Francisco may not be known for its cozy greenways, but the city is making considerable strides to change that.
In addition to approving an active transportation plan last year with 21 miles of protected bike lanes, including on El Camino Real, the city has provided students with free bicycles, incorporated bicycle infrastructure in future precise developments, and this month, it completed installing protected bike lanes on El Camino Real from South Spruce Avenue to Country Club Drive.
The protected bike lanes are a part of a temporary pilot project that will run from August until mid-October, and includes a high visibility crosswalk at Country Club Drive for pedestrians, and two accessible bus-boarding platforms allowing bicycles to ride up and over. The platform serves as an extension of the bus stop meaning bus drivers do not need to park at the curb and then merge back into traffic. They simply stop on the farthest right lane to board passengers.
These treatments aim to make El Camino Real, one of San Mateo County’s deadliest roads, safer and more accessible to those who walk, bike, and use public transportation.
A Samtrans rider exits the bus using the newly installed Zicla platform near Country Club Drive. The temporary pilot project includes two platforms, one near Country Club Drive and another near South Spruce Avenue. The platform serves as an extension of the bus stop meaning bus drivers stop on the farthest right lane to board passengers, and are not required to park at the curb and then merge back into traffic. Those who bicycle can also use the ramp to ride up and over the platform.
Complete Streets Leadership Academy
The temporary pilot project provides a seven-foot protected bike lane, including a two-foot buffer with flex post delineators, north and south on El Camino Real from South Spruce Avenue to Country Club Drive near South San Francisco High School.
This project is a culmination of months of workshops led by Smart Growth America, a nonprofit organization focused on building sustainable and livable communities, through its Complete Streets Leadership Academy. South San Francisco was one of three Bay Area cities (along with Berkley and San Leandro) that participated in the program and was awarded with a $15k grant to implement a temporary complete streets project on El Camino Real. Complete streets is a design approach to planning that enables safe access for all people, including pedestrians, bicyclists, motorists and transit riders of all ages and abilities.
The goal of the program was mostly educational; to bring together major El Camino Real stakeholders and learn how to collaborate at every stage of the planning process. Considering El Camino Real is a state route that runs through multiple jurisdictions, infrastructure projects can be complex, requiring approval from Caltrans and coordination from the city and public transportation agency to ensure service will not be severely impacted. As a result, South San Francisco staff invited several partners to participate in the program, including Samtrans, Caltrans, the San Mateo County Transportation Authority, and the San Mateo County Office of Education’s Safe Routes to School team. These organizations met regularly to learn about complete streets design principles, effective community engagement, and to advise staff on the project location and scope.
This project could not have been completed without the support of all of these stakeholders. The transportation authority was able to modify a grant (already awarded to the city) providing $50k to use for the project. After all, $15k is not a whole lot of money in the context of public works projects. Additionally, Samtrans purchased the pricey bus boarding (Zicla) platforms which resulted in significant savings for the city. Most importantly, because it does have the right of way on El Camino Real, Caltrans played a crucial role in approving the necessary permits to install the project.
This interagency collaboration is going to be vital for any future, permanent bicycle facilities, and the experience has helped forge a path forward so El Camino Real can be converted into the accessible, multi-modal spine of the Peninsula as envisioned in the Grand Boulevard initiative.
As part of the set of treatments for the temporary pilot project, Caltrans installed a high visibility crosswalk at the intersection of Country Club Drive and El Camino Real near South San Francisco High School. Although these treatments are intended to be temporary, there is a high likelihood the crosswalk will remain as a permanent feature.
How you can get help or get involved!
Throughout the process, SVBC has supported the city with technical assistance and community engagement. It’s not enough to build the infrastructure. It’s just as important to encourage the community to interact with the facility and provide feedback to inform future projects. Over the next two months, SVBC in collaboration with San Mateo County Safe Routes to School will be helping the city distribute surveys, organize special events to collect feedback, and encourage community members to use the facility during social and infrastructure rides.
Stay tuned for more information by signing up for our North San Mateo County local team listserv, where we share updates on all things bike, north of Burlingame all the way to Daly City. We have a small group of dedicated volunteers and advocates who advocate for better biking!
In the meantime, please complete the city’s survey to provide them feedback on the temporary project, or share it with your networks. You can find the English survey here and the Spanish survey here. For more information about what’s happening on El Camino Real, check out our latest blog outlining Caltrans projects coming to a neighborhood near you!
You can also reach out to anthony@bikesiliconvalley.org to learn more about SVBC or the SSF project.
