Category Archives: infrastructure

#SaMoPride Green Lane Ride, June 30th

We invite you to join us and LA County Bicycle Coalition (LACBC) for a two-wheeled tour of the City’s new green lanes as part of SaMo Pride Month, sponsored by Metro Bicycle Education Safety Training (BEST) Program. In June, Santa Monica is celebrating their 1st SaMo Pride Month and commitment to an inclusive and diverse community. This ride will sample some of the 19 miles of new green lanes. 

The ride will meet in front of Santa Monica City Hall, located just two blocks away from the Downtown Santa Monica Metro Station. This bike tour is at a social pace with no riders left behind. Children are welcome but should be capable of riding in the street or in a trailer, child bike seat or tagalong. It’s a one-way exploration of the City of Santa Monica’s various types of bike infrastructure and introductions to a few exciting upcoming projects. The tour ends at Dagwoods Pizza – home of the Edible Glitter Rainbow Pizza! Bring smiles, a thirst for adventure, and cash if you would like to enjoy lunch after the ride. A marshal will escort those who will not stay for lunch on an easy ride back to the start of the ride or Expo Line Station

All the event info is HERE

Wilshire Safety Study Community Meeting: June 8th

Community Engagement Public Meeting 1

The City of Santa Monica is conducting a roadway safety analysis for Wilshire Boulevard between Ocean Ave. and Centinela Ave. We want your help to identify safety issues and concerns!

Please join us and attend this first community workshop on June 8th at Reed Park Auditorium (1133 7th Street, Santa Monica). The meeting is open house format, so drop-in anytime.

In 2019 there will be a series of community engagement opportunities and outreach to help inform this project. Want to get involved? Please sign-up for project information at the weblink (below). Stay tuned for the second of these two larger community meetings this fall – 2019.

For those who can’t make it, there will be opportunities to provide comments online, or you can e-mail directly at safe.wilshire@smgov.net.

This effort is part of the citywide safety initiative called Take the Friendly Road.

See our event page HERE

Provide transportation safety input via the Take the Friendly Road interactive map.
Live or work in the neighborhood and want to participate in the community listening workshops?
– Click here to sign up for City updates
– Contact the project team at Safe.Wilshire@smgov.net

Happy Birthday Breeze Bike Share!

Three yeas ago Santa Monica led by launching Los Angeles County’s 1st public bike share — Breeze, presented by Hulu!

Congratulations Santa Monica and Breeze,
& Happy Birthday #3!

With shared mobility rapidly expanding with new technologies — we congratulate Santa Monica and Breeze bike share for leading the charge by improving the built environment with safer more visible traffic lanes paving the path for expanding new mobility options. Shared mobility that is more environmentally sustainable, help reduce our carbon foot print, traffic congestion and single car trips —and support our growing network of public transportation and shared mobility options. #GoSaMo 

Earlier 2018 Santa Monica, along with 3 other systems led again — rolling out LA’s 1st regionally integrated bike share — with Bike Share Connect! Bike Share Connect combined 4 independent systems into one regionally connected and seamlessly integrated network which spans across over 34 square miles, from Venice Beach to Hollywood and Highland. 

With the ground work laid and the spark of new mobility lit – this past year we have seen even more mobility options launch — motorized scooters and e-assist bikes — with surely more to come. Find out more about Santa Monicas’ Mobility Pilot Program here. 

The milestones are just beginning! Here are a few — 

The Share Mobility Pilot is part of the Santa Monica City Council and our community’s shared strategic goal and commitment to promote a safer, more sustainable multi-modal city of the future. This also pairs with the Council’s adoption to implement innovative Vision Zero approaches to ensure public safety and work to eliminate roadway collisions.

Action Alert: July 5th

Safe street projects on the Westside are under attack from vocal opponents who prefer the status quo over safety.

>>>>>>> JOIN US IN TAKING ACTION >>>>>>>

No matter where you live, we need you to take action to protect Vision Zero projects in Mar Vista and Playa del Rey.

The LA Department of Transportation used internationally proven and evidence-based methods to design new street safety improvements in Mar Vista and Playa del Rey that was informed by community input.

We can’t let misinformation and impatience stop us from building safer streets and more vibrant communities. Some drivers using these corridors have grown impatient because they are unable to travel at the same unsafe high speeds as they previously could.

Despite the great public benefit, these projects have unfortunately come under attack amid a flurry of misinformation being circulated about the projects. There is some concern that they will be removed, thus potentially setting a troubling precedent for Vision Zero projects all across LA County.

For more information on these important projects see HERE

TODAY — Please email Venice and Mar Vista Neighborhood Councils
– Template letter and email addresses below. 

Volunteer to phone bank 

The Los Angeles County Bicycle Coalition (LACBC) will host phone banking (anytime) between 4pm-8pm at thier Headquaters DTLA. We will be calling members and allies to take action in support of Vision Zero and the new safety improvements! Local phone banking at Santa Monica Spoke HQ is being planned if we have volunteers interested. RSVP

ATTEND  Venice Neighborhood Council

the Venice Neighborhood Council (VNC)meeting at the Canal Club at 7:00pm! The VNC Parking & Transportation Committee and Board of Directors Meeting will be discussing Venice Blvd, and there will be an opportunity to provide public comment and vote. Don’t forget to share on social media if you show up!

ONGOING

SHARE on social media! Tweet and post your support or photos of your ride through Venice, Jefferson, and Culver Boulevards, and Pershing Drive in the new bike lanes! Use #SaferVeniceBlvd, #SaferJeffersonBlvd, #SaferCulverBlvd, and #SaferPershingDr or #SaferVistaDelMar, to build momentum and share your message with fellow safe streets advocates.

EMAIL the Mar Vista Community Council and Venice Neighborhood Council TODAY to show your support for street safety improvements on Venice Blvd.

SAMPLE EMAIL: Please personalize.


To: MVCC@EmpowerLA.org, VeniceNC@EmpowerLA.org
CC: councilmember.bonin@lacity.org
BCC: lyndsey@la-bike.org, Cynthia.Rose@SMSpoke.org

RE: Support for Venice Blvd Great Streets Safety Improvements

Dear Members of the Mar Vista Community Council and the Venice Neighborhood Council:

I strongly encourage the Mar Vista Community Council and the Venice Neighborhood Council to continue supporting the project on Venice Blvd. as part of the Mar Vista Great Streets Initiative. This recently installed project has come under attack, much of it being fueled by misinformation. Impatience of drivers shouldn’t stop the community  from building safer streets and more vibrant neighborhoods. These safety improvements will prevent future injuries and can save lives.

As a [student, older adult, mom, cyclist, person with a disability, business owner, etc], I firmly support the street safety improvements on Venice Blvd. This project was designed through community dialogue throughout a yearlong open process and is meant to make all residents and visitors safer. Similar to how the farmers market has improved our community, we believe the “small town feel” of this Great Streets initiative will do the same for Mar Vista and will further improve community culture.

We must continue to improve our streets with rigorous and informed evaluations, and I urge you to remain committed to creating vibrant and safer streets in Mar Vista.

Sincerely,

[Your name]
[Your address]

Sunday Funday: TOUR of the WESTSIDE

Safe street projects on the Westside are under attack from vocal opponents who prefer the status quo over safety.

For July,  LACBC’s Sunday Funday Ride we will tour the westside safety improvements in Playa del Rey and Mar Vista. We will also visit the Mar Vista Farmers Market for a buy-in to show local support for businesses and share fact sheets.

This ride will be approximately 13 miles at an easy-moderate pace.

You have two options to join!

We will be leading a feeder ride from Clover Park in Santa Monica to the Sunday Funday ride start at Culver Slauson Park.

— Feeder ride from Santa Monica will meet at Clover Park (NW corner of the park at 25th)
Where: Corner of Ocean Park Blvd and 25th
Time:    9am, roll — 9:15 sharp. 
We will ride to meet up with the group at Culver Slauson Park that rolls at 10am
Please rsvp@SMSpoke.org for the feeder ride from Santa Monica 

— Meet the group at Culver Slauson Park, 5072 S Slauson Ave at 9:30am – ride rolls at 10am. See full info for LACBC’s Sunday Funday event here.

>>>>>>> JOIN US IN TAKING ACTION >>>>>>>

SHARE on social media! Tweet and post photos of your ride through Venice, Jefferson, and Culver Boulevards, and Pershing Drive in the new bike lanes! Use #SaferVeniceBlvd, #SaferJeffersonBlvd, #SaferCulverBlvd, and #SaferPershingDr or #SaferVistaDelMar, to build momentum and share your message with fellow safe streets advocates.