Saturday, October 27, 2012

Transportation and Grant News From Around San Diego County

This transportation grant and news update is brought to you by Jim Voss.

Transportation grants are one of the main ways to add biking infrastructure. The City of Carlsbad received an $880K grant to install a roundabout at the tricky angled intersection at Coast Highway and State Street. This common bike corridor ends the bike lane just before the intersection, which squeezes cyclists into the traffic lane before merging into another traffic line and then finally a bike lane. Other improvements are planned along the section of Coast Highway that crosses the lagoon. Additional grant money will cover bike corrals and racks and an active transportation program. The San Diego Foundation has granted $650K to a variety of organizations throughout the county to build bike paths and hiking trails. The grants will also be used to improve air quality and get more kids outdoors. The City of Escondido approved a new bike plan that would triple the number of bike lanes to 150 miles. The plan would cost $4.7 million dollars, spread out over several years. The San Diego Police Department received 18 patrol bicycles from ACE Parking.

Some may call this time of political election campaigns the "silly season", but it is great to see all the attention that bicycling is receiving from candidates. In addition to the San Diego mayoral debate hosted at USD and co-sponsored by SDCBC last month, bikes have gotten mention in other forums: a County Supervisor debate where a candidate wants to make San Diego County the bike capital of the world, and another San Diego mayoral debate at UCSD where both candidates agreed on something - bike lanes,  
This Associated Press article, while not mentioning San Diego, reviews how more people are utility cycling in cities throughout California: As gas prices soar, city cycling more attractive

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