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Another death in Old Town Goleta by motor vehicle occurred o...

Comments in order of when they were received | (reverse order)

COMMENT 6195	2007-08-22 12:44 PM
The key issue is #3 above which I repeat below. It seems like the default position should be to remove those parking spaces and put in the bike lanes right away. After the deadly lack of bike lanes problem is immediately resolved, then the overall planning of Hollister can be worked on as a longer-term matter. =================== 3) The default position is to leave a deadly situation in place while there is vague talk of eventual discussions of solutions. Why isn't the default solution to remove the parking immediately and provide the bike lanes immediately during this time of planning and discussion?
COMMENT 6202	2007-08-22 04:49 PM
I agree with "SPOCK." I know the merchants fear the loss of parking, but there's a gain for everyone here: everyone can SEE the storefronts much easier when there are no cars in the way, the street looks much more appealing, and the 1/3 of us who either cannot or choose not to use cars will feel much better about Old Town Goleta. Old Town is a beautiful place that is presently buried beneath bad planning. I can't wait for it to reach its potential and become more safe for those who appreciate cafes, walkable sidewalks, seeing their friends, and buying things from local merchants. To you merchants, don't fear the loss of a few parking spots. Free Old Town! My deepest sympathy to those who have lost friends and family members to accidents on Hollister. I don't think it needed to happen. Don Lubach
COMMENT 6204	2007-08-22 05:47 PM
The short-term remedy (removing some car parking spaces and restriping) suits me IF it's done IMMEDIATELY. Save the workshops and blather for the long-term problem-solving. Jonny Wallis (Oldtown's champion), with on-the-record support from two other councilmembers, makes a majority should council approval be needed. Subsequent followup on long-term solutions should not re-invent the wheel--just choose the best of the models already discussed for the area. I'd trust Councilmember Wallis to spearhead that effort as well. Oh--as a cyclist in Oldtown, I've experienced nearly being "doored". I always wanted parallel parking removed--this will also eliminate a visual obstacle for pedestrians, bus and car drivers, and cyclists alike.
COMMENT 6208	2007-08-22 09:33 PM
I agree that immediate action is required on Hollister in Old Town. The other hot spot on Hollister is a short stretch conveniently located near the Goleta Hospital that has no shoulder. This is the most dangerous section of road in all of the Goleta. It is just luck that there has not been a death there.
COMMENT 6209	2007-08-22 10:04 PM
This is the second bicyclist fatality in Old Town in 6 years -- Antonio Guerca was biking to work when he was hit and killed by a motorist. Both are too many. The County did a study of parking before Goleta became a city. It showed that there is ample off- Hollister parking available to serve businesses. What it means is that people will have to walk past more businesses on their way to their immediate destination. They will remember attractive places and return later. Wider sidewalk and bike lanes will mean more to look at from sidewalk cafes and benches. People depending on bikes shop closer to home, they should be accommodated. If car parking cannot all be removed now, remove half -- on one side for one block, then the other the next block. It would slow speeding motorists too & make Old Town more pleasant. There is hope.
COMMENT 6210	2007-08-22 10:15 PM
I live off Hollister and Highway 217/ Dearborn Frontage Rd., and I bike regularly. There are several pedestrian and cycling transportation issues that need to be resolved. 1) Removing parking and adding a 2-way bike lane would make Hollister MUCH more safe and may improve visibility and congestion in general. 2) As David Bicycling said, sidewalks are sporadic in some places, such as off Hollister and Patterson. This forces cyclists to merge with drivers who aren't expecting it. It gives pedestrians no place to go except ad hoc footpaths. 3) Difficulties crossing Hollister. This has been improved in Old Town with the crosswalks. But it is difficult to cross from Dearborn. One must either jaywalk, or go one block in either direction, either to Ward or to Kellogg (where the most recent cyclist fatality occured. A person who lives off Dearborn, and who is trying to access the bike path via Ward, must cross the 217 onramp, cross Hollister , and then cross back over to the right side of Ward. Not only is this annoying, but it puts cyclists at risk as they must cross paths with people who are trying to get on and off 217. 4) In addition, Ward is a fairly well-used corridor for cyclist and pedestrian commuters, but there is no sidewalk or bike path. Cyclists must negotiate a disappearing shoulder, pedestrians walking toward them, and drivers and trucks who are trying to get to the mobile home or office parks. It would be nice if there was at least a wider shoulder, if not a bike path and/or sidewalk here. Old Town Goleta has a lot of pedestrians and cyclists (many Latino). It would be nice... [ more ]
COMMENT 6212	2007-08-22 11:24 PM
Your comments, CHRISL, are right on, but with one serious misunderstanding. Jonny Wallis has been a big source of the problem that has delayed progress. She is the one who stopped the improvements that Bennett was talking about years ago. She moves with the speed of frozen molasses and blocks any meaningful change in Old Town. Especially when it comes to removing the parking. That is the central problem that gets cyclists "doored" and wipes out the space for bike lanes and pedestrian improvements. If you have an inside track to Jonny Wallis, then please get her to commit to removing those spaces NOW and putting in the bike lanes. As you say so well, "Save the workshops and blather for the long-term problem-solving." Get Jonny Wallis on board and we are home free. She has actually been the main obstacle so far.
COMMENT 6223	2007-08-23 01:22 PM
I know I what I have to say will be considered blasphemous by many in the cycling community. But, over the last 10 years I have done a lot of cycling—including nearly 20,000 miles over the last five years—both recreational and commuting, and I believe I have something to contribute to the discussion. So in response to the questions and issues the author raised: **1) There is no safe, legal place to ride on Hollister Avenue in Old Town Goleta. This statement is misleading. Riding on Hollister in Old Town is legal. The relative safety of riding on this stretch of Hollister is an open issue. **2) An immediate remedy is possible: Remove about 15-20 parking spaces on one side of Hollister. Use that space for bike lanes and re-stripe the pavement. Part of the problem is the traffic lanes are too narrow. Removing parking could help that, but I doubt that it is going to be considered as a viable alternative to most of the public. That said, the idea of a painted stripe on the road offering any kind of real protection is naïve at best, and in some cases, just plain dangerous. Do the cross walks on Hollister prevent people from being hit when motorists ignore a pedestrians right of way? Statistically, you are more likely to be in an accident in a bike lane than riding in traffic. Case in point… if the description of the accident I read in the Independent is correct, there is a bike lane at Hollister and Kellogg where the accident occurred. **5) While we... [ more ]
COMMENT 6232	2007-08-23 07:47 PM
There is no safe, legal place to ride on Hollister Avenue in Old Town Goleta. This statement is misleading. Riding on Hollister in Old Town is legal. The relative safety of riding on this stretch of Hollister is an open issue. "safe, legal" means safe and legal, not safe or legal, so I don't see how the statement is misleading -- it seems to be saying that it isn't safe to ride anywhere other than the sidewalk (which isn't legal). You may disagree, but that's a different matter. Aside from that, I agree with your comments. See http://www.streetsblog.org/2007/08/20/incredible-sfpd-training-video-bikes-belong-in-traffic/ an SFPD video instructing their officers on the law regarding bicycles. Remarkable is a police officer instructing a cyclist that they should be riding in the traffic lane rather than in the "door zone". A logical implication is that bike lanes in the door zone are a bad idea. Note: California Vehicle Code 22517: opening a car door into traffic, creating a hazard California Vehicle Code 21200: bicyclists are vehicular traffic California Vehicle Code 21202: bicyclists have a right to the full lane
COMMENT 6246	2007-08-24 04:09 PM
I tried to get a letter into the Indy voicing sentiments simliar to Taylor614C's. But this week, The Indy (which is a great paper) saw it more fit to print letters on topics that previous letter-writers have already pounded into the ground. The text of my letter is below. A Year after Jake’s Death – How Little Has Changed Last Wednesday, I was at the Highway 154/Calle Real intersection, about 50 yards from where Jake Boysel was killed by the Ford Expedition-driving Ernesto Botello almost a year ago. While I was in the bike lane, waiting for the signal to change, a woman driving an SUV honked at me, pulled closer and revved her engine, honked at me again, and then screamed that I was in her way when I was finally able to cross the intersection. That intersection, along a critical route to La Colonia Junior High. Sansum Medical Center, and State Street, continues to be treacherous for cyclists. Much of its danger stems from motorists who use bicycle lanes as right turn lanes. While the law states that this is legal to drive in the bicycle lane within 200 feet of an intersection, motorists should remember that cyclists have the right of way here. Often a cyclist in the bicycle lane has no where else to get out of the way to. Unfortunately, this was not an isolated incident -- I have had similar experiences in that intersection in the past. Then, on Thursday, I was riding on the sidewalk against traffic on Fairview (because it had been too difficult and unsafe to cross the street and ride with traffic) when I was nearly struck by another motorist who was too busy talking on her cell phone to notice that I w... [ more ]

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