From: Giuliano
To: City Council; x-City Clerk"s Office
Cc: P&R Comm; Planning Comm; x-Public Works
Subject: Re: Tuesday April 14 meeting at 7PM, item 11A: Age Friendly Action Plan Date: Tuesday, April 14, 2026 5:20:02 PM
One more quick written comment about the staff report's noting what is needed to create an Age Friendly Community:
WHO has identified the following eight (8) key domains requiring a conscious effort to create an AgeFriendly Community.
1. Outdoor Spaces and Buildings
2. Transportation
3. Housing
4. Social Participation
5. Respect and Social Inclusion
6. Communication and Information
7. Civic Participation and Employment
8. Community Support and Health Services:
Every other domain is contingent upon "2. Transportation". Outdoor spaces and Buildings are not available if seniors can not get there. Housing is not enough if you can not get to/from friends, community, schools, libraries, parks, city government, shops, retail, etc. Social participation is highly restricted without transportation. One can not access communication and information if transportation to the "one central source or location" housing it. Social inclusion requires the ability to get to places to be included at. Civic Participation and Employment requires transportation to get to/from the locations of meetings and employment.
Community Support and Health Services requires transportation to access them.
It's not what you say that matters, it is what you do. Please, provide protected/separated class 1 or 4 bike lanes along all city arterial bike routes so that the Action Plan is not just words on a page, but can genuinely be put into place.
giuliano
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Drive a bike a bit more often and cars a bit less. You'll be healthier and happier, and so will our world.
On Mon, Apr 13, 2026, at 11:21 PM, Giuliano wrote:
I hope to make it tomorrow, but I'm not sure I can, I had a knee replacement surgery this past Friday and am recovering.
Written comments for Tuesday April 14 meeting at 7PM, item 11A: Age Friendly Action Plan
This is such a wonderful idea. One of the great things about Belmont is it's focus on helping its older residents remain active and connected.
A key component of this plan is "2. Transportation". It should be possible for an aging population, especially those who can no longer drive, to get around. Toward this, the action plan talks only of walking and transit. Barely a word or three about cycling.
Unfortunately, as is typical in Belmont, we ignore cycling as a key part of the solutions to so many issues. When I travel the world, I constantly marvel at the number of older folks getting about on bikes and e-bikes. And I see so little here.
This plan includes a ton about walking and transit. And while walking is important, folks generally only walk about a half mile. That barely gets them anywhere. Folks can easily cycle 3 miles, taking you from one end of Belmont to the other, north to south and east to west. In particular to/from transit anywhere in the City, shopping, retail, and even further into San Carlos and San Mateo. All within 3 miles.. Safe comfortable routes, protected bike routes on major cycling arterials like Ralston, Alameda, ECR, Old County are clearly key. And completely ignored. In the staff report the City offers as examples of what it is doing:
SMC Transit District Mobility Guides.
SMC Transit District concierge phone line. Again, fantastic. Again, this is being done by the Transit District and not the City.
Information disseminated about California’s updated bike and e-bike lighting requirements.
Ummmmmmm what? Don't get me wrong, the Guides and phone lines are cool.
But, 1) they are barely anything and 2) they are what the Transit District is doing, not what Belmont is doing. As for the bike light info ... seriously. This is what you think is going to make our elder population comfortable transiting the City? E-Bikes are a critical and transformational technology for senior empowerment.
But we need to do a whole lot better than talking to folks about lights. We need safe infrastructure to ride on. We need to let folks know of the dizzying array of ebikes available to them, supporting different kinds and abilities of cyclists:
traditional e-bikes, cargo e-bikes, and especially e-trikes, for those like my wife who are concerned about balance. Why does the city not have a regular education serious on cycling? Such a serious be a great venue for regular updates on e-bikes and senior transit.
The only mention, in the entire plan, of the word "cycling" is on page 73, discussing the Alameda de las Pulgas Corridor Project, which adds not even a single foot of additional bike lanes, and multiple features of which actually makes cycling more dangerous.
The entire plan mentions the word "bike" only only 3 pages:
19: "The City’s Bike and Pedestrian Plan", no discussion of cycling infrastructure.
25: "Increase education related to pedestrian, bike, and auto safety." No discussion of cycling infrastructure.
29: "Increase education on pedestrian, bike, and auto safety...Create educational videos about pedestrian, bike, and auto safety" Nothing about cyling infrastructure. Nothing about actual cycling classes. In it's response to the Grand Jury Report from a few years back the City affirmed it offered yearly cycling classes. It does not. Zero this year. Zero last year. One that I put together the year before. Nothing the year before that.
And that is it.
If the City is serious about making it easier for seniors to get around, to be able to be part of the community, to be able to connect with friends, to do so many things, then it must make it possible for seniors to cycle safely.
Thanks,
giuliano
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Drive a bike a bit more often and cars a bit less. You'll be healthier and happier, and so will our world.