February 21, 2024
The Honorable Scott Wiener
California State Senate
1021 0 Street, Suite 8620
Sacramento, CA 95814
RE: SB 960 (Wiener) Complete Streets and Transit Priority Policies Support from the City of Emeryville Dear Senator Wiener:
On behalf of the City of Emeryville, I write in support of Senate Bill 960 (Wiener) which would strengthen the requirements that state-owned surface streets accommodate all road users, including pedestrians, cyclists, and those using public transit.
Emeryville has become one of the Bay Area’s best places to bike, walk, or roll due to the City’s investment in comfortable and connected infrastructure. The city’s location, small size, dense development patterns, mix of land uses, and access to local and regional transit also contribute to using sustainable forms of transportation. Emeryville benefits from connected sidewalks and an evolving network of bikeways, including the Bay Trail, Emeryville Greenway, and Doyle Street Greenway.
SB 960 directs Caltrans to develop a transit priority policy for state-owned roadways and expedite internal approvals of transit priority and complete streets improvements. Together, these actions will accelerate the development of state routes that are safe for all people and attract more riders to public transit.
State Route 123, more commonly known as San Pablo Ave. runs through Emeryville and several other Bay Area cities. There is an urgent need for safety improvements on this street, which has the third highest rate of injury collisions in Alameda County. San Pablo Avenue also serves as the second busiest corridor for AC Transit bus riders. Alameda CTC is leading three complementary near-term project components to improve safety and transit along the San Pablo Avenue corridor. The City of Emeryville has been working with the Alameda County Transportation Commission and other cities on a project that will improve transit speed and reliability by converting one vehicle travel lane in each direction to a dedicated bus lane and provide new cycling connections by converting parking lanes to protected bike lanes. The project will also include intersection safety improvements, bus stop consolidation, and new loading zones. SB 960 would strengthen this important work.
For these reasons we support your legislation and thank you for your leadership on this important policy topic.
Sincerely,
Courtney Welch, Mayor
City of Emeryville
SB 960 Support Letter
City of Emeryville
INCORPORATED 1896
OFFICE OF THE CITY COUNCIL
1333 Park Avenue. Emeryville, CA 94608-3517
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