At tonight’s meeting they will discuss the projects in and around Downtown, including road diets and bike lanes. We need to show our support. It would be great if you can attend, or email your support to council@smgov.net

City Council Meeting Tonight:

When:     Tuesday , April 12, 2011 at 6:30pm
Where:   Santa Monica City Hall, 1685 Main Street,
City Council Chambers, Rm 213

We need to show support for the plans that will bring new business to the downtown on bikes if the infrastructure is provided.  See the plans here and the agenda here.

The success of the Downtown and Civic Center relies on the strength and connectivity of pedestrian, vehicle, bicycle and transit networks. Significant improvements are underway with the Expo Light Rail, Palisades Garden Walk, the Village, recently-completed Santa Monica Place and other major private and public projects. The increased desirability of the Downtown and Civic Center will bring residents and visitors alike to the area for recreation, shopping, cultural events or work. The Expo terminus itself will serve thousands of daily light-rail passengers and become a center of activity that alters circulation patterns. The ability to successfully adapt and provide strong access to and around the Downtown/Civic Center on foot, bicycle, transit and in a vehicle is necessary to support this as a center of activity and primary business destination, and to advance the key LUCE principle of “No Net New Peak PM Trips.” Achieving this vision will guarantee that the Downtown continues to produce high economic benefit with comparatively low traffic impacts relative to other similar destinations in Southern California.

The following recommended bicycle facilities and intersection improvements have been defined under the RDA Expo Green Streets category.

• 2^nd Street: Create continuous bike lanes on 2^nd Street from Colorado to Montana, to connect with the Main Street bike lane at Colorado. This would create a long-distance north-south connection, and alternative to Ocean Avenue which some bicyclists feel is too busy with motor vehicles and buses. These bike lanes would be provided in Downtown by implementing by reducing through lanes from 4 to 2, with left turn lanes at most locations. Capacity exists on Ocean Avenue if this results in some shift of vehicles from 2^nd to Ocean.
• 6^th and 7^th Streets: Create new 6 foot bicycle lanes with a 3 foot buffer zone on 6^th Street while maintaining parking on both sides and a vehicle travel lane in each direction, and create a continuous bicycle lane through intersections on 7^th Street accommodated by eliminating left turn lanes at intersections.
• 4^th Court Connection from Expo Station to Broadway: Install wayfinding signs and shared lane markings to direct bicyclists from Colorado to Broadway using the alley between 4^th and 5^th Street. This completes a gap in the network, and will be critical as a link from the Esplanade and Expo Station to Broadway, which provides connectivity to much of the rest of the city.
• Broadway: Upgrade bike access along and connections to Broadway, which will become a primary bicycle connection to the Expo Regional bike path terminating at 17^th Street. In Downtown, reinforce the shared use of the transit lanes in the westbound direction, reconfigure existing lanes to provide an eastbound bicycle lane, and the improve intersection treatments adjacent to the bicycle transit center.