We invite you to participate at the May 9th City Council Meeting by joining us, sending your personal input to council, and Signing the Petition for Safer Streets Today!

Santa Monica City Council Meeting May 9th, scheduled for 7:00pm – arrive 6:30pm

Will you attend? RSVP@SMSpoke.org

Sign the Petition for Safer Streets Today!

• Officially Proclamation: May as Bike Month in Santa Monica
• Discussion: Vision Zero – Action Alert

At the beginning of tonights Council Meeting the Mayor will proclaim May as Bike Month 2017!  Join us to celebrate our communities dedication to biking and healthily active transportation.

I addition to the Bike Month Proclamation, at this meeting the City Council will hear from staff and the public on the City’s efforts on pedestrian and biking safety programs, infrastructure improvements and implementation on Vision Zero. Here is the Staff Report on Vision Zero, Bike Action Plan, and Pedestrian Action Plan Implementation. With the 2 year budget soon to be discussed this is our opportunity to tell our city leaders we want true commitment to safety in the form of dedicated funding for improved safety infrastructure. This is our chance to tell the City that we want them to hire a full-time pedestrian safety coordinator to coordinate Vision Zero and to fund improved safety infrastructure, like buffered bike lanes, better crosswalks, and safer sidewalks.

Without a pedestrian coordinator dedicated to the task of Vision Zero to coordinate between City departments and to shepherd and oversee projects we can never realize the commitment Santa Monica made to reduce preventable traffic fatalities to zero in 10 years. The City must be transparent, coordinated and data driven if we ever wish to solve the growing epidemic of serious injuries and fatalities due to traffic collisions!

Santa Monica has demonstrated it’s commitment to the environment and reducing emissions by encouraging residents and visitors toward alternate modes of transportation like walking, biking and public transportation. With that there is also the obligation to keep us safe when we opt for these modes for our health and for the health of our community through the commitment of funds for staff and projects. With the current epidemic of serious injuries and traffic fatalities nearing double digits in just the last few weeks in Santa Monica — the time is now to make that commitment!  One’s life should not be put at risk for walking or riding a bike to get to our daily destinations.

If you have not yet signed the petition, we invite you to do so now. PLEASE also invite your friends and family to sign before the May 9th meeting. In addition to the petition you can also send your thoughts and concerns to City Council members in advance of the meeting by emailing council@smgov.net.

Click here to Sign the Petition for Safer Streets Today!

The event hours will be adjusted for the expected hearing time once the council agenda is available. The meeting begins at 5:30PM, but the hearing will not be until later in the meeting.