HomeMy WebLinkAbout9/4/2018 Item 15, Birdsong
From:Charles Birdsong <
To:E-mail Council Website
Subject:Support protected bike lane on Chorro St
Dear City Council Members,
I have lived in San Luis for 19 years and have owned my home on Chorro Street for 15 years. My family believes in
biking for many reasons. It is good for the environment, our health, self reliance and the community.
I believe that global warming is the greatest threat that our country and the world faces today. Biking to work and around
town is something that I can do to make even the smallest impact. Every community in the world needs to make some
contribution or there will be no chance to correct the problem. We can not just wish the problem would go away and do
nothing. There are many new emerging transpiration technologies like electric bikes, scooters, ride sharing and
autonomous cars that may make a significant impact by reducing green house gasses. Our communities must adapt to
benefit from these. We absolutely can not do nothing! We can not postpone either; the population is growing and
demanding more of our scarce resources and space. Every year that goes by makes it harder to plan. The "do nothing"
solution is a failure of community planning.
When our family was choosing where to live we picked the Anholm neighborhood because it was centrally located. It was
expensive for us, but we could walk or bike downtown to the library, our two boys could bike to Bishops Peak Elementary
and we could bike to work. It is not a perfect place to live. We put up with a lot of noise from cars and motorcycles,
pedestrians, and drunk college students at 2 AM in the morning. About once a month I can't park in front of my house and
I need to walk a few hundred feet to get to my car. But these are sacrifices I accept living in a community.
I bike to my work at Cal Poly every day and I have had many aggravating and dangerous experiences. In 2016 I was
biking on Chorro Street on my own block. I was trying to stay out of the road and riding as close to the white line as
possible when a neighbor opened his car door and hit me. I learned this is called "getting doored." I was knocked to the
ground in the middle of the road and banged up my kneed and limped for about a week. However if a moving car had
been close behind on the road then I could have been killed. After that I changed my practice and biked in the middle of
the road to stay away from car doors. However now about once a week I have frightening interactions where cars pass
inches from my handlebars without giving me 3 feet of space. A few of these were followed by the driver flipping me off or
shouting curses at me. When this happens it is traumatic. My heart races and I fear for my safety.
Last year my son told me of a similar experience. He was biking home from SLO High School near the end of his
sophomore year and turning left from Chorro onto Center. He moved into the middle of the lane and signaled a left turn
when a car raced up to his right, moving aggressively close to him into the parking lane. The man in the car rolled down
his window and yelled at him to get out of the road followed by a bunch of foul language. After biking to elementary and
high school for years, my son in no longer biking to school.
A protected bike lane though this neighborhood would help.
I have attended a couple of city council meetings and I see that the audience is packed with older folks that do not support
this plan. I have heard the scoffs and snickers of my neighbors in these meetings when citizens or the city talks about bike
safety. I don't think these folks are representative of the entire community. They are a loud and active minority. It is hard
for me to make time to attend these meetings. I should be home with my family, helping my son with his homework. I am
sure this is this is true for many of the citizens that would benefit from bike lanes; young families with children and college
students. I hope the council does not give this loud minority unequal voice. I hope they consider the entire community
and its needs.
I am repeatedly frustrated at the lack of empathy by these folks. At the SLO Library meeting I heard a woman at the table
next to mine say she wishes that the bicyclists would just go away. At the planning commission meeting one neighbor
spoke and said we should do nothing, because she already feels safe in her car driving with cyclists. I guess they have
never felt the fear of getting struck by a car while riding or worried if their child will get home safely. I have had several
friend seriously injured and killed biking and I know this is not just a minor inconvenience.
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I support that plan for protected bike lanes. I know that it will not be a perfect solution and will impact the community
positively and that there will be some inconveniences. As a homeowner on Chorro Street I am willing to put up with
changes in traffic patterns, changes in parking, etc. for the improvement in our community. I would love to see a beautiful
bike lane passing through the center of our community welcoming all to get out of their cars and do their part to help the
environment.
Sincerely,
Charles Birdsong
297 Chorro Street, San Luis Obispo
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