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HomeMy WebLinkAboutSB 127- LTR of Support 05 September 2019 The Honorable Jordan Cunningham State Capitol, Room 4102 Sacramento, CA 95814 Fax: (916) 319-2135 RE: SB 127 (Wiener D) Transportation funding: active transportation: complete streets. (Amended: 7/1/2019) Dear Assembly Member Cunningham: The City of San Luis Obispo supports Senate Bill 127, by Senator Wiener. This bill would establish an Active Transportation Asset Branch within the Transportation Asset Management Office of the department and require the Transportation Asset Management Plan program manager to develop and meaningfully integrate performance measures into the asset management plan and to establish interim goals, objectives, and actions to meet the department’s transportation mode shift goals, as specified. The Complete Streets for Active Living bill, SB 127, will mandate that whenever Caltrans repaves or expands a state-owned surface street that passes through urban neighborhoods, they must create safe access for all users, including pedestrians, bicyclists, motorists, and transit riders of all ages and abilities. Critical provisions of this bill include: requiring safety improvements with every repaving project on most state-owned roads, elevating safety considerations in setting the priority of repaving and rehabilitation projects and involving community organizations and local governments when a project is planned. State Route 1 (Santa Rosa Street) extends through San Luis Obispo. It is a regional route linking the north coast of San Luis Obispo County to US 101 and the downtown of San Luis Obispo. It also serves local commercial uses as well as local multimodal transportation needs between the downtown and Cal Poly University. State Route 1 through San Luis Obispo also rates consistently among the top 5 high collision areas in the City for bicycling and walking. SB 127 would mandate that, when Santa Rosa Street is identified for repaving, upgrades to pedestrian and bicycle improvements also be considered that are proportional to the need and within the overall budget of the pavement upgrade. Considerations of these improvements at the time of pavement upgrade is an efficient way to save costs by lumping improvements together in a single bid package. This is how the City operates its pavement program and it would be efficient for Caltrans to consider the same. For these reasons, the City of San Luis Obispo supports Senate Bill 127. Sincerely, Heidi Harmon Mayor City of San Luis Obispo cc. San Luis Obispo City Council