Big Plans for Pomona’s Bicycle Master Plan

Posted on July 27, 2012 by es

Last Wednesday, the City of Pomona hosted its 2nd community meeting for Pomona’s first ever Bicycle Master Plan. The Bicycle Master Plan is part of an Active Transportation Plan that includes pedestrian plans as well. Members of the community were able to comment and give feedback on a number of suggested lanes, paths, and bike friendly routes being considered for the city. The meeting also previewed other suggested programs and policies including the installation of bike parking, bike-related education and safety programs, and the proper maintenance of bike facilities. If you missed the meeting yourself but would still like to give comments or suggestions the following webpage has been set up.

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Community members discuss potential bikeways

Public Comment

The meeting had a strong turnout with a number of attendees with suggestions for the new bike plan. Several key issues were discussed including the need for direct routes to and from local schools (Western Medical University and Cal Poly Pomona) as well as the best placement for bike lanes within the city in general. There was some debate regarding whether Holt should be included in the bike plan. This busy corridor is already frequently used by cyclists, despite high levels of car traffic. Currently the bike plan includes no major facilities for this route and instead directs cyclists elsewhere. The tentative bike plan includes plans for a bike path that would travel along the San Jose Creek, a tributary to the San Gabriel River. The inclusion of this path is important because paths are generally considered safer and encourage cycling among all age groups and experience levels. The importance of connecting to other bike lanes in nearby cities such as Claremont was also stressed.

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Stickers were used to rank the importance of suggested routes

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Programs and policies to support walking and biking

What’s Next

While all of these plans are great, perhaps the best part about creating a bike plan is that Pomona will now have the green light to start pursuing funding for the installation of bicycle facilities. The policy section of the tentative bike plan includes a recommendation for allotting a portion of a city employee’s time to applying for the grants and funding that make these projects come to life.

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Pomona Bike Master Plan Meeting

Posted on July 12, 2012 by pvbike

The second Pomona Bike Master Plan/Active Transportation Plan (BMP/ATP) will be this coming Wednesday July 18th at 6pm-8pm in Emerson Middle School on 635 Lincoln Avenue, Pomona. The City is looking for bikeway recommendations and potential policy programs. If you have never seen a Bike Master Plan before, it can be kind of confusing to understand how an ideal plan should look like. We have added the City of Burbank’s Bike Master to get a better idea of what a good plan should look like. Plus it is pretty easy to read! We hope to see you all at next weeks meeting!

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Next Meeting and Community Garden Ride

Posted on June 28, 2012 by pvbike

Ar our last meeting we mentioned we wanted to have a mini-Bike-In at Dan’s gallery and what we got was this whole other energy and desire to have the Bike-In at Palomares Park and have it open to the public. Our next meeting we will be discussing the possibilities of having this event and what we need to do in order to make it happen.  We will meet at Palomares park this Tuesday July 3rd 6-6:30. Please join us and help us envision this event and give us your input and comments and your time in making this happen.  Palomares Park is located on 499 E. Arrow Hwy., City of Pomona. If folks are up for it, we can ride to a local yogurt shop to cool off!

We are kicking off our summer series ride Sunday July 8th!!! We teamed up with the Azusa Community Garden for folks to learn about community gardening and tips for your own garden. The ride will start and end at the Community Garden with infused drinks and garden-y snacks after. More info can be found on our FB page here. The ride meets and ends at Memorial Park, 320 N. Orange Place in Azusa,

 

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Learn confident city cycling this summer

Posted on June 15, 2012 by pvbike

Are you intimidated by cars when you bike? Sustainable Streets is offering free Confident City Cycling courses to adults 16 and up this summer in Burbank, West Hollywood, and Santa Monica. Participants will build personal confidence, learn their rights and duties as a driver of a bicycle, and learn to identify unsafe traffic situations and make decisions that can prevent crashes and collisions. Attendees will also learn pre-ride safety checks and basic roadside repairs, such as fixing a flat tire and minor mechanical adjustments. This FREE course includes a manual, a review of state and local laws, on-bike skill development, a Planet Bike Beamer headlight/taillight set, Pedros tire levers, and a Nutcase helmet! All you need is a bike in good working order with a brake. Visit the link above to sign up.

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Pomona Bike Master Plan needs your input!

Posted on June 9, 2012 by pvbike

Do you live or ride a bike in Pomona? Do you have suggestions of where the city should put bike lanes, pedestrian crossings, bike racks, and other amenities? If so, please participate in the planning process! Here is a website where you can learn about the process and leave feedback. Even if someone has already addressed what you wanted to say, repeating it will show that it is in high demand. One public meeting has already passed, but there will be another coming up in late summer or early fall.

A bike master plan combines input from community members with advice from transportation planners to suggest to the city the highest priority areas for improvement and what types of infrastructure are needed or wanted. The plan usually includes a map, descriptions of infrastructure, and illustrations. Once the city has a plan and approves the plan, they are eligible for related grants to start making the plan a reality. Plans are usually designed for a specific time range, so a five year plan would cover everything that should be built within five years. This limits the scope of the plans but also allows for reassessment of the community’s needs after that five years.

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