The Laguna Beach Planning Commission will evaluate options for “complete streets” features on Glenneyre Street in a public hearing Wednesday, Dec. 12 at 6:30 p.m.
The options to be evaluated, as outlined in a recent study prepared by a transportation consulting firm, are crosswalk enhancements at intersections and installation of bike lanes between Thalia Street and Calliope Street. To add bike lanes on this four-lane stretch, one travel lane in each direction would be eliminated. There would then be one travel lane in each direction and a two way left turn lane in the middle. Parking would not be impacted, although the reduction in travel lanes might create opportunities for added parking at some locations.
The staff report to the Planning Commission will be available for review at the Community Development Department one week before the Planning Commission meeting.
Re: Laguna Beach Planning Commission will evaluate options for “complete streets” features on Glenneyre Street
If there is a mandate for Laguna Beach to be “Complete Streets” compliant, why must as a significant and critical thoroughfare as Glenneyre be selected for automobile traffic disruption; which will ultimately affect the entire towns traffic flow that already has issues, and most noticeably during the busy summer months.
Making a bicycle lane for as short a distance as proposed on Glenneyre serves no real purpose for bicycle transportation, as at either end of this short distance bicyclists must to return to streets with car traffic.; and this is all done at the detriment of traffic flow to the rest of the town, by restricting this major road to one lane.
Alta Laguna Boulevard, at Top of the World is already an overly wide street for the traffic that is on it. It has two traffic lanes in each direction with an equivalent other lane used for street parking. (This street is a total of 6 lanes wide in the midst of a residential-only area. Except for Coast Highway, Broadway and Glenneyre, it is the only other street that is as wide, but this one is not used to its capacity.) The road runs between two bicycle destinations; the fire road at one end and the Alta Laguna Park at the other. This road is already very active with bicycle traffic including many off road riders, and would probably be used more if it was bicycle friendly.
If Laguna Beach wishes to have a bicycle friendly street, why not select one that will effectively be utilized for that purpose and have a minimal effect of automobile traffic?….Alta Laguna Boulevard.
Gleneyre is already defacto bike route through town, making it safer for bikers and pedestrians would safe lives. Thanks!
The Task Force for Complete Streets met with city officials monthly since 2009 (four years). In that time the task force offered 98 interventions for street improvement , the city ACTED on only TWO. To propose a traffic calming project on the grand scale of Glenneyre bike-lanes and roundabouts coincident with the local election period served to get two leftwing-nuts re-elected. Furthermore, to spend $10k for three design alternatives from an urban design firm prior to preparing traffic measurement data is putting the cart before the horse. Without having traffic measurements for each mode of travel, walking, cycling, busing and motor-vehicles, the design firm cannot make an educated assessment of current conditions nor offer effective real solutions for traffic calming measures on Glenneyre – or anywhere else. If city officials were paying attention the last four years they would know better and Laguna residents would be better served by city government.