Tag Archives: Active Transportation

Please Use Caution If Driving

May 15, 2017

The Environmental Council of Sacramento (ECOS) strives to provide all residents of the Sacramento region with pedestrian, bicycle and transit access to jobs, schools, shopping, services and recreation. 

Unfortunately, Sacramento drivers are hindering this access, as evidenced by three separate pedestrian deaths by motorists in less than two weeks. 

On April 30, 2017, Theresa McCourt died when hit by a suspected drunken driver on 47th Avenue in Sacramento. McCourt was a longtime member of the Sacramento running community. She also “…wrote a column on running for The Bee from 1990 to 1998. The British-born McCourt was also a published poet, freelance writer and editor of the California State Auditor.” Read more at http://www.sacbee.com/news/local/article150564292.html.

On May 11, 2017, 35-year-old Alysha McLean was killed on Franklin Boulevard at 42nd Avenue. McLean was attempting to cross Franklin Boulevard when she was struck in the southbound lanes by a vehicle that left the scene. The CHP is asking the public’s help in identifying the vehicle. Read more at http://www.sacbee.com/news/local/crime/article150552657.html.

On the same day, May 11, 2017, 58-year-old Mark Alan Stout was hit and killed by a car in North Highlands as he crossed Watt Avenue in his wheelchair. The California Highway Patrol said that Stout was traveling in his wheelchair across Watt Avenue near Myrtle Avenue. Read more at http://www.sacbee.com/news/local/crime/article150551147.html.

Source: The Sacramento Bee, May 15, 2017

Request for public input during the process of redrafting Measure B

DATE: March 9, 2017

TO: Sacramento Transportation Authority Governing Board

RE: Request for public input during the process of redrafting Measure B

Measure A, adopted in 1988, was developed through a process that included input from a wide range of community representatives, and its renewal in 2004 was partially based on guidance from stakeholders. In contrast, the Sacramento Transportation Authority prepared Measure B with minimal public involvement — and only at the end of the development process — which the STA Governing Board largely discounted in its final deliberations.

We believe a robust public input process should be used in the development of any future transportation measure for Sacramento County, as the County is currently using for its Communitywide Climate Action Plan. The County has been holding workshops in several neighborhoods, pursuant to encouraging “public participation and input … to ensure the Communitywide CAP reflects the needs of Sacramento County” (from the County CAP website). We request that the STA Governing Board adopt a plan for public participation before initiating the development of a revised funding package.

We welcome the opportunity to work with you to develop funding options for transportation policies in Sacramento County that align with regional needs regarding climate change, housing, equity, and air quality. Strong public input is critical for the development of a measure that we can wholeheartedly support.

Sincerely,

Ralph Propper and John Deeter, Co-Chairs
ECOS Transportation, Air Quality & Climate Change Committee

Co-signers:

Nick Lapis, Vice-Chair
Sierra Club, Sacramento Group

Coco Cocozzella, STAR Action Team
Sacramento Transit Advocates and Riders

Stephen Green, President
Save the American River Association

Rick Bettis and Sue Teranishi
Co-Chairs, Policy Committee
Breathe California of Sacramento-Emigrant Trails

Laurie Litman, Board President
350 Sacramento

George Parrot, President
Sacramento Electric Vehicle Association

Click here to read the full letter.

Sacramento Regional Transit charts a new direction

By Henry Li – Special to the Bee

March 07, 2017

The Sacramento Bee

Here’s a look at what’s ahead:

▪ RT will engage with broader community groups to fully understand the mobility needs and desires of our region.

▪ RT is committed to operating clean and safe trains and buses; we have prioritized security and cleaning operations, and reduced the fare-evasion rate by more than 15 percent.

▪ RT is dedicated to strengthening our finances and has tapped innovative revenue sources.

▪ RT has worked, and will continue to work, with our labor partners to build stronger employee relations, optimize processes and maximize efficiencies.

▪ RT has undergone a massive culture change, transitioning to be a more businesslike and customer-service-oriented agency.

Read more here: http://www.sacbee.com/opinion/op-ed/soapbox/article137016968.html#storylink=cpy

Read more here: http://www.sacbee.com/opinion/op-ed/soapbox/article137016968.html

Li, Henry. “Sacramento Regional Transit charts a new direction.” Sacbee. N.p., 07 Mar. 2017. Web. 07 Mar. 2017.

ECOS statement on Measure B

Date: April 28, 2016

To: Governing Board, Sacramento Transportation Authority

From: John Deeter, co-chair, ECOS Transportation, Air Quality & Climate Change Committee

Re: Comments on proposed Measure B

The proposal for allocating Measure B revenues up for discussion today contains improvements over Options 1 and 2 presented at the April 14th Board meeting, but the Environmental Council of Sacramento believes that it still allocates far too much for new road construction and far too little for transit. Moreover, we are troubled about the lack of public involvement in drafting this measure, without a full public discussion regarding the division of revenue, the tax rate, alternative sources of funding, and the appropriateness of using sales tax revenue to build roads.

A fundamental question implicit in the current discussion of an additional county-wide transportation tax is whether Sacramento County is committed to a robust transit system or is content with continuing to accept a much smaller system persistently hobbled by inadequate public financial support. Measure B if passed would immediately provide Regional Transit with an additional $25 million per year, which would be barely sufficient to restore services that were cut eight years ago provided this allocation were used solely for this purpose. But RT has other needs as well, such as replacement or overhaul of worn-out vehicles, conversion of light rail to low floor vehicles, and slow, steady expansion of the existing skeletal bus and rail network. To achieve these goals, RT needs at least $50 million per year or a quarter-cent sales tax dedicated exclusively to its programs.

ECOS might be able to support Measure B even if it included some funding for roads, provided this money was limited to less than 40% of the total and was used primarily for road maintenance (“fix-it-first”), additional sidewalks, and more bike lanes. But the proposal currently under consideration is weighted in the opposite direction: expanding road capacity instead of promoting alternative modes of transportation, and carrying with it all the well-known negative externalities such as air pollution, global warming, and unnecessarily expensive supporting infrastructure.

We urge the STA Board to reformulate Measure B to provide better funding for transit and other non-automobile modes of transportation.

STA ltr capture