Above, Jim Denevan delivers organic produce by bike, from Santa Cruz Farms to the farmer's market. People Power can ensure that bicyclists' voices are heard throughout the decision-making process. We also find out which grants are available for bike projects and make sure local agencies apply for them, and use them wisely. Some of People Power's main political goals are: (1) to develop a continuous bikeway system that serves the entire County of Santa Cruz; (2) to change local parking requirements in order to ensure ample bike parking and allow for the conversion of car parking to bike parking; (3) to improve bicycle access to buses going to neighboring cities; (4) to make traffic lights sensitive to bicycles; (5) to implement disincentives to automobile use, such as a gas tax, increased parking fees; and (6) to remove as much onstreet auto parking as possible to make roads safer for bikes and discourage auto use. While most of these specific goals are still a ways off, we've had several political successes. One of People Power's first experiences with city politics was participating in the redesign process for the earthquake-destroyed One business is trying to create a cross-country, car-free bike trail called the National Bicycle Greenway. downtown. Don Pong submitted a set of detailed recommendations, called the "People Power Plan For a BikeFriendly Downtown." Despite opposition from planners and merchants, the hard work by Don and others resulted in many provisions for bicyclists in the Downtown Plan. As People Power picked up more political experience, the successes got bigger. A huge victory came when People Power and local residents convinced the city not to build a four-lane car bridge through the middle of the greenbelt area. The city took People Power's suggestion and redesigned the bridge, which would have carried 50,000 auto trips per day, into a bicycle- and pedestrian-only facility. Another hard-fought battle resulted in the removal of on-street parking from a busy downtown street to make space for bike lanes. Important parts of that battle included a petition drive, a letter-writing campaign, a huge ride through town ending up at City Hall, and lots of speaking at public hearings. One People Power volunteer, J.B. Harrington, came up with the idea of putting notices on bikes all over town a few days before the important public hearings. This helped ensure that hearings were packed with cyclists, many of whom wore their helmets inside to identify themselves. The bike-friendly General Plan adopted by the city is another success story. People Power involved itself in the planning process to ensure adequate provisions for alternative transportation. The Plan endorsed the idea of contraflow bike lanes on one-way streets. It gave a high priority to the construction of many new bike lanes and it prohibited the city from removing any bike lanes in order to make more room for cars. The Plan also required developers to provide covered bike parking at certain types of new and existing buildings. Also, thanks to the efforts of People Power's Ron Goodman, the city wrote an ordinance to improve bicycle parking requirements, and allow businesses to convert car spaces to bike spaces, even if this put them under the normal car parking requirement. While spending much of its energy in the often dry political arena, People Power's radical, grassroots events help make cycling fun. Grassroots changes in the community are even more noticeable and inspiring than the political victories to date. One now sees more families leaving their cars at home or even getting rid of them altogether. Parents pulling kids around in bike trailers or families doing their shopping by bike are no longer an unfamiliar sight. Paul and Margie Manners decided to use bikes as much as possible with their two sons, 7-year-old Lowell and 3-year-old LioneL Lowell has his own bike and Lionel rides in a trailer. Lowell says, "I like riding bikes a lot better than being in the car. Riding bikes, you can see more things, and you can stop more." Paul says, "When we go out for breakfast together on Saturday mornings, we I RAIN Summer 1996 Volume XV, Number 1 Page 15
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy NTc4NTAz