Cycling is a growing sport and an increasingly common mode of transportation as more people leave their cars at home and hop on a bike to commute to work, run errands, travel, etc. exercise and visit local shops and restaurants.
The increase in bicycle traffic has led to more collisions between cars and bicycles. The severity of cyclist injuries is worsened by the increasing weight and speed of electric bicycles and scooters.
The city of Danville responded to threats to the safety of the San Ramon Valley’s cycling community by creating a bicycle advisory commission in 2022. But now, as e-bikes explode in popularity, the city council wants to downgrade the commission with the rank of a board of directors placed under the authority of the municipal council. Parks, Recreation and Arts Commission. In my opinion, this will dilute the effectiveness of this bicycle safety group and result in increased risk for cyclists of all ages traveling through Danville.
Danville is a key cycling location in the Bay Area. Cyclists come from all over the Bay Area to ride the roads and trails of the San Ramon Valley. They are attracted to relatively quiet residential streets, the Iron Horse Trail and nearby destinations such as Mount Diablo. In 2019, nearly 270,000 cyclists passed the East Bay Regional Park District bike counter on the Iron Horse Trail in Danville, an average of 21,900 per month.
But Danville isn’t as safe for cyclists as you might imagine. Since 2009, there have been 201 bicycle-vehicle collisions in Danville, an average of 16 per year since 2018, for an accident rate of 36 per 100,000, nearly three times the U.S. average. When comparing Danville with other Bay Area suburban cities, Danville ranks at or near first in accident rates.
And it risks getting worse. Injuries suffered by e-bike and e-scooter users in the United States increased from 751 in 2017 to 23,493 in 2022, according to an article published by UCSF.
Recognizing the growing safety risks, the Danville City Council approved a bicycle master plan in July 2021. A year later, it created the Bicycle Advisory Commission, made up of six experienced cyclists to help implement the cycling master plan.
These six volunteer commissioners advise the City Council, collaborate with the City’s transportation staff, and review major capital improvement projects to help improve bicycle facilities and the safety of all road users, including pedestrians. .
Over the past two years, the commission has worked with the city’s transportation department to improve facilities for cyclists. And data shows that the rate of bicycle accidents has decreased since 2021.
But despite that progress and growing security threats, the Danville City Council in May considered reducing the commission to a board reporting to the Parks, Recreation and Arts Commission.
A bicycle commission is unique among municipal commissions because it prioritizes the safety of residents and visitors. In collaboration with the transport department, which mainly deals with automobile traffic, the bicycle commission adds particular attention to the safety of bicycles and scooters.
In contrast, the Parks, Recreation and Arts Commission focuses on acquiring, developing and maintaining parks and recreational facilities and providing recreational programs and social services to city residents . While it provides valuable services to Danville residents, it does not focus on the critical transportation and safety planning and implementation issues addressed by the Bicycle Commission. Moving this critical safety and advocacy priority to the Parks, Recreation and Arts Commission dilutes its effectiveness.
After heated discussions, the council postponed until this fall a decision on whether to keep the commission as is, eliminate it altogether or minimize its role by merging it with the parks commission.
Maintaining the Danville Bicycle Advisory Commission in its current form ensures continued focus on critical safety issues, close coordination with Transportation Department staff, and well-informed implementation of improvements for all road users , sidewalks, paths and paths.
Bruce Bilodeau, retired geologist, is an experienced cyclist, former coach and team director of the San Ramon Valley Mountain Bike Club and current chairman of the Danville Bicycle Advisory Commission. The opinions here are his own and are not expressed on behalf of the committee.
