2/3/97
To: Santa Barbara County Supervisors
Re: Bike paths in old town Goleta
Dear Supervisors:
The currently unsafe and unpleasant conditions along Hollister avenue in Old town Goleta have caused this bikeway to be identified by the Santa Barbara Bike Coalition as one of the most vital weak links in the south coast bikeway network. This is also the most accident-dense place in the County for cyclists, according to Santa Barbara County statistics.
The Goleta Old Town Project Area Committee decided unanimously over a year ago to provide bike lanes on Hollister in Old Town Goleta as part of its revitalization plan.
The quality of this route plays a major role in the choice of hundreds of commuters to high tech businesses in west Goleta who would like to cycle to drive instead.. that is, to become part of the traffic problem which "necessitates" expensive road expansion & lowers the quality of all of our lives in an unfortunate self-propelling cycle. Traffic has increased far out of proportion to our population increase. It is exactly the kind of foot-dragging which is occurring for Goleta bike lanes which contributes to people's choice to drive more.
The cost of doing a slurry seal and restriping the lanes to include bike lanes is estimated at $75,000; less than the medical bills from one serious bike accident. This is a great ratio of cost to benefit for any transportation project.
Please act now to insure this urgently needed project is completed as soon as possible, rather than in the distant future.
Sincerely,
Art Ludwig