Sunnyvale council studies Hollenbeck Avenue bike-lane options after months of outreach

City transportation staff presented three alternatives for bicycle facilities on Hollenbeck Avenue and asked the Sunnyvale City Council for feedback after two rounds of community outreach and an online survey with over 700 responses.

Principal transportation engineer Lillian Sang said the study covers Hollenbeck between Alberta Avenue and Danford Drive — about 1.6 miles — and that tonight’s purpose was to "share the project alternatives and community feedback received to date" and to obtain council refinement before returning to the Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Committee in September and to council in November. She emphasized, “Tonight, we're not asking for an action from the council, but, mainly, we want to obtain input.”

Nut graf: The study was started in 2024 and grew from the city’s 2020 Active Transportation Plan. Staff presented three alternatives: (1) remove all on-street parking and install buffered bike lanes on both sides; (2) remove parking on one side of the street, alternating sides along blocks, and install Class 2 bike lanes; or (3) keep existing conditions (no new bike facility). Staff said Alternative 1 yields the greatest physical separation for bicyclists but would shift parking demand to side streets; Alternative 2 preserves some on-street parking while providing designated lanes; Alternative 3 conforms with the ATP and has no capital cost.

Key details and data: Sang said the corridor is about 40 feet curb-to-curb, generally with parking on both sides. Staff collected 14-hour bicycle counts and parking occupancy data in October 2024. Sang told council the corridor had 5 bicycle collisions from 2019–2023, and that parking occupancy hotspots are between Torrington Drive and Fremont Avenue and between Denver and Harvard. She noted constraints: VTA requires 11-foot travel lanes on segments with bus service, the minimum considered bike-lane width was 5 feet and minimum parking width 8 feet, and the downtown specific plan EIR (adopted 2020) currently includes a mitigation at Hollenbeck and Remington that assumes removal of some on-street parking and adding a left-turn lane; changing that mitigation would require a separate amendment and EIR work.

Council and public input: Councilmembers pressed staff on technical details: Councilmember Mellinger asked whether 7-foot parking lanes (NACTO guidance) could be used to increase bike buffers; staff said they typically design 8-foot parking but could study narrower parking and requested a top‑down right-of-way survey before final decisions. Councilmembers also asked about gutter widths, VTA bus-lane width requirements, the feasibility of a two-way cycle track on one side, and possible temporary or longer-term traffic-calming measures. Councilmember Srinivasan and others urged that pedestrian needs (especially crossings near schools) be evaluated and that traffic calming be considered in conjunction with bike improvements. Several council members recommended additional outreach to schools and residents.

Public comment was extensive: more than 50 people spoke during the study-session public comment, including parents, students, and long-term residents. Supporters — including students and parents, Safe Streets advocates and cycling coaches — favored Alternative 1 (buffered bike lanes without on-street parking), citing safety for children biking to multiple nearby schools. Opponents — including numerous residents who said they rely on on-street parking or serve senior households — favored Alternative 3 (maintain existing conditions) or urged preservation of parking, and many asked that traffic calming and pedestrian crossings be prioritized.

Next steps: Staff said it will refine alternatives and cost estimates based on council feedback, present recommendations to BPAC in September and return to council in November for selection of an alternative. Staff flagged that implementing Alternative 1 would require most on-street parking to be removed and that some blocks could require a 6–7 minute walk to next parking; staff also noted implementation costs tied to removing truck islands at Fremont and other civil work.

Ending: Council did not take action; members asked for further analysis on right-of-way widths, targeted pedestrian-crossing improvements (Cheyenne at Hollenbeck was repeatedly mentioned), comparisons to existing city facilities (Mary Avenue, Sunnyvale‑Saratoga), and an outreach plan that reaches residents without online access. Staff will return with refined design and cost information and with the BPAC recommendation in the fall.