Santa Rosa releases public-review draft of Active Transportation Plan; staff to return in June

Santa Rosa transportation staff on the council dais on Tuesday presented a public-review draft of the city's Active Transportation Plan and asked residents to submit comments before the online review period closes March 30.

The plan, presented by Torena Wilson, the city's transportation planner, updates the 2018 bicycle and pedestrian master plan and maps proposed walking and biking projects citywide. "We have a public review draft of the entire active transportation plan. It's ready. It's open for public review," Wilson told the council.

Why it matters: the plan rebrands the prior bicycle-and-pedestrian master plan to the broader Active Transportation Plan to include walking, biking and rolling; it sets a five-year prioritized list of projects and seeks to coordinate projects with planned pavement maintenance so upgrades (for example, safer striping or curb improvements) can be implemented faster when streets are repaved.

Wilson said staff completed two phases of community outreach over about a year and a half, compiled project maps and conducted a project-prioritization exercise that weights factors such as location on the high-injury network, proximity to transit, schools and parks, gap closure and whether an area serves disadvantaged communities. The draft includes chapter 4 (recommendations, with maps by segment) and chapter 5 (the prioritized five-year implementation list).

A key implementation approach in the draft uses planned pavement maintenance as an opportunity to add bicycle and pedestrian treatments while crews are already working on a roadway. "One of the best ways for us to put in bicycle and pedestrian projects is through pavement maintenance," Wilson said, noting that pavement projects can speed delivery of improvements and support a "complete streets" approach.

Public engagement and next steps: the plan opened for online comment March 3 and remains open through March 30. Wilson said staff will review public feedback, present the revised draft to the Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Board (anticipated in May) and return to council for possible adoption in June. She also provided contact information on the project webpage for residents who need help leaving comments.

During public comment, Eris Weaver, executive director of the Sonoma County Bicycle Coalition, praised the draft as "the best one I've ever seen," noting the plan's safety-first framing and a prioritization approach that can be aligned with other city work. Council members asked for clarifications about specific streets and requested staff help direct constituents to the online commenting tool.

No ordinance or budget vote was taken; the council received the presentation and directed staff to continue the public-review process and return with a refined draft later in the spring.

What to watch: the city will post an interactive PDF and comment tool at the project web page during the review window. If adopted, the five-year prioritized projects will be used to inform the city's capital improvement program and to align with pavement maintenance schedules.