Cliff Drive Vision Zero plan advances: 3.1-mile separated bike path proposed, environmental review planned

City of Santa Barbara staff gave an update on the Cliff Drive Vision Zero project, presenting revised designs that would convert a portion of Cliff Drive from a high-speed roadway into a neighborhood street with a separated bicycle facility, enhanced crossings and new street trees.

Michelle Bedard (presenter), a staff member with responsibility for the project presentation, described the core features: a 3.1-mile separated bike path stretching from the westerly entrance near Arroyo Burro County Beach Park east to Castillo Street, enhancements to four existing crosswalks and the addition of 14 new high-visibility crosswalks with pedestrian-activated rapid-flashing beacons at non-signalized crossings, and four new traffic signals at key intersections. "This is a high priority of the Vision 0 program," Bedard said.

Why it matters: the corridor change fills the last gap in a 30-mile regional coastal bike route connecting UCSB and Goleta to points north, and it is intended to reduce fatal and serious injury crashes while improving walking and bicycling access along a heavily used coastal corridor.

Key design and project details…