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Students and parents urge Los Altos to install protected bike lanes on San Antonio Avenue
Summary
High-school students, parents and Safe Routes advocates told the council that San Antonio Avenue's current bike lanes are unsafe for school commuters and asked the city to pursue protected lanes, outreach and student bus-pass options.
Students, parents and active-transportation advocates told the Los Altos City Council on March 24 that San Antonio Avenue needs protected bike lanes to keep students safe and to support climate and parking goals.
"I bike because it gives you something a car never can, independence," Zoe Alaniz, a junior at Los Altos High School, told the council during public comment. She described students squeezed next to high-speed traffic or riding in gutters and said five schools—Santa Rita, Egan, BCS, Hausner and Los Altos High School—rely on the San Antonio corridor.
Caroline Horn, a member of the Los Altos High Sustainability Committee and PTSA, said El Camino's new bike lanes have been "transformative" and suggested the city consider student bus-pass programs used elsewhere to expand access. Leslie Desayer, president of the Los Altos High School Sustainability Committee, recommended a European-style separation of bike and pedestrian space and suggested converting part of the existing protected pedestrian path to a dedicated bike lane.
Safe Routes to School advocate Stephanie Singer requested bidirectional crosswalks across Foothill Expressway at Vineyard, Arboretum and Saint Joseph/Grant Road and urged a physically separated (Class I) bike lane on Foothill to enable family bicycling and safer routes for elementary, middle and high school students.
Council members thanked the speakers and asked staff to follow up. A council member asked the student to email her comments to the public-comment portal so the council could have them on record; the council also invited VTA and city staff to continue outreach and consider the suggestions in planning work for San Antonio and Foothill projects.
The council closed public comment and subsequently approved the consent calendar. Staff said they will coordinate follow-up between city planning staff, VTA contacts and school representatives.
