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Albany Transportation Commission recommends council adopt 2026 Active Transportation Plan after heated Solano Avenue debate
Summary
The commission voted to recommend City Council adopt the 2026 Active Transportation Plan after staff presentations and public comment that split residents over a proposed Solano Avenue uphill protected bikeway. Commissioners requested clarifying edits and asked staff to note how collision data and community feedback were used in network ratings.
The Albany Transportation Commission voted to recommend that City Council adopt the 2026 Active Transportation Plan, concluding months of outreach, technical analysis and intense public comment about a proposed Solano Avenue bicycle facility.
Staff presented the draft plan as a policy‑level document intended to guide future pedestrian and bicycle improvements, program priorities and project phasing. Justin (staff presenter) told commissioners the plan was developed in three phases—goals and existing conditions, crafting a network and vision, and identifying priority projects and programs—and includes targeted outreach on schools and the Solano Avenue corridor.
The decision followed nearly an hour of public comment that split business owners, long‑time residents and advocacy groups. Adria Ann McMurray opposed the Solano bikeway, saying the proposal had surprised local businesses and raised public‑safety concerns she attributed to the fire department’s ability to reach both sides of their truck. "I think it would impede their ability to reach both sides of their truck," she said during public comment. Several other speakers including Jack Rold and Didi Pansino said loss of on‑street parking would harm access for seniors, disabled residents and merchants.
Supporters of the plan, including members of the Albany Climate Action Coalition and several former commissioners, urged passage as drafted. A caller who identified themselves as Nick Dolch said the fire department ‘‘does not have any issues with this with the ATP, currently,’’ and described the Solano element as a modest portion of a much larger streetscape package.
Commissioners pressed staff to clarify how the plan’s "high comfort" bicycle network was derived. Staff and the consultants said they began with an accepted Level of Traffic Stress (LTS) quantitative method and then adjusted the mapping using community and stakeholder feedback; collisions were not part of the initial LTS metric but were considered later when prioritizing projects. Commissioners asked that figure captions note that the initial comfort mapping does not include collision rates.
After section‑by‑section discussion and a small set of wording and figure clarifications, Commissioner Zuppa moved that the body recommend City Council adopt the plan as the 2026 Active Transportation Plan, incorporating agreed edits; a fellow commissioner seconded. By roll call the motion carried and the commission recorded its recommendation to forward the plan to council for adoption.
Next steps: staff will incorporate the edits requested by the commission, add clarifying notes on methodology and collision considerations, finalize appendices and transmit the plan to City Council for formal adoption.
