August 2, 2011 New Striping and Signage Added to Golden Gate Bridge East Sidewalk to Assist in Easing Congestion and Improve Flow for All Sidewalk UsersFollowing three meetings held over the last few months with sidewalk stakeholders, including representatives from San Francisco Bike Coalition, Marin Bike Coalition, San Francisco Bike rental companies, and the disabled community, it was agreed that advisory striping with added signage would assist in easing the congestion occurring on the East Sidewalk, particularly on weekends and after 3:30 pm as the West Sidewalk is now closed to cyclists during these times (the west sidewalk closure will conclude by September 30, 2011). The striping and signage was added over several nights and completed this morning (August 2). There are now 8 locations across the 1.7 mile long sidewalk that have the dashed yellow striping and accompanying symbols for bikes and pedestrians painted onto the sidewalk. Each section of striping is about 30 feet in length. There are supplemental blue and white stickers, with the same symbols that are shown on the sidewalk, attached to every other light pole along the East Sidewalk. See photos below (click each to download high-res image).
The striping and signage is intended to be advisory in nature. In personally observing sidewalk users in an non-statistical manner, it seems that more than half were following the new sidewalk symbols. Since the start of the 4-month closure of the west sidewalk on May 31 to accommodate critical seismic retrofit work, there have been 2 reported solo bike accidents on the sidewalk. This is less than reported during the same time period in each of the last three years when 4 sidewalk bike-related accidents were reported in each year. The sidewalk congestion does not equate to an unsafe situation, but it has presented some frustrations to regular sidewalk users and we are looking forward to seeing improvements in flow based on these new additions. Several weeks ago, we also added signs at the approach points to the East Sidewalk of the Bridge that are shown in the photo below (click to download high-res image).
The idea of setting an enforceable speed limit for the sidewalks is currently undergoing further evaluation/consideration and is not yet scheduled to come back to the Board of Directors for further discussion.
Additional information regarding an earlier proposal for a sidewalk speed limitFollowing the April 21, 2011, discussion at the Building and Operating Committee about the concept of sidewalk safety improvements including a possible speed limit, staff held two open houses on May 19 and is considering further revisions to the original proposal. We expect to come back to the Board with a modified proposal in September pending further outreach and coordination with sidewalk stakeholders. MAY 19, 2011, GOLDEN GATE BRIDGE SIDEWALK BIKE SAFETY MEETINGS & OPEN HOUSESOn Thursday, May 19, 2011, the Golden Gate Bridge, Highway and Transportation District (GGBHTD) will host two OPEN HOUSE-style informational meetings to exchange information and ideas and to further discuss the recent proposal to add a speed limit on the Golden Gate Bridge sidewalks. The two meetings are scheduled on May 19, 6AM - 8AM at the EAST sidewalk entrance to the Golden Gate Bridge at Vista Point (north end) and May 19, 3PM - 5PM in the Board Room, Admin Building, 2nd Floor at the Golden Gate Bridge Toll Plaza. Materials available to review include: Open House meeting exhibits summarize what is proposed and the consultant's findings Staff Report from April 21 Building and Operating Committee meeting Complete consultant report - Bicycle Safety Study for the Golden Gate Bridge
APRIL 21, 2011, BUILDING & OPERATING COMMITTEE VOTES TO CONTINUE DISCUSSION ON SPEED LIMIT FOR BICYCLESAt the April 21 Building and Operating Committee of the Golden Gate Bridge, Highway and Transportation District (GGBHTD), the members voted to continue the discussion regarding the proposed bicycle–related safety enhancements to a future time not yet determined and directed staff to conduct additional outreach with the area bicycle coalitions, clubs, daily commuters, and bike rental companies. The five bicycle-related safety enhancement recommendations discussed by the B&O Committee at their Thursday, April 21 are listed below. The items up for discussion are based on the recent consultant study, Bicycle Safety Study for the Golden Gate Bridge (Study). If approved by the Committee, this matter will be presented to the Board of Directors at its May 13, 2011, meeting for appropriate action. The Study confirms that the Bridge sidewalks and access pathways are safe for pedestrians and bicyclists. Nonetheless, safety can be further enhanced with the implementation of the proposed recommendations, which are consistent with the Study recommendations:
SUMMARY OF EXISTING CONDITIONS
SIGNAGE AND STRIPING If approved, speed limit signage would be posted appropriately and pavement markings added in locations that will enhance separation of bikes and pedestrians on the EAST sidewalk. GGBTD staff would also re-evaluate opportunities of enhancement to safety on the Bridge sidewalks through possible improvements in signage at either end or along the length of either Bridge sidewalk. GGBHTD staff will also review of the universal signs at either end of the Bridge on both sidewalks to determine whether new technologies, etc., are available that might make the signage even more clear than it is at this time. Staff will also review signage, including traffic signage, on other pathways used by bicyclists. Where the EAST sidewalk is shared by both pedestrians and bicyclists signage and pavement markings would be added, at intervals to illustrate the general separation of bicycles to the inside and pedestrians to the outside, to assist in delineating specific space on the sidewalk for each type of user. Although it would not create a completely defined space, as striping would, it would reinforce the informal rules that users already follow where bicycles stay to the inside and pedestrians stay to the outside.
COUNTS AND ACCIDENT DATA WEEKEND DAY PEDESTRIANS ON EAST SIDEWALK: 10,000 pedestrians WEEKEND DAY BIKES ON WEST SIDEWALK: 4,600 bicyclists WEEKDAY: 4,200 pedestrians and 1,900 bicyclists on the east sidewalk. Although there were only 600 bicyclists on the west sidewalk on a weekday, the west sidewalk is only open to the bicyclists after 3:30 p.m. on weekdays. West Sidewalk 2000 and 2009: 85 accidents involving bicycles, of which 16 were head-on accidents, were reported on the WEST sidewalk. The majority (2/3) of these incidents involved a solo bicyclist. To be sure, the number of bicycle accidents on the west sidewalk is not increasing nearly as quickly as the number of cyclists on the sidewalks. The vast majority of the incidents that do occur generally have not resulted in significant injuries. The highest occurrence of head-on collisions was reported in 2002, when there were 5 separate incidents involving collisions where two or more bicyclists traveling in opposite directions made contact on the west sidewalk. In 2004, after the completion of the public safety railing in 2003, there was only one head-on bicycle accident on the west sidewalk. In 2005, there were three; in 2006, there was one; and in 2007, there were four head-on accidents reported on the west sidewalk. Apart from one 2005 head-on collision that did result in serious injuries, all other collisions resulted in only minor injuries. East Sidewalk 2000 to 2009: 79 incidents involving bicyclists on the EAST sidewalk. While the number of collisions has increased in the aggregate, the accident rate has not in light of the dramatic increase in the numbers of pedestrians and bicyclists who use the east sidewalk. The crowded and mixed-use nature of the east sidewalk plays a role in keeping the accident rate from increasing. The congestion itself controls the bicycle speeds on the east sidewalk, and thus plays an important role in controlling the severity of injuries resulting from bicycle accidents on the east sidewalk.
BICYCLE SPEED
Under California Vehicle Code section 21206, the GGBHTD is authorized “to regulate the operation of bicycles on pedestrian or bicycle facilities, provided such regulation is not in conflict with the provisions of the Vehicle Code.” It is standard practice for a local entity to adopt an Ordinance that: (1) identifies the applicable speed limit(s); (2) identifies the citation amount(s) for violating the speed limit(s); and (3) specifies that a violation of the speed limit is an “infraction.” When an individual is cited for violating the speed limit, the original citation is delivered to the Traffic Court located in the county where the citation was issued. Once the court receives the citation, the court generates and mails a courtesy notice to the person who was cited. The courtesy notice contains the amount due and procedures for contesting the citation. Should the cited individual choose to contest the citation, the park ranger or law enforcement officer who issued the citation may be required to appear in court to testify. In other jurisdictions, both park rangers and local law enforcement officers are authorized to issue citations for violations of bicycle speed limits. In practical terms, however, the individuals tasked with enforcement vary depending on the location and resources of the local entity. As an example, the Mid Peninsula Open Space District has a “Bicycle Ranger” program whereby park rangers are equipped with bicycles and radar guns in order to enforce the speed limits. On the other hand, park rangers at the Marin County Open Space District are not equipped with radar guns, nor are they trained to use radar guns, and therefore a local Sherriff assigned to the Open Space District enforces the speed limit.
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