Cyclists raise safety concerns at Santa Fe City Council meeting

Carl Gable addresses the Santa Fe City Council. 
Sami Edge, Santa Fe New Mexican, photo credit

Good coverage of Carl Gable and company in the Santa Fe New Mexican.

Sent this to Mayor Webber and the Santa Fe City Council

I apologize for missing last night's Council meeting but wish to second Carl Gable's concerns for safe cycling.

Traffic safety for bicyclists is a complicated issue. Road design, enforcement priorities, and both driver and cyclist competence come into play. I think all of these functions have to be working in order to have safer streets. A BTAC has to have real power to influence outcomes beneficial to bicyclists.

As far as behavior, little things matter.  Police have to put a high priority on deterring texting, distracted driving, and moving violations by both motorists and bicyclists. To fellow motorists, risky behaviors usually result in bent metal. To bicyclists and pedestrians, serious injury or death.

During my 12 years on the Los Alamos County Transportation Board, I made a point of working with Public Works, the Police Dept., and County Council to pass policies such as the Complete Streets and Bike Plan and worked one on one with Public Works and the Police Dept leadership towards safer streets. I hope to apply to the BTAC for membership in Santa Fe, if there is an opening.

We (spouse, cats, dog, me) are still getting our bearings in the City Different, tripping over boxes and bumping into walls, so I missed this meeting but agree with Carl Gable as quoted in the New Mexican story this morning. We have owned a home in Santa Fe for about 3 years and finally moved in full time. So far, my cycling experiences in Santa Fe have been good ones and indeed, I twice reviewed favorably Santa Fe's application for Bicycle-Friendly Community status for the League of American Bicyclists. I really do appreciate the five minute bike ride to my food co-op rather than the 15 mile round trip bike ride from my former Los Alamos home to the LA co-op! But as the recent spate of incidents suggests, we are not finished with the job of making Santa Fe a Bicycle Friendly Community.