We Are They: Helping to Make a More Bicycling Friendly Monterey County

Couldn’t seem to register and leave a comment at KSBW’s site in response to the following, so decided to create a post here to respond.    And if you ever find that leaving a comment here isn’t easy (registering isn’t required), please let me know!

“Most of my route is unsafe”

I appreciated the comment by a KSBW viewer regarding  Ravi Kapur’s 1/10/10 feature on Bicycling Monterey/HER Helmet Thursdays.  The comment was as follows:

“This is great, but will they look into improving road safety for cyclists? It gets more dangerous every day with distracted drivers and/or aggressive drivng. I’d love to ride to work, which is only a few miles from my home, but most of my route is unsafe here in Salinas. How about a separated bike path down Davis Rd. and Blanco Rd.? Bike lanes and designated bike routes aren’t really safe enough in and of themselves…we need our own bicycle roadways!”

This comment brings up a great point:  the need for safer bike routes.

What’s a cyclist to do?

Yes, there are a lot of budget cuts happening.  All the more reason that citizen involvement is needed when it comes to advisory and planning committees, grant-seeking and other fundraising, and other  activities that help create safer bike routes.

For those who’d like to get involved in helping to make routes safer here in Monterey County, one place to start is contacting the Transportation of Monterey County (TAMC) to learn what’s happening now.

Another place to connect with other individuals who often have a finger on the pulse—and frequently work up a sweat with hard labor as well—regarding various bikeway construction projects (roadway and off-road)  in Monterey County are two local bike clubs,  Monterey Off-Road Cycling Association (MORCA) and Velo Club Monterey.

For two examples of the good work TAMC is doing, see my post “Constructing a More Cycling Friendly Monterey County.”

Personal safety

And speaking of safety, if you noticed that reflective sash worn over regular clothing in the KSBW video, it’s the one I referred to in “High-Visibility:  Dress for Success.”

You may purchase these sashes now from Joselyn’s Bicycles in Monterey, or ask other Monterey County bike shops if they have them in stock or can order them. Or, you may order directly from Sayre (refer to “High-Visibility”) or a similar company.

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