The City of Sunnyvale Moves to Re-evaluate Caribbean Drive Green Street Demo Project

Above, the original design proposal for Caribbean Drive to be reconsidered by the City of Sunnyvale.Last night, the City of Sunnyvale Council agreed with our recommendation to send the Caribbean Drive design proposal back to staff for re-evaluation. The move came on the heels of the City Manager announcing yesterday afternoon the removal of the project from last night’s City Council meeting agenda. Thanks to the City Council and City Manager for hearing our concerns, and big thanks to all of you for your timely engagement on this issue. Your emails were the catalyst the City needed to take action and reflect on whether existing design proposals go far enough to ensure safety for people biking on Caribbean Drive.Looking ahead, this win gives us the opportunity to advise City leadership and staff on a more comprehensive design plan – one that addresses our full concerns after last Thursday’s bike-big rig fatality, which claimed the life of Scott Harvey on Caribbean Drive.  The fact of the matter is a fatal collision on our streets shouldn’t be what motivates us to continually re-evaluate roadway safety, yet we look forward to working in close consultation with City staff on the re-design of the project, while also engaging people who bike in this area for their feedback. If you’d like to be kept in the loop regarding next steps, shoot me an email at: ben@bikesiliconvalley.orgAdditionally, SVBC members Betsy Megas and Lloyd Cha kindly compiled several alternative routes for avoiding Caribbean Drive and its heavy traffic. You can find their travel tips below:“In addition to the Borregas corridor, and the Bay Trail, a couple east-west options are worth mentioning. Moffett Park Blvd is a good way to move between that end of Santa Clara and that end of Sunnyvale. So is the corridor consisting of Old Mountain View-Alviso Road, Elko Dr., and Persian Dr. Both corridors connect to Borregas, and both are accessible from the San Tomas Aquino Creek Trail. The Calabazas Trail doesn't yet go far, but that connects to Old Mountain View-Alviso Road, too.Zooming out a tiny bit further, Tasman now has bike lanes through most of Santa Clara, but it's still fast and busy, and Sunnyvale's portion is still a squeeze, with neither bike lanes nor sufficient space in some spots. The John W. Christian Greenbelt follows the Hetch Hetchy right of way a little further south. It's sheltered from traffic but a little hard to follow because it doesn't directly cross some streets. And, to connect to Borregas from the Mountain View end, Evelyn is my first choice. It can be busy, but it's a popular bicycle route and has few conflict points.”