RTC Highway 9 draft plan falls short on safety – Santa Cruz Sentinel | #schoolsaftey

Six years after the launch of the Highway 9 Complete Streets Plan and about $500,000 spent on consultant studies, the Regional Transportation Commission (RTC) recently released its draft engineering plan for the stretch of highway between the SLV school campuses and Glen Arbor Road. I believe the report falls way short of identifying and illustrating comprehensive, integrated projects such as relocated school access points and transit stops, vertical retaining walls, selective tree removals, formal drainage systems and well-lit pedestrian/cycle paths that reduce travelers’ reliance on local streets serving as Highway 9 detours. RTC’s consultants also lack a sense of proactivity to address the age, narrowness and safety concerns of the near 100-year-old Highway 9 “Twin Bridges” at Brackney Way.

Caltrans should make greater use of its property outside the paved roadway by building projects that better address safety and the quality of life in SLV.

— James Helmer, Ben Lomond

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