Home
Bringing E-Bike Joy to the Burbs
Can the urban enthusiasm for bike share spread to the suburbs?
June 24, 2019: Getting around Elk Grove, Folsom, and Rancho Cordova is about to get a little more electric and a little more fun.
The three cities, SACOG, and Gotcha, a bike share company, have come together to launch a pilot program that will bring electric bikes to the cities (and a few scooters in Elk Grove). This new pilot program is the first opportunity for the Sacramento region to test the concept of suburban bike share. The pilot will test the bikes in a suburban environment and shed light on how a system not primarily focused in an urban core could provide residents new mobility options.
To date, bike share and scooter systems across the country have focused their efforts on city downtowns and urban cores, due to the density of human activity, including housing, jobs, and entertainment. As these mobility systems become more ingrained into everyday travel behavior for urban residents, residents in suburban areas should also have more travel options.
Green Light for Granny Flats
Sutter County makes it easier to build Accessory Dwelling Units
June 19, 2019: Whether it is called a granny flat, a carriage house, an in-law unit, a backyard cabin, or even a Fonzie flat, Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs) offer an inexpensive and environmentally friendly way to boost housing.
California effectively made ADUs legal throughout the state in 2017 but legal does not always mean easy. Local regulations such as mandating parking spaces, large set-backs, or lot coverage requirements can, intentionally or not, make it difficult for ADUs to be built or approved.
That is why one of the key sections in SACOG’s Housing Policy Toolkit is a series of suggestions for cities and counties on how to make it easier for people to get ADUs approved.
Sutter County’s principal planner Doug Libby was overhauling other miscellaneous zoning rules and saw the opportunity to remove some red tape by adopting some of the Toolkit recommendations. He proposed eliminating the county’s parking requirement for ADUs, reducing the rear and side yard set-back, and increasing the maximum percent lot coverage requirement. The Board of Supervisors approved those changes in its June meeting and they will take effect on July 11.
How JUMP Changed my Life
After a year, JUMP shows e-bikes are a “viable alternative to car trips”
May 23, 2019: Up until a year ago, Matthew Hargrove commuted to his downtown Sacramento job in his Ford F150 truck. It took him 25 minutes to travel from his West Sacramento home to work, including finding a parking spot and paying for it. Now “my commute on a JUMP Bike takes about 20 minutes and I don’t have to hassle with parking, get a little blood moving, and feel happy as I ride through my town.”
Safer Roads Don’t Have to be Bigger Roads
Quick safety fixes coming for SR 70 between Marysville and Oroville
May 23, 2019: Caltrans is undertaking six near-term safety projects along SR 70 between Marysville and Oroville, which has long had a reputation as a dangerous road. There have been 42 fatalities on the 27 miles between the two cities in the last decade, making it 3.8 times deadlier than the average California highway.
Some local leaders and stakeholders have been pushing for the road to become a continuous four-lane facility between Marysville and Oroville but the project faces a funding gap. In the meantime, fatalities keep coming: there have been 20 since the start of 2017.
Calendar
Regional Planning Partnership
SACOG Rivers Rooms, 1415 L Street, Suite 300, Sacramento, CA
Meeting Information:
https://www.gotomeet.me/GoToMeetingSACOG1
You can also dial in using your phone:
Dial-in #: 877-568-4106, Access Code: 732-591-877
The purpose of the Partnership is to assist SACOG with its transportation and air quality planning and programming processes, with an emphasis on technical issues, by providing consultation with a broad range of public and privat