Elk Grove Lands $900,000 Grant to Improve Pedestrian, Bicyclist Safety
Caltrans Grant will help fund Elk Grove Creek/State Route 99 Trail Crossing Project Elk Grove has secured $900,000 in state grant funding to...
https://www.elkgrovenews.net/2009/08/elk-grove-lands-900000-grant-to-improve.html
Caltrans Grant will help fund Elk Grove Creek/State Route 99 Trail Crossing Project
Elk Grove has secured $900,000 in state grant funding to build a pedestrian/bicycle bridge over State Route 99 at Elk Grove Boulevard that will close a critical gap in the existing Elk Grove Creek Trail.
The Elk Grove Creek/State Route 99 Trail Crossing Project removes a barrier bicyclists and pedestrians in Elk Grove encounter at Highway 99. Without this project, bicyclists are forced to cross over busy intersections and travel alongside vehicle traffic to traverse the City. The project will also improve connectivity to many schools, parks, neighborhoods, and commercial and business areas.
“These are lean times, and grant funding is scarce. The City of Elk Grove is incredibly grateful that the State of California has given us dollars to support a project that will deliver priceless results,” said Mayor Pat Hume. “This overcrossing and trail extension will improve the safety and overall quality of life for so many Elk Grove students and residents.”
The project is located north of Elk Grove Boulevard/SR-99 Interchange. It will extend the existing Elk Grove Creek Trail from east of Laguna Springs Drive to SR-99. From there, the trail will continue over the proposed pedestrian/bike bridge, and continue onward, connecting to the existing Elk Grove Creek Trail at Emerald Park Drive (eastern terminus).
The $900,000 grant is from the California Department of Transportation’s “Safe Routes to School” program. Established in 1999, the State-legislated Safe Routes to School program funds projects that improve safety and efforts that promote walking and bicycling within a collaborative community framework.
Currently in the environmental phase, the City of Elk Grove is expected to break ground on the project in early 2011. The project is anticipated to be complete by end of 2012. Other funding sources include federal funds secured from SACOG, Measure A, and Elk Grove local transportation dollars.
“The Elk Grove Trails Committee is extremely happy that we are able to move forward with this project. It will be a vital link between east and west Elk Grove and will be the only bike/pedestrian-friendly crossing of Highway 99. When built, this bridge delivers a critical piece of the Elk Grove Trails Masterplan which identifies future trail extensions to the east, extending into the heart of Elk Grove,” said Mark Mendenhall, Chair of the Elk Grove Trails Committee.
For more information about the Elk Grove Creek Trail/State Route 99 Overcrossing Project, call the City of Elk Grove Public Works Department at 916-478-2256.
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Wa-hey! A project to allow a bicyclist to move through the city without competing with cars! Regardless of what I post below I am happy to see us spend money on these sorts of things. I commend the trails committee.
I'm dismayed, however, because what this city desperately needs is a north-south trail system. Comments from dozens of co-workers, especially last summer when gas was a buck higher, was that they'd consider biking to Sacramento and Rancho Cordova (where the jobs are) if only they didn't have to risk death on our collector roads.
Bruceville Road! It used to have a bike lane south of Laguna but it was eliminated to create a third lane for cars. Well...now who's going to allow their teenager to ride in the traffic lane? Who's going to ride themselves? Do you think for a minute our drivers obey the posted speed limits on these roads?
Spend a million dollars to cross over the freeway but make biking a potential death sentence once you get to either side. Building these sorts of things in isolation, without a correct blueprint, shoehorned into existing sprawl -- very difficult to create truly connected communities this way.
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