Letter to Encinitas City Council about the Importance of Keeping Safety Improvements on Santa Fe Drive
Dear Mayor Ehlers, Deputy Mayor Lyndes, and Councilmembers Shaffer, O’Hara and San Antonio,
I am writing to you today as both the State Senator for District 38 and a long-time Encinitas resident, proud council alumna, and former Mayor, in support of preserving the core features of the recently completed western phase of the Santa Fe Drive Corridor Improvements Project.
After years of planning, community outreach, and significant local and state investment, including state legislative appropriations that I helped secure, our city now has a safer corridor in the “western phase” project that runs from Bonita/Windsor to Nardo/McKinnon. This stretch improves safety for nearly 2,000 students, teachers, and staff outside the city’s largest public high school, San Dieguito Academy, as well as for surrounding schools and many adjacent neighborhoods and businesses. The project is a substantial community improvement. Research shows that projects like the “western phase” make roadways safer for all users: children, parents, cyclists, pedestrians, bus riders, and drivers alike.
In addition to the more than $4 million cost of the improvements, it is important to remember that the project connects road users to other critical investments that the city and the state have made on Santa Fe Drive over many years. The “western phase” project is not a stand-alone, isolated project. While it fronts San Dieguito Academy, it connects the community east of I-5 to the local mural art project under the freeway underpass, near where another high school student was hit by a car and killed before these improvements. It also connects to Scripps Hospital, the Vons shopping center, the neighborhoods served by the roundabout at Rubenstein Avenue and Devonshire Drive, and the sidewalk improvements and pedestrian-only underpass at the western end of Santa Fe Drive leading to Swami’s beach. A previous project undergrounded all the power lines on Santa Fe Drive. The total investments in creating a safer, more livable, and more modern Santa Fe Drive are substantial and far in excess of $30 million. There is now a nearly continuous biking and walking path along the very heavily traveled mile of roadway east and west of the I-5 freeway. The remaining need is to improve Santa Fe Drive east toward El Camino Real.
While change is hard for some, it is also clear that our community’s needs and expectations have changed and we must adapt, too. Our community values safer and slower roads as essential. Already, we are consistently seeing efficient use of back-in parking (basically just the first step of parallel parking), reduced turning speeds at the corner of Nardo Road and Santa Fe Drive where students cross the street, and safer biking and walking on separated paths, especially important for students.
I understand that some residents and members of the council are concerned about the recent improvements, including the 10-foot lane widths, new curb and landscaping infrastructure, and back-in parking configurations. As the City Council considers making changes to the recently completed project, I urge the City Council to preserve the core of the road safety improvements and to avoid an expensive and disruptive removal of this just-installed Safe Routes to School project. The primary responsibility of the city needs to remain the safety of the school community and the safety of the nearby residents, bicyclists, drivers, and pedestrians who use the corridor. Decisions should be driven by data, which shows that slow streets are safer.
The slower speeds, tasteful landscaping and functional biking and walking paths are a clear improvement.
The core of the project includes maintaining key features, while avoiding wasteful spending and disruptive construction. Key features include:
- The barrier-protected bike lanes and walking paths, which are unquestionably safer than painted bike lanes
- The lower vehicle speed limit of 30 MPH
- The same number of existing parking spots
Parking Spots: Parking is at a premium everywhere in our desirable city, and particularly outside the school and adjacent to local businesses, a church, and a sports club. No parking spots should be removed. While there may be a brief traffic halt associated with using the back-in spots, parallel parking on a two-lane road also requires the same brief traffic halt while a driver backs in. Every day we witness those back-in spots being successfully used. Reducing the overall number of parking spots, which would be required to put in parallel parking, should not be considered.
Physically separated bike lanes: It is critically important that bicyclists and pedestrians be protected by more than just paint. Prioritizing the lives and well-being of our roadway users, especially youth traveling to and from school, must be the top priority. We cannot forget the recent youth tragedies that have deeply affected our community and elevated the importance of our interactions with our roadways. Brodee Champlain-Kingman tragically lost his life biking to San Dieguito Academy as he turned onto Santa Fe Drive. Emery Chalekian also tragically suffered the fatal consequences of fast-moving vehicles on our Encinitas roadways. Removing the hardscape that is protecting our most vulnerable from 2,000-pound vehicles, in favor of nothing more than a painted white line, should not be considered an acceptable alternative. Protected bike lanes are a life-saving necessity. It is immediately obvious how many kids ride their bikes to school from viewing the overflowing bike racks at SDA every morning. Removing these core elements to expedite the flow of vehicle traffic passing through and swapping any portion of the protected bike path for striping would put our students and families at risk and undermine years of making Encinitas a safer city.
Speed Limits: Plain and simple — speed kills. The speed of a corridor with driveways feeding homes, schools, a church and a sports club should not be increased to favor those using our streets to access the freeway. The priority should be the local residents, not out-of-town or cut-through traffic. This “western phase” traffic calming project aligns with the General Plan’s circulation goals and the latest best practices for safe roadway design.
Fiscal Responsibility: Removing expensive community improvements at great cost to the city is offensive to many Encinitas residents, including myself. The city has many needs, as stated by the current City Council, including more Sheriff’s deputies, a new fire station, higher quality pavement on all city streets and continuing to support the high quality of life that Encinitans enjoy. Reconfiguring or removing the improvements, even in part, will divert millions of precious and limited taxpayer dollars from future city programs or other life-saving infrastructure improvements.
The recent “western phase” cost $4.1 million, including city general fund, mitigation fees, and grants from various state and local programs, including the ATP (Active Transportation Projects) and Safe Routes to School grants. The General Fund and vital city funds must be used wisely; tearing out new infrastructure would be the very definition of wasteful spending.
Furthermore, reversing course would almost certainly mean repaying some or all of the grant funding used for the project, including that secured through my efforts. Those grants come with requirements and timelines for delivery.
Construction disruption and delay: Unfortunately, it took substantially too long to complete the improvements and the local community suffered from years of construction disruption along the Santa Fe Drive corridor. It is unsafe and highly inconvenient to recreate a disruptive, drawn-out construction project that would further aggravate local families and commuters.
Community Will: A large majority of residents surveyed favored “improve, don’t remove” – they want this corridor made safer, not undone. What’s at stake is much larger than aesthetics or convenience for automobiles. Let’s keep the focus on the safety and health of our youth and families, the sustainability of Encinitas as a model for safe streets, and the wise stewardship of millions in public investment.
I recognize that there are features that could be improved; for example, uneven bike lane pavement, better signage or striping, or an additional access path through the landscaping, among other smaller but impactful improvements. However, full removal of the core features to gain one foot of a car travel lane, or elimination of plantings and safe back-in parking in favor of parallel parking should be rejected. This would reverse empirically proven best practices in slowing traffic, and we all know that speed kills.
I urge you to protect what we have achieved, and keep Encinitas on the forefront of safe, sustainable city design. Our community is valued as one of the most walkable and bikeable coastal cities. Let’s keep it that way.
Sincerely,
Senator Catherine Blakespear
California State Senate
District 38