Town Hall Meeting on Santa Clara County Bicycle Safety Crisis June 28, 2008

Town Hall Meeting on Our Bicycle Safety Crisis
Saturday, June 28, 2008 1:00 p.m.
San Jose City Council Chambers ~ 200 East Santa Clara Street ~
Downtown San Jose

This free program is open to anyone

Featuring:
Congressmember James Oberstar, Chair House Transportation and
Infrastructure Committee
Will Kempton, Director of Caltrans
Carl Guardino (moderator), President & CEO Silicon Valley
Leadership Group

Follow-up discussion panel starting at 2 p.m. with:

Lee Taubeneck, District Four Deputy Director for Planning,
California Department of Transportation
Ian McAvoy, Chief of Development, CalTrain
Therese McMillan, Deputy Executive Director for Policy, San
Francisco Bay Area Metropolitan Transportation Commission
Corinne Winter, Executive Director, Santa Clara Valley Bicycle
Coalition
Chris Augenstein, Deputy Director of Planning, Santa Clara
Valley Transportation Authority

Here are the facts: Over the past 10 years, nearly 200 Bay Area
bicyclists have been killed and more than 25,000 injured, according to
the California Highway Patrol. During that same time, Santa Clara
County had the highest number of fatalities and injuries per capita
compared to the nine other Bay Area counties!

Those numbers are rising at an alarming rate, both locally and
nationally. What can we do to make the roads safe for everyone?

Bicycling advocates say that one solution is to raise motorists'
awareness that bicyclists have the right to u se the roadways and to
firmly enforce existing laws against drivers involved in collisions
with bicyclists. Several states have passed laws requiring drivers to
give bicyclists a minimum three-foot berth as they pass. However, an
attempt last year by Assemblyman Pedro Nava to pass a similar law in
California was unsuccessful. What are the alternatives?

Join this urgent town hall meeting to discuss the ways to reduce the
number of bicycle injuries and fatalities in our communities.

Co-sponsored by California Department of Transportation, CalTrain,
City of San Jose, Friends of the Guadalupe River Park & Gardens,
Mineta Transportation Institute, San Francisco Bay Area Metropolitan
Transportation Commission, Silicon Valley Bicycle Coalition, Silicon
Valley Leadership Group, and Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority

For more information, visit www.commonwealthclub.org/sv or call
408-280-5842

Official Website: http://tickets.commonwealthclub.org/auto_choose_ga.asp?area=46