California Must Seize the Opportunity to Quickly Build Better Bikeways

On April 8, 2024, the Assembly Transportation Committee will hold the first hearing on Assemblymember Laura Friedman’s Quicker and Better Bikeways Bill, AB 2290. CalBike is a sponsor of this critical legislation, which will make our streets safer for people who bike, walk, and roll.

The bill includes three critical changes to how we design our infrastructure:

• Class III bikeways, which usually consist of sharrows with no protection for bike riders, can’t be included in projects funded by the Active Transportation Program (ATP) unless the street is designed to limit car speeds to 20 mph or less, or the project will achieve that speed.
• It requires that local projects funded by the Road Maintenance and Rehabilitation Program (RMRA) include the construction of a planned bikeway when completing a pavement project on a street where local plans show community support for a bikeway to exist.
• The bill creates a Quick Build Pilot Program at Caltrans for quickly adding safety features to protect people traveling those routes by bike. Many local agencies have successfully used quick build to improve bikeways without years of delay; it’s an excellent addition to the toolkit for Complete Streets on state routes.

The Quicker and Better Bikeways Bill builds on Assemblymember Friedman’s 2022 OmniBike Bill, AB 1909, which implemented changes to the vehicle code to protect people on bikes, including requiring car drivers to change lanes to pass bike riders where possible, ending local bicycle license requirements, and expanding bikeway access for e-bikes. The OmniBike Bill has led to significant changes, and we think the Quicker and Better Bikeways Bill will have an equally great impact.

Update: Transportation Committee supports Quicker and Better Bikeways Bill

Thanks to those of you who contacted your assemblymember on the Transportation Committee. The committee passed AB 2290, with supporting testimony from CalBike consultant Jeanie Ward-Waller. View her testimony. Or watch the whole hearing, below.

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