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Round 2 begins for CBC's 3-foot-passing bill
Last October, when Gov. Jerry Brown vetoed Senate Bill 910, our legislation to establish three feet as the minimum clearance cars must give bikes when passing, he cited concerns about an exception for drivers in dense, slow-moving urban traffic. In his veto message, Brown said, "send me a bill next year that solves these problems."
 So that's what we're doing. Last week Long Beach Sen. Alan Lowenthal, author of SB 910, introduced a new 3-foot-passing bill that could be the bill Brown seems ready to support. North Coast Assemblymember Wes Chesbro will be the bill's principal co-author. And once again the City of Los Angeles is co-sponsoring the bill with us.
Like SB 910, Senate Bill 1464 establishes a 3-foot minimum passing distance, and also allows drivers to cross the double yellow centerline, when safe, in order to give bicycles the required space. But it doesn't contain the exception Brown cited as his reason for vetoing SB 910.
We may see the bill's chances improve as gas prices continue to rise and more drivers turn to bicycles as everyday transportation. If Brown signs SB 1464, California would become the 20th state to establish a minimum passing distance to help protect bicyclists. In the meantime, SB 1464 will receive its first Senate hearing in late March or early April.
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Meet CTCDC member Bryan Jones
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Bryan Jones
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Earlier this month in San Diego, the California Traffic Control Devices Committee, which develops Caltrans standards for traffic signals, signs and pavement markings contained in the California Manual of Traffic Control Devices, approved the appointment of traffic engineers John Ciccarelli and Bryan Jones, who serves as deputy transportation director for the City of Carlsbad, as new members representing bicyclists, pedestrians and other so-called "nonmotorized" road users.
The appointments marked the end of a process that began with CBC-sponsored legislation last year to expand the committee's membership. We ultimately shelved our bill, Assembly Bill 345, authored by San Diego Assemblymember Toni Atkins, when Caltrans choose to make the changes on its own.
In the January 2012 CalBike Report we profiled John Ciccarelli. This month we profile Bryan Jones.
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When Fresno started getting attention for bold improvements to bicycling infrastructure and increased bicycle ridership, much of the credit went to Bryan Jones, the city's traffic engineer. Jones' efforts to improve bicycling in Fresno helped earn the city a Bicycle-Friendly Community designation from the League of American Bicyclists, the first San Joaquin Valley city to receive this honor. Last year Jones took his current position with the City of Carlsbad, where he's already begun to champion Complete Streets reforms.
"I was very impressed by the incredible turnout from the statewide, regional and local San Diego bicycle community to see the two new non-motorized representative positions voted onto the CTCDC," Jones said after his first committee meeting earlier this month. "I have to give Caltrans and the California Bicycle Coalition a lot of credit for choosing to work together towards creating these two positions. It's another great step for California towards putting the necessary pieces in place to achieve the vision of AB 1358, the Complete Streets Act," which CBC sponsored.
"People in many communities want choices in transportation and they want to be able to not only drive, but also walk, bike, and use transit and have the same feeling of safety no matter what mode they cho0se. As a result, more changes in the transportation professions have occurred in the last five years than the previous three decades combined."
Jones believes he and Ciccarelli bring a unique perspective to the committee. "It's hard to develop standards for bicyclist and pedestrian safety from behind a steering wheel. So we have to break down some of these barriers that exist and look for ways to collaborate and bring awareness in a positive, constructive way to improve safety for all roadway users."
Balancing the needs of all road users must acknowledge the fact that some road users are much more vulnerable than others, he said. Jones likes to talk about a "transportation food chain of safety," with pedestrians and bicyclists at the bottom and motor vehicles above them, based on exposure, vulnerability and size. "We've been designing our roadways for the middle to top end of the food chain for safety and as a result, in the last couple decades it has impacted the existence of the bottom of the food chain of safety."
The mantra of "when in doubt, build it bigger, faster and wider" has given motorists an incredible feeling of safety, Jones said. The CTCDC and the California Manual of Traffic Control Devices have the unique opportunity to give practitioners at the local, regional and state level more tools to improve the feeling of safety for pedestrians and bicyclists in a balanced approach with motorists. The pendulum of safety cannot be centered on the largest and biggest users of the roadway if we truly want all users to thrive on our roadways."
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Artisanal bicycle-builders from throughout the U.S., Europe and beyond come to the State Capital this weekend for the 
Carlsbad:
