Fw: Dec 9 7 pm Los Altos City council re: San Antonio Bike Lane project

[caroline horn]

FYI, if you have time to drop a line to the Los Altos City Council asking them to go ahead with this agreement with Caltrans, please do so. 

And if the agenda item gets pulled for discussion and separate voting, let them know that you are asking for San Antonio to be a Safe Route to School. 

Thanks,

Caroline

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From: caroline horn <caroli...@hotmail.com>

 

The resident who posted this topic on Nextdoor is worried about damage to cars from  concrete bollards, emergency vehicle access, tree removal and the extra cost of a project for bicyclists  (who are not perceived to be frequent enough to justify safety features).

For messages, choose any of these:

1. Kids should be able to bike to school safely. But many parents are so worried about bike-car collisions that they drive their kids instead, which only makes the problem worse.

2. If more people felt safer biking, car traffic would decrease. 

3. San Antonio is a major route to three or four area schools. Kids who bike become safer drivers, according to studies by insurance companies.

4. Higher  density housing will be coming to our area and we need to prepare for it by offering safe alternatives to automobiles, which pollute the air, wear out roads faster and take up a lot of real estate. 

5. Better bike infrastructure is an investment in our children and in the future.

Hope that helps. 

 I realize this would be a difficult time for students to attend. 

Best

Caroline 

Sent from my iPhone

1. What are the residents’ objections - (why do they want it taken off the consent calendar?  I don’t think parking is allowed on San Antonio)

2. Give us a sample of what our emails to council should say?

• Bike Lanes with Barriers (Students in Green Team have requested this for San Ant.)
• 
  

On Dec 8, 2025, at 11:44 AM, caroline horn <caroli...@hotmail.com> wrote:

Good morning, all! 

As some of you may remember, a few years ago, the city of Los Altos applied for and received a grant to improve bike and pedestrian safety on San Antonio from El Camino Real to Foothill. The city does have to provide some of its own money, but not nearly as much as the grant amount. The work will likey be done at the same time as the San Antonio repaving project to save $$.

This is a major road between freeways, of course, but is also a major route to schools and to downtown Los Altos. 

Tomorrow, the Los Altos City Council consent calender includes approving an agreement with Caltrans to work together if the project goes forward. As Terry Barton pointed out to me, this vote does not require the city to spend any money or complete the project. 

Some residents have raised concerns about this project on San Antonio and plan to ask for this agreement to be removed from the consent calendar for a separate discussion and vote. This project is not even in the design phase, though. I think it would be great to have some public engagement around what would make San Antonio more bike/pedestrian  friendly, but we need to have the city go ahead and engage with Caltrans.  

Other things to keep in mind: 
1. the stretch of San Antonio between 101 and El Camino will be getting some bike and pedestrian improvements from the Cities of Mountain View and Palo Alto. We don't want to be the gap in the bike/ped flow from El Camino into Los Altos. 
2. With the increase in high density housing along El Camino, car traffic for school dropoff will likewise increase unless we make safe corridors for children to bike to school. 

Increasing LAHS bike ridership by 10% would, in theory, decrease the number of cars by 220. That would mean a lot more parking for people who can't bike, for example, along with all the benefits of a little exercise in the morning (and more time for those busy parents who have to chauffer their kids around). 

While I don't love the antics of some of our student e-bike riders, I'd rather have these kids on bikes than in two-ton cars! Also, e-bikes are enabling a lot of new riders to adopt biking vs driving. 

The grant also discusses better crosswalks, which would be great to have!  There are very few places for children to cross San Antonio with real traffic lights, and some of those are choked with car traffic every morning (e.g., Portola and San Antonio). 

I've added the text of the agenda item.

If you have time to send an email in support of making San Antonio easier to navigate for children, please do so before 2 pm December 9. Public...@losaltosca.gov

Please forward to anyone else you know who would be interested in this topic. 

Best,

Caroline

Public comments are accepted in person at the physical meeting location or via email to

Public...@losaltosca.gov or through the Public Comment forum on the city website: Public Comments

Form.

Please note: Personal information, such as e-mail addresses, telephone numbers, home addresses, and

other contact information, is not required to be included with your comments. If this information is

included in your written comments, it will become part of the public record. Redactions and/or edits will

not be made to public comments, and the comments will be posted as submitted. Please do not include

any information in your communication that you do not want to be made public.

Subject: Adoption of Resolution - North San Antonio Road Complete Streets Project

Agreement

COUNCIL PRIORITY AREA

Public Safety

Circulation Safety and Efficiency

Environmental Sustainability

General Government

RECOMMENDATION

Adopt a Resolution authorizing the City Manager to execute the Master Agreement and

subsequent Program Supplement between Caltrans and the City of Los Altos for the North San

Antonio Road Complete Street Project

ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT

Not applicable - This action is consistent with Class I Section 15301, Existing Facilities (c)

Existing highways and streets, sidewalks, gutters, bicycle and pedestrian trails, and similar

facilities, as activities associated with the project will include replacement of existing facilities

with negligible or no expansion of capacity

FISCAL IMPACT

Accepting the agreements formally secures the $7,298,000 federal grant award and authorizes

the delivery of a Capital Improvement Project totaling $9,123,000. The required local matching

funds from the City total $1,825,000. The breakdown of these funds is detailed in the Federal

Transportation Improvement Program (FTIP) for the project.

PREVIOUS COUNCIL CONSIDERATION

• Complete Streets Master Plan Unanimous Adoption on October 25, 2022

• OBAG3 Grant Funding for N. San Antonio Rd Complete Street Project on June 13, 2023

BACKGROUND

The North San Antonio corridor was identified as the #1 priority bicycle infrastructure project in

the City's Complete Streets Master Plan, which was unanimously adopted by City Council in

2022. The project removes a significant barrier to safe travel while connecting many key

destinations including commercial districts, residential areas, civic spaces, downtown, thePage 14 of 85

library, the community center, City Hall, local businesses and restaurants, several local schools,

Caltrain, and transit corridors along El Camino Real. The project includes Class IV projected

bikeways, improved integration between transit and bicycle lanes, high visibility crosswalks,

pedestrian enhancements, and median reconstruction aligning with regional plans and policies.

The corridor is a suggested route to school for Almond Elementary School, Egan Junior High

School, Los Altos High, and Santa Rita Elementary School. The proposed streetscape

improvements would employ best practice street design principles to create designated space for

each mode, separating pedestrians and cyclists from motor vehicle traffic, reducing conflicts

between vulnerable road users and vehicles.

The current recommendation follows the City Council’s action on June 13, 2023, when a

Resolution of Local Support was adopted. That Resolution successfully authorized the City to

file an application for, and ultimately secure, the OBAG3 grant funding for the North San

Antonio Road Complete Streets Project and committed the required local. Assurance was

provided to the Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC) that the City would deliver the

project, which addresses the top-ranked bicycle safety improvement from the Complete Streets

Master Plan. The Master Agreement now presented for adoption is the mandatory administrative

step required by Caltrans to execute the grant and formally establish the terms and conditions

necessary for the City to utilize the secured federal funding.

Master Agreement

The Master Agreement Administering Agency-State Agreement for Federal-Aid Projects is a

standard requirement from the (Caltrans) for all local agencies receiving federal transportation

grants. Prior to utilizing any Federal Funds, a Master Agreement Administering Agency-State

that outlines condition of the funds needs to be executed. Per the agreement, to execute this

agreement, the Council must adopt by Resolution, which formally execute and obligate the City

to follow established terms and conditions under which the City is authorized to administer the

federal funds.

Upon execution of the Master Agreement, staff can proceed to finalize a subsequent Program

Supplemental Agreement specific to the North San Antonio Road Complete Streets Project.

The Caltrans' Master Agreement is foundational for the City's administration of all future

federally funded transportation projects. Key provisions include:

1. The financial commitment of State-administered federal and state funded projects will

occur only upon execution of the master agreement and program supplement

agreements.

2. City shall conform to state and federal statutes, regulations, and procedures established

in the terms and conditions of the agreements.

3. City assures that the contractors and subcontractors shall comply with federal and state

administrative procedures.

4. City shall maintain and operate the project for its intended purpose until such time as the

parties might amend the agreements.

5. City shall submit a final report of expenditures to Caltrans for each completed program

supplement project.Page 15 of 85

[caroline horn]

Good news! The council approved the entire Consent Calendar, which included working with Caltrans to begin the process…the next steps will involve traffic studies and talks with the Los Altos Complete Streets commission.  Their next meeting is in January. 

My thanks to all of you who were able to send in comments! 

Happy (protected)  trails!

Caroline 

Sent from my iPhone

On Dec 8, 2025, at 2:22 PM, caroline horn <caroli...@hotmail.com> wrote:



[April Webster]

Well done! ❤️

I'm friends with the chair of the complete streets commission. I can reach out. He came to the ECR ribbon cutting.

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