Hello,
Thank you for signing up for our Bike East Bay "Bridging the Bay" campaign list which brings together news and activities related to the Bay Bridge path, the Richmond-San Rafael Bridge path, and developments around new bike bridges in the works throughout the East Bay.
Visit BikeEastBay.org/BridgingTheBay for an interactive map of this and other bike bridge projects in progress, RSVP links for upcoming events, and a list of blog posts for individual projects at the bottom. |
Final Vote on Whether or Not the Richmond-San Rafael Bridge Trail Will be Closed: Scheduled August 7, 2025 |
Back in March and April we asked for your help to oppose the closure of the Richmond-San Rafael Bridge Trail every Monday through Thursday, for conversion into a breakdown shoulder for cars.
But at the last minute the vote at the Bay Conversation and Development Commission (BCDC) was postponed. We later discovered this was because BCDC staff were going to recommend against the closure, and in favor of keeping the trail open 24/7.
At the time they said the Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC) and Caltrans trail closure proposal did not meet the standard for "maximum feasible public access" to the Bay Trail that is supposed to drive BCDC decisions.
We celebrated the postponed vote in April, although we knew that MTC and Caltrans likely wouldn't give up and the meeting would be rescheduled. |
We have learned that the bridge trail closure vote will be back on the agenda at the August 7, 2025, BCDC meeting. The agenda for this session has not yet been published, but it will be available here in the week ahead of the meeting date.
MTC and Caltrans claim that they have made updates to their proposal to overcome the previous objections. But we have studied their updated project description (available here) and do not see any substantive changes that satisfy the standard for "maximum feasible public access" to the Bay Trail. The project description indicates a separate $10 Million allocation to other biking and walking projects in Richmond, with the implication that bridge access could be traded for them.
We do want to see those other projects get built. However, we have confirmed that the funding allocation is not contingent on the bridge trail being closed. So Richmond will still have access to this funding regardless of how BCDC votes.
We feel that the decision for BCDC to keep the bridge trail open 24/7 is still very clear. But we don't want to leave anything to chance and need your help to see this through. |
What Can You Do Now to Help? |
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Encourage your friends to sign our petition at BikeEastBay.org/RSR and show their support for keeping the trail open 24/7. We are only 170 signatures short of 5000, help us reach our goal ahead of the BCDC vote! Everyone who signs the petition will also receive updates before the August 7 meeting.
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Save the date for the August 7 BCDC meeting and bridge trail vote. This session will be held at the MTC MetroCenter in SF and will likely start at 10am and continue throughout the day. However this has not yet been finalized. Email, Zoom, and in-person comments will be accepted. We will follow up with another message to everyone on this campaign list in the week before the meeting with specifics on how to have your voice heard!
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Attend the ground-breaking ceremony on Friday, August 1st, for the Point Molate Bay Trail project in Richmond just north of the Richmond-San Rafael Bridge. This project has been in development for a long time and we are happy to see construction starting. But without a 24/7 biking and walking trail on the bridge the public access to this Bay Trail segment will be negatively impacted. Let local leaders know that the value of these public investments will be reduced if the bridge trail is closed!
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If you are able, support Bike East Bay with an online donation. We are hosting a sliding-scale membership option for a limited time, so folks can become a member at any level they can afford. This Richmond-San Rafael Bridge campaign has now been underway for over a year and a half. The industry interests pushing for the trail closure are spending tens of thousands of dollars on Facebook ads to spread misinformation. Your individual donations are how we are able to oppose that narrative and keep the fight going via real grassroots organizing!
Thanks again for your attention and support throughout this campaign. Stay tuned for more news before the August 7th vote! |
San Ramon's Bollinger Canyon Road Iron Horse Trail Bridge is Now Open! |
On Saturday, July 19, San Ramon's Bollinger Canyon Road Iron Horse Trail Bridge was officially opened to the public! Here's a first-look bike-through video across the new span from the grand-opening day: |
This Iron Horse Trail bridge joins another on Dublin Blvd to the south which opened to the public in November 2024, along with two more to the north in Walnut Creek and Pleasant Hill. Yet another trail bridge in San Ramon is planned at Crow Canyon Road, with construction expected in 2028.
While we appreciate these investments in high quality trail crossings, we also acknowledge that they are following San Ramon's expensive widening of Bollinger Canyon Road from 8 to 10 car lanes, along with widening for more car lanes under construction on Crow Canyon Road. We also acknowledge that San Ramon has yet to build any of the dozen protected bikeways recommended in its 2018 bike plan. We continue to implore San Ramon staff and electeds to prioritize Iron Horse Trail improvements in addition to on-street bikeway upgrades, and not instead of them. |
Thank you to the 25 folks who joined us on a group ride to the grand opening this past weekend!
There is a lot of interest and demand for high quality bike infrastructure in the Tri-Valley area (Livermore, Pleasanton, Dublin, San Ramon, Danville). If you are interested in finding East Bay local groups and getting involved, visit our Coalition Partners page for more information at BikeEastBay.org/CoalitionPartners. |
Thanks again for your support, and as always... Ride On, Robert Prinz Advocacy Director
Bike East Bay |
Mail: PO Box 1736, Oakland CA 94604
Office: 466 Water Street, Oakland CA 94607
510-845-7433 • in...@BikeEastBay.org |
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