San Rafael's Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Committee won't meet again until mid-October after canceling its Aug. 12 meeting, leaving the city without a public forum on walking and cycling safety for more than four months during a period of active street-safety changes.
The cancellation, posted by the City Clerk's office on Wednesday, Aug. 5, gives no reason for scrapping the 6 p.m. session. The next BPAC meeting is scheduled for Wednesday, Oct. 14.
The committee last met June 10, when members reviewed the draft Citywide Bicycle and Pedestrian Plan, preliminary data from the Embarcadero Way one-way conversion pilot project and updates on Active Transportation Program projects. BPAC chair Sean Callagy pressed staff on whether the plan accounted for San Rafael's projected growth.
"How does our plan take into account what we expect to happen in those trends in the next, you know, 10 or so years?" Callagy asked at the June 10 meeting, pushing for a longer planning horizon.
The gap matters because the city's transportation-safety agenda hasn't paused. The City Council approved speed-limit reductions on 18 street segments July 20 under Assembly Bill 43, the Marin IJ reported, the second phase of San Rafael's effort to lower speeds by 5 mph on roads including Andersen Drive, Fourth Street, Third Street and Point San Pedro Road. At that July 20 meeting, Mayor Kate Colin called the vote part of the city's Vision Zero commitment to eliminate traffic deaths and serious injuries.
The BPAC is the designated public body for vetting those kinds of changes before they reach the council.
A pattern of summer cancellations
The Aug. 12 cancellation makes BPAC the third city body to go dark in the first two weeks of August. The City Council canceled its Aug. 3 meeting, as we reported July 31, and the Planning Commission canceled its Aug. 11 session. BPAC also canceled its April 8 meeting this year and its Aug. 6, 2025 meeting, suggesting a recurring summer pattern for the committee.
Pending business stalled
Two items on the BPAC's plate now face uncertain timelines. The draft Citywide Bicycle and Pedestrian Plan was expected to go to the City Council in August, according to Marin IJ reporting from June. No confirmation of that schedule has appeared since the cancellation.
The Embarcadero Way pilot project's final report must be presented at a BPAC meeting before the council can vote on permanent installation, according to the city. The Phase 3 public survey closes Aug. 31.
San Rafael ranked sixth out of 103 California cities its size for injury collisions, and no city in that group had a higher rate of pedestrians injured, according to data the Marin County Bicycle Coalition cited from the California Office of Traffic Safety.
Residents who want to weigh in on active-transportation issues before Oct. 14 can contact City Clerk Lindsay Lara at (415) 485-3066 or visit 1400 Fifth Ave., Room 209, during office hours Monday through Thursday, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.
