November 2022 Election 2022 Fairfax Town Council Candidate Questionnaire

2. If you own a bike, what type of bike(s) do you have and ride? If not, when was the last time you rode a bike, and where (on vacation, for example)?

Holly Baade:

I own a nice cruiser at the moment with a basket for groceries. I just gave my road bike to my niece as I was too afraid to ride it on the busy main-streets here. I also am not much of a
road-biker. I had a mountain bike that got too old to use – and I need a new one. I have always bought mid-level bikes of one brand or another. I appreciate good quality but am not an officiano when it comes to type, or brand.

Lisel Blash:

I have a Cannondale Quick hybrid bike and an Iron Horse Mavericks 500 mountain bike. My Cannondale is my main form of transportation most days.

Stephanie Hellman:

Our family owns 2 e-bikes and 3 mountain bikes. We often rent bikes on vacation. In New York recently we rented Citibikes and toured Brooklyn this way – some streets were closed on weekends. We rode bikes recreationally each day on this same vacation on Fire Island too.

Lynnette Shaw: No response

Cindy Swift: No response

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Vision

3. In your own words, describe your vision for the future of transportation in Fairfax.

Holly Baade:

Fairfax is the perfect town to implement and have dedicated bike lanes. I would like to see much better designated bike lanes and bike-away traffic flow.

Lisel Blash:

In my vision, transportation options would be abundant and complemented by wise housing and land use decisions. Any new housing would be created close to downtown so that residents did not need vehicles to shop and socialize. We would have bike and car share service in town and robust and frequent transit options. We would have completed a campaign for sidewalk improvement, with large incentives for property owners to fix their sidewalks and incorporate universal design features so that everyone could move freely around town our downtown streets and neighborhoods without a car. We would have optimized all of our pedestrian paths between streets so that people could easily walk downtown or up to the open space trailheads. We would have improved transit flow and shorter headways so people would be more likely to take the bus. We would have improved education and signage to improve safety and decrease conflicts between motorists and cyclists. We would have dedicated parking for out-of-town visitors who want to be on the trails or long road bike trips all day; parking that could also generate income for the town. We would see our bicycle and pedestrian amenities as a point of pride and a selling point for our town.

Stephanie Hellman:

Fairfax has a passionate and committed community of bikers who recognize the vast benefits it offers. The community is already a mecca and destination for biking and we have much work to do to truly support an effective system of bike routes. We need an updated strategic plan with a vision to improve safety for people who bike through Fairfax on Broadway and beyond. I am deeply concerned about the safety for road bikers on Sir Francis Drake heading West and East. Ideally this plan should be holistic in consideration of the interconnectedness of our neighboring towns/routes and uses traffic pattern data and best practices to support a recommendation.

Lynnette Shaw: No response

Cindy Swift: No response

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Traffic

A large proportion of peak hour traffic is made of people driving their children to school. While some people live too far to easily walk or bike to school, many parents are simply afraid to let their children travel by foot or by bicycle because of the high volume and speeds of car traffic.

4. What strategies would make more parents feel safe with their children walking or biking to school, thereby reducing traffic and making everyone else’s trip to school a little safer?

Holly Baade:

New paths. We need a dedicated path and also slower traffic speeds on main-streets, perhaps specifically during high-traffic hours for school-related traffic.

Lisel Blash:

Safe Routes to School has done a great job in facilitating pedestrian and bicycle trips to and from school. We have a pretty good crossing guard program, and we have yellow school bus service. There are a few points in town where additional infrastructure would allow for safer routes, but we would need the cooperation and trust of some homeowners to facilitate these rights-of-way. 

Stephanie Hellman: No response

Lynnette Shaw: No response

Cindy Swift: No response

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A survey from the Transportation Authority of Marin (Figure 18, p. 51) found that over half of Marinites would like to bike more than they currently do. This backs up research that shows that over 50% of adults are interested in biking, but concerned about the threat of fast-moving cars.

5. What concrete steps can be taken to allay these concerns and make people feel safe on bicycles?

Holly Baade:

I have not used my road bike for exactly this reason. The trails are OK, but road bikes beyond the small-streets (and even on them) are not safe. I worry about parents taking their little ones
to school on bikes along the busy roads. I think it is wonderful, but it is also dangerous.

A new bike path and town-roads that honor bike traffic more would be great. I do think a lot of residents do watch for bikers and in general most people are very courteous here, however
there are those folks that are late for work or in some other way hurried and not paying as close of attention as is safe for bikes and pedestrians.

Lisel Blash:

We need protected bike lanes. In addition, we need more off-street multi-use paths and flat recreational paths that are divided so that both pedestrians and cyclists feel safe. 

Another issue is hills. Many people are just not able to ride up the massive hills that we have in Marin. It would be great if there was a subsidy to adopt an e-bike as transportation for trips within two miles of home.

Stephanie Hellman:

I believe more children would ride to Manor and White Hill School if parents felt it was safe. I have found that signage has a short lifespan of efficacy. It would need traffic engineering recommendations for calming measures. This means significant resources to support a solution (set) which I would be very interested in pursuing.

Lynnette Shaw: No response

Cindy Swift: No response

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Safety

Traffic deaths and injuries are on the rise, both nationally and in Marin (this includes all road users, not just bicyclists). Many cities in California have enacted so-called Vision Zero
resolutions, setting an explicit goal to eliminate traffic deaths.

6. If elected to town Council, will you support such a resolution? If so, what actions do you see as being needed to improve safety? What are the relative roles of infrastructure, enforcement, and education?

Holly Baade:

Years ago before I lived in Marin, I brought my road bike here and went for what I thought was a great road-bike ride along Highway 1. Then I felt pressed by cars for room and was told at a
local stop about the number of fatal bike accidents from motorists. This is when I stopped riding my road bike on these busy streets and for a form a recreation. Maybe out in Nicasio or out
towards Point Reyes, but even then – there just isn’t a path for the bikes or for walkers.

Based on questions 1-6, along with my own experiences as a recreational and commute-bicycle rider, I would say one of the best ways we could create a model and enjoyable town is to design and create road-bike path ways through town. Maybe not even along the busiest streets but along a more scenic route. I realize this would take a very collaborative-spirit and
creative-planning, along with a good deal of community fundraising, but I think this very issue is one that could really unit local residents. It addresses community, it offers a focus for the spirit of activism, it creates beauty and accessibility and it gives an alternative to adding to car-traffic especially at high-times when school is beginning and ending. To my mind, this path would not be a fast road-bike lane but within the town limits would ask that people all travel at recreational-speeds to honor the presence of children and parents commuting.

How would I do this? Where would it go/be? I am not well-versed enough in the local planning as of yet to know how to answer this question but my guess is – a meeting among long-term
residents and parents of school-age children could elucidate some great ideas!

Lisel Blash:

I would love to see a Vision Zero program in Fairfax. We have so many cyclists, especially on the weekends, a growing number of wheelchair users who need to use the bike lanes, and pedestrians everywhere. From Pacheco to Claus the traffic patterns are dangerous and confusing for all users. There are no clearly designated bike routes and a lack of sidewalks on the Parkade side. The Claus intersection itself causes back-ups.  There is an unsafe pedestrian crossing at a location where cars are turning to get onto Sir Francis Drake, and bushes block views of pedestrians.

A county traffic safety study identified hot spots where crashes have taken place. These should be prioritized for infrastructure improvements. The section of street mentioned above ranks high in the collision severity index. In terms of enforcement, there have been efforts to ticket cyclists who run lights and stop signs. While this is helpful in some respects, it is inconsistent and does not consider the infrastructure problems that create unsafe conditions. The community engagement and education aspect of Vision Zero seems especially useful in a town where there tends to be polarization between different groups of street and road users.

Stephanie Hellman:

This sounds interesting and I would like to learn more. Of course, I support Vision Zero in concept. It sounds like a good idea to have all jurisdictions to commit to this vision with subsequent project commitments to realize the goal. It believe a strategic communication PR strategy would be critical to secure the required funds to support the project planning, infrastructure etc.

Lynnette Shaw: No response

Cindy Swift: No response

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Climate Change

The latest IPCC report states clearly that greenhouse gas emissions need to be reduced quickly in order to stave off the worst effects of climate change. According to Fairfax’s most recent Greenhouse Gas Inventory, transportation accounts for a majority (53%) of local greenhouse gas emissions. Given that battery electric cars make up 3% of California’s vehicle
fleet, and only 12% of new cars sold.

7. does reducing overall driving have a role in meeting our climate targets? If so, what policies can support transit, walking, and bicycling in place of driving for short trips?

Holly Baade:

I do not believe in passing laws or mandates to limit driving. It is my feeling that if we provide adequate and creative as well as beautiful alternatives through community planning – that
people will naturally want to choose this. Seeking to pass regulations as to how and when people are able to move about would be a violation of the Oath of the office of Council Member
for the Town of Fairfax, as we are requested to uphold the United States Constitution as well as the Constitution of the State of California.

Lisel Blash:

Reducing overall driving would make for safer streets and healthier people. Active transportation and even taking transit encourage people to get more exercise and get out in the community more. It takes less energy and materials to make a bike than it does to create a car, and bikes take up less road and parking space. 

• We need to have affordable housing in every community that would allow people, especially service workers, to live closer to work, services, and friends and family. 

• Businesses need to allow people who can work from home to work from home. 

• Many large employers provide pre-tax programs or even transit passes to employees, but few provide actual incentives to bike or walk to work. More work-based incentives to bike to work would be good.

• Local businesses could give discounts or other incentives to those who ride their bikes or take transit to do their grocery shopping and dining out. 

• Golden Gate Transit and Marin Transit need to change their rules to allow people with oversized parcels to use the bus. Transit providers need to provide connectivity to regional transit options including the airporter and encourage people to use the bus for shopping trips.

• Overall, better coordination across the Bay Area’s 27 transit agencies would help. MTC is heading up a major initiative to better coordinate public transit throughout the Bay Area. We need a more seamless transit system

Stephanie Hellman:

Fairfax has a town goal to be carbon neutral by 2030. Transportation is a critical sector to focus on to get there. I believe we can create local incentive/rebate program for E-bike purchases
and increase visibility and awareness of EVs and E-bikes through education and local events.

Lynnette Shaw: No response

Cindy Swift: No response

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Project Delivery

Bicycle/pedestrian plan implementation is notoriously slow with typically fewer than one new bike lane project opening every year.

8. What steps would you take to hasten the project delivery process from inception to ribbon-cutting?

Holly Baade:

I have a Masters in Public Policy and Administration, which provides educational context as to how to address these issues from a standpoint of leadership. In addition, I have extensive
background in organizational development, teambuilding and innovation-training for private, nonprofit and government organizations. The first way that I would address this is to send a
survey to every home in Fairfax asking if the residents would like to be a part of a “brainstorming” project from the roots-up. Then I would hold weekly meetings to allow for these
conversations to take place over a couple months time – with just the goal of hearing ideas but not coming to solution. Then I would seek to find the similar threads in everyone’s ideas and
suggestions. The themes and overlaps that emerge. Then I would take these themes and overlaps and have the people vote on them. Perhaps their top-three ideas. Then we would
narrow down how to approach these different ideas and what would be required. Then we can take these three ideas, or pilot-plans, to the larger community by providing a cheap website with some sharing on it as well as to the planning commission for submission and questions. Then after that we can take back the three ideas to see which is most viable – and drill down solutions on that! Then from there we can seek to find compromise, middle-ground, answers to solutions and roadblocks or risks to overcome – and perhaps funds needed. At this point, I would seek to support the core group in getting the proposal that has been roots-built and vetted already – be taken to a vote and implementation. It may get shot down the first time, but this could also be taken back into the group for more trouble-shooting. Eventually – a community solution with many people participating can be found. With so much energy and community-involvement truly going into the project, I believe people will support it wholeheartedly once it has come around if not the first-time, then the second-time around.

This is how group-consenses and community-building is found. When people have a chance to share their voice and be a part of a process that genuinely listens and has full transparency and no-agenda… Then a “yes” can be found. Surely this can be done for nearly no cost and in a way that can actually build a willingness for residents to want to contribute their time and
perhaps money and other resources (like right-of-way) on their property to create.

Lisel Blash:

There are a lot of priorities for a Town Council and bicycle and pedestrian access is just a part of a larger picture. I think that advocates and bike/ped committee members need to review the plans at least annually and bring up pending projects at public meetings as a reminder, so the projects do not fall through the cracks.

That said, often the biggest hurdle is red tape demanded by the state and federal funding sources. Only changes at the state and federal level can cut through this red tape. Bike and pedestrian projects should not have to do the same amount of study as highways but right now, that is the case.

Stephanie Hellman:

I would support this specified as being a town goal.

Lynnette Shaw: No response

Cindy Swift: No response

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In all things, there is a tension between “perfect but slow” and “quick and good enough.” Recent years have seen a move toward so-called “quick-build” infrastructure, allowing reconfiguration of streets to facilitate safer walking/biking without a years-long engineering process. While quick-build projects may be less aesthetically pleasing than the standard process, they are cheaper and happen much faster.

9. How do you rank aesthetic concerns of biking/waking infrastructure in comparison to those of cost and project speed?

Holly Baade:

Whenver quick-build infrastructure is chosen, I believe a longer-term vision should also follow. However, I don’t believe in either “perfect but slow” or “quick and good enough” – I believe in
energized and engaged “excellent-action”. Perfection is unobtainable. Good enough is usually sloppy and costs more in the long-run. Excellence requires us to bring our best efforts and
time-enough but also not get bogged-down forever in detail and saying no to ideas just because we may not yet “know how.”

Lisel Blash:

Quick-build can help people envision how a proposed change might look and feel before anyone invests a huge amount of money into infrastructure changes. Finally, quick-build can help a jurisdiction “flex” quickly as transportation needs change.

Stephanie Hellman:

I think it’s brilliant and make a lot of sense – should get more exposure. I’m not sure I see the aesthetic concern of the short term particularly if it’s putting safety first.

Lynnette Shaw: No response

Cindy Swift: No response

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Car Parking

Much of Marin has narrow streets, but on-street parking typically takes up between 30-40% of the street space between the curbs, and is often in tension with the need for dedicated bike lanes.

10. In your mind, are bike lanes ever sufficiently important to justify removing on-street parking, and in what circumstances would you consider that to be the case?

Holly Baade:

For narrow streets where parking is a challenge, I may limit parking to spaces that do not bleed-into-the-street. But instead of removing parking spaces (unless there is an agreed upon
designated bike-lane that the community can agree upon and I do support finding one), I feel that we should create a culture-of-biking and also walking – so that everyone who is a local
knows and supports very low-speed driving, such as 10 miles an hour, in the neighborhoods – and also that we have signs around town inviting and welcoming guests to town – but sharing
with them our culture and welcoming them to try biking or walking while they are here.

In addition to this, I do feel that having loaner-bikes and scooters in the downtown area could help visitors join us in this choice as well as have events like a once-a-month “walk or bike” to
town community gathering/pot-luck event with music night. People love this, and this kind of event would bring more “Fairfax” back to “Fairfax”.

Lisel Blash:

A good reason to remove on-street parking is safety. We have a few places in Fairfax already (ex: where Mono Alley crosses Pacheco) where spaces have been removed to improve visibility and improve pedestrian safety. I can see removing parking for bike lanes in areas where children in particular need safe bike access. There have been discussions of putting a bike lane in the section of Center that runs from Pacheco to Claus. This is section is heavily trafficked by motorists, pedestrians, transit, and cyclists. Doing this might necessitate the removal of parking spaces or a reconfiguring of lanes of traffic. However, this option is very unpopular with some segments of the Fairfax population.

Stephanie Hellman:

I need current and forecasted trend data to support any position on this.

Lynnette Shaw: No response

Cindy Swift: No response

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