news New Bridge Day at Corte Madera Creek

On Thursday, July 14th, a group of electeds (and MCBC’s Executive Director) cut the ribbon on the new bridge over Corte Madera Creek by Larkspur Ferry. The event was the culmination of a years-long project to replace the harrowing, narrow path that challenged walkers and bike-riders alike for decades.

The project, led by the Transportation Authority of Marin, is the first part in a three-phase process to close the gap between the SMART Path and Larkspur Ferry, and the multi-use pathway that ends at the intersection of Redwood Highway and Wornum Drive, a distance of a little over half a mile.

Phase 1

Phase 1 (the dark orange line) saw the construction of a new bridge structure attached to the supports of the US-101 bridge. In the place of the former 3.5’-wide path (which required passing bicyclists to stop and dismount), there is now a generous, 12’ multi-use path with occasional spots to stop and take in the view. The slope of the bridge is also gentler, bringing it into compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act. During the opening ceremonies, one could observe a steady stream of pedestrians, bike riders, and rollerbladers crossing the bridge!

MCBC’s Executive Director, Tarrell Kullaway, delivered brief remarks. She thanked all those who had a hand in the bridge’s construction, noting the accomplishments we have made. Tarrell also reminded listeners of the broader project that this new bridge is just one part of: 

The dream of a separated bike and pedestrian pathway running north/south from the Golden Gate Bridge to Sonoma County. You can read her full remarks here.

In the opinion of county engineers, this would have happened without additional congestion (the road was built with two lanes in each direction because of a development that never came to fruition).

So What’s Next?

TAM is nearly ready to start work on Phase 2 (the the light orange segment). A new shared use path that will connecti the southern end of the new bridge and the US-101 pedestrian overcrossing, which sits across from the Chevron station and connects to Lucky Drive. Construction is slated to begin in early 2023. 

FINISHING THE CONNECTION

Phase 3 (the southern segment in green, in the graphic above) will complete the connection between the bridge and the shared use paths. It will begin at the intersection of Wornum Drive and Redwood Highway (the Sandra Marker Trail connecting into the downtowns of Larkspur and Corte Madera), and the Bay Trail to east Corte Madera.

Phase 3 of the path is not yet set in stone. The graphic indicates that Phase 3 will travel behind the mobile home park and industrial area, however this segment is still not designed and is several years out. 

Putting things in Perspective

MCBC would like to give a huge ‘thank you’ to everyone who made this happen, especially the advocates who pushed for a multi-modal alternative to the Greenbrae Interchange project, which would have seen the removal of the old, narrow pathway without a replacement (see a rendering of that project here). When that project did not move forward, it freed up funding for this new bridge. Though it only cost 1/7th as much, demonstrating clearly what we can do when we stop spending hundreds of millions of dollars on freeways.

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