Sustainable City Commission Talks About Multi-Modal Transportation

In honor of Bike Month, the Sustainable City Commission heard from Long Beach Transit and Public Works about sustainable modes of transportation. Bus systems, bike infrastructure, and safe pedestrian walkways provide options for residents to choose one, or combine multiple modes of transportation in their daily commutes. Long Beach continues to improve biking infrastructure in particular, to encourage this environmentally friendly and healthy mode of transportation around our city. The full video of this meeting along with the agenda and minutes can be found on Legistar.

Long Beach Transit presented first on their efforts as a leader in clean technology. Since 2005 Transit has purchased alternative fuel buses and reached 75% alternative fuel in 2012. Transit is currently working to retrofit its 64 compressed natural gas buses so they can reach near-zero emissions. This year Transit added 10 fully electric zero-emission buses to its fleet. You can find these buses on the passport rout serving many of Long Beach’s tourist destinations. Transit plans to purchase up to 89 more electric buses by 2021.

The second presentation was given by Public Works on their mobility projects and programs. Bike Month was kicked off in Long Beach with the largest yet Beach Streets event at the end of April. More than 60,000 people came out, and Mobility programs are working to get more people out on their bikes every day of the year. The Bicycle Master Plan completed last year provides a blueprint for making Long Beach bike accessible for everyone from 8 to 80 years old. The plan was informed by public input from many community events to discover what improvements will make everyone feel safe on a bike. The plan also sets priorities for connecting the City’s bike routs, and works with planned road improvements to add bike lanes. In addition, 400 bike share bikes are now available at 60 hubs around the City, with plans to add 100 new bikes. Hydration and fix-it stations also provide resources for bikers to reduce the worry of being stranded with a flat tire or an empty water bottle. The Eco-totem on the new beach bike path is counting the number of riders every day as we approach the goal of 1 million rides by the end of 2017.  You can help us reach this goal by taking a ride and posting a photo with the Eco-totem using the hashtag #CountMeInLB.

The meeting concluded with the election of a new chair and vice chair of the Sustainable City Commission for the 2017-2018 term. Congratulations to our new chair, Coby Skye, and vice chair, Sona Coffee, and thank you for your service to our city!