Vote Yes For Prop 1 Mobility Bond !

District 4 - Greg Casar
District 6 - Jimmy Flannigan
District 7 -Natalie Gauldin
County Commissioner Precinct 1 - Jeff Travillion

Voting begins today, Tuesday November 8th, from 7am-7pm

10-1 Council District Map

Places To Vote Today

Posted: 1:04 p.m. Friday, Oct. 28, 2016

Highlights

Among the eight candidates with a serious chance of winning, six support the transportation bond.

Just six of 14 candidates for City Council are for the bond, but many of the opponents are fringe candidates.

The incumbent council members, meanwhile, have mostly left stumping for the bond to Mayor Adler.

Back in 2014, the last time the city of Austin had a mega-dollar transportation bond on the ballot, I was able to identify a pretty reliable poll of public sentiment: the City Council candidates.

With all 11 council seats up for grabs at the time, that meant 78 individuals were out there knocking on doors and thus were uniquely attuned to how voters felt about the proposed $1 billion road-and-rail bond. What they were hearing must have been persuasive, because at least 61 of them told the Statesman that they were voting “no.” That’s nearly 80 percent, which turned out to be a good predictor of the rail bond proposition’s eventual sound defeat.

Although there is a much smaller group out there now seeking the five council seats available this time — 14 candidates — I figured a similar exercise about the proposed $720 million transportation bond might be illuminating. However, like so much about this hard-to-call bond election, the results were mixed.....

Make sure to complete all of the voting steps, including entering your username and password after making your selection, in order to complete your vote. Once you have cast your vote you will receive an email from Helios titled "2016 City Council Candidate Preference Vote and Vote on Transportation and Mobility Bond - vote cast." This will let you know your vote has been recorded. If you have any questions, please contact info /at/ atxfriends.org. You can view information on votes any time at http://www.atxfriends.org/votes/.

City Council Candidate Preference Vote:
For more information about what the resolution is, to ask questions about it, or join in on the discussion, please visit http://forum.atxfriends.org/t/fan-2016- … -vote/1642

Mobility and Transportation Bond Vote:
For more information about what the resolution is, to ask questions about it, or join in on the discussion, please visit http://forum.atxfriends.org/t/transport … rendum/461

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How to Vote

Election URL:  https://vote.heliosvoting.org/helios/e/ … ences/vote

You really should be involved with the CAMPO planning process. Initial public input phase ends today. Public comments and participation today from 9AM-5PM. Meeting today from 5:30-7:30pm. PDF link here.

Tom Wald shared Capital Area Metropolitan Planning Organization (CAMPO)'s event with you:

Public meetings on bicycling and walking improvements along US 183 (MoPac to Cypress Creek Rd.)
Do you have any ideas to make walking and biking better in the Northwest corridor?

Yeah, I had it on my calendar to go to those, but some home stuff came up.  Also, to be honest, my nerves were pretty much shot from my latest near death experience commuting to work the other morning.  (I guess it wasn't really near death since I saw it coming and took evasive action, but still - this crap gets old.)

I do try and get to these kinds of things when I can.   I looked at the Campo stuff and emailed the contact person.  I pointed out that there might ought to be a better way for non-drivers to provide input.  The very people who are supposed to be helped by this are disproportionately hindered in being able to provide input.    I do appreciate that some kind of effort is being made, though.

I don't ride that particular area that often, so I don't have specific ideas.  I will say that the newest Adventure Cycling Association route (Hill Country Loop) goes right through that area.   I was the first person to buy the map and ride that route.  (It ain't braggin' if it's true).  As long as you don't get into Cedar Park it's not too bad.

I have requested that a BAC agenda item for Vinson/St Elmo safety be added.  I know the BAC did discuss this area a year or so ago in the context of looking at W St Elmo.  Staff was supposed to look at possible improvements/traffic calming to the St Elmo/Vinson/James Casey intersection, but I don't think we ever heard back.  I have requested an update on that.

Tom Thayer
BAC chair (until October 18th)

Thank you, Tom T and Tom W. I have commuted by bicycle as much as able for 30+ years, nearly without interruption. About 15 of those years were with AISD. I have led and/or participated in many youth rides and bicycle initiatives.I have been using what we are calling Bike Route 31 regularly since moving here in 1994. I have been regularly riding Austin streets and our lesser developed off road trails since 1994 as well. I rode pedicabs for almost 12 years in downtown and late night auto traffic w/o any accidents or passengers ever harmed. I commuted by bike from S Austin to pedicab, returning in the strangest AM hours.I ride throughout our city, our area, our region. I ride in San Antonio, Houston, and DFW with some frequency. I have commuted, toured and rode recreationally in Ohio, even through their worse winter(2014) since the 70's. This greatly deepened my cycling perspective and appreciation of high quality state wide bicycle networks, the importance of having a supportive state highway department that understands bicycling as transportation, committing to real connecting networks, changing grades when crossing streets dominated by motorized vehicle traffic, etc.I have toured and ridden in many of our southern, western, midwestern, mid atlantic, and north eastern states.I have ridden all over much of Houston, San Antonio, DFW, New Orleans, Baton Rouge, Memphis and their surrounding areas. Not tasks for the uninitiated. Conditions in other parts of our nation make riding considerably safer and easier than in Texas and southern states, having terrible reputations in the bicycle touring community.

We have 4 children.My oldest son started getting around Austin by bike at 11 months, 2nd at 8 months, and 3rd at 6 months.Each has ridden in child trailers set up for babies, one in a recumbent tandem tagalong, all three on Adams TrailABikes, as they grew.Oldest started commuting to Zilker Elementary, about 5 miles away and across Ben White a and S Lamar, on his own 20inch geared bike in 2nd grade. Bike commuted to Zilker through 5th grade. Bike commutes to Small Middle School, crossing unde Brodie and MoPac using Williamson Creek, now.Younger two started riding their own bikes to Joslin Elementary ( Redd and Manchaca) using W St Elmo/Mt Vernon/Redd  when they were in 1st grade and Kinder respectively.My wife is a bicycle commuter, tourer, and recreational rider.We have ridden all over Austin all of the time.We rode on a self-supported bike tour of about 500 miles from Pittsburgh area with all four children ages 3, 5, 10, and 12, spending a week with the fam in the DC area.

I am not easily shaken by riding in traffic. I was willing to put my own family out there.

Our neighborhood, our south central transition zone, have become very dangerous and I am no longer confident in putting my children on our streets. Their lives are at the mercy of drivers' increasing rage, frustration, and  poor choices. Limited sidewalks, limited cycling facilities,  limited alternative routes, horrific neighborhood cut  through traffic, particularly at AM peak, high speed drivers in school and residential areas, close passes, screaming drivers, cursing, threatening me, my wife, and children ,etc., are our reality nearly every day . Driver rage and aggression boiling from the permanent and pervasive. Motorized vehicle traffic congestion. Highways clogged, arterials clogged, traffic pouring through connecting neighborhood streets, etc..I will keep riding until I physically cannot but I am very much doubting my choice to let my children walk or bike in our neighborhood, to their schools, or around south austin due to existing conditions on our roads.

I have been bringing up the problems and sharing possibilities in our southern zone with senior and junior COA planning staff, Eric Bollich, Chad Craeger, Nadia Barrera, city council members, COA Parks staff, Bike Texas, Bike Austin, APD, AISD, and others regularly since about 2010-2011 when I saw our street safety spiraling out of control. I knew that we were loosing our quiet connectivity that we all enjoyed. I helped lead our acting Bicycle Program Director and several city planning staff on an exploratory ride through our zone in Feb 2013. I pointed out the dangers and building traffic on Vinson/Emerald Forest, the traffic conundrum at Ben White to James Casey (S Austin Hospital), and the Vinson/St Elmo intersection, discussed the AM neighborhood cut through traffic, and pointed out the lack of adequate sidewalks. Kate and I took our youngest two children with us on the ride. We rode by our two elementary schools on this route, Joslin and St. Elmo (where Amy McFadden works and where her and Elliott's children attend and where their child was hit by a driver in the crosswalk). I dreamed out loud what I saw possible. We paused the ride so that everyone could see up and down the Bergstrom Spur and imagine the possibility. I talked about Greenways and 18mph speed limits north/south on Emerald Forest/Vinson/Bike Route 31 and an East/West Greenway along St Elmo/Redd/Western Trails through Sunset Valley connecting to the Violet Crown. I hammered repeatedly to get going on a Williamson Creek trail connecting from the Oak Hill Y to McKinney Falls and Colorado River (our community, led by Kate, Tom Donovan, and myself have started this and rallied much support with our community, COA Parks, and Austin Park Foundation). At the time, many of my suggestions were brushed aside due to bureaucratic challenges or as of little importance or probability.

Many others, particularly Michael C, were saying much the same things to many of the same people. Michael, myself, Kate, Tommy Eden, Francis Reilly, and many others were very active during the South Austin Combined Neighborhood Planning Process.

ftp://ftp.ci.austin.tx.us/npzd/Austingo … tation.pdf

Two of these suggestions were included in the updated COA Bicycle Master Plan. NO REAL improvements on the ground, though. We did get marginal bike lanes on Redd after I burned into and interrupted a BAC meeting agenda when the city was resurfacing that street. COA staff reacted quickly to get the project slowed and minimal bike lanes painted on the ground. Terribly incomplete sidewalks still. Crazy. Other than this and repainting St Elmo between S 1st and Congress only, NOTHING has been done.

I withdrew in participation from advocating through our BAC. I sat through endless meetings where we poured over every detail of each bicycle facility design and sat through lengthy presentations of low to medium importance while the BAC as a board ignored the much more pressing and broader issues at stake, IMO. I was and am frustrated by the lack of action or progress in South Austin. I have repeated this same sentiment to both Miller and Mercedes at Bike Austin. I continued and continue to participate and advocate for family cycling issues, working with Ghisallo, at our childrens' schools, with friends and community members in my hood, and online via Bicycle Austin, bike forums, Southwood neighborhood online forums, and most recently, Nextdoor. Our neighborhood Nextdoor Crime and Safety forum has been inundated with community members complaints about high speed and cut through auto traffic in our hood recently. Most of them from auto drivers with children who just cannot endure what is happening. Quite a few from cyclists and walkers whose posts are even more legitimate, IMO.

Conditions worsen every week.Traffic cutting through our neighborhood from Emerald Forest, S 1st, and Manchaca is ludicrous. Ridiculous. Traffic enforcement or even police presence in the AM is almost non-existent in our neighborhood.

Again, I am in full support of active transportation and bicycling for me is a way of life. I am not easily spooked. Until recently, I believed that we, my family, were somewhat safe, and I allowed and encouraged them to ride bikes and walk whenever feasible.Currently, my family is in danger and so are many others in my community.
This is real.
AUSTIN IS NOT BICYCLE FRIENDLY.
This has become a cruel joke ! I feel much safer in San Antonio, central Houston, or DFW (FW and north central Dallas). What happened???

Now we are facing the additional traffic dangers and loss of valuable Bergstrom Spur property across from the UP main line due to the private Vinson Road Development. Absolutely irresponsible !
The city really Must Act Now to preserve the ways of life and life itself that we all share.I truly hope that our Bicycle Advisory Council will weigh in strongly on this issue and seek immediate ACTION.

BAC members, thank you for considering these related issues of the Vinson Rd development and existing unsafe conditions in our southern zone. I have online albums with many photos of conditions in our hood. If interested, I will be happy to share links.And, Thank you, Tom W, for all that you have done and do for our community. Thank you for responding so quickly to our email sent yesterday.
Best,
Larry Murphy

Tom W wrote:
Kate,
Thank you for your email.  Michael C (in South Austin) also raised the issue of bicycling mobility along Vinson Dr. in the context of this proposed development. I have asked staff to add the bicycling mobility issue to an upcoming BAC meeting. If the chair or vice-chair (cc-ed here) would like to affirm that request with staff, it'll help ease that agenda item request along.
(This is my primary bike route to my parents' house in South Austin.)

What is Proposition 1?

Bike Austin needs lots of immediate help via volunteers for this pending election. Block walking, phone calls, data entry, and online/social media support.
Visit their website to volunteer.

Volunteer, here
Or,
Email miller[at]bikeaustin.org

Added:

Email received just moments ago:
Hi All!

This is a weekly update email about what YOU can do to support the Mobility Bond and bike-friendly Council candidates. Check out https://bikeaustin.org/vote/ to learn more.

Here's where we are collecting pledges this week:
Thursday, Oct 13th, 5:00 - 6:00pm, Pledge Collection @ 1-35 and 4th St Downtown
Thursday, Oct 13th, 7:30-8:30pm, Pledge Collection @ Thursday Night Social Ride at Festival Beach Park
Saturday, Oct 15th, 11:00am-12:30pm, Pledge Collection @ Mellow Johnny's (400 Nueces St, Austin, TX 78701)
Saturday, Oct 15th, 1:00-2:30, Pledge Collection @ South Walnut Creek Trail, Govalle Park (1109 Shady Ln, Austin, TX 78721)
Monday, Oct 17th, 6:00-7:30pm, Volunteer Night: Data Entry @ Bike Austin Office (1000 Brazos St) Bring a computer if you have one, drinks and snacks provided!
Next Week: Phone Banking begins! Phone Bank at Bike Austin Office Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday evenings from 6-8pm. Snacks and drinks will be provided. See the Bike Austin Calendar (updating today) for the complete calendar. If everyone signs up for 1 or 2 phone banking shifts we will easily meet our goal!

Email julia[at]bikeaustin.org to volunteer!

We are also starting a push for Get Out the Vote--door-knocking. See the Bike Austin calendar for complete details. Below is our schedule for door-knocking. It will be great to have as many people out as possible. If you can commit to even one shift, that is great! Feel free to attend any, even if you don't live in the district. Rsvp by email to julia@bikeaustin.org or sign up here.

Saturday, October 22nd, 10am, District 6
Sunday, October 23rd, 2pm, District 6
Saturday, October 29th, 10am, District 4
Sunday, October 30th, 12:30pm, District 2
Saturday, November 5th, 10am, District 3/9
Sunday, November 6th, 1pm, District 9/3

Let me know if you have any questions. I look forward to seeing you soon!

Thank you,

Julia
Bike Austin

Thanks for posting all these, AusTexMurf!  I hadn't heard of Vision Zero ATX before; I added them to the sidebar and the Organizations page.

Thank you, Michael.

To get to their elementary school, the children in my neighborhood would have to walk 2 miles and cross 13 lanes of high speed traffic at the Parmer/Mopac intersection, one railroad track, and two low water crossings.  50% of the walk would have to be on the road because their are no sidewalks for half of it. 

But their parents will largely vote against prop 1 just like they voted against neighborhood traffic calming improvements a few years ago.  At that time I went door to door to help get people to vote for the traffic calming, but most of what I heard was incredibly negative.

The sad fact is that a significant number of people (registered voters) don't care about anyone but themselves.  Our culture is all about our "RIGHTS" and not also about our "RESPONSIBILITIES".    The sense that we are all in it together and that a rising tide lifts all boats is dead.  If this attitude had prevailed in the 1940's I think the Japanese Empire would have extended across the Pacific and everyone in Europe would speak German as a first language.

You really should be involved with the CAMPO planning process. Initial public input phase ends today. Public comments and participation today from 9AM-5PM. Meeting today from 5:30-7:30pm. PDF link here.

Tom Wald shared Capital Area Metropolitan Planning Organization (CAMPO)'s event with you:

Public meetings on bicycling and walking improvements along US 183 (MoPac to Cypress Creek Rd.)
Do you have any ideas to make walking and biking better in the Northwest corridor?

The Capital Area Metropolitan Planning Organization (CAMPO) is conducting a study to develop a plan for bicycle and pedestrian accommodations near and across US 183 from MoPac in Austin to Cypress Creek in Cedar Park. This study will include a series of focus groups, public presentations, and an open house designed to engage and gather input from people in and around the area.

This study includes the development of a corridor plan for active transportation that could include: trails, sidewalks, bike lanes, and connecting streets in the corridor.

Why plan for walking and biking in the region?
Bicycling and walking is…

Healthy
Low cost
Non-polluting
An alternative to driving
This plan will make biking and walking safer, more comfortable, and more convenient.

Upcoming Meetings
CAMPO is holding a charrette work session to share background information, collect input from the community, and sketch ideas. There are several opportunities to stop by and learn more. Please join us as you are able.

Location: Balcones Country Club, 8600 Balcones Club Drive, Austin, TX 78750 (map)

Tuesday, October 11
Educational Presentation and Public Input
5:30 to 7:30 p.m.

Thursday, October 13
Open House and Final Presentation
5:30 to 7:30 p.m.

Stay Tuned
The second work session is scheduled for November 8-11, 2016. Details will be posted online once they are available. For more information, please contact:

Kelly Porter, AICP
kelly.porter /at/ campotexas.org -- (512) 974-2084
www.campotexas.org
https://www.traviscountytx.gov/images/t … 161007.pdf