Greenways Team Adds Two July Meetings on Traffic Calming for Four Streets

Residents get two more chances this month to weigh in on the Greenways Project, a plan to add traffic-calming treatments to four north-south residential streets, with an in-person meeting Monday, July 27, and a virtual session Wednesday, July 29, according to the City of Pasadena.

The in-person gathering, listed as Community Meeting #2, runs 5 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. at the Caltech Hameetman Center Multipurpose Room, 1200 E. California Blvd. The virtual meeting runs 6 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. Spanish interpretation is offered at both; refreshments and children’s activities are available at the in-person session.

The corridors were not chosen this year. Pasadena identified them in its 2015 Bicycle Transportation Action Plan and the Mobility Element of the General Plan, then commissioned a Greenways Feasibility Study completed in 2021 that examined traffic patterns, safety, parking and connections to existing bike routes and produced cost estimates for each corridor. The four run El Molino Avenue from Atchison Street to Bonita Drive, 3.8 miles; Wilson Avenue from Washington Boulevard to California Boulevard, 2.3 miles; Sierra Bonita Avenue from Washington Boulevard to Colorado Boulevard, 1.6 miles; and Craig Avenue from Paloma Street to Del Mar Boulevard, 1.2 miles, according to the City of Pasadena.

The money is layered. Pasadena secured $12 million in Measure R Mobility Improvement Project funding from Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority in 2022 for design and construction. California’s Affordable Housing and Sustainable Communities program is funding a temporary quick-build demonstration on Craig Avenue, and the city has been awarded federal Safe Streets and Roads for All money for a similar quick-build on El Molino Avenue. City procurement documents specify that designs follow National Association of City Transportation Officials guidance for bikeways comfortable for all ages and abilities.

That standard is itself contested ground. The Pasadena Complete Streets Coalition has campaigned for the corridors to meet the association’s benchmarks of vehicle speeds below 20 mph and volumes under 2,000 vehicles a day, noting that roughly 40 north-south streets in the city prioritize cars. Of the Wilson Avenue bike lanes specifically, Caltech “wholeheartedly supports this project,” according to a statement the coalition published in that campaign.

Bike racks sit adjacent to the Hameetman building. The Caltech campus is served by Pasadena Transit routes 10 and 53 and Metro Route 267, and parking is free after 5 p.m. at the garage at 370 S. Holliston Ave. The virtual meeting uses Meeting ID 829 6196 1505, with a call-in number of (669) 900-6833.

The city said community members will have opportunities to share feedback on potential design elements at key design milestones. Project details are at https://www.cityofpasadena.net/transportation/transportation-improvements/greenways/.

Caltech Hameetman Center Multipurpose Room, 1200 E. California Blvd., Pasadena, Monday, July 27, 5 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. Virtual meeting Wednesday, July 29, 6 p.m. to 7:30 p.m., Meeting ID 829 6196 1505, call-in (669) 900-6833. For more visit https://www.cityofpasadena.net/transportation/transportation-improvements/greenways/. Free.