Healthy and active transport modes for UCLA along the Westwood Corridor

The LACBC has called the local bike ambassadors to discuss Westwood Boulevard, for which a bike lane is promised in the LA 2010 Bike Plan (passed unanimously by the City Council). Here Westwood Blvd is designated as a “backbone” of the network, not least because it offers the direct connection to UCLA. Now Councilmember Koretz has put planning for this on hold, probably because he has not heard from those voters in this corridor who believe that better bike facilities make for better neighborhoods. How can UCLA become a part of this conversation? This is what we want to discuss with the Vice Chancellor for Government and Community Relations.

Dear Mr Parker,

The UCLA Bicycle Academy (an informal group of staff and faculty with an email list of 200) and the UCLA Bicycle Coalition, a chapter of the Los Angeles County Bicycle Coalition, would like to request a meeting to discuss the opportunities for healthy and active transport modes along the Westwood Corridor, especially in view of EXPO line service starting in 2015.

We would like you to discuss in how far UCLA policy goals relating to the

• Healthy Campus Initiative
• reduction of traffic, congestion and air quality impacts
• Being a good neighbor in Westwood
• Creating attractive neighborhoods which can accommodate car-light lifestyles in order to attract and retain students and faculty

could lead UCLA to assume a more active role in the current planing process relating to the implementation of the LA Bicycle Master Plan, which includes a bike route along Westwood Blvd.

Among our members it is a widely shared hope that in the future more UCLA staff and students will have a choice of active and healthy modes for their commute to campus. How can we make this possible?

For the cyclist, the challenging geography around UCLA can be managed with the gear shifter. But in order to address the man-made bottlenecks which surround UCLA in many directions, it seems important that the voice of UCLA be heard more clearly in the local and political conversation. We had initial conversations with Nurit Katz (UCLA Sustainability) and Mike King (Transportation Services) and are currently exploring ways to inform and survey UCLA members resident in the affected area about the planning process for Westwood Blvd.

We would be very grateful for an opportunity to discuss these opportunities with you at your early convenience

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