-- Traffic Calming --

Suza's Traffic Update

Dear Reader,

No, my " Suza's Traffic Updates" have not come to a screetching halt. In November, I was elected to the Ojai City Council. Throughout the election I promoted pedestrian and bicycle safety, traffic calming and less polluting transportation. I emphasized that transportation issues are really quality of life and economic growth issues. The way we deal with transportation in Ojai plays a key part in preserving our small town atmosphere. We all lose when we allow traffic to ruin our community--but the biggest losers will be our children. In 1997 I will be writing about transportation and sustainable cities for various publications. These articles will appear on this website.

By Suza Francina

"I don't care how you do it. You can carpool, vanpool, ride your bike, hop on the bus or the trolley. You can stay at home and telecommute. But one day a week I want you to get to work without driving alone in your car. " That's what one exasperated employer and speaker at a recent Southern California Traffic Solutions Conference told his employees.

I was not surprised to hear the transportation experts articulate what none of us want to face: People are addicted to their cars and this addiction is as hard to break as cigarettes. Cars are no longer our servants. They are our masters. Worse, we are passing this addiction on to a generation of youngsters that demand to be chauffeured to destinations once considered a short walk or bike ride away.

When it was my turn at the podium, the audience -- a mix of business managers responsible for helping hundreds of employees rethink how they get to work, planning and parking consultants, city council members, Ride Share representatives, bicycle advocates and environmental activists-- got very excited when I told them I was from Ojai. Those who had visited our small valley spoke up and said "Ojai is the absolute perfect place for walking and bicycling. " "You people are so lucky to live where almost everything is so easy to get to (without a car) in less then fifteen minutes."

I didn't have the heart to tell them that even here in idealic Ojai many residents have lost the motivation to leave their cars at home for even the shortest trips. Instead, I described what the Ojai Bicycle Coalition was doing to make bicycling easier and safer and how the transportation system in the new Ojai General Plan aims to reduce car dependence and increase the desirability of walking, bicycling and public transport.

This audience took me seriously when I described my latest acquisition to help me drive less -- a collapsible bicycle cart that easily holds four bags of groceries plus a hefty bag of pot belly pig food. Someone else described cars as glorified shopping carts. One mayor pointed out that we use two tons of steel to haul a one pound loaf of bread.

It is now widely agreed that the fate of our cities is the fate of the earth. Planners for sustainable cities state that the fate of civilization hangs on whether we can recover from our addiction to the private car. Few measures would do more to improve the quality of our lives and the health of our environment --both locally and globally-- than organizing our lifestyle and living spaces to reduce our dependence on single occupancy cars.

As we enter 1997, let's all take a deep breath and rethink how we transport ourselves. Let's resolve to become part of the solution and work together to reduce the impact of the automobile on our small valley and our small planet. Please make one of your New Year's Resolutions to Use Your Car Less. "For more information on alternatives to driving alone contact Ojai Traffic Solutions. OTS is a new public resource created by the Ojai Bicycle/Traffic Calming Coalitions and City of Ojai to help expand transportation alternatives in our community --including car or van pooling, trolley and bus riding, walking and bicycling and telecommuting.

Ojai Traffic Solutions networks with other Ojai and Ventura County groups committed to help residents reduce traffic congestion and clear the air. We also network with Traffic Solutions in Santa Barbara and similar advocacy organizations throughout the United States.

If you have ideas about traffic solutions we'd like to hear them. We are inviting the community to come and talk about the changing times of transportation and we'd like your suggestions. Your input and participation is vital to our success. In the months ahead, you will be hearing more about the Ojai Traffic Solutions program. Watch for announcements of OTS workshops and special events in 1997.

If you wish to discuss your ideas call (805) 640-8732, fax your comments to (805) 640-8232

Suza Francina is a founding member of the Ojai Bicycle Coalition and was recently elected to the Ojai City Council.

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