To put it politely, i have issues with assumptions of this report and the unusually normative and loaded claims Oaklandside makes about the BRT project that are contested to say the least. oaklandside.org/2025/05/01/t... - ThreadSky

idothethinking.bsky.social • 32 days ago

To put it politely, i have issues with assumptions of this report and the unusually normative and loaded claims Oaklandside makes about the BRT project that are contested to say the least.

https://oaklandside.org/2025/05/01/the-report-which-will-be-released-in-full-in-may-argues-that-the-project-was-undermined-by-a-lack-of-community-input/

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dsrouse.bsky.social•32 days ago

This pissed me off so hard for the reasons you note. I'm curious if the authors considered the ongoing police wildcat strike on traffic enforcement since 2020 in their claims on traffic violence. Unsafe driving on International is a real problem. Lack of enforcement makes a difference!

bryanculbertson.com•32 days ago

International is policed more heavily than the rest of Oakland. 24% of the patrols on there. The issue was a design problem with the BRT, not an enforcement issue

idothethinking.bsky.social•32 days ago

https://bsky.app/profile/idothethinking.bsky.social/post/3lo5jn27tms2y

judgemuck.bsky.social•32 days ago

Not enough consultation says business selling consulting services.

hunterrible.bsky.social•32 days ago

Very odd there’s no mention of the other big thing that happened in spring 2020 just before BRT opened that caused traffic fatalities and collisions to increase almost everywhere bc streets were suddenly empty and extreme speeding became common 😬

bryanculbertson.com•32 days ago

The report compared the traffic fatalities on International with the rest of Oakland to normalize for that.

hunterrible.bsky.social•32 days ago

I was mostly commenting on the article, haven’t read the report - seems like a big oversight not to mention Covid behavior changes at all.

bryanculbertson.com•32 days ago

Ah, yeah, that is missing from the article. I was at the forum and one of the first questions asked was about how the report accounted for changes during covid.

hunterrible.bsky.social•32 days ago

Do you think the main issues were design flaws in not separating the bus lane with permanent barriers (like Van Ness BRT in SF)? The article makes it seem like the report is focused on failures with community outreach…unclear if that would have fixed the unsafe design problems.

bryanculbertson.com•32 days ago

This is a topic that needs more than I can fit into a social media post and do it justice

I think it was a failure of ACTC, AC Transit, and Oakland to design a $100M+ transportation project without centering placemaking, especially with so many commercial areas, schools, churches, etc.

bryanculbertson.com•32 days ago

TVRR reported in-depth about the traffic safety issue with the design of the BRT project

While traffic fatalities decreased in the rest of Oakland, traffic fatalities increased significantly on International :(

https://www.oakrapidresponse.org/projects/

bryanculbertson.com•32 days ago

There are 5 dangerous behaviors enabled by design flaws:

1. Speeding in bus-only lane
2. Left turn lane used to jump queue
3. Bus lane used for illegal u-turns
4. Cross traffic turning left into bus-only lane
5. Illegal left turns using bus only lane as turning lane

https://docs.google.com/document/u/1/d/e/2PACX-1vQJ2af5Ym0v-JGOWs1KSdW7F-xLnvl8haxBuNI41vKPMUZHOycIin63Yyd2p-uXxFv0gZVZzsFOHWfz/pub?ref=oakrapidresponse.org

bryanculbertson.com•32 days ago

TVRR also investigated speeds on E 14th, and found increased speeding only in the sections where there was a center running BRT

As soon as the center running BRT stopped, so did the speeding!

https://www.oakrapidresponse.org/international-speed-report/

jarkatmu.bsky.social•31 days ago

There's established methods and treatments to design center-running BRT to discourage the aggressive antisocial driving. I wonder why these weren't incorporated. I doubt having more community outreach would be the answer to this problem.

idothethinking.bsky.social•31 days ago

The project took 10 - 15 years and criticism was exclusively about parking so there wasn't much focus on curbing abuse of the bus lanes. Moreover they lost some barriers during the Recession and bad driving habits which flared up after the pandemic wasn't as bad pre-pandemic.

bryanculbertson.com•31 days ago

Original EIR had the standard treatments to discourage misuse of the center lanes, but they were value engineered out and it has been a 4 year fight to get them added back

Plastic posts and speed cushions were added in August of last year and the number of fatalities dropped from 10/yr to 1/yr

woolie.meowmeow.city•32 days ago

What do you think happens when there is no enforcement? People would be doing this on International even in the absence of BRT. They sure as hell do it on Fruitvale **every single day I go outside.**

bryanculbertson.com•32 days ago

25% of OPD Patrols are on International, plus CHP and Alameda Sheriffs. It is one of the highest policed corridors in Oakland

The design flaws of BRT enabled reckless and careless driving behaviors that resulted in 25 people killed 😢

It was the most dangerous street in Oakland before plastic posts

woolie.meowmeow.city•32 days ago

I have never seen someone pulled over for traffic violations on International. Not even once in 10 years.

bryanculbertson.com•32 days ago

International is a long corridor. If the bulk of policing resources are spent there and you haven't personally seen it work then it demonstrates how ineffective enforcement is as a solution to traffic violence.

woolie.meowmeow.city•32 days ago

I can't remember the last instance I was waiting at Fruitvale/Foothill and someone did not queue jump by using the opposing traffic lane, and the run the red light as well half the time.

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