GREENFIELD — Residents of Greenfield will have an opportunity to experience a street makeover designed to be safer and more comfortable for all users.
To improve safety and encourage walking and bicycling, the City of Greenfield — in partnership with the Transportation Agency for Monterey County (TAMC), Ecology Action and the Monterey County Health Department — has installed temporary pedestrian improvements along 12th Street.
Families and children attending Arroyo Seco Academy, Oak Avenue Elementary School and Vista Verde Middle School use the heavily trafficked street, which has been identified as a safe route to school corridor in the Salinas Valley Safe Routes to School planning process.
The temporary pop-up event along 12th Street, near the intersections of Apple, Oak and Elm avenues, features temporary curb extensions and the creation of a median center, with the goal of making crossings easier and safer, as well as high-visibility crosswalks at Apple Avenue.
“After hearing from our community members and students, the safety pop-up demonstration is a must to the future planning of the community members’ safety,” said Greenfield Councilmember Yanely Martinez, emphasizing the importance of the pop-up event. “This is the first step forward in assuring our commitment to public safety.”
Now through Oct. 14, community members of all ages are encouraged to test the new design by walking and biking along the corridor and providing feedback to the planning team.
An anonymous survey is available in English and Spanish for pedestrians, drivers and cyclists to provide feedback by one of the three following methods:
- Scan the QR code on the Pop-Up Demonstration Poster on 12th Street at the intersections of Apple, Oak or Elm avenues, and take the short survey;
- Provide feedback online via the survey link at bit.ly/3xMEMfN; or
- Pick up a survey from the boxes posted along the route; fill it out and return it by mail in the pre-posted envelope provided with the survey.
Ariana Green, TAMC principal planner and manager of the agency’s Safe Routes to School Program, said she is excited that community members can “provide input on projects like this, which will make it easier and safer for families to travel around their neighborhoods and throughout the city.”
The implementation of the pop-up demonstration is part of the City of Greenfield Safe Routes to School Plan, which is a partnership between TAMC, City of Greenfield, Monterey County Health Department, Ecology Action and the Greenfield Union School District.
The project is funded through a Caltrans Sustainable Communities Transportation Planning Grant, matched with local Measure X funds.
Following the temporary pop-up demonstration, the planning team will develop the draft Safe Routes to School Plan for all K-12 public schools in Greenfield, King City, Soledad and Gonzales, which will be completed in early 2024.
