Cupertino paves the way for cyclists, community shuttles
Cyclists traveling on Mary Avenue between Steven’s Creek Boulevard and the Don Burnett Bicycle Footbridge may feel safer now that the Mary Avenue Protected Bikeway Project has been completed.
After being freshly resurfaced, the new configuration along Mary Avenue switches the position of parking lanes and bike lanes, with bike lanes now adjacent to the curb to provide greater protection for cyclists. Additionally, there is now space separating the parking lanes and bike lanes to reduce the chances of vehicle doors intruding into the bike lanes. Travel lanes in both directions have been narrowed to discourage drivers from speeding. These improvements are intended to eliminate conflicts between moving vehicles and cyclists.
Via relaunch
Cupertino residents who require four wheels to reach their destination have been availing themselves of Viacupertino since the community shuttle program relaunched in October.
The city says ridership has grown steadily since then, despite the Omicron variant.
“Via-cupertino relaunched with new hours of operation, new vans and new fares,” reads a statement. “Service resumed on Oct. 19, 2021 with a fleet of nine new vans: Chrysler Pacificas and Dodge Caravans. The vans now feature bicycle racks, except for the two wheelchairaccessible vans.”
By mid-january, Via-cupertino vans had completed 16,274 trips, 1,313 of which were rides taken since service resumed three months ago. Data show the most popular pickup spots are Cupertino High School, Monta Vista High School, and Kennedy Middle School; the next most popular dropoff and pick-up stop is the Sunnyvale Caltrain Station.
The busiest days of the week are Tuesdays and Wednesdays, with up to 45 trips per day. The busiest time of day is 1-4 p.m.
To protect against COVID-19, riders are required to wear face coverings, and plexiglass dividers have been installed between the driver and passengers.
For fares, hours of operation, service maps and more information, visit cupertino.org/shuttle.