Richmond Bridge proposal exposes issues with MTC

In what will be a tragedy for the environment, for Bay Area commuters and public transport users generally, the Metropolitan Transportation Commission will lose, and deserves to lose, the vote on its next bond issue (“Marin officials skeptical of regional transportation tax plan,” Nov. 26).

Despite being someone who rides a bicycle frequently from the San Francisco Ferry Building to my work in Mission Bay, I remain appalled by MTC's plans to preserve a bike lane on the Richmond-San Rafael Bridge.

The latest proposal is to use a movable barrier to create a third westbound lane for emergencies and maintenance vehicles Monday through Thursday before restoring it, at tremendous expense, on Friday, Saturdays and Sunday. I often drive to the East Bay on weekends to visit grandchildren. Every Saturday or Sunday morning, we see a huge line of cars backed up for a mile or more attempting to get to Marin from the East Bay. I suspect this traffic fills Richmond with pollution from idling vehicles. It prolongs travel by 20 minutes or more.

The plan is being pitched despite MTC's statistics revealing a ridiculously small number of bicyclists on the weekend.

Bicycle evangelism is wonderful in its place. There should be safe cycling routes on many of our roads. But the cost must be proportional to the benefits. Only a privileged few benefit from these plans, yet they come at a huge cost to the environment and to the much larger numbers of motorists.

Unless MTC aligns its policies with the will of the voters, its crucially needed new funding will be rejected and our public transport systems will suffer enormously. A responsible MTC Board of Commissioners should block its staff from putting these crazy bicycle rules into effect.

— Michael Stryker, Kentfield