Drake road work a balancing act

Staff Report
Marin IJ, April 1, 2008

THE STRETCH of Sir Francis Drake Boulevard that winds through Samuel P. Taylor State Park needs to be repaired and made safer, for motorists and bicyclists.

The question is how to do that while minimizing the impact on the park and the environment.

For this delicate balancing act to be successful, a spirit of compromise and collaboration will be needed.

There are some encouraging signs as the county starts talking about how to repair the 5.4-mile stretch from Shafter Bridge to Platform Bridge Road.

Some trees may have to be removed, especially in the area around the entrance to the popular redwood-filled park, to make traffic flow more safely and smoothly.

Bicycle advocates want the road, which is a key link to West Marin, made safer for cyclists, but have indicated they realize a separate bike lane may not be possible.

County officials also are wise to reject a proposal, dubbed "the Caltrans option," that would include reshaping a portion of Lagunitas Creek by the road, extensive grading, removing up to 70 trees and possibly boring a tunnel through a hillside.

Supervisor Steve Kinsey, at an informational meeting on the project Saturday, stressed that road work must not "aggravate the health of the watershed."

He's right to make that a priority. In addition to the critical runs of steelhead and coho salmon that spawn in Lagunitas Creek, more than 70 plant and animal species have been identified in the area.

Kinsey referred to it as a "fish project with a road in it."

One possible approach that makes sense would involve removing perhaps 19 trees, most of them close to the park's entrance, where traffic conditions are especially dangerous. Lanes would be widened to 11 feet in both directions with three-foot shoulders for bicyclists wherever possible.

And small changes can make a big difference. The county Public Works Department wants to replace the dirt vehicle turnouts with a permeable asphalt that would keep unwanted sediment from washing into the creek.

The trick is to protect the area's fragile environment, including preserving as many trees as possible, while improving vehicle flow and making the stretch safer for the increasing number of bicyclists using Sir Francis Drake Boulevard.

An environmental impact report, which will be finished in six to seven months, will offer a more detailed assessment of what's at stake. The report will trigger more public discussion - a vital part of this process. County officials hope to begin work on the project, which should take about a year, in 2010.

That seems like a long time, but this is a complicated project that needs to be done right. All the interested parties will need to keep an open mind and be willing to make concessions for the best overall plan to emerge and become reality.