Can we get Duncan Atkins and Kimberly Model. (Witnesses approached Witness table.)
Hello. Thank you, Councilmember Young, Councilmember Squilla, Councilmember Bass and Councilmember O'Rourke. Thank you all for hearing everyone's voices today. My name is Kimberly Model. I'm going to read what I have written and then I'm probably going to speak a little bit to what others have said, if that's okay.
If you don't mind, I mean because a lot of the testimony has been repetitive, if you can add things that's novel, that would be helpful for us.
Yes. Yeah, I will do my best. My name's Kimberly Model. I'm in the 2601 Parkway Building. I'm testifying in favor of the No Stopping in the Bike Lane bill. I bike as my primary means of transportation. Most of my friends also ride. Perhaps that's self-selectively. But in households in Philadelphia do not have access to a car. Allowing cyclists the space we need on the road just to get around increases the equitability of transportation in the city. This bill is about safety first. It prioritizes vulnerable road users over cars in space that's supposed to be designated for cyclists, for scooters, for wheelchair-users. Parking and stopping puts -- I'm going to skip this because you all have heard how merging makes it dangerous. Making our streets safer for bikes, for scooters will encourage people to ride. It'll reduce cars -- sorry. It'll reduce crashes and traffics and ultimately, no stopping in the bike lane is here to make this city safer, cleaner and greener. As a rider, I hear from so many people that they wish they felt comfortable riding, like seriously I hear that from so many people that I talk to. They wish they felt safer -- if riding in Philly was safer, they would. And I've been riding in Philly since I was a teenager. Most people don't have that. Most people don't have that basis of experience and I still don't feel safe all the time while I'm riding. I wear a helmet all the time, but a helmet only protects about this much of your head. Your neck, that can break in a crash. If it doesn't kill you, it'll put you in a wheelchair for the rest of your life. Most of your torso has a lot of important organs, your lungs, your heart, your stomach, you know, important things you need in order to live. An injury to your torso is probably also just as life-altering as an injury to your head. I hear that a lot of people have concerns that they want more loading zones. And I think that's kind of the obvious thing the City needs to do is put more loading zones in order to put, one, no 3 parking in the bike lane and, two, actual protection so that riders can't be rear-ended so that cars just can't get into the bike lane to make us merge around. And one person said that separation or protection in the bike lane would not have saved Dr. Friedes, and that's just categorically wrong. If there was concrete protection, a car just would not have fit into the bike lane and it would have crashed into a post or into a barrier before it crashed into a person. That's all I'm going to say. Thank you for listening to me.
Thank you for your testimony. Sir, please state your name and proceed with your testimony.
Hi. My name is Duncan Atkins. I live on the 1600 block of Walnut Street and I'm here to ask City Council to support safe streets by passing Bill 4 240657, the No Stopping in Bike Lanes bill. I want everyone, not just the Councilmembers but also the people in the audience, to imagine a scenario with me. Imagine you wake up in the morning, you get ready to go to work and when you step outside of your house, there's a car parked on the sidewalk fully blocking the steps down from your house. The only way you can get to work is climbing down the railing, crossing into the street in order to get past this car parked on the sidewalk and get on the sidewalk on the way to work. Imagine if that wasn't the only car blocking the sidewalk forcing you into traffic. Imagine this was every single day for every single errand that you had to run. The City gave you a number to call and report this but the problem never got better because the car in front of your house had a 20-minute grace period before they could be ticketed. Imagine the people blocking your steps outside of your house told you they'd just be a minute, that you could just go around. You would be rightfully frustrated. Now, imagine if you knew someone who was hit and killed by a car because they had to walk into the street to get where the sidewalk should take them. Imagine if there was a history of people getting killed by cars on the street so that people who just need a minute could prioritize their convenience over your safety. We don't have to imagine because that is the reality that people on bikes face every day in this city. I personally use the Spruce and Pine bike lanes for the majority of my commuting and I can count on one hand the number of times that I have ridden them without there being one or more vehicles parked inside the bike lane forcing me out into traffic. Voting yes on this bill will solve this problem. I implore you to close this absurd loophole and give people on bikes the same basic standard of respect we give people on our sidewalks. A couple of things that I wanted to add in. This is just one of a number of other safe streets changes. I am fully in support of other interventions like raised crosswalks, daylighting and other changes, but I believe that this is a necessary component of a entire galaxy of ways to make the streets safer in this city. I heard somebody say that bike lanes are not historic for Philadelphia. Cars aren't historic for Philadelphia. The city has existed since the 1600s. There has only been cars for about 100 years. You can go back and look at Inquirer articles about driving in Fairmount Park and how upset people were back then. And finally, we live in one of the most dense areas in the entire country. It's unreasonable to expect the ability to have deliveries and drop-offs made right in front of your house. I have to walk to multiple different grocery stores to get my groceries. I have to haul any sort of stuff, you know. I use the Indigo bikes, so I have to park at whatever Indigo station is open and walk to my apartment. There's never going to be a reality where you're going to be able to drop stuff off right in front of your house in Philadelphia. That's just impossible. Thank you for your time and attention and please vote yes on the No Parking in Bike Lanes bill.
Thank you so much for your testimony. Are there any questions of these witnesses? (No response.)
Seeing none, is there anyone else -- and thank you for your testimony. Is there anyone else in the chambers wishing to testify on this bill? (No response.)
Seeing none, thank you. We are going to end the public hearing and we're going to take a brief recess to establish a quorum. (Brief recess.)
We will get back into our public meeting. I would like to thank our witnesses for joining us today. Mr. Pullin, could you please call the roll to establish a quorum for the public meeting.
Present. Thank you, Mr. Pullin. A quorum has now been established. The Chair recognizes Councilmember Squilla for a motion on amendment to Bill No. 240812.
Thank you, Mr. Chair. I offer an amendment to Bill No. 240812. A copy of the amendment has been circulated to all members of the Committee and I move that the amendment to Bill No. 7 240812 be adopted. (Duly seconded.)
Thank you. It has been moved and properly seconded that the amendment to Bill No. 240812 be adopted. All those in favor will signify by saying aye. (Aye.)
Ayes have it. The motion carries. And the amendment to Bill No. 240812 has been adopted. The Chair recognizes Councilmember Squilla for a motion on the amendment to Bill No. 2 240657.
Thank you, Mr. Chair. I offer an amendment to Bill No. 240657. A copy of the amendment has been circulated to all members of the Committee. I move that the amendment to Bill No. 10 240657 be adopted. (Duly seconded.)
Thank you. It has been moved and properly seconded that the amendment to Bill No. 240657 be adopted. All those in favor will signify by saying aye. (Aye.)
The ayes have it and the (inaudible) of the Chair of the motion carries. The Chair recognizes Councilmember Squilla for a motion on Bill Nos. 240613, 240657 as amended, 240748, 240749, 240812 as amended, 240813, 240814, 240815, 240816, 240118 --
Excuse me, 240818, 240819, 240820, 240821, 240822 and 240824.
Thank you, Mr. Chair. I move that all bills read into the record be reported from this Committee with a favorable recommendation and further move that the rules of Council be suspended as to permit the first reading of this bill at the next session of Council. (Duly seconded.)
Thank you. It has been moved and properly seconded that all bills read into the record be reported from this Committee with a favorable recommendation and further move that the rules of Council be suspended to permit the first reading of these bills at the next session of Council. All those in favor of the motion will signify by saying aye. (Aye.)
The ayes have it. The motion carries. Bill 15 Nos. 240613, 240657 as amended, 240748, 240749, 240812 as amended, 240813, 240814, 240815, 240816, 240818, 240819, 240820, 240821, 240822 and 240824 will be reported from this Committee with a favorable recommendation with a request that the rules of Council be suspended to permit first reading at the next session of Council. Do any members have any remarks? (No response.)
Seeing none, thank you. This includes the business before the Committee on Streets and Services today. (Committee on Streets and Services concluded at 4:20 p.m.) C E R T I F I C A T I O N I, hereby certify that the proceedings and evidence noted are contained fully and accurately in the stenographic notes taken by me in the foregoing matter, and that this is a correct transcript of the same. __________________________________ TANEHA CARROLL