E-mail Sherry Listgarten About this blog: Climate change, despite its outsized impact on the planet, is still an abstract concept to many of us. That needs to change. My hope is that readers of this blog will develop a better understanding of how our climate is evolving a...  (More) About this blog: Climate change, despite its outsized impact on the planet, is still an abstract concept to many of us. That needs to change. My hope is that readers of this blog will develop a better understanding of how our climate is evolving and how they want to respond, and will feel comfortable asking questions and exchanging comments on the topic. It is important that we develop a shared understanding of the basic science and impacts of climate change, to make sense of our actions and policy options going forward. My background is not in climate science, and I'm not even particularly green; my hope is that helps to make this blog more relatable. I studied math and neurobiology on the east coast before moving out here in 1987 for grad school in computer science. After working in the tech industry for about 25 years, I retired a few years ago to better align my time with my priorities. I love spending time outdoors, and feel deeply our responsibility to this incredible planet that we call home.  (Hide)

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Impact of Noise on animal life (even if not affecting humans) should be studied. Anedoctaly, our dog can recognize my electric car from far away. Personally, I would prefer that Class 2 ebikes (when there is no need to pedal) be categorized as motorcycles (which they are closer to). As far as allowing ebikes on trails, as a hiker, main concerns are the speed and the weight of these bikes. Maybe allow them on wide trails not on narrow ones?

I haven't read the report, nor am I familiar with the two preserves. From the looks of the maps, it appears that the two trails in purple are very different. The one in Ravenswood looks as though it could be much flatter and less winding. Are both paved? Elevation gain? If Ravenswood attracts more bikers maybe access to e-bikes could be confined to this type of trail. I am more familiar with El Corte Madera OSD Preserve which is very popular with bikers. I am a hiker. I enjoy the quiet, hearing only sounds of nature in the woods, alone with my thoughts, as well as the challenge of a tough trail. In El Corte I try to avoid the all purpose trails not just because of the bikes, but because the heavy use makes them wider, dustier and ugly. They look much like the fire access roads in Tahoe, one of two types of trails there e-bikes are permitted in Tahoe Donner. Just last night I was told of an elderly gentleman in South Lake Tahoe who is physically no longer able to do the strenuous outdoor activities he once did. Now he enjoys his favorite trails on a Class 1 e-bike. We need to try to accommodate him as well.

The major harm that mountain biking does it that it greatly extends the human footprint (distance that one can travel) in wildlife habitat. E-bikes multiply that footprint even more. Neither should be allowed on any unpaved trail. Wildlife, if they are to survive, MUST receive top priority! What were you thinking??? Mountain biking and trail-building destroy wildlife habitat! Mountain biking is environmentally, socially, and medically destructive! There is no good reason to allow bicycles on any unpaved trail! Bicycles should not be allowed in any natural area. They are inanimate objects and have no rights. There is also no right to mountain bike. That was settled in federal court in 1996: Web Link . It's dishonest of mountain bikers to say that they don't have access to trails closed to bikes. They have EXACTLY the same access as everyone else -- ON FOOT! Why isn't that good enough for mountain bikers? They are all capable of walking.... A favorite myth of mountain bikers is that mountain biking is no more harmful to wildlife, people, and the environment than hiking, and that science supports that view. Of course, it's not true. To settle the matter once and for all, I read all of the research they cited, and wrote a review of the research on mountain biking impacts (see Web Link ). I found that of the seven studies they cited, (1) all were written by mountain bikers, and (2) in every case, the authors misinterpreted their own data, in order to come to the conclusion that they favored. They also studiously avoided mentioning another scientific study (Wisdom et al) which did not favor mountain biking, and came to the opposite conclusions. Mountain bikers also love to build new trails - legally or illegally. Of course, trail-building destroys wildlife habitat - not just in the trail bed, but in a wide swath to both sides of the trail! E.g. grizzlies can hear a human from one mile away, and smell us from 5 miles away. ...

I am a regular mountain biker. E-bikes allow cyclists to travel farther and ride longer, and thus allowing e-bikes will certainly increase the amount of usage on Mid-Pen trails. This weekend a gentleman outside the local bike shop told me how much he was enjoying his new e-bike on the trails. I asked him if he ever rode a traditional mountain bike. He gestured at his slightly thick midsection and said "Yes, I tried but they don't work for my body type." After a pleasant conversation, I said goodbye and to my surprise he proceeded to light up a cigarette! I thought it was hilarious. [Portion removed.]

Agree that the study should cover the fact that ebikes enable an extended range, and therefore have the potential to have more impact per user than a standard bicycle. Another aspect to consider: the more people that enjoy these areas, the more likely they are to protect them. We need people in the outdoors so they develop a desire to protect them.

Class 2 ebikes allow some people with disabilities to enjoy biking when they otherwise couldnt. And for me its usually riding with non ebikers. A comparison with motor cycles is a bit much....Class 2 ebikes make much less noise, are typically less bulky/heavy, have much lower top speeds and are generally indistinguishable from class 1 ebikes (which I believe can actually go faster because they combine pedaling with the power from the motor). There are of course legitimate issues to balance here but I hope the situation of less abled people is taken into account.

I commute from Mountain View to Newark and back. In 2019 I became increasingly dissatisfied with my single occupant vehicle commute, but the Newark industrial area I work in is not well served by public transit and I had limited options for car-pooling. Even without hills, the 17 mile ride was a bit more time than I could dedicate to a daily commute on my regular bike, particularly with the typical afternoon headwinds you fight traveling westbound on Marshland Road in Don Edwards and on the Dumbarton Bridge. The eBike is a nearly perfect compromise between the convenience and speed of my car and the environmental, health and fun advantages of riding a regular bike. Since 2019 two big projects have vastly improved the quality of the ride--the Ravenswood extension to the bay trail and the new Adobe Creek pedestrian bridge over 101. With these two improvements, a huge portion of my ride from East Meadow and Fabian to Marshland and Thornton is on trails and lightly used roads. On any bike, electric or otherwise, my biggest concern is always the threat posed by inattentive drivers. So having access to the Ravenswood trail (and on the Palo Alto Baylands Train) on my eBike makes this a much more attractive option, making myself and hopefully others choose it over driving more often than not. Since June 1st 2022 I have replaced over 400 miles of car-trips with bike travel. I certainly hope the board considers the value of access to the Ravenswood trail as a commute route and preserves the ability of eBikes to share this trail with hikers, strollers, bikes and dogs for many years to come.

I strongly support e-bikes being allowed on the Ravenswood Preserve. This is a major commute route that passes through East Palo Alto, and e-bikes are a key way to take cars off the street. E-Bikes enable many commuters to extend the distances which they can travel and on the recent "Bike Anywhere Day" I met many people on ebikes who were crossing the Dumbarton Bridge to Fremont from Mountain View - this is hard, if not impossible for most people without e-bikes. I met others who were biking to Google or Facebook and using the Ravenswood Preserve bike path as a route. E-Bikes should be permitted as long as they obey the same speed limits and other safety requirements as other bicycles. Ravenswood is slightly different from other preserves, but in general I think ebikes should be allowed anywhere mountain bikes are allowed - they enable many people to enjoy biking who otherwise would not be biking.

Maize - It's my understanding that if you have a disability, the bans are waived and you can ride your ebike anywhere you can ride a regular bike in MROSD. Sherry - Thanks for this thorough and thoughtful examination. I consider this an incredibly important topic. My personal feeling is that allowing ebikes on trails in Windy Hill, Fremont Older, Russian Ridge, El Corte Madera, etc.. would be a terrible err in judgment. I'm horrified it's even being considered.

I am a cyclist who has mountain-biked in the past but now need the help of a pedal-assisted e-bike. It would be a special treat to access the wonderful trails of the MROSD even as I get older.

I've been mt.biking the peninsula trails for over 30 years. I've considered an e-bike as a means to ride longer and reach trails points that I use to be able to reach when I was in my twenties. A class 2 e-bike doesn't make sense, since they're pretty much light weight motorcycles. A class 1, makes sense from the perspective of supporting the spirit of the ride, especially when going up steep grades. :) But you'd want to limit the amount of torque/power they produce, to be within the real of say, a very strong rider. Beyond that, you're approaching class 2 bikes with pedals.

Did anyone who attended the meeting last night give a summary for those of us who couldn't join the Zoom live? Did they come to a decision, or what it just a discussion?

The meeting is tonight at 5pm (see here). If you want to submit a comment, see here. This meeting is meant to make decisions, not just engage in discussion.

Thanks Sherry! Clearly I'm not attentive to calendar dates. I have submitted my comments in favor of commuter access to the Ravenswood Preserve.

I support all bicycle types on all paths. Increased mobility and enjoyment of outdoors for all. If there are areas of congestion, post speed limit signs for all bicycles.

As a person who has ridden a mountain bike a few times a week in the MidPen preserves for the last 12 years, I worry about e-bikes on the narrow trails with a lot of bends and little visibility. The posted speed limit in the preserves is 15, but is only achievable downhill on a mountain bike without an electric motor. Going uphill using muscle power, your speed is around 5 mph, so a crash between two bikers has a 20 mph speed differential. But e-bikes can go uphill much faster. The energy of a crash (and subsequent damage potential) increases by the square of the speed, so if both bikes are going 15 with a speed differential of 30, the severity of the crash is more than double. The likelihood of a crash is also increased because of less time to react when rounding a curve at higher speeds. In addition, Sherry makes great points about the increased distances capable on e-bikes because the rider doesn't get as tired. Bikes do squish and kill small animals on the trails, and with e-bikes that would increase due to more bikes going farther and faster. To quote the MidPen website, "Preserves are not parks." And here's another quote: "Midpen has a braided mission to acquire and preserve a regional greenbelt of open space land in perpetuity, to protect and restore the natural environment, and to provide opportunities for ecologically sensitive public enjoyment and education." The bike commute route through Ravenswood makes sense to me, but e-bikes on twisty single track (usually ferried to the preserves on the back of a car), don't.

The Midpen board voted to: (a) Allow e-bikes on all paved/improved trails in Ravenswood that allow bikes today. This vote was 6-0. (b) Allow e-bikes on all paved/improved trails in Rancho San Antonio that allow bikes today. This vote was 6-0. (c) Not allow further expansion of e-bikes. This vote was 4-2. All agreed that Ravenswood is a terrific commute route for e-bikes and want to preserve it. All agreed that since the Rancho setup has a parallel path to the e-bike trail for hikers and strollers, and the e-bike path is nearly all paved, and it's already a busy wide trail between parking lot and farm, e-bikes there will have low impact on wildlife/environment. The discussion around (c) was more nuanced. For those who voted with the majority, there was a lot of emphasis on the mission of Midpen and the role of a preserve vs a park. There was also the sense that we don't know much about e-bike impact, plus they are evolving so rapidly that doing another pilot so quickly won't tell us much. Concern about the extended e-bike range, with impacts on mountain lions in relatively quiet areas of the preserves, was raised years ago. There was also some concern that much of the public was unaware of this decision being made, so the input was not representative. Commissioner Kishimoto dissented, primarily because she sees little difference between bikes and e-bikes, saying the big decision was already made, allowing bikes into the preserves. In addition, she saw value in a pilot, for example one that might allow e-bikes on a main connector such as the Ridge Trail. Commissioner Siemens also dissented as he sees little difference between Class 1 e-bikes and mountain bikes and leans more heavily to the priority of improving access for people. FWIW, on the awareness side, I have to agree that this was not well communicated. I knew nothing about this, and would have known nothing had I not subscribed to Midpen board meeting emails (and read them). I go to these preserves a lot and subscribe to a few Midpen email lists, yet I knew nothing. Midpen needs to do better, especially on consequential decisions like this.

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