Town advances draft Active Transportation Plan; staff to release fall draft for public review

Atherton staff presented the town’s draft Active Transportation Plan and asked the council and transportation committee for feedback to finalize a draft for public review this fall. The plan is intended to be the town’s primary policy guide for bicycle and pedestrian investments, to shape the capital improvement program and to support grant applications, staff said.

Robert, the town’s project presenter, summarized outreach carried out in late 2025 — pop‑ups, neighborhood meetings and an online survey — and said the plan focuses on improving connections near schools, addressing locations on the town’s high‑injury network, and responding to recent zoning and state law changes affecting multi‑family development. He told the committee the town’s first plan was adopted in 2014 and that best practice is to update such plans every five years.

Council members discussed both network and policy recommendations and the timeline for the draft. Robert said the town executed the consultant contract in January 2025 and that staff hopes to release the draft this fall for public comment and then return to the council for adoption. "We're looking for feedback so that we can finalize the draft document for public review," Robert said during the presentation.

Council and members of the public raised recurring topics for the draft: where to prioritize walkways (walkways on one side versus sidewalks on both sides), how to treat key intersections (HAWK signals, rapid flashing beacons or full signals), drainage and maintenance concerns, and how the plan should reflect potential developer responsibilities for frontage improvements under the town’s multi‑family zoning and SB 79 considerations.

The council provided direction to staff to incorporate today’s feedback in the draft. For unresolved bicycle‑facility decisions and some intersection tradeoffs, the council agreed to continue those conversations at a July follow‑up meeting so staff can present additional study findings and design options.

The next procedural step staff outlined is to prepare the draft plan, release it for a public comment period, collect input and return to the council later this year with revisions and a recommendation for adoption.