Bicycle and Pedestrian Trails to Connect Mountains to the Sea
The Planning Commission will be presented with plans to improve and develop Irvine’s bicycle and pedestrian trail system at the May 20, 2021 meeting. Here is the agenda. The goal is to promote walking and bicycling by providing pedestrian and bicycle connectivity to both local and regional bicycle and pedestrian trail systems.
Both presentations state a need for “way finding signage” improvement. Irvine has a number of hotels and is working to promote tourism along with promoting community usage of bicycle and pedestrian trails.
Click to see Irvine’s Bikeways Map
Suggested bicycle and pedestrian trail enhancements to promote trail usage:
- Providing bicycle rental stations for those that do not have bicycles.
- Provide Apple and Google interactive imaging system program similar to the one for the Great Park that was presented during the April 27,2021 Great Park Board Meeting. See Finding Your Way Around The Great Park Gets Easier – Irvine Watchdog
(A video presentation on Geographic Imaging System was presented to the Great Park Board can be viewed starting at the 10 min mark.)
Agenda Item 4 is the Strategic Active Transportation Plan that consists of a variety of infrastructure and programs to promote walking and bicycling.
Plan Goals include:
- Enhancement of existing infrastructure and programs.
- Development of future facilities
- Bicycle and Pedestrian Trail network improvements to close gaps and improve connection with the regional trail network.
- Provide “way finding” signage
- Improve overall safety of active transportation users
- Improve trail access to employment, schools, health care and recreation
Agenda Item 5 is the Irvine Business Complex (IBC) trail feasibility study and implementation plan. It analyzes the future development of 8 multiuse trails and linear park corridors in the IBC for the purpose of promoting recreational, environmental and transportation benefits in the IBC.
The implementation plan was developed with input from multiple community and stakeholder outreach events. The 8 trail corridors include 3 historic railroad corridors, 3 county owned flood control maintenance roads and 2 privately owned corridor segments. The first 2 proposed projects will be the Barranca Flood Control Channel access road and a non-operational railroad spur North of Main.
(Link to General Plan for IBC)
Irvine’s General Plan for the IBC describes plans for shade tree-lined sidewalks, benches and coordinated street furniture including trash receptacles. The General Plan further provides that the street planting program can be coordinated with future pedestrian and bicycle connectivity to every public park and the open space trail system that connects with the Santa An Mountains, Peters Canyon Wash, Jeffrey Open Space Trail (aka the “Mountains to the Sea” trail), the Upper Newport Bay Ecological Reserve and to the Pacific Ocean.
