Comment online on draft plan for traffic changes to reduce El Cerrito fatalities, other crashes
The draft of a plan to reduce crashes, particularly those causing fatal injuries, in El Cerrito is available online for public review and comment through Aug. 21, 2026.
The Local Road Safety Plan aims to identify the highest risk areas; collaborate with the community and local, state, and federal partners; identify ways of making the streets safer; and plan implementation.
An Open House to provide information and collect feedback is set for 6 to 8 pm Aug. 13 at City Hall. The plan is scheduled to go to the City Council Sept. 15.
According to the draft report, between 2018 and 2022, there were 702 reported crashes in El Cerrito, including one that resulted in a fatality and eight others that resulted in “serious, life-altering injuries.” There have been three more fatalities in the past three years, according to the report.
“We now view even one fatality or serious injury in El Cerrito as preventable and therefore unacceptable,” the draft states.
A Local Road Safety Plan is needed to apply for a federal grant program aimed at reducing fatalities and serious injuries on public roads, according to the document.
Possible changes mentioned in the plan include
- Use quick-build, economical approaches and exemption to the city’s parking removal appeal process;
- Enforce a 25-mile per hour maximum speed citywide;
-Add speed humps and the wider, flatter speed tables;
-Expand bike lanes by removing parking;
-Add mid-block crosswalks, and flashing beacons at crosswalks;
-Encouage class 1, 2, and 3 e-bikes and other legal mobility devices on all bikeways, while addressing reckless riding; and,
-Bus-only lanes on San Pablo Avenue
In describing transportation in El Cerrito, the report says 45 percent of residents drive to work alone, 18 percent use public transit, 7 percent carpool, 3 percent walk, 2 percent bike, 1 percent use other means such as taxi and motorcycle, and 24 percent work from home. The 52 percent combined driving alone and carpooling compares to a statewide average of 78 percent.
“Except for the Ohlone Greenway, current bicycling activity in El Cerrito is generally low,” the draft says, “but will likely grow in the future as a result of City policies which promote compact development near transit and less reliance on driving. Prioritizing bikeway infrastructure upgrades where bicycling is expected to increase the most during the LRSP’s ten-year plan horizon is an important proactive safety strategy.”
The draft plan, which allows comments to be posted directly to the document