Elections are right around the corner. Do you know your City Council candidates? Five candidates are running for two open seats. Those candidates and their websites are:
- Thushan Amarasiriwardena: https://www.thushanforalameda.com/
- Greg Boller: https://www.gregboller.com/
- Michele Pryor: https://www.michelepryor.com/
- Trish Herrera Spencer: https://www.trish4u.com/
- Stephen Slauson: https://ballotpedia.org/Stephen_Slauson
As in years past, we invited candidates to participate in a questionnaire that will help our membership and the broader community understand their positions on things we care about. We could not reach Stephen Slauson, but invited all the other candidates to respond. Only Thushan Amarasiriwardena and Greg Boller responded by the deadline, and we’re greatly appreciative — we know how busy everyone is! Our questions and their responses are below. Remember, we also have our City Council Voting Record, here, so you can see how incumbents have voted on key items. This election season, there’s one incumbent running: Trish Herrera Spencer. Be sure to check that out if you want to get a sense of her positions.
#1. Street Reconfigurations: The United States is exceptional among industrialized countries when it comes to traffic-related fatalities. The way our streets have been designed, prioritizing car speeds, throughput, and convenience over safety, is widely recognized as a contributing factor. Alameda is among many cities reconfiguring streets to be safer, through proven countermeasures like roundabouts and road diets. Some people are resistant to these changes, though, preferring that we keep trying to solve traffic safety primarily through enforcement. Where do you stand? Do you support street reconfigurations like the one planned for Lincoln? Do you support our City’s Vision Zero initiative and the USDOT’s Safe Systems approach?
Thushan Amarasiriwardena
We must re-engineer our streets using modern best practices that prioritize safety, reduce speeds, and provide multimodal use of this shared resource. I strongly support our goals of Vision Zero and Safe Routes to Schools.
As a parent, I’m not yet comfortable with my young kids walking to school on their own. Street safety is vital for them, their friends, and all of us in Alameda. Street redesign is a top priority in my platform, as you can see on thushanforalameda.com.
Street safety is often broken down into the three E’s: Education, Enforcement, and Engineering. It starts with personal responsibility, moves to enforcement, and ends with road design that naturally promotes safety. We know that the first two do little by themselves. Alamedans are smart and know better than to speed, yet we’ve all seen speeds noticeably increasing on the Island. With the drop in traffic citations, people see no consequences for speeding, so they continue to do so. This shows that enforcement only works when it’s actually happening. Our wide, straight streets—many designed for trains, like Lincoln Avenue—invite fast driving.
The solution is road engineering. Take Encinal Avenue, where we recently reduced four travel lanes to two, added a turning lane, and created space for bike lanes. The reduced lane width intentionally constricts drivers’ comfort level, and clear markings at crossings make intersections more visible. We’re planning to make similar improvements on Central Avenue in the West End, adding roundabouts, road diets, and bike lanes. These changes will result in slower speeds and safer environments for all of us—including drivers. Research shows that converting intersections into roundabouts from traffic signals or stop signs reduces injury crashes by 72% and all crashes by 35%.
I fully support the plan for Lincoln Avenue and will be a strong advocate to see it through if elected to City Council. I live just a block from Lincoln and, as the President of the Alameda Free Library—which sits on that avenue—I know the impact of this street well. Designed for large trains that once ran down the middle, Lincoln is a highway-scale road that needs to be reimagined for today. The proposed changes—roundabouts, road diets, bike lanes, median and bioswale plantings, and crosswalk bump-outs—positively reimagine the street. I believe our street redesigns should move beyond temporary fixes like paint and plastic bollards. We need to make physical changes to the streetscape to ensure lasting safety improvements.
This is a generational redesign, and there are two additional things I would have pushed for earlier in the process: undergrounding the utilities to upgrade infrastructure and beautify the street, and bringing transit back to Lincoln. Historically, we had train stops along this street, with stations still marked at places like Willow and Grand. Bringing Rapid Bus Transit (by shifting the O, 51, and 19 lines to Lincoln) would speed up transit times, encourage more public transit use, and revitalize Lincoln’s commercial districts. Imagine grabbing a morning coffee at Island Savoy before hopping on the O bus, or enjoying an after-work drink at Forbidden Island—all along a re-envisioned Lincoln, rather than on Santa Clara, which has fewer retail options. These redesigns offer a chance to reimagine Alameda in ways that are safer and more vibrant for everyone.
Greg Boller
I support street reconfigurations, as well as Alameda’s Vision Zero initiative, and the USDOT’s Safe Systems approach. These measures prioritize safety over speed, which is critical in reducing traffic-related fatalities and injuries. Proven designs like roundabouts and road diets are essential tools in making our streets safer for everyone, especially pedestrians and cyclists.
I also understand that some people find these changes confusing or difficult to navigate. That’s why I believe we need to invest in educating the community about how these street configurations work and how they contribute to overall safety. By providing clear information and ongoing support, we can ensure that everyone feels confident and comfortable with these necessary changes while achieving our shared goal of safer, more bikeable streets.
#2. Delivering on Plans: Our City prides itself as being an innovative leader in climate action. With transportation accounting for about 70% of our greenhouse gas emissions, reducing the amount we drive is a big part of our climate emergency strategy. We’ve adopted resolutions and worked hard to create plans, projects, and timelines that address this, but until they’re executed, they’re just plans. We’re already seeing important programs focused on mode shift, specifically our Neighborhood Greenways program, falter. Does this concern you? If so, what would you do to better ensure that adopted plans are executed as envisioned?
Thushan Amarasiriwardena
This concerns me greatly. I firmly believe that while plans are essential, the real challenge lies in execution. The transition from Slow Streets to Neighborhood Greenways is a perfect example. During the pandemic, we took an iterative, affordable approach by using paint and plastic barriers instead of pavement to redesign streets. Now, we need to use what we learned and the momentum we built to make these changes permanent.
For my family, Slow Streets have been a success. My daughters (4 and 6) learned to ride their bikes on Pacific Avenue, just two blocks from our house. I feel safe cycling with them there. I recently saw a group of teens singing together and playing games in the street – isn’t that exactly the kind of free-range kid community that people often say that Alameda was? On Santa Clara Avenue Slow Street, five minutes after the ferry arrives, it turns into a “bike highway” with commuters. These streets are doing exactly what they were designed to do: slow down traffic, create safer environments, and encourage more active, car-free transportation.
Survey data backs this up—50% of respondents want Pacific Avenue to remain a Slow Street, while only 33% don’t. More telling, nearly 75% of respondents are concerned that if Slow Streets are removed, speeding, unsafe crossings, and increased traffic will return.
As someone who builds software products, I know the path to success is always through iteration: identify the problem, put out a solution, gather feedback, improve, and repeat. My critique is that we’ve been stuck in the iteration phase for too long. We should have already tested short sections with more permanent changes—traffic circles, plantings, street art, and stop signs—to see what works best. From reading Bike Walk Alameda’s advocacy and transportation commissioner Drew Dara-Abrams’ blog, The Morning Bun, I understand that staffing is tight.
If I’m elected to City Council, I will push to ensure that our great ideas are properly funded and staffed, even if that means focusing on fewer projects. I believe this is the right approach. Successfully transitioning a Slow Street into a Neighborhood Greenway would viscerally prove the hypothesis and build momentum for future projects.
Greg Boller
Yes, it concerns me that important programs like the Neighborhood Greenways are faltering despite being part of our climate emergency strategy. Plans alone are not enough; they must be backed by dedicated funding to ensure execution. I would advocate for ensuring that money is earmarked specifically for these programs as part of the city’s budget process. Without clear financial commitments, even the best-intentioned plans can fail to materialize.
To better ensure adopted plans are executed as envisioned, I would push for greater accountability and transparency in our budgeting process, making sure that transportation and climate action programs have the financial backing needed from the start. Additionally, I would work to establish clear timelines and benchmarks for implementation, with regular public updates to track progress. This will ensure that the city remains focused on its climate goals and delivers on its promises to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
#3. The School Problem: In one generation, the number of kids walking and biking to school has dropped from 71% to 18%. With so many parents driving their kids to school, safety and health hazards around pickup and dropoff zones have increased, and morning traffic worsened, now constituting about 20% of all morning traffic. Meanwhile, kids’ physical and mental health are adversely affected by the reduced activity, reduced independence, and fewer friendships that result from being driven rather than getting to school by bike or foot. Can you share your thoughts on this issue, and what you would do to turn it around?
Thushan Amarasiriwardena
Our town has neighborhood schools, and it’s beautifully walkable, bikeable, and flat! Ideally, we should be able to model a return to kids walking and biking to school. However, over the past generation, we’ve seen significant changes. More families now have dual working parents who often commute farther, and vehicles have become significantly larger, increasing the risk of injury. We need to acknowledge these changes while working towards a solution.
For families that can, we need to make it easier and more comfortable for both parents and kids to walk or bike to school. The Alameda County Safe Routes to Schools program addresses this directly, examining the key routes that students take and proposing safety improvements. I believe these projects should be at the top of the city’s priority list for transit infrastructure.
This issue is critical for another reason: much of our traffic occurs during peak commute hours. Reducing the number of cars on the road during school drop-off and pick-up times will ease congestion for everyone trying to get to work.
Greg Boller
This is a concerning trend, and while I can’t make parents choose to have their kids walk or bike to school, I believe that creating safer streets can help solve this issue organically. Many parents don’t allow their children to walk or bike because they don’t feel it’s safe. By improving street configurations around schools—through measures like protected bike lanes, traffic-calming devices, and enhanced crosswalks—we can make the routes to school more inviting and secure for children and their families.
If parents see that the streets are safer, more may feel comfortable encouraging their kids to walk or bike to school, which will reduce traffic congestion, improve air quality, and have a positive impact on children’s physical and mental health. I would work with the city to prioritize these kinds of safety improvements around school zones to help make walking and biking more viable options for our students.
#4. Reducing Parking Violations in Bike Lanes: Drivers frequently park illegally in bike lanes, most famously in the new bike lanes along Park and Webster. This creates a hazardous environment for biking, among other problems. Our Active Transportation Plan calls for protected bike lanes on Webster and either Park or Oak, which should keep drivers out of these lanes. Do you support protected bike lanes in our business districts? And what do you propose to minimize illegal parking in the interim?
Thushan Amarasiriwardena
Seeing how often bike lanes are blocked on Park and Webster Streets is incredibly frustrating. It happens so frequently that these lanes are often unusable. From what I’ve observed, many of these violations seem to be caused by delivery and pickup drivers double parking. We need to start with enforcement and set a clear tone that regulations must be followed. This appears to be a staffing issue, so I’d like to explore either time-shifting existing parking enforcement or increasing staffing during critical hours—especially at night and on weekends when these violations are most common. Additionally, we may need to shift long-term parking to short-term during those peak times.
This is another case where execution matters. Policies and painted lines are ineffective if they aren’t enforced. We also need to consider whether we’re trying to fit too much onto streets like Park—between travel lanes, bus stops, bike lanes, parking, and parklets, the result is often confusing and visually cluttered. Putting a protected bike lane on Oak Street makes a lot of sense to me. It simplifies things on Park while also serving as a safer route to schools, addressing the issue raised in the previous question.
Greg Boller
Much like the issue with school traffic, safer street configurations, including protected bike lanes, are key to addressing this problem over time. These measures are part of the redundant and proactive safety strategies promoted by the USDOT’s Safe Systems Approach, and I support implementing protected bike lanes in our business districts wherever possible to create safer environments for cyclists.
In the interim, we must enforce existing laws. Illegally parked cars in bike lanes should be ticketed and, if necessary, towed to ensure the safety of all road users. Additionally, we can increase public awareness about the dangers and consequences of parking in bike lanes through signage and community outreach. These combined efforts will help reduce illegal parking while we work toward more permanent street safety solutions.
#5. Vision: Looking into your crystal ball, what does Alameda’s mobility landscape look like in ten years, assuming you are on City Council for a good chunk of that time? How do you see you and your family getting around Alameda and to neighboring cities?
Thushan Amarasiriwardena
10 Years
- Vision Zero is attained – with zero traffic deaths for years (it’s possible!)
- A connected network of bike lanes (including significantly more protected ones)
- Neighborhood Greenways are fully implemented and more running North to South are added
- Safe Routes to Schools implemented and iterated
- Roundabouts are implemented and successful, with more added across the Island beyond the ones already planned on Lincoln / Central / Tilden
- More Road Diets where deemed necessary
- Alameda ↔ Oakland pedestrian transit options are permanent (bike bridge, or water shuttle, including from other parts of Alameda to places like Brooklyn Basin)
- Transit lines are shifted to core streets with retail (Lincoln, Encinal/Central, Otis), lighting up commercial districts while increasing transit frequency.
- Cross Alameda Transit line added to connect The Point / Seaplane Lagoon with Webster and Park without transfers
- Bike Share Program added to the Island (open to a distributed or fixed one)
- E-bikes + AMP Rebates dramatically increase the number of one- or no-car households on the Island
- Public On Street Electric Car Charging – Enabling renters to switch to electric cars, even if their apartments don’t chargers
- New BART and High Speed Rail Tube runs through Alameda with a station on Webster St.
- San Francisco Bay Ferry service – Increased service, including more destinations (South Bay) through an all electric fleet
Greg Boller
In ten years, I envision Alameda as a more walkable and bikeable city where residents rely less on car ownership and more on public transportation, biking, and walking. My goal on City Council would be to create a mobility landscape that encourages sustainable, active transportation options. This means expanding safe, connected bike lanes, improving public transit accessibility, and reducing the need for multiple car ownership.
To get there, we need to take actionable steps today, promoting infrastructure that makes walking, biking, and public transit the most convenient and appealing options for everyone. For my family and me, I see us getting around Alameda primarily on foot or by bike wherever possible, with reliable public transit options to connect us to neighboring cities. This vision requires bold, proactive planning, and it’s something I am committed to working on as a City Council member.