Slow city

Editor: “Hopefully the preferred alternative will jump out at us
and be clear as a bell,” said Mayor Jim Wood. He was talking about
Memorial Bridge, quoted in the Santa Rosa Press Democrat.
Okay, here’s an alternative that jumped out at me.
First, make the bridge one lane, with traffic direction
controlled by signals at each end of the bridge. Route all but
local traffic onto the freeway. Enforce a 20 mph speed limit
throughout town.
Next, turn the lumber yard into a parking lot and, perhaps, a
freight terminal. The latter may not be needed: Vineyard Plaza can
be supplied by the freeway offramp at Mill Street; north
Healdsburg, by the Dry Creek Road ramp.
Finally, block through traffic on Main Street and Grove Street,
bypassing Healdsburg altogether with the freeway, ensuring city
streets are used for local traffic only. Turn Healdsburg into a
slow city with pedestrian streets, funding small electric jitneys
for the handicapped, allowing residents use of their own cars at a
safe speed, requiring tourists to use city lots at or near freeway
ramp sites.
Charles Shere
Healdsburg