Author: Richard Masoner

Santa Cruz transportation commission appoints new director

Richard MasonerSeptember 5, 2024Leave a Comment

This Santa Cruz Regional Transportation Commission is the agency responsible for deciding how transportation funds are spent in Santa Cruz County, and is governed by a board composed of representatives from each of Santa Cruz County’s five districts, and each of its four incorporated cities. I’ve worked with Sarah Christensen for several years. She’s been the de facto voice and face of the SCCRTC for several years now. She knows how to navigate her way around in both local and state politics, and handles herself deftly when a certain RTC board member (*koff*ManuKoenig*koff*) try to trip her up. She really knows her stuff and I think the RTC board has made the correct choice. I’ll paste the news release from the RTC word for word now:

The Santa Cruz County Regional Transportation Commission (RTC) is pleased to announce that, after an extensive search, RTC Senior Transportation Engineer Sarah Christensen has been hired as the agency’s new Executive Director.

Christensen has over 19 years of experience in organizational leadership, planning, and implementation of major capital projects along the Central Coast and in the Bay Area. As the RTC’s Senior Transportation Engineer since 2017, she has overseen engineering and capital project delivery for the agency. Her accomplishments with the RTC include managing the $350 million Highway 1 Auxiliary Lanes & Bus-on-Shoulder Program; leading the implementation of the first permanent bus-on-shoulder facility in the state of California; developing and delivering the equity-focused Watsonville to Santa Cruz Multimodal Corridor (WSCMC) Program of innovative and sustainable transportation projects along major transportation routes through Santa Cruz County; developing the funding strategy along with leading the grant application process to successfully secure $107.2 million of Senate Bill 1 funds and $30 million of Federal Mega funds for the WSCMC program; and managing the RTC’s Rail Program including development of Zero Emission Passenger Rail, storm damage repairs, and infrastructure preservation of the RTC-owned 32-mile Santa Cruz Branch Rail Line.

“I am excited to announce that Sarah Christensen will be the next executive director of the RTC,” said RTC Chair Kristen Brown. “Sarah is a proven leader who will bring her nearly two decades of experience managing and delivering transformative transportation projects across the region to her new role. I look forward to working with her in this new capacity as she continues the great work she has already begun to develop and deliver equitable and sustainable transportation solutions for our county.”

Prior to her position at the RTC, Christensen was a transportation project manager in private consulting where her work included delivery of multimodal projects across the state including highway, interchange, bicycle/pedestrian overcrossing, complete streets, trail, Bus Rapid Transit, tolling, and express lanes projects. She specialized in delivering and developing funding strategies for multijurisdictional and complex projects, including the $500 million Silicon Valley Express Lanes Program for the Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority (VTA) along State Route 237, 85, and US 101.  

Christensen has a Bachelor of Science degree in Civil and Environmental Engineering from San Jose State University, a Master of Science degree in Transportation Management from the Mineta Transportation Institute, and is a licensed civil engineer. She will bring a wealth of experience in engineering, capital project delivery, project programming, construction management, and financing of multi-modal transportation projects to her new role leading the RTC.

“During my time with the RTC, I have enjoyed engaging with the community, fostering partnerships, and delivering results that will create a lasting positive impact on the quality of life for Santa Cruz County,” Christensen said. “In my new position as executive director, I look forward to continuing to provide high-quality transportation solutions for the community and leading the Commission into its next successful chapter.”

Christensen will enter into a three-year contract with the RTC and will report directly to the Board of Directors. She will start on Sept. 9.

Posted In politics | santa cruz
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Monterey Bay region Complete Streets policy request for comments

Richard MasonerFebruary 13, 2024Leave a Comment

The Association of Monterey Bay Area Governments (AMBAG) in California requests comments for their draft of a Complete Streets policy to guide transportation planning and spending in Santa Cruz, Monterey, and San Benito Counties.

AMBAG is the Metropolitan Planning Organization for the Monterey Bay Region, and is responsible for allocating certain Federal and State funds to local agencies in this region. In August 2013, AMBAG adopted its Monterey Bay Area Complete Streets Guidebook. This guidebook does not establish policy, but provides design guidance for local agencies regarding best practices for Complete Streets design. It was groundbreaking in its assertion that planners and engineers are not compelled to use the Caltrans Highway Design Manual and AASHTO Green Book for many local streets.

AMBAG’s Complete Streets Policy will build upon these previous efforts by promoting a transportation system that is designed to be multimodal to safely and comfortably accommodate users of all ages and abilities. The Draft Complete Streets Policy has been released for public comment. Comments are due by March 15, 2024.

For details, visit https://www.ambag.org/plans/complete-streets

Posted In planning | santa cruz
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UL: DIY box fan filters are probably safe

Richard MasonerJune 8, 20231 Comment on UL: DIY box fan filters are probably safe

You’ve seen the formula: 20 inch box fan ($30) + 20 inch furnace filter ($10) + duct tape ($5) = a quick, effective, DIY home air purifier for under $50.

How effective are they? I measured my homebrew filter (made with a MERV11 filter), and it dropped the indoor air quality AQI from 57 to single digits in a 10 x 10 room inside of an hour.

In 2020, we eventually exceeded AQI 400 from very high PM2.5 due to California wildfires raging nearby, but my indoor air quality was fine thanks to DIY filters, along with higher efficiency filters for my central air conditioning.

It’s always been in the back of my mind, however, that we’re using electrical appliances in ways they’re not tested for. Fans are tested for safety with unobstructed air flows. I’m a software engineer but my entire career has been working with hardware design teams. I’ve seen firsthand what happens when fans are operated in ways outside of their intended design: the motor windings heat the fan’s external casing and things melt and catch on fire.

I’m thrilled to learn that Underwriters Laboratories, which tests appliances for safety, thought of this too. With help from the US Environmental Protection Agency, Dr. Aika Davis and Dr. Marilyn Black tested box fans with MERV13 filters in various conditions and learned that modified box fans don’t catch on fire.

For the test, UL attached probes to measure the temperature for the motor housing, motor windings, power cord at the motor, fan guard, output air, switch, and ambient air. They also measured voltage, amperage, wattage, and airflow.

In their “Highlights of findings,” the researchers dryly note “exterior surfaces that can come into direct contact with people remained below the first-degree burn potential” and “fire ignition was not achieved with any of the filter/fan test scenarios.”

The ambient air temperature during the test was a cool 20°C. UL’s testing notes the motor windings peaked at 92°C in the worst case scenario (two heavily obstructed filters), which is just short of UL’s safety limit of 105°C, so keep this in mind if you’re in a hot room, and don’t put your DIY filter near easily ignitable items.

You can read the full report as a PDF here. The nerd in me appreciates reading about the testing methodology. This might make a decent middle school science fair project. I’m posting this to a blog about bicycles because we spend a lot of time outdoors and need to think about our lung health. Personally, I’m among the high percentage of endurance athletes with ashtma and I strongly prefer clean air over polluted air.

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What do you wear for this cool weather riding?

Richard MasonerMay 31, 20235 Comments on What do you wear for this cool weather riding?

In my part of California, we have at least another couple of weeks of unseasonably cool weather. After several years of heat waves and drought in the Golden State, I forgot how to kit up for riding when it’s 55 degrees Fahrenheit.

My upper body is fine — a windproof vest or jacket feels about perfect, and a warm core helps to keep my extremities warm. My legs — which are the engines that power my ride — never get warm.My summerweight shorts aren’t quite enough, but my heavy fleece-lined winter cycling tights are far too warm.

Should I look for my leg warmers that I haven’t seen in five years? What about a lighter weight pair of tights or three-quarter tights?

I think I like the idea of fleece-lined bib shorts like these thermal cargo bib shorts from Ornot in San Francisco. Who else has shorts like this?

How about you? What do you wear when it’s cool with maybe a bit of fog or mist?

Postscript: I asked this question on Twitter and received good responses. Thank you! Let me know what you think.

Posted In apparel | Tips
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Public comments open for Santa Cruz Rail Trail Segment 12 Draft EIR

Richard MasonerMay 30, 2023Leave a Comment

The Santa Cruz County Regional Transportation Commission (RTC) will hold a public hearing to solicit community input on the Draft Environmental Impact Report/Environmental Assessment (DEIR/EA) for the proposed Coastal Rail Trail Segment 12 Project and Highway 1 Auxiliary Lane/Bus-on-Shoulder project.

The proposed project includes construction of northbound and southbound auxiliary lanes between the State Park Drive and Freedom Boulevard interchanges on Highway 1, extends the bus-on-shoulder facility by 2.5 miles, widens the Highway 1 bridge over Aptos Creek and Spreckles Drive, reconstructs the north Aptos and south Aptos railroad underpasses, and constructs drainage facilities, retaining walls, and sound walls. The project also includes the construction of an approximate 1.25-mile-long segment of the Coastal Rail Trail (Segment 12) along the Santa Cruz Branch Rail Line between State Park Drive and Rio del Mar Boulevard.

The DEIR/EA identifies the project’s potential impacts and potential avoidance, minimization, and mitigation measures. A public hearing will be held to provide the public with the opportunity to learn more about the project’s environmental process and submit comments for consideration in the Final EIR/EA.

View the DEIR/EA documents online at the SCCRTC project website; at the RTC office at 1101 Pacific Ave., Ste. 250, Santa Cruz (located upstairs from my favorite ice cream shop in Santa Cruz); and at the Capitola, Live Oak, and Watsonville public libraries.

The hearing takes place during the Santa Cruz County board meeting at 9:30 AM, Thursday June 1, 2023, at the County Board of Supervisors Chambers, 701 Ocean St., Rm 525, Santa Cruz, CA. During this meeting, the RTC commission will also receive information about a proposed GO Santa Cruz County Bicycle Incentives program that was discussed during the Santa Cruz bike committee meeting earlier this month.

If you cannot make the hearing, written comments may also be submitted by mail to Lara Bertaina, Department of Transportation, 50 Higuera Street, San Luis Obispo, CA, or by email to lara.bertaina@dot.ca.gov. All comments must be received by 5 p.m. on June 2, 2023.

Posted In santa cruz
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Chargel: A different kind of sports beverage

Richard MasonerMay 8, 2023Leave a Comment

I routinely receive media invites to try various sports recovery supplements and almost deleted an invite to try “Chargel Gel Drink” when I noticed an interesting detail.

This recovery drink comes from a Japanese candy company? Of course I have to try it!

Morinaga is famous for its HI-CHEW fruit-flavored chewy candies. I love Hi-Chew candy, and the PR firm telling me about Chargel’s introduction to the US market completely buried this lede.

As I suspected, Chargel (flavored with real fruit juice) tastes amazingly like a less sweet version of Hi-Chew candy with an interesting jelly texture that I’m told has propelled this drink ahead of the popular Pocari Sweat electrolyte drink in the Japanese sports drink market. 18 grams of sugar in each 180-gram pouch is pretty high when compared with other sports drinks, but Morinaga’s fruit-flavored blend of carbohydrates and B vitamins tastes pretty delicious after a hard effort in warm weather.

If you’re familiar with east Asian foods, Chargel’s jelly texture may remind you of the soft, slippery jellies and noodles made from the konjac yam, or the slurpable soft jellies available at some boba tea shops. The jelly is almost identical to Jin Jin Jelly Straws, if you know this popular snack. This texture contributes to a satisfying feeling of satiety without making me feel overfully full while I’m out and about, and it goes down very easily during and after a hard ride.

Chargel comes in sippy pouches and tastes best chilled. So far in the San Francisco Bay Area, I only find Chargel at Japanese markets such as Mitsuwa and Nijiwa. Find Chargel in your area using Chargel’s online store locator, or buy directly from Chargel.com.

Disclosure: I received a free sample of this product with no expectation of consideration. It really is pretty delicious.

Posted In food
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