M-A: Reducing on-street parking

The M-A students will face a greater and greater squeeze on their parking when they return to school in the Fall. Parking along Oak Grove is being removed to accommodate a bike lane pilot, and neighbors on surrounding streets on that side of the high school are organizing to restrict parking even further. In addition, neighbors in Menlo Oaks are implementing further parking restrictions in the morning and afternoon (much like on Coleman).

M-A and the City of Menlo Park are trying to engage with SRI to discuss the empty parking lot on Middlefield as a possible additional parking area for M-A students (or maybe faculty). While we don’t know where these conversations currently are, we’ve heard the idea of them brought up many times. Parents for Safe Routes is unsure if mitigating the parking loss with new parking is the right thing to do. If students can no longer have the convenience of parking close to school, they will be forced to consider other modes of transportation (biking, walking, busing and carpooling). We need to consider how to make our streets safe for kids so they (and their families) can make good transportation choices, and in return, make our lives less burdened by their vehicular traffic.