First – I’m delighted that the MTC et al are looking seriously at building a bike path for the Western Span of the Emperor Norton Bridge.  I do hope this can be completed in my lifetime, even if it’s pricey.  I’m very much looking forward to riding the eastern side from YBI to Oakland.

But…

WHAT is up with the nutty design options, especially the one with the path cantilevered over the roadway?  I know this was probably thrown in for yuks, but come on guys, this makes no sense at all – not only is it butt-ugly and wildly overengineered, it’s also a suicide and debris-throwing magnet (unless it’s fully enclosed in even uglier chain-link fence).  

All we need is a simple design, on one side of the roadway (I like the city side because of the views, but the bay side is probably less costly).

Also – for the touchdown in SF – PLEASE NO ELEVATORS.  Have the designers ever been to San Francisco?  Have they ever tried to use a BART elevator? They would do just as well to skip right to the stage where they are urinals and dumpsters, because that’s what they’ll be used for.  (Unless there is funding for 24-hour security … which we know there will not be.)  

I like the spiral ramps.  We could get a cool design with expanded Bay Lights.