CC 06-03-2025 Item No. 8 Operating and CIP Budget for 2025-26_Written Communications (updated 6-3-25)CC 06-03-2025
Item No. 8
Consideration of
recommended
Operating and CIP
budget for 2025-26
Written Communications
From:S B
To:City Council; City Clerk; Chad Mosley; David Stillman; Tina Kapoor
Subject:Re: Call for a Modern, Technology-Focused Approach to Road Safety in Cupertino
Date:Tuesday, June 3, 2025 3:47:08 PM
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To the city Clerk and Council Please also include the following in the upcoming City council
meeting
To the Mayor and City Council,
I want to add the following additional comments on the topic.
I would like to bring to your attention a recent decision by the San Mateo City Council. On
February 3, 2025, the Council voted to remove bike lanes on Humboldt Street in response to
significant community feedback and concerns about the loss of parking. The removal restored
approximately 100 of the 200 parking spaces that had been eliminated by the bike lane
installation. This action reflects a broader recognition that transportation planning must strike
a thoughtful balance between safety, practicality, and the day-to-day needs of residents.
San Mateo is not alone in making this type of adjustment. Across the Bay Area and California,
cities such as Palo Alto and Los Angeles have revisited or revised bike infrastructure projects
when public concerns were not adequately addressed. These examples show that it's possible
to support safety and sustainability goals while still being responsive to local communities.
Many Cupertino residents are increasingly concerned that groups like Walk-Bike Cupertino,
while well-intentioned, may not fully reflect the views or daily realities of the broader
community — particularly when many of their advocates are not residents of Cupertino. While
outside perspectives can offer valuable insights, local decisions should be made with careful
attention to those who live, work, and raise families here.
I ask the Council to consider these broader examples and ensure that Cupertino’s
transportation policies reflect the diverse needs of its residents — not just those of a vocal few.
Therefore the first step in this direction would be to end support for Active Transportation
Program and Vision Zero as currently structured and task staff with developing a modern
safety strategy based on technology, data, and engineering best practices.
Thank you for your time and service to our community.
Regards
Sashi Begur
From:S B
To:City Council; City Clerk; Chad Mosley; David Stillman; Tina Kapoor
Subject:Call for a Modern, Technology-Focused Approach to Road Safety in Cupertino
Date:Tuesday, June 3, 2025 3:30:25 PM
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Dear Mayor, Vice Mayor, Council member wang and the city clerk, - Please include the
following written comment for the upcoming City Council meeting.
To the council
As a longtime Cupertino resident I’m writing on behalf of my family to ask the City Council
to discontinue funding for the current Active Transportation Program (ATP) and Vision Zero
efforts. Instead, I urge you to direct staff to create a new, technology-driven plan focused on
effective, data-backed road safety improvements.
While I appreciate the city’s commitment to safety, we need a smarter, more practical
approach — one that avoids disruptive changes and instead uses proven tools already being
adopted in other Bay Area cities. These include:
Leading Pedestrian Intervals (LPI)
High-visibility crosswalks and stop bars
Automated Speed Enforcement (ASE)
Red light cameras
Smart/adaptive traffic signals
AI-based safety analytics
Pedestrian beacons and automated detection systems
These technologies offer real safety benefits without increasing congestion.
Additionally, public input often reflects only a narrow group of out of towners’ voices, while
many residents can’t participate due to time constraints. Cupertino resident community
perspectives must be better considered.
I respectfully ask the Council to end support for ATP and Vision Zero as currently structured
and task staff with developing a modern safety strategy based on technology, data, and
engineering best practices.
Thank you for your service to our city.
regards
Sashi Begur
From:Sharlene Liu
To:City Council
Cc:City Clerk; Cupertino City Manager"s Office
Subject:Keep the ATP alive
Date:Tuesday, June 3, 2025 2:45:25 PM
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(City Clerk: Please include my email in the public record. Thank you.)
Dear Cupertino Council:
I am impressed with the City of Cupertino's progress with active transportation. Everytime I
bike into Cupertino from Sunnyvale, where I live, I breathe a sigh of relief as I travel in safety
along the buffered bike lanes on Stelling and De Anza and the protected bike lanes on
McClellan and part of Stevens Creek Blvd. This next step, to create an Active Transportation
Plan, is part of the good progress that Cupertino is making. I urge you NOT to defund this
important plan. Below are my reasons.
Cupertino has already invested staff time and community time into this Plan. If you stop it
now, you'd be wasting all that work. The community is going to be disappointed and lose
faith in you as the leaders of the City. Cupertino's transportation staff are top-notch, and if
you cancel the ATP, they will likely be demoralized and you will have a hard time retaining
talent. I can say from experience that top-notch transportation staff are hard to come by, and
we treasure those we have.
Keep making roads safe for our youth. They are our future. We want them to thrive in the
open fresh air. Yet, we don't want to throw them under the bus, literally.
If you reverse what a previous Council has already decided, you will in turn weaken your
decisions on Council. Future Councils will see that it's OK to overturn previous Council's
work without good reason, and that will apply to your decisions today being overturned in the
future. So for your own benefit, please consider what kind of precedent you are setting.
With highest regard,
Sharlene Liu
Sunnyvale Safe Streets, Chair
From:Punam Verma
To:City Council; City Clerk; Chad Mosley; David Stillman; Tina Kapoor
Subject:Request for a Smarter, Technology-Based Road Safety Plan for Cupertino
Date:Tuesday, June 3, 2025 1:50:13 PM
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Dear City Clerk,
Please include the below in written communications for the upcoming city council meeting.
Subject: Request for a Smarter, Technology-Based Road Safety Plan for Cupertino
Dear Mayor Chao and City Council Members,
As a longtime Cupertino resident and parent, I’m writing on behalf of myself and my family to
ask you to defund the Active Transportation Program (ATP) and Vision Zero initiatives in
their current form and instead direct staff to return with a roadmap of modern technology
driven road safety improvements.
While I appreciate the city’s efforts to improve safety, I believe we need a more practical and
future-ready approach—one that focuses on modern, proven technologies rather than changes
that disrupt traffic without clear and measurable safety benefits.
Other Bay Area cities are beginning to explore or adopt innovations that improve safety for
both pedestrians and drivers. Cupertino should consider doing the same by prioritizing tools
such as:
Leading Pedestrian Intervals (LPI): Give pedestrians a brief head start at intersections.
Display time in which the pedestrian signal is going to change to `Walk`. This is in addition
to `Walk`-time-left displays.
High-visibility crosswalks and stop lines: Make crossings more visible and reduce
encroachment.
Automated Speed Enforcement (ASE): Discourage speeding through the use of speed cameras
in key areas.
Red light cameras: Help prevent dangerous intersection behavior.
Smart/adaptive traffic signals: Adjust timing based on real-time conditions for improved flow
and safety.
AI-powered safety analytics: Detect near-misses and risky behavior before accidents happen.
Pedestrian beacons: Increase driver compliance at crossings with simple signal systems.
Automated pedestrian detection at signals: Improve accessibility and ease of use without push
buttons.
Displaying time in which the pedestrian signal would change to `Walk`. This in addition to
pedestrian walking time displays.
These technologies offer a data-driven, effective way to improve safety without compromising
traffic flow or relying on outdated infrastructure concepts.
I also want to point out that public input processes often attract only a narrow group of
special-interest voices that focus only on a specific agenda. Many residents with busy lives are
unable to attend city meetings, and as a result, the broader community’s views are not fully
represented. I respectfully ask the City Council to defund ATP and Vision Zero in their current
form, and instead instruct the transportation department to return with a comprehensive,
modern road safety plan based on technology, data, and engineering best practices.
Thank you for your consideration.
Sincerely,
Punam Verma
Cupertino Resident
From:Seema Lindskog
To:City Council; City Clerk; Cupertino City Manager"s Office
Subject:Please keep the ATP funded
Date:Tuesday, June 3, 2025 1:43:37 PM
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Dear Mayor Chao and Council members,
I am on the Planning Commission but I am writing this as a resident.
There seems to be an organized effort by an anti-cyclists special interest group to send emails
to council asking them to defund the ATP in today's budget discussion. I urge you to reject
this half-baked and unserious request and allow the ATP to continue.
The letter writers clearly have very little understanding of what the ATP and the Vision Zero
Plan do because all of the "innovative safety tools" they recommend are already being used by
city staff currently or recommended to be used. They are also tools that are used to implement
plans, and cannot be substituted for the plans themselves. The ATP and Vision Zero are plans.
Without the ATP to identify, prioritize, and plan for bike ped improvements, we wouldn't have
any guidance on where to implement the tools these residents are asking for the city to use.
The ATP is fully funded by grant money and already well in progress with significant work
having already been done, including gathering community input. To cancel the project now
would not save the city any money and would not actually benefit anyone. On the contrary, it
would significantly damage resident trust in the council's governance.
The council just went through a thorough CWP process from Nov 2024 to March 2025 with
extensive council discussion, prioritization, in-depth staff reports, and considerable
community input. Killing a project from that list just two months later because 11 people sent
you an email asking you to do so, would be arbitrary and capricious. If the council wishes to
reconsider including the ATP in the CWP, the correct way to do it with good governance is to
reopen the CWP list of projects and reprioritize all the projects with adequate opportunity for
community input.
The council members must also carefully consider the impact on their credibility and the trust
that residents put in them. If the council overturns its own votes regularly like it did on
Bollinger and is now being asked to do on the ATP, then council votes have no meaning or
credibility and cannot be trusted. We cannot govern a city effectively if every council vote is
subject to be overturned two months later because a small group of people sent emails. The
council's votes need to have weight and gravitas and mean something. There needs to be
stability in council decisions. The staff organize their work and the city's finances around
council votes. The residents expect their voices to be heard through a thoughtful and diligent
process. If the council repeatedly flip-flops on its own votes, there is no steady leadership at
the helm. I hope you will not let that happen.
Best regards,
Seema Lindskog
___________________________________________________________________
"You must be the change you want to see in the world." - Mahatma Gandhi
This message is from my personal email account. I am only writing as myself, not as a
representative or spokesperson for any other organization.
From:Helene Davis
To:City Council; City Clerk; Cupertino City Manager"s Office
Subject:Tonight"s City Council Meeting - Say "Yes" to the Active Transportation Plan!
Date:Tuesday, June 3, 2025 1:21:03 PM
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Dear Cupertino City Council,
I heard rumor the city council might consider defunding/stopping work on the Active
Transportation Plan (ATP). Frankly I’m baffled why this would even be considered
after extensive work by staff and community outreach. The ATP is also fully funded.
ATP considers all modes of transportation in our city which makes for a more vibrant,
healthy, and livable community. I would surely hope our council would be forward
thinking and embrace this plan. I respectfully ask council not to reconsider the funding
or work on this plan. Let’s make Cupertino a better place to live for everyone!
Respectfully,
Helene Davis
Long time Cupertino resident
From:Vanukuri Renuka
To:Tina Kapoor; David Stillman; Chad Mosley; City Clerk; City Council
Subject:Subject: Request for a Smarter, Technology-Based Road Safety Plan for Cupertino
Date:Tuesday, June 3, 2025 12:22:38 PM
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Dear City Clerk,
Please include the below in written communications for the upcoming city council meeting.
Subject: Request for a Smarter, Technology-Based Road Safety Plan for Cupertino
Dear Mayor Chao and City Council Members,
As a longtime Cupertino resident and parent, I’m writing on behalf of myself and my family to
ask you to defund the Active Transportation Program (ATP) and Vision Zero initiatives in
their current form and instead direct staff to return with a roadmap of modern technology
driven road safety improvements.
While I appreciate the city’s efforts to improve safety, I believe we need a more practical and
future-ready approach—one that focuses on modern, proven technologies rather than changes
that disrupt traffic without clear and measurable safety benefits.
Other Bay Area cities are beginning to explore or adopt innovations that improve safety for
both pedestrians and drivers. Cupertino should consider doing the same by prioritizing tools
such as:
Leading Pedestrian Intervals (LPI): Give pedestrians a brief head start at intersections.
High-visibility crosswalks and stop lines: Make crossings more visible and reduce
encroachment.
Automated Speed Enforcement (ASE): Discourage speeding through the use of speed cameras
in key areas.
Red light cameras: Help prevent dangerous intersection behavior.
Smart/adaptive traffic signals: Adjust timing based on real-time conditions for improved flow
and safety.
AI-powered safety analytics: Detect near-misses and risky behavior before accidents happen.
Pedestrian beacons: Increase driver compliance at crossings with simple signal systems.
Automated pedestrian detection at signals: Improve accessibility and ease of use without push
buttons.
These technologies offer a data-driven, effective way to improve safety without compromising
traffic flow or relying on outdated infrastructure concepts.
I also want to point out that public input processes often attract only a narrow group of
special-interest voices that focus only on a specific agenda. Many residents with busy lives are
unable to attend city meetings, and as a result, the broader community’s views are not fully
represented. I respectfully ask the City Council to defund ATP and Vision Zero in their current
form, and instead instruct the transportation department to return with a comprehensive,
modern road safety plan based on technology, data, and engineering best practices.
Thank you for your consideration.
Sincerely,
Renuka Vanukuri
Cupertino Resident
From:Taghi Saadati
To:City Council
Cc:City Clerk; Cupertino City Manager"s Office
Subject:Do Not Defund ATP
Date:Tuesday, June 3, 2025 12:19:59 PM
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Hello, I strongly urge the City Council NOT
DEFUND ATP. This was previously approved by the city council with a lots of input from the community and city
staff. Also there is approved grant for this project. It would be
disrespectful to defund.
Thank you
Taghi Saadati
Sent from my iPhone
From:Joel Wolf
To:City Council
Cc:City Clerk; Tina Kapoor
Subject:Response to Communications Requesting Defunding of ATP
Date:Tuesday, June 3, 2025 12:18:28 PM
Dear Mayor, Vice-Mayor and Councilmembers
I am writing this email in response to the written communications you have received urging the
council to defund the Active Transportation Plan (ATP) currently being conducted by Alta. Alta
is a consulting firm with 25 years of experience developing active transportation plans for
communities across the country. The 11 emails (as of noon on June 3) submitted have a
common (they are all essentially identical) and erroneous theme, that the current plan under
development will be based on “outdated infrastructure concepts” and will not consider
“technology, data, and engineering best practices.” Therefore all 11 emails ask the Council to
“defund the Active Transportation Program (ATP) and Vision Zero initiatives in their current
form.”
All eleven emails list out the same 8 tools to improve safety, implying that these tools are not
being considered in the current plan. I note that most of these tools are already listed as safety
tools in the Cupertino Vision Zero Plan recently approved by Council. However, these 8 tools
represent only a small subset of all potential safety tools in the Cupertino Vision Zero plan.
Many of the other tools include bike and pedestrian infrastructure improvements, and
education and public awareness. It will be important to have all safety tools available for
implementation if the city wants to make biking, walking and scooter use safe for residents of
all ages and abilities and if we want to reach the goal of zero fatalities and serious injuries by
2040.
Therefore, it is important to continue funding of the ATP. Firms such as Alta bring the “state of
the art” to the table and are not utilizing outdated concepts as implied in the 11 email
communications.
Thank you for your consideration.
Joel Wolf
Joel Wolf
Bicycle and Pedestrian Commission
JWolf@cupertino.gov
From:louise saadati
To:City Council; City Clerk
Subject:Do not defund ATP. Agenda Item 8 for City council Meeting June 3, 2025.
Date:Tuesday, June 3, 2025 12:07:04 PM
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Please include this email in the Written Communications for City Council Meeting 6/3/25.
_______________
Dear City Mayor Chao, Vice-Mayor Moore, Councilmembers JR Fruen, Mohan and Wang:
There has been an email campaign led by Santosh Rao
shepherding his followers to ask the council to defund the
ATP.
Please ignore San Rao's emails from his special interest
group. His pressure to you as the present council will hurt
you and the residents.
Mayor Liang Chao pledged "This is the leadership I pledge
to you...I will ensure we put residents first. The council
makes decisions based on residents’input....without undue
influence from... special interests." Santosh Rao and his
followers are an anti-cyclists special interest group. Since
most cyclists in Cupertino are children, this makes Santosh
Rao and his followers an ANTI-CHILDREN SPECIAL
INTEREST GROUP trying to influence AGAINST what is
for the greater good of all the residents. The council will be
blamed when the next fatal child accident occurs if they
defund the ATP.
Santosh Rao has led his anti-children special interest group
to send emails to the city council to:
1. defund all the grant money allocated to the ATP.
2. leave the council vulnerable to community outrage
when there is a death amongst the students and
residents who bike to school or work and pedestrians
and drivers because the safety improvements were
stopped with the ATP defunding
3. pressure the current city council to ignore 3 previous
council meetings' votes which had much community
input
4. have the current city council ignore the Work Plan
Prioritization Process which was completed in
November 2024 to March 2025 with much community
input. If the present council does what San Rao and
his special interest group want, then the present council
would need to redo the entire prioritization of all the
proposed projects again.
His special interest group has no professional background
relevant to ATP. The work already done on the ATP
includes tools and ideas in the approved Vision Zero Plan.
The work already done have involved very detail oriented,
data-driven PROFESSIONAL ENGINEERS and
consultants in this specialty.
The ATP is fully grant funded and extensive outreach has
already been done. Defunding the ATP would jeopardize
future grant applications. Why would grants be given to
Cupertino if it has defunded at least two grants? (Bollinger
RD being defunded at the last council meeting).
It would be disrespectful to the staff and the residents for
the present city council to ignore all the work already done
on the ATP and Work Plan Prioritization with its in-depth
community outreach.
The city council had already previously gone through Grand
Jury Findings for poor governance that cited Liang Chao
and Kitty Moore. If the city council follows the plan outlined
by Santosh Rao and his followers, the present city council
and its residents are more in jeopardy than Santosh who
only writes emails and holds no elected position subject to
oversight.
Respectfully,
Louise Saadati
Cupertino Resident for 39 years
From:Hervé Marcy
To:City Council
Cc:City Clerk; Cupertino City Manager"s Office
Subject:Cupertino"s ATP needs to be executed in its present form
Date:Tuesday, June 3, 2025 12:00:10 PM
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Mayor Chao, esteemed councilmembers,
I'd like this email to be included in the public record.
I am part of the bike-ped commission of the City of Cupertino and am
writing this email in my name only.
I am respectfully asking you to let City staff go ahead with the current
activities related to the City's active transportation plan (ATP).
The consultants hired by City staff are receiving critical feedback,
through extensive public outreach, which I experienced first hand at
Bike To Work day 2025. A data-driven approach starts with that:
gathering data and asking residents to provide feedback as to how the
City can serve them better. A patchwork of disjointed projects, throwing
some "AI" to pompously pretend technological relevance is no substitute
for a broad community-based engagement.
The ATP is fully grant funded and is already underway. The bike ped
commission voted for it, City staff is working on it and Council also
approved it. Are we, as a City, going to change our mind every 2 weeks
about subjects that will impact the city's infrastructure for the next 5
years?
I respectfully ask you to show that our City is consistent and has a
plan it will execute on to protect the most vulnerable residents on our
streets (pedestrians and cyclists alike): the youth and seniors.
Best regards,
Hervé Marcy
--
Hervé MARCY
herve@hmarcy.com
From:Venky
To:City Council; Chad Mosley; David Stillman; City Clerk
Cc:Tina Kapoor
Subject:Road Safety Plan for Cupertino
Date:Tuesday, June 3, 2025 11:51:53 AM
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Dear City Clerk,
Please include the below in written communications for the upcoming city council meeting.
Subject: Request for a Smarter, Technology-Based
Road Safety Plan for Cupertino
Dear Mayor Chao and City Council Members,
As a longtime Cupertino resident and parent, I’m writing on behalf of myself and my family
to ask you to defund the Active Transportation Program (ATP) and Vision Zero initiatives in
their current form and instead direct staff to return with a roadmap of modern technology
driven road safety improvements. While I appreciate the city’s efforts to improve safety, I
believe we need a more practical and future-ready approach—one that focuses on modern,
proven technologies rather than changes that disrupt traffic without clear and measurable
safety benefits. Other Bay Area cities are beginning to explore or adopt innovations that
improve safety for both pedestrians and drivers. Cupertino should consider doing the same by
prioritizing tools such as:
Leading Pedestrian Intervals (LPI): Give pedestrians a brief head start at intersections. High-
visibility crosswalks and stop lines: Make crossings more visible and reduce encroachment.
Automated Speed Enforcement (ASE): Discourage speeding through the use of speed
cameras in key areas. Red light cameras: Help prevent dangerous intersection behavior.
Smart/adaptive traffic signals: Adjust timing based on real-time conditions for improved flow
and safety.
AI-powered safety analytics: Detect near-misses and risky behavior before accidents happen.
Pedestrian beacons: Increase driver compliance at crossings with simple signal systems.
Automated pedestrian detection at signals: Improve accessibility and ease of use without push
buttons.
These technologies offer a data-driven, effective way to improve safety without compromising
traffic flow or relying on outdated infrastructure concepts. I also want to point out that public
input processes often attract only a narrow group of special-interest voices that focus only on a
specific agenda. Many residents with busy lives are unable to attend city meetings, and as a
result, the broader community’s views are not fully represented. I respectfully ask the City
Council to defund ATP and Vision Zero in their current form, and instead instruct the
transportation department to return with a comprehensive, modern road safety plan based on
technology, data, and engineering best practices.
Thank you for your consideration.
Sincerely,
Venkat Shanmugasundaram
Cupertino Resident
From:Jian He
To:City Council
Cc:City Clerk; Cupertino City Manager"s Office
Subject:Please Keep the Active Transportation Plan (ATP) – Upholding Community Input and Responsible Governance
Date:Tuesday, June 3, 2025 11:28:19 AM
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Dear Honorable Mayor and City Council Members,
I am writing to strongly urge you not to defund the Active Transportation Plan (ATP).
Doing so would not only be a disservice to the extensive efforts of our community and
city staff but would also undermine the principles of responsible governance and
public safety that our city values.
(Please include this email in the public records. Thank you so much!)
The ATP Prioritization Process: A Product of Extensive Community
Engagement
The current ATP work plan is the result of a rigorous and comprehensive prioritization
process that spanned over five months, from November 2024 to March 2025. This
process involved multiple staff memos, extensive community outreach meetings, and
three dedicated Council meetings with significant public comment. City staff, the
Council, and hundreds of residents invested considerable time and effort to finalize
this plan. To simply strike one project off the list now would disregard this entire
exercise and necessitate reopening the laborious prioritization process all over again.
Such an action would be highly irresponsible and a wasteful use of valuable city
resources and resident time.
Data-Driven Decisions vs. Special Interests
Halting the ATP now, after such well-planned and extensive public outreach, runs
counter to a data-driven approach to hear all resident voices. A small letter-writing
campaign, often driven by specific interests, is not a substitute for a comprehensive
community outreach process that captures the true viewpoints of all residents.
Furthermore, recommendations for road improvements from individuals lacking
professional civil engineering expertise should not supersede the informed
recommendations of experienced and trained professionals dedicated to making our
roads safer. The ATP is built upon sound engineering principles and widespread
community input, not narrow, uninformed opinions.
The ATP is Grant-Funded and Already Underway
It is crucial to remember that the ATP is fully grant-funded and is already well
underway. Defunding it now would not actually save the city any money. Instead, it
would be a wasteful act, disrespecting the significant time and effort already invested
by city staff and consultants in extensive outreach, including community meetings,
pop-up events, and an online survey with substantial resident input. To abandon this
progress now would be an affront to everyone who has dedicated their time to
participate and contribute.
Protecting Our Students: The Primary Beneficiaries of ATP
The vast majority of cyclists in Cupertino are students, aged 10-18 years old. These
young individuals are not a "special interest group"; they are our children, and they
deserve to be able to walk and bike to school safely. Our city's initial Bike Plan,
almost ten years ago, was a direct response to a tragic student accident on McClellan
Road. We must not be so callous as to disregard the vital need to prevent future
tragedies. Defunding the ATP would directly harm our students, jeopardizing their
safety and well-being.
Upholding the Integrity of Council Votes
Finally, Council votes must carry meaning and weight. If every Council decision can
be easily revisited or overturned, especially after being thoroughly vetted through
multiple meetings and extensive community input, then the integrity of all Council
votes is diminished. There must be stability and consistency in Council choices. To
overturn a vote on an item that was considered at three separate Council meetings
with significant community input would set a dangerous precedent and undermine the
public's trust in our city government.
I urge you to consider these points carefully and to uphold the significant investment
and community input that has gone into the Active Transportation Plan. Let us
prioritize the safety of our residents, especially our students, and maintain the
integrity of our city's decision-making process.
Sincerely,
Jian He,
20+ years Cupertino Resident and Community Volunteer
"...all things work together for good..." --- Romans 8:28
From:Tanvi Shah
To:City Council; City Clerk; Chad Mosley; David Stillman; Tina Kapoor
Subject:Request for a smarter technology based road safety plan for Cupertino
Date:Tuesday, June 3, 2025 10:36:01 AM
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Dear City Clerk,
As a longtime Cupertino resident and parent, I’m writing on behalf of myself and my family to ask you to defund
the Active Transportation Program (ATP) and Vision Zero initiatives in their current form and instead direct staff to
return with a roadmap of modern technology driven road safety improvements.
While I appreciate the city’s efforts to improve safety, I believe we need a more practical and future-ready approach
—one that focuses on modern, proven technologies rather than changes that disrupt traffic without clear and
measurable safety benefits.
Other Bay Area cities are beginning to explore or adopt innovations that improve safety for both pedestrians and
drivers. Cupertino should consider doing the same by prioritizing tools such as:
Leading Pedestrian Intervals (LPI): Give pedestrians a brief head start at intersections.
High-visibility crosswalks and stop lines: Make crossings more visible and reduce encroachment.
Automated Speed Enforcement (ASE): Discourage speeding through the use of speed cameras in key areas.
Red light cameras: Help prevent dangerous intersection behavior.
Smart/adaptive traffic signals: Adjust timing based on real-time conditions for improved flow and safety.
AI-powered safety analytics: Detect near-misses and risky behavior before accidents happen.
Pedestrian beacons: Increase driver compliance at crossings with simple signal systems.
Automated pedestrian detection at signals: Improve accessibility and ease of use without push buttons.
These technologies offer a data-driven, effective way to improve safety without compromising traffic flow or
relying on outdated infrastructure concepts.
I also want to point out that public input processes often attract only a narrow group of special-interest voices that
focus only on a specific agenda. Many residents with busy lives are unable to attend city meetings, and as a result,
the broader community’s views are not fully represented. I respectfully ask the City Council to defund ATP and
Vision Zero in their current form, and instead instruct the transportation department to return with a comprehensive,
modern road safety plan based on technology, data, and engineering best practices.
Thank you for your consideration.
Sincerely,
Tanvi and Vipul Shah
Cupertino Resident
From:Tracy K
To:City Council; City Clerk
Subject:Written comments: Agenda item 8, past and current City Work Program/FY 2024-25 Special Projects
Date:Tuesday, June 3, 2025 8:22:47 AM
CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Do not click links or open attachments unless you
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Dear City Council and City Clerk,
More written comments for agenda item 8, direction on past and current City Work Program
and FY 2024-25 Special Projects --
Is there any traffic data analysis in the ATP? Here is what the project website shows:
Phase I: Existing Conditions (April to June)
- Analysis of datasets such as city demographics, land use, infrastructure present and planned,
and other relevant inputs.
- Background review of local, regional, and state policies and plans related to or influencing
active transportation.
- Community engagement to identify current active transportation conditions, barriers, and
community needs for the future, establishing a clear vision and goals for the ATP.
There is no mention of traffic analysis. How can we properly create a transportation plan
without traffic data? Please layer in flows of traffic, where and when accidents are happening
and why, and absolute quantities of traffic. Please then share this data with the public, so that
we may understand how investment dollars are being made relative to areas that actually do or
do not have safety issues.
In order to save lives and increase safety, we must be data-driven in our approach. If there is
no traffic analysis in the ATP, then it is an incomplete plan. Please help make it complete or
figure out methods of making future plans comprehensive of this data.
Many thanks,
Tracy
From:Vikram Saxena
To:City Council; City Clerk; Chad Mosley; David Stillman; Tina Kapoor
Subject:Investing in the future of road safety
Date:Monday, June 2, 2025 11:40:08 PM
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recognize the sender and know the content is safe.
Dear City Clerk,
Please include the below in written communications for the upcoming city council meeting.
Subject: Request for a Smarter, Technology-Based Road Safety Plan for Cupertino
Dear Mayor Chao and City Council Members,
As a longtime Cupertino resident and parent, I’m writing on behalf of myself and my family to
ask you to defund the Active Transportation Program (ATP) and Vision Zero initiatives in
their current form and instead direct staff to return with a roadmap of modern technology
driven road safety improvements.
While I appreciate the city’s efforts to improve safety, I believe we need a more practical and
future-ready approach—one that focuses on modern, proven technologies rather than changes
that disrupt traffic without clear and measurable safety benefits.
Other Bay Area cities are beginning to explore or adopt innovations that improve safety for
both pedestrians and drivers. Cupertino should consider doing the same by prioritizing tools
such as:
Leading Pedestrian Intervals (LPI): Give pedestrians a brief head start at intersections.
High-visibility crosswalks and stop lines: Make crossings more visible and reduce
encroachment.
Automated Speed Enforcement (ASE): Discourage speeding through the use of speed cameras
in key areas.
Red light cameras: Help prevent dangerous intersection behavior.
Smart/adaptive traffic signals: Adjust timing based on real-time conditions for improved flow
and safety.
AI-powered safety analytics: Detect near-misses and risky behavior before accidents happen.
Pedestrian beacons: Increase driver compliance at crossings with simple signal systems.
Automated pedestrian detection at signals: Improve accessibility and ease of use without push
buttons.
These technologies offer a data-driven, effective way to improve safety without compromising
traffic flow or relying on outdated infrastructure concepts.
I also want to point out that public input processes often attract only a narrow group of
special-interest voices that focus only on a specific agenda. Many residents with busy lives are
unable to attend city meetings, and as a result, the broader community’s views are not fully
represented. I respectfully ask the City Council to defund ATP and Vision Zero in their current
form, and instead instruct the transportation department to return with a comprehensive,
modern road safety plan based on technology, data, and engineering best practices.
Sincerely
-Vikram Saxena
From:chitrasv@yahoo.com
To:City Council; City Clerk; Chad Mosley; David Stillman; Tina Kapoor
Subject:Request for a Smarter, Technology-Based Road Safety Plan for Cupertino
Date:Monday, June 2, 2025 10:53:30 PM
CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Do not click links or open attachments unless
you recognize the sender and know the content is safe.
Dear Mayor Chao and City Council Members,
As a longtime Cupertino resident and parent, I’m writing on behalf of myself and my family to ask you to defund
the Active Transportation Program (ATP) and Vision Zero initiatives in their current form and instead direct staff to
return with a roadmap of modern technology driven road safety improvements.
While I appreciate the city’s efforts to improve safety, I believe we need a more practical and future-ready approach
—one that focuses on modern, proven technologies rather than changes that disrupt traffic without clear and
measurable safety benefits.
Other Bay Area cities are beginning to explore or adopt innovations that improve safety for both pedestrians and
drivers. Cupertino should consider doing the same by prioritizing tools such as:
Leading Pedestrian Intervals (LPI): Give pedestrians a brief head start at intersections.
High-visibility crosswalks and stop lines: Make crossings more visible and reduce encroachment.
Automated Speed Enforcement (ASE): Discourage speeding through the use of speed cameras in key areas.
Red light cameras: Help prevent dangerous intersection behavior.
Smart/adaptive traffic signals: Adjust timing based on real-time conditions for improved flow and safety.
AI-powered safety analytics: Detect near-misses and risky behavior before accidents happen.
Pedestrian beacons: Increase driver compliance at crossings with simple signal systems.
Automated pedestrian detection at signals: Improve accessibility and ease of use without push buttons.
These technologies offer a data-driven, effective way to improve safety without compromising traffic flow or
relying on outdated infrastructure concepts.
I also want to point out that public input processes often attract only a narrow group of special-interest voices that
focus only on a specific agenda. Many residents with busy lives are unable to attend city meetings, and as a result,
the broader community’s views are not fully represented. I respectfully ask the City Council to defund ATP and
Vision Zero in their current form, and instead instruct the transportation department to return with a comprehensive,
modern road safety plan based on technology, data, and engineering best practices.
Thank you for your consideration.
Sincerely,
Chitra Iyer
Cupertino Resident
From:J Shearin
To:City Clerk; City Council; Cupertino City Manager"s Office
Subject:City Council June 3 Agenda item 8: Keep the ATP process going
Date:Monday, June 2, 2025 9:14:13 PM
CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Do not click links or open attachments unless
you recognize the sender and know the content is safe.
Please include this letter in Written Communications for Agenda Item 8 for the upcoming Council meeting on June
3.
Dear Mayor Chao, City Councilmembers, and acting City Manager Kapoor,
Killing the Active Transportation Plan (ATP) Process is a bad idea. It’s a bad idea for the city, and bad policy, too. I
urge you to vote no to making any changes on this agenda item.
There’s several good reasons for this.
All of our approved city plans rely on systematic, thoughtful resident outreach and input. The ATP is no different.
Since last November, the consulting firm Alta has done extensive outreach, including at pop-up locations such as
festivals, at publicly noticed meetings, and had extensive resident input via an online tool. It’s disrespectful to the
many residents that have taken time to come to meetings and to give input into the process to ignore their voices. It’s
also the opposite of resident data driving our projects.
Second, killing this project has zero financial benefit to the city—it saves no money to do so. It may, in fact, prevent
future grants from being obtained by the city as turning down a grant that has been awarded—especially mid-
project, for no defendable reason—can make it much harder for our city to receive grants in the future. It also makes
it much less likely that good transportation consulting firms will even quote future projects of any kind.
Third, this process has been considered at three separate City Council meetings with significant community input.
Those Council votes should be respected, and not easily rescinded. Otherwise, council votes just don’t matter. The
residents need to trust their Councilmembers, and that they do not need to constantly be watching the City Council
because it may overturn something that they just voted for two months prior.
I’ve read some emails to you from special interests who have no professional engineering degrees or experience
who found information via Ai-generated searches about “effective” approaches to generic road safety issues. These
emails are sadly quite clearly a way for anti-biking special interests to derail a thoughtful and data-driven process by
experienced professional engineers and consultants. We already have a sound and effective toolbox of ideas in the
approved Vision Zero Plan—no AI generated search, filtered to remove biking, will add to that. What we need is
public input: where do kids walk and bike to school, where do our seniors not feel safe crossing the street, and
where do residents want to use active transportation but feel they can’t right now. That’s called ‘demand’ and it’s
part of the public outreach happening right now in the ATP process.
Keep the ATP process going. It’s the right thing to do for our city.
Thank you for considering my input, and your work on behalf of Cupertino.
Sincerely,
Jennifer Shearin
Cupertino resident
From:Venkat Ranganathan
To:City Council; City Clerk; Cupertino City Manager"s Office
Subject:Request to Modernize Road Safety Approach
Date:Monday, June 2, 2025 7:52:21 PM
CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Do not click links or open attachments unless you
recognize the sender and know the content is safe.
Dear City Clerk,
Please include the below in written communications for the upcoming city council meeting.
Dear Mayor Chao and City Council Members,
As a longtime resident and parent, I urge you to consider deferring and defunding the current ATP and Vision Zero
programs and instead direct staff to develop a modern, technology-driven road safety plan. Solutions like adaptive
signals, pedestrian beacons, AI-powered analytics, and automated enforcement are more effective and less
disruptive. Let’s prioritize data-driven tools that benefit all users without worsening traffic flow.
Thank you for considering a smarter, future-ready approach.
Sincerely,
Venkat
From:Evan Lojewski
To:Public Comments
Subject:PUBLIC COMMENT - AGENDA ITEM 8 - 6/3/2025
Date:Monday, June 2, 2025 6:53:36 PM
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recognize the sender and know the content is safe.
Cupertino City Council,
Regarding Agenda Item 8 (CIP / CWP), please include the below in the written comments section
for the June 3rd City Council meeting.
I am a resident of Cupertino and commute by bicycle daily. I would like to thank you for gathering
public comments as part of the Active Transportation Plan project. While biking home one day, I
was encouraged to see the signs by the bike lanes requesting public comment for the ATP. I am
very supportive of this project and am eagerly waiting to see the results as part of Phase 2 of the
project.
That said, I've been disappointed to see some of the comments in the written comments for the
6/3/2025 meetings. As an engineer, I always want more information - even, and especially if, it's
contradictory to my understanding of a situation. When reading the written comments, however, it
seems like there is a call to defund the ATP even though it is fully funded by the Metropolitan
Transportation Commission (TDA3). I'm surprised and disappointed to see the request to throw
away grant money for no benefit. If the ATP were to be defunded, it would effectively discourage
public opinion and make it harder for residents to express their desires to the city council and
staff.
I urge you to please continue with the ATP, collect public comment, and use it to inform policy
decisions - after all, how can a city make policies for the benefit of its residents without gathering
input from said residents? I hope you continue to encourage active participation of residents by
keeping the ATP funded and progressing.
Thank you for reading and considering my comments,
Evan Lojewski
P.S. I am resending this from another email as my primary provider appears to be blocked by
Cupertino's email servers.
From:Tracy K
To:City Council; City Clerk
Subject:Written comments for Agenda Item 8, Operating and CIP Budgets for FY 2025-26
Date:Monday, June 2, 2025 4:16:55 PM
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recognize the sender and know the content is safe.
Dear City Council and City Clerk,
I am writing with a few questions regarding agenda item 8, Recommended Operating and
Capital Improvement Program Budgets for Fiscal Year (FY) 2025-26, Adoption of the
Operating and Capital Improvement Program Budgets for FY 2025-26.
1. The staff recommendation uses an assumption of a 4% staff vacancy rate, whereas the 10-
year forecast is at 6%. The operating deficit or lack thereof is drastically different depending
on which forecast you use. Is it realistic to use a 4% vacancy rate assumption when we have
not ever had this low of a vacancy rate in the past 10 years? Moreover, to note, the vacancy
rate does not include contract labor. How can we include this in the assumptions?
2. The grants analyst role salary ($200K+) seems very high relative to average salaries for this
type of role. Since the city can only take on a limited number of capital projects at any point in
time, and hence grants associated with them, is it necessary for this to be a full-time role?
Also, please ensure the city council reviews any grants before they are applied for.
3. Attachment W shows a multitude of line items for "conferences and training" that total to
$175K (excluding the City Council portion). Can we obtain more detail on this line item? It is
important for staff to get training, but this is a pretty high dollar amount.
4. General fund revenues are projected to be down $14M vs 2022, while general fund
expenses are up $15M vs 2022. This primarily appears to be driven by contract services.
Where can the public obtain greater detail on the drivers of contract services expenditures?
The staff report noted Hopper in the past year, but not that of previous years.
Thanks,
Tracy