Dec. 23, 2004

Pajarito bicycle access redeux

I wish to point out the irony in the letter from D. Hammon about the lack of highway safety in and around Los Alamos, and S. Riley's comment in the very next letter that "Pajarito Road is not the only route to Los Alamos; other alternatives exist." It is my opinion that Riley does not understand that there are no safe routes for non-motorized access to/from White Rock or Los Alamos except Pajarito Road. The editor's response to D. Hammon is "Safety should be the concern of every Laboratory employee in the workplace during the commute to and from our homes and in our homes." It is the safety of my family, my friends, and others who enjoy non-motorized methods of transportation (biking, hiking, jogging, etc.) that is my complaint with permanently restricted access to Pajarito Road after the holiday closure.

The stated rational for the closure to non-badgeholders is "Bicycles have been used in suicide bombings in various locations overseas...." Even though cyclists (rarely) and pedestrians have committed suicide bombings, the threat (in terms of amount of damage, and observed frequency of attack here and overseas) to the safety of Lab people and the security of our infrastructure posed by a cyclist or jogger is much less than the threat posed by a motorist; this point can not be argued. As it now stands, the Lab will allow access to Pajarito Road to any badge holder in a car for any reason, and said badge holder can "vouch" for anybody in that car as long as that person holds a photo ID or is under 18. This is reasonable and I do not wish that to change. However, it defies reason and common sense to not have similar rules for cyclists, joggers or hikers/walkers; application of the same rules would require cyclists, joggers, and hikers/walkers to be with a Lab badge holder and present the very same ID (or be under 18) at the guard station(s).

It is my request that Lab security specialists modify the permanent ban on non-motorized access by non-badgeholders to Pajarito Road to a rule that parallels that applied to motorists. Then all of us who live and work in Los Alamos can continue to enjoy cycling, jogging and walking in Los Alamos, and do so safely and securely.

--Todd Haines