City of Lawrence
Lawrence – Douglas County Bicycle Advisory Committee
August 18, 2009 minutes
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MEMBERS PRESENT: |
Eric Struckhoff-Chair, Michael Hajdu, Becky McClure, Jay Bialek, Mark Desetti, Neil Taylor, Gary Calton |
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MEMBERS ABSENT: |
None |
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STAFF PRESENT: |
Bart Rudolph |
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PUBLIC PRESENT: |
Michael Almon, John Drees, Michael Morley |
The meeting minutes from April 21, May 19, and June 16, 2009 were approved by acclamation.
3. Action Item: Bike/Ped Bridge Over Iowa Street
Mr. Morley discussed with the Committee the possibility of adding a bicycle/pedestrian bridge that would extend from W. 7th Street over Iowa Street and connect with Centennial Park. He distributed drawings of what a bicycle and pedestrian bridge could look like and supplied some facts about the Bob Kerrey Pedestrian Bridge that links Nebraska and Iowa. He stated that where 7th Street ends on the east side of Iowa Street, the elevation is much greater than the elevation of Iowa Street, thus making it easy to extend a bike/ped bridge over Iowa Street and connect with Centennial Park. He mentioned that Iowa Street is a major barrier facing cyclists and that the City lacks an east-west bicycle route in this area. Mr. Morley envisioned a trail head located at the Skate Park in Centennial Park marking the western point of the route to east Lawrence. He recommended that the BAC add this segment to the Bikeway System Map.
Mr. Rudolph stated that the elevation of 7th Street was almost 14 feet higher than the elevation of the center of Iowa Street, so the bridge would most likely need to be elevated more before crossing Iowa Street. Also, the grade continues to decrease west of Iowa Street and the bridge would have issues connecting with the existing topography and meeting ADA compliance if it continued straight west through the park. Most likely, the bride would have to turn south on the west side of Iowa Street to meet with the existing grade. Currently there are no facilities for bicycle and pedestrians on that section of Iowa Street. Mr. Rudolph also mentioned that both 6th and Iowa Streets are owned and maintained by the Kansas Department of Transportation, while McDonald Drive, which extends from I-70 and under 6th Street to meet with Iowa Street is owned and maintained by the Kansas Turnpike Authority. He suggested that building in these right-of-ways may prove difficult when coordinating all the different agencies and if the 6th and Iowa Streets intersection is ever rebuilt, it will most likely require additional space in which the bridge may be impeding. Furthermore, Mr. Rudolph stated that adding a facility on the Bikeway System Map does not imply funding for that facility or that any governmental agency will try to acquire funding for that facility, but it is an effective planning tool to help establish a plan for a comprehensive bikeway system. Given all the challenges that face this project, Mr. Rudolph stated that the decision to add the facility to the Bikeway System Map was the decision of the Committee and the limitations of the project should not prohibit it from being added to the map, but be taken into consideration during discussion.
The Committee agreed that 7th Street is a heavily traveled bicycle route and Iowa Street is a major barrier for east-west bicycle travel in the city. There was also some discussion about the need for other pedestrian bridges in Lawrence and that 7th Street would be a great location to expand an already established bicycle route. The Committee acknowledged that the descending slope in Centennial Park on the west side of Iowa Street would be problematic, but the most obvious solution would be to run the path parallel along Iowa on the west side until it turns into a favorable grade. There was concern that cyclists would have limited options continuing west beyond the park and more planning work would need to happen to make that area safe for bicyclists.
A motion to add a future shared use path designation on the Bikeway System Map extending from 7th Street over Iowa Street and connecting with Centennial Park was moved by Mr. Desetti and seconded by Mr. Hadju. The motion passed unanimously. Mr. Rudolph stated that his would require an amendment to the Metropolitan Transportation Plan and will be a lengthily process but he’ll get the process started as soon as possible.
4. Discussion Item: Recap 9th Street Bike Lanes
Mr. Rudolph noted that the City has finished the installation of bike lanes along 9th Street between Tennessee and Indiana Streets. Mr. Struckhoff mentioned that the work was completed very quickly and incorporated the striping changes requested by him and Mr. Almon to add stripes connecting the portion of the bike lane without on-street parking to the portion with on-street parking.
Mr. Almon questioned if the 4-lane section of 9th Street west of Mississippi Street warranted 4 lanes or if 2 lanes with a center turn lane and bicycle lanes would be a better solution. Mr. Rudolph stated that he was unsure of the vehicular traffic counts on that section of 9th Street and that the City’s Traffic Engineer would have that data.
5. Discussion/Action Item: BAC Expansion:
Mr. Rudolph distributed draft copies of the revised BAC by-laws that included specific language about the breakdown of membership between the four cities and county. He stated that the new by-laws allow for the Mayor of Lawrence to appoint four Committee members, the Mayors of Eudora, Baldwin City and Lecompton to each appoint one Committee member and the Chair of the Douglas County Commission to appoint two members to represent the County. This would be a reduction in members from Lawrence, but increase the size of the Committee from seven to nine members. He also mentioned that Mr. Desetti’s second term on the Committee is set to expire on December 31, 2009 and he is not eligible for another term, so the reduction of membership from Lawrence would be satisfied at the end of this year.
Mr. Rudolph also confirmed that language was added stating that if a jurisdiction decides not to participate or appoint a representative within 4 months of notice of vacancy, the BAC will have the authority to elect a member by a majority vote, That member will be eligible to serve one complete term before the non-participating jurisdiction can appoint a replacement.
A motion to approve the City of Lawrence and Douglas County Bicycle Advisory Committee By-laws was moved by Mr. Hajdu and seconded by Mr. Taylor. The motion passed unanimously.
6. Discussion Item: Article 9 of the Land Development Code Update
Mr. Rudolph distributed copies of Article 9, section 20-913(g) of the Land Development Code that discusses city regulations regarding bicycle parking. He mentioned that city staff is in the midst of updating Article 9 and has asked the BAC to provide comments on how to improve the bicycle parking section. Mr. Rudolph suggested adding language that requires bike racks be compatible with U-locks and be securely anchored to the ground. He also suggested adding a provision that regulated the location of bicycle parking. He suggested that short and long term bicycle parking shall be located as near as practicable to the building entrance, preferably within 50 feet. If requited bicycle parking facilities are not visible from the building entrance, signs must be posted indicating their location. Bicycle parking shall not be placed more than 120 feet from the building entrance and at least 24 inches from a wall or other obstruction. Bicycle parking facilities that remain single elements mounted within close proximity to each other shall be placed 30 inches on center to allow room for two bicycles to be secured to each rack element. 72 inches shall be allowed for each row of bicycle parking.
Mr. Desetti noted that when talking about the secure method of locking a bicycle, the bicycle rack should allow for both the fame and wheel to be locked, not the frame and wheels as printed in the draft version distributed by Mr. Rudolph. He also questioned if mentioning the U-lock was too restrictive in the type of bicycle racks available to the building owner. Mr. Rudolph replied that the reasoning for the U-lock reference, was that if a rack was compatible with a U-lock, it would most likely be compatible with all other locks and would encourage more of the inverted “U” style racks and less wheel-bending racks that provide no support for the frame of the bicycle.
Mr. Struckhoff noted that 120 feet away from the entrance is a long distance for bicycle parking and suggested that the maximum distance be shortened. Mr. Desetti also commented that bicycle parking should be within 50 feet of the entrance of a building and stronger language should be used mandating that distance instead of suggesting it as a preference. He also suggested mentioning what reasonable circumstances would prevent locating bicycle parking within that distance. The Committee agreed and Mr. Rudolph stated that he would make the changes. Mr. Rudolph also encouraged the members to review this section of Article 9 between now and the next meeting, so that more discussion can take place before the update is complete.
7. Discussion Item: Bicycle and Pedestrian Documentation Project:
Mr. Rudolph distributed informational flyers for the Bicycle and Pedestrian Documentation Project and announced that the L-DC MPO and the City of Lawrence will be conducting bicycle and pedestrian counts on Wednesday, Sept. 9 from 10a.m. to 12p.m., 5p.m. to 7p.m. and on Saturday, Sept. 12 from 12p.m. to 2 p.m. MPO staff is in the process of recruiting volunteers to manually count bicycles and pedestrians at several locations across the city next month. Mr. Rudolph mentioned that those interested in volunteering for one or all of the scheduled count times are required to attend a training session on either Wednesday, Sept. 2 from 6p.m. to 7p.m. or Tuesday, Sept. 8 from 11a.m. to 12p.m. and encouraged the members of the BAC to participate in the count. Volunteers will be taught the National Bicycle and Pedestrian Documentation Project method created by Alta Planning and Design and the Institute of Transportation Engineers.
Mr. Rudolph reiterated need to conduct this count and that one of the greatest challenges facing the bicycle and pedestrian field is the lack of documentation on usage and demand. Without accurate and consistent information on demand and usage, it is difficult to measure the positive benefits of investments in these modes, or to compare them to other transportation modes such as the automobile.
Mr. Drees suggested contacting the Roger Hill Volunteer Center (RHVC) to help recruit volunteers, while Mr. Struckhoff and Ms. McClure requested additional paper copies of the informational flyer and volunteered to help distribute them. Mr. Hajdu and others also volunteered to distribute the flyer and asked if the flyer could be sent via e-mail. Mr. Rudolph stated that he would contact the RHVC and forward the flyer to all the members of the BAC and print additional copies for Mr. Struckhoff and Ms. McClure.
8. Discussion Item: Bicycle Safety and Educational Material
Mr. Rudolph announced that L-DC MPO was able to leverage additional “in-kind” match funding for some of its projects and programs. He explained that the “in-kind” match could be partnered with funding from a Consolidated Planning Grant from FWHA and FTA to provide educational and promotional material relating to bicycle safety at no cost to the City or County. Mr. Rudolph suggested that the BAC use some of the money to prepare for Bicycle Safety Month in 2010 and produce either a new bicycle route map or safety brochure. He reminded the Committee that Lawrence is designated as a Bicycle Friendly Community largely in part of its educational and outreach efforts, so it is important to continue educating the public about bicycle safety. He displayed copies of bicycle maps and safety material from other cities to help generate a discussion about what the committee would like to produce with this money. It was determined that the BAC would use Columbia, Missouri’s Get Abound Columbia map as inspiration to create a similar map for Lawrence. The map would have a prioritization of routes around the city on one side and safety and educational material on the other.
Mr. Rudolph stated that he would begin getting quotes on the production of the maps and work with the BAC and the GIS department to create the map. He mentioned that the money has to be spent during the calendar year of 2009, so the BAC and MPO staff will have to work diligently to produce the map within the next couple of months. More information will be presented at the next meeting.
Mr. Rudolph mentioned that a quorum had not been meet during the last four BAC meetings and wondered if the BAC would like to re-evaluate the meeting times or location to make the meetings more accessible. The committee agreed to keep the meetings on the third Tuesday of every month, but change the time of the meetings to 6pm – 7:30pm and hold the meetings at Fire Station #5. Mr. Rudolph stated that these changes would go into effect for the next meeting in September.
Mr. Rudolph also mentioned that the Public Works department wanted to bring to the attention of the BAC and allow for any questions relating to a design exception for a horizontal curve along the Burroughs Creek Trail, just south of 13th Street. The curve is bound on the west by the Burroughs Creek Drainage Channel and a residential area on the east. In order to make the connection to the existing box bridge on 13th Street and fit within the area defined, the horizontal curve will have a radius of 40’ and a design speed 14mph. AASHTO recommends that the design speed for this project be 20 mph, but that would require a radius of 100’ for horizontal curves. An additional cost of approximately $175,000 would have to be spent to acquire the right-of-way needed for the 100’ radius. Members of the BAC noted that cyclists would have to slow down and stop before crossing 13th Street, so having a design speed of less the recommended speed, would not be an issue and the Committee had no additional concerns or questions for the Public Works department about this item.
The meeting adjourned at 7:25 pm.