Roadways and Sidewalks Subcommittee Meeting
May 31, 2006

Members present: Rob Christense, Trevor Harris, Jack Jenson< robert Johnson, Kristina Kaylen< Amanda Perry, John Riddick (Co-chair), Frederick Schmidt, Ian Thomas (Co-chair), Mark Virkler.

Others present: Arlene Bishop (Missourian), John Kaplan, Barbie Reed, George Stewart, Ian Stewart (Boy Scot observer), Richard Stone (Public works traffic engineer).

Members absent: Christi Hopper, Rachel Kaufman, Mark Stone.

Opening: At 3:30 p.m. the meeting was called to order. A quorum was present. Mr. Riddick asked members of the public and committee members to introduce themselves.

Minutes
Note: The minutes of the prior meeting were not discussed.

Meeting times: The next meetings will be:

• June 12, at 3:30 p.m. The location was not discussed but should be the ame (4th floor conference room, 701 E Broadway).
  
• June 18, 2:00-4:00 p.m. field trip. meet at 701 E Broadway a 1:30 p.m. This will be a regular meeting—see discussion below.
  

Old Business
Review of Committee Members' Observations: Mr. Thomas mentioned that a segment of sidewalk is missing along Fairview, between Fairview Elementary and Broadway. There was some discussion of the exact location.

Mr. Schmidt said that on East Broadway between Old 63 and US 63, there is a tire-eating drain grate at the east end oft he bridge over the creek. He said he had understood the road was striped for bike lanes, but on inspection, that was evidently not the case. Mr. Stone said that it was his understanding that these were not bike lanes.

Mr. Riddick said he had encouraged a Co-worker to commute to work, and the Co-worker had said they were fearful crossing stadium at Rollins.

He also noted that there is not good bicycle/pedestrian acces to Cosmo Park. In particular, there is not any bicycle route to the bicycle lanes in front of the park that is safe for children. Mr. Harris noted tha the I-70 improvement plan (unfunded) includes a pedestrian bridge from Clinkscales to the park, over the Interstate.

Thirdly, Mr. Riddick said there should be bike racks at the Stadium and that bicycling to MU games should be encouraged.

Ms. Reed mentioned lighting and water, in trail underpasses. She also noted debris collecting in bike lanes, and connecting condominiums behind Hollywood Theaters to the trails Mr. Schmidt said that Mr. Harris had offered the concept of "process shift" in prior meetings to address issues like sweeping the bike lanes, and that he understood the tunnel under Providence ant Steward will be lit. An extensive discussion of culverts ensued. Mr. Christenson noted that most of Columbia's trails used existing culverts, and that they are built to handle a certain volume of water. Mr. Schmidt said that trials in Boulder, Co. seem to stay dry, even though they sometimes are actually below the normal water level of the creek. He noted that typically, the compromise that city ha reached is that the trail is allowed to flood at high water—that the volume of water the underpass is calculated to handle includes the space occupied by the trail. Mr Virkler suggested crowning the floor of the tunnels, as the water is constant but not very deep.

Mr. Christenson said it looks as though the bike lanes on Grindstone had been sandblasted out in places near the Walmart. Mr. Stone said it's a MoDOT right of way so the city did not review any permits, but he would look into it.

Presentation on Bicycle Lane Striping (Mark Virkler): Mr. Virkler made a presentation on bicycle lane striping. He circulated copies of an FHWA course on bicycle and pedestrian transportation, Chapters 18-20 (1). He also referred to the AASHTO books, Guide for the Development of BIcycle Facilities, 3rd Edition (2) and the AASHTO Guide for the Planning, Design and Operation of Pedestrian Facilities, 1st Edition (3). Links are provided in the footnotes below. Two issues were noted in particular—the "bicycle boulevard" concept, where streets are configured to still be open to automobiles but only for local traffic, and drain grate design> Ways to better utilized existing right of way to include reducing lanes widths, "road diet", reconsidering the need for parking, replacing on-street parking with off-street alternatives, and rearranging lanes.
 
Mr. Thomas asked if sharrows are an alternative. Mr. Virkler said if you deviate from MUTCD (http:..mutvd.fhwa.dot.gov/kno-2003r1.htm), you are asking to be successfully sued. Mr. Stone said that while sharrows are not in the 2003 MUTCD (the current version), they will be in the 2007 update. 

Public Schools Sidewalk Priorities (Jack Jenson): Mr. Jenson circulated a list of sidewalk priorities for CPS. He said these are not scientific,but came from listening to school principals, who in turn had gathered input from parents. For example, Derby Ridge and Mill Creek connections to nearby subdivisions would hlep. There is also a strong commitment in certain schools, e.g. Russell Blvd., that are taking a lead on fitness. For example, their PTA is creating activities based on fitness. Mr. Jenson said that this is a topic that people will really rally around, with the right kind of leadership.

Mr. Thomas said that PedNet's surveys of percent of walkers to schools agreed very closely with those that Mr. Jenson presented, where the two surveys overlapped. Mr. Jenson said he really appreciated the efforts to encourage walking to school.

Mr. Thomas asked how the school sidewalk priorities are funded? Mr. Stone said there was no specific list from the November ballot issue, but now that Mr. Nichols is director something may happen soon. That's a priority for him.

Ms. Reed said she's surprised that RBHS is a lower level priority. Mr. Jenson said that it was a C priority because other projects have greater potential to get children walking quickly. Mr. Thomas said that that is consistent with the NTP policy of favoring projects that will be the biggest mode shift. He added that it (Providence) is part oft he PedNet Plan. Also, Mr. Schmidt said that the new Facilities subcommittee had, at its last meeting, discussed the situation extensively.

Mr. Jenson closed by observing that a lot of different pieces are coming together. CPS has just created a wellness policy, for example. He said that children struggle to pay attention due to inactivity. 

Subcommittee Field Trip to View Intersections (Trevor Harris): Motion to make this a regular public meeting (passed): Mr. Harris circulated a draft flyer for a field trip to visit intersections. Mr. Stone suggested making it a subcommittee. After some discussion, a motion was made that the ride should be posted as a regular meeting.

The time was set at Sunday, June 17m 2006 from 2:00-4:00 p.m., leaving from the lot behind 701 east Broadway at 2:00. Rain date will be Sunday, June 25.

Online Problem Reporting System (Richard Stone): Mr. Stone presented the progress to date on a reporting system for bike/ped issues. He mentioned the technical hurdles connecting the database an the GIS, and suggested that someone (or everyone) from the committee be designated to enter data into the system. Limiting access to a smaller group would simplify the implementation considerably. Also, he expressed concern about doing too much before the bike/ped coordinator is hired, because that person may have his or her own ideas about how this should be implemented.

TIP Mechanics (Richard Stone): Mr. Stone reminded the subcommittee that the CATSO technical committee meets in August, and the coordinating committee meets in lat August or Early September. Therefore, if the committee wanted any additions tot he TIP for the next quarter, they would need to know by then> At present there is no staff for the technical committee.

Continued Discussion of Types of Existing Problems-Home Work: Mr Riddick Suggested that each subcommittee member pick an area of facility, or an area of town, and looked at the problems, think about how to catalog them, and do so. 

Adjournment: At precisely 5:10 p.m., the meeting adjourned. 

(1): Available online http://safety.fhwa.dot.gov/ped_bike/univcourse/pbcrsbroch.htm, more specifically at http:..safety.fhwa.dot.gov/ped_bike/univcourse/instrtoc.htm
(2): https://bookstore.transportation.org/item_details.aspx?ID=106
(3): https://bookstore.transportation.org/item_details.aspx?id=119

May 31, 2006