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HomeMy WebLinkAboutTransportation Board - Minutes - 02/15/2023 TRANSPORTATION BOARD – BICYCLE ADVISORY COMMITTEE JOINT MEETING TYPE OF MEETING – REGULAR February 15, 2023, 6:00 p.m. Virtual Meeting Via Zoom 2 /1 5 /202 3 – MINUTES Page 1 FOR REFERENCE: Chair: Cari Brown/Dave Dixon Vice Chair: Council Liaison: Ed Peyronnin/Jordan Williams Emily Francis Staff Liaison: Aaron Iverson/Cortney Geary 1. CALL TO ORDER Chair Brown called the meeting to order at 6:00 PM. 2. ROLL CALL TRANSPORTATION BOARD MEMBERS PRESENT: Cari Brown, Chair Ed Peyronnin, Vice Chair Jerry Gavaldon James Burtis Indy Hart Rob Owens BICYCLE ADVISORY COMMITTEE MEMBERS PRESENT: Dave Dixon, Chair Jordan Williams, Vice Chair Greg Boiarsky Whitney Allison Marcia Richards Ed Peyronnin Rob Owens Scott Mason David Hansen CITY STAFF PRESENT: Melina Dempsey Davina Lau PUBLIC PRESENT: Jamie Gaskill, CSU Aaron Fodge, CSU Alan Braslau Kimberly Baker TRANSPORTATION BOARD – BICYCLE ADVISORY COMMITTEE TYPE OF MEETING – REGULAR 2 /1 5 /2023 – MINUTES Page 2 3. AGENDA REVIEW Iverson stated there is an additional unfinished business item related to the Transportation Board representation on the BAC. 4. CITIZEN PARTICIPATION Alan Braslau commented on poor bicycle lane conditions with the recent snow. He stated the roads should be plowed curb to curb and parking should not be allowed on roadways that are plowed. He also commented on the dangerous conditions created by the pylon- protected bike lanes and noted a debris field is left in the bike lanes once snow melts. Mr. Braslau also commented on the current proposed revisions to the Land Use Code noting the City had wanted to allow for parking reductions in affordable housing projects. He expressed concern that would prevent people from living in affordable housing projects from charging electric vehicles. Chair Brown thanked Mr. Braslau for his comments. Gavaldon commented on snow routes that used to be in place in Fort Collins which prevented parking on those roadways. He suggested those routes may need to be reinstated. He also discussed concerns related to the parking changes proposed in the Land Use Code and stated those concerns should be raised. 5. APPROVAL OF MINUTES – JANUARY 2023 Hart made a motion, seconded by Chair Brown, to approve the January 2023 Transportation Board minutes as amended to include an indication that two members did not vote. The motion was adopted unanimously by the members in attendance. Vice Chair Williams made a motion, seconded by Mason, to approve the January 2023 BAC minutes as amended. The motion was adopted unanimously by the members in attendance. 6. UNFINISHED BUSINESS a. Transportation Board Representation on the BAC Chair Brown stated this item relates to who will be the BAC liaison from the Transportation Board. Owens stated he is happy to remain as the BAC liaison as well as the informal liaison to the Planning and Zoning Commission. Vice Chair Peyronnin stated he does not have any objections. Gavaldon asked if there is still a two-year limit on the BAC liaison. Geary replied the Board would be asked whether it would like to appoint a new representative or have the same representative continue to serve at the end of the two-year term. TRANSPORTATION BOARD – BICYCLE ADVISORY COMMITTEE TYPE OF MEETING – REGULAR 2 /1 5 /2023 – MINUTES Page 3 Gavaldon stated he did not recall having the option to remain after his two-year term. Geary replied it is at the discretion of the Board whether to vote in a new member or continue with the same liaison. Gavaldon stated he was told he could not continue to serve after his two-year term and stated he is confused by the process and would like to ensure it is equitable. Geary replied she would look back through her emails and apologized if the rules were confused. 7. NEW BUSINESS a. Update on Travel Demand Management Planning Efforts – Jamie Gaskill and Aaron Fodge (CSU) and Melina Dempsey (City of Fort Collins) Jamie Gaskill, CSU Active Transportation Professional, introduced herself. Aaron Fodge, CSU Parking and Transportation Services, introduced himself. Ms. Gaskill provided background on the Transportation Demand Management (TDM) Master Plan update noting it is an effort related to updating the 2014 Transportation Master Plan, which has been renamed the TDM Master Plan. She stated the plan is to complete the update by June of 2023. Ms. Gaskill outlined the goal of transportation demand management on campus, which is to provide effective, reliable, and safe transportation choices for people on campus. She discussed the five aspects of transportation planning: infrastructure, improving permeability, multi-modal safety, prioritizing the movement of people as the measure of efficiency, and providing efficient interconnectivity to users. Mr. Fodge discussed the data sources that are going to be used to develop the plan, including parking, Transfort ridership, bicycle counters, crash data, household data, and turning movements. He discussed examples of how those types of data have been utilized in the past and commented on how the plan will aid in how greenhouse gas emissions can be reduced. Ms. Gaskill discussed the changes to how campus has been laid out over time and the resulting changes to movement. Mr. Fodge discussed improving permeability specifically citing the benefits of on- campus Transfort and MAX service as well as the on-campus bikeways. He commented on the importance of campus buildings having inclusive amenities to help reduce or eliminate the number of unnecessary trips off -campus during the workday. Ms. Gaskill discussed the prioritization of vulnerable road users with regard to multi- modal safety. She commented on the importance of educational efforts and the Vision Zero task force which is aimed at having zero fatalities and serious injury crashes related to transportation on the campus. TRANSPORTATION BOARD – BICYCLE ADVISORY COMMITTEE TYPE OF MEETING – REGULAR 2 /1 5 /2023 – MINUTES Page 4 Mr. Fodge discussed measuring efficiency by prioritizing the movement of people, not just vechicles. Ms. Gaskill discussed connectivity and specifically cited the forthcoming West Elizabeth bus rapid transit project and associated shared micro-mobility modes. She noted there is an on-campus fleet of vehicles that is available for employees to use for workday trips, free transit passes are provided to everyone on campus, shared micro-mobility devices are available throughout campus, and there are 11 Zip Car locations around campus. Mr. Fodge outlined the process for the effort and stated they are currently doing these types of stakeholder presentations to about 50 groups. He stated focus group work and a mode split survey will be forthcoming and the draft plan will be shared with the group. Gavaldon asked about the funding CSU students currently contribute to Transfort and whether that would no longer be in place if Transfort moves to a no fee structure. He also asked how the West Elizabeth project will be funded. Mr. Fodge replied the City received a grant to fund the West Elizabeth 30% design and CSU and the City split the match that was required for that grant. He stated the City has obtained another grant for the 100% design which is about to begin and CSU and the City will also split that match. He stated discussions about funding the overall project have yet to occur. He stated CSU currently contributes a little over $2 million a year to Transfort and funds the on-campus shuttle. He stated he is unsure what the impact of Transfort moving to a fare-free system would be. He noted the students pay for services that the City would not otherwise operate if they weren’t funded exclusively by the University, including the higher-frequency routes on West Elizabeth and the on-campus shuttles, which he stated he assumed the University would continue to fund. Gavaldon commented on funding issues with Transfort that led to CSU football spectators having to leave a game early in order to catch the last MAX ride. He stated it would have been helpful if CSU would have been able to fund that extra service and asked about plans for the future. Mr. Fodge replied CSU’s athletics department works with Transfort year-round to provide service and some of the issues may have been related to the driver shortage. He stated he would note the comment that the funding may be more of a CSU concern rather than just athletics. Burtis asked about the Pitkin bike route through campus and whether the gap between Libby Coy Way and Mason where the bike lane vanishes is planned for improvement. Mr. Fodge replied the City allowed CSU to leverage its contract for the Active Modes Plan, and through that process, a separate work order wa s used to create ultimate corridor layouts, including for Pitkin. He stated that segment should be expanded to increase the bike lane widths as part of future redevelopment. TRANSPORTATION BOARD – BICYCLE ADVISORY COMMITTEE TYPE OF MEETING – REGULAR 2 /1 5 /2023 – MINUTES Page 5 Burtis commended the West Elizabeth BRT plan and asked if it would be possible to collapse the routes now between the Foothills Campus and the Mason Street MAX line given the full West Elizabeth BRT could be a decade out . Mr. Fodge replied there is an interim condition being pursued by the City which includes seeking grant funding for a formal transit station at the Foothills Campus which would provide the opportunity to collapse some of the existing routes and make them more direct. Vice Chair Williams asked how the Active Modes Plan and Vision Zero Plan data is informing CSU’s TDM Plan. Mr. Fodge replied the crash-related data will help prioritize the dangerous intersections for improvement. He noted CSU and the City have had a great deal of success in seeking out joint grants, and the West Elizabeth corridor will be another example of that. He stated the data is helping to substantiate how CSU prioritizes its investments and with grants. Melina Dempsey, FC Moves Senior Transportation Planner, discussed the development of the City’s TDM program called Shift Your Ride Travel Options. She outlined the official federal definition of TDM, which involves a suite of strategies informing, helping, and encouraging people who are travelling to maximize the efficiency of a transportation system to result in improved mobility options and more access to transportation options while reducing congestion and lowering vehicle emissions. She noted infrastructure is not part of the definition of TDM; however, TDM can be complimentary and supportive to infrastructure. Dempsey outlined strategies from the various categories involved in TDM, including tailored outreach to employers and people travelling in Fort Collins as pa rt of education and outreach efforts, paid on-street parking, creating telework and flexible work schedules with employers, and having employers pay employees who do not use parking spaces. She provided examples of the suite of services involved in TDM, including guaranteed ride home programs. Dempsey discussed single-occupancy vehicle trends in Fort Collins noting the number is higher now than it was prior to the start of the pandemic. Additionally, transit, carpooling, walking, and biking trends have remained relatively unchanged and teleworking numbers are declining. She outlined the TDM related efforts already ongoing as part of FC Moves. Dempsey provided examples of TDM programs in other cities. She outlined program and plan development, including the funding from the City’s budgeting process of $200,000 per year which will ultimately be used to fund a full-time employee and program implementation. She discussed the schedule for the planning effort which will culminate with the launch of the program in the fall of 2023, and detailed the public outreach efforts and consultant information. Dempsey outlined the strategy development process noting the development of high- level goals is currently underway. TRANSPORTATION BOARD – BICYCLE ADVISORY COMMITTEE TYPE OF MEETING – REGULAR 2 /1 5 /2023 – MINUTES Page 6 Gavaldon asked how much the consultant work is costing the City. Dempsey replied the consultant work is just under $200,000. Hart suggested low-hanging fruit for TDM is to keep clean and clear bike lanes and pedestrian routes year-round. He also noted Transfort service has not returned to pre-pandemic levels; therefore, the increased use of single -occupancy vehicles is to be expected. Vice Chair Williams asked if there is anything in particular needed from this group to move this effort forward. Dempsey replied the process is currently in the ‘inform’ early stages and feedback will be sought in the future. Vice Chair Williams stated that while this group understands the need to shift rides, that need is not necessarily as relevant or present in other City departments. Dempsey noted there will be an employee TDM program which will touch every City department as the organization wants to model the desired changes. Burtis concurred with Hart’s comments and suggested a restructuring of bus routes could be helpful to encourage transit use. Additionally, he supported paid on-street parking, particularly if the funds could be used for active modes or transit. Gavaldon requested Dempsey send the consultants’ scope of work summary and questioned whether the consultants are being used to consolidate previous work . He also asked about the total project cost and the percentage of that cost that is going to the consultants. Dempsey clarified the project has a $200,000 annual budget through the City’s budgeting process and the first year is being spent on the consultants for the agreed scope of work. She commented on the efficient use of existing data. Gavaldon expressed concern about paid on-street parking and asked if Downtown business partners are being included in those plans. Dempsey replied paid on-street parking is just one effective strategy utilized in other cities and noted the parking team and Transfort are working directly with the Downtown Development Authority. Boiarsky stated this is a social issue and suggested both incentives and penalties need to be considered moving forward. 8. BOARD MEMBER REPORTS Hart echoed Mr. Braslau’s comments and stated it is sad riding the bus is so inefficient and bike paths are covered in debris and snow. He stated the city has lost the ability to be anything other than a single-occupancy vehicle city. Burtis stated the ice in bike lanes is also an issue. He announced the upcoming Transportation Projects Fair and reported on the build-out of the City Park Avenue bike lane onto Mulberry. TRANSPORTATION BOARD – BICYCLE ADVISORY COMMITTEE TYPE OF MEETING – REGULAR 2 /1 5 /2023 – MINUTES Page 7 Gavaldon echoed Nathalie Rachline’s comments related to concerns about vehicle stacking on College Avenue near Raising Cane’s and Starbucks. He stated he would like to see more education efforts around dangerous intersections, specifically citing two recent cyclist deaths. Vice Chair Peyronnin also commented on the two cyclist fatalities. He agreed with comments regarding debris, snow, and ice in bike lanes. Owens reported on the recent Planning and Zoning Commission meeting during which the Commission did not vote to recommend moving forward with 1041 regulations due to the quick turnaround between versions two and three of the regulations. He also reported on the last BAC meeting during which SPIN and Active Modes Plan implementation updates were provided. He commented on the two recent cyclist fatalities and asked what City departments are involved in looking at those types of accidents for safety improvement opportunities. Geary replied the formation of a Vision Zero Task Force is recommended in the Vision Zero Action Plan. Iverson noted a debrief with Police Services and Traffic Operations occurs anytime there is a cyclist or pedestrian fatality ; however, the Vision Zero recommendation is a bit more formal. Owens reiterated concerns about ice and snow in bike lanes and on sidewalks. He discussed the transit-oriented development overlay zone specifically related to the new King Soopers at Drake and College. He questioned what allowed the rules written for the TOD overlay zone. Vice Chair Peyronnin reported on the Campus Bicycle Advisory Committee’s work to kick off the bike-friendly university application process. Mason asked about the estimated cost for the Harmony and McMurray underpass. Iverson replied the current range is between $10 and $15 million, some of which has been secured through dedicated taxes and grant awards; however, there is about a $3 million gap at this point. Owens commended winter Bike to Work Day. Vice Chair Williams also commended winter Bike to Work Day and commented on the safe systems approach going beyond education and enforcement in relation to the recent cyclist fatalities. Allison discussed how a change in speed limits would increase single-occupancy vehicle travel times and could therefore make the shift your ride concept more appealing. She also discussed the proposed Land Use Code parking changes related to affordable housing and EV charging stations being disincentivized for those projects. Hansen reported on two forthcoming trail infrastructure projects on campus. Chair Dixon echoed the comments related to the cyclist fatalities and expressed support for the Vision Zero Task Force. He reported on upcoming spring Safe Routes to School TRANSPORTATION BOARD – BICYCLE ADVISORY COMMITTEE TYPE OF MEETING – REGULAR 2 /1 5 /2023 – MINUTES Page 8 programming and bike equity initiatives. 9. OTHER BUSINESS a. City Council 6-Month Calendar Review Iverson highlighted upcoming Council topics including the North College MAX BRT plan, the Hughes Stadium property, 1041 regulations, parking, and advancing transit. b. Staff Liaison Report Geary thanked the Board and Committee members who acknowledged the cyclist fatalities and stated staff will continue to work to make improvements at those intersections as well as systemically. She noted the safe systems approach is integral to the Vision Zero Action Plan, which should be going before Council for first reading next month. Geary stated there were at least 5,000 station visits for winter Bike to Work Day. She announced the Safe Streets for All grant was not received ; however, another application with an adopted Vision Zero Action Plan will be submitted this year. She announced a community access to electric bicycles grant for just under $150,000 was received from the Colorado Energy Office. Iverson thanked the members for having this joint meeting and provided a link to the Transportation Projects Fair. He stated the Transportation Board seems to have a desire to have a virtual meeting option but would also like to trend toward in-person or hybrid meetings. 10. ADJOURNMENT The meeting adjourned at 8:17 p.m. by unanimous consent.