Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAboutBicycle Advisory Committee - Minutes - 08/27/2018 BICYCLE ADVISORY COMMITTEE TYPE OF MEETING –REGULAR August 27, 2018, 6:00 p.m. Community Room, 215 North Mason Street, Fort Collins, CO 08/27/2018 – MINUTES Page 1 FOR REFERENCE: Chair: Luke Caldwell Vice-Chair: Aaron Buckley Staff Liaison: Tessa Greegor 970-416-2471 1. CALL TO ORDER Chair Caldwell called the meeting to order at 6:00 PM. 2. ROLL CALL BOARD MEMBERS PRESENT: CITY STAFF PRESENT: Paul Sizemore Luke Caldwell, Chair, Natural Resources Advisory Board Aaron Buckley, Vice Chair, Fort Collins Bike Co-op Karl Ayers, Transportation Board Bruce Henderson, Bike Fort Collins Annie Krieg, At Large Member Chris Hunt, Poudre School District Marcia Patton-Mallory, Land Conservation and Stewardship Board Mark Houdashelt, Air Quality Advisory Board Terri Marty, At Large Member Sylvia Cranmer, Colorado State University ABSENT: Alan Beatty, Senior Advisory Board Todd Dangerfield, Downtown Development Authority Kelly Smith, Parks and Recreation Board PUBLIC PRESENT: Kevin Orchard 3. AGENDA REVIEW Chair Caldwell reviewed the agenda. BICYCLE ADVISORY COMMITTEE TYPE OF MEETING – REGULAR 08/27/2018 – MINUTES Page 2 4. CITIZEN PARTICIPATION Kevin Orchard stated he was present. 5. APPROV AL OF MINUTES Chair Caldwell made a change errantly attributing a comment to Beatty. Hunt made a motion, seconded by Henderson, to approve the minutes of the July 2018 meeting as amended. The motion was adopted unanimously with Buckley abstaining. 6. UNFINISHED BUSINESS Chair Caldwell thanked Buckley for facilitating the Bike Co-op tour. 7. NEW BUSINESS a. 2018 Bicycle and Pedestrian Counts - Sizemore Sizemore stated the counts will occur September 11, 13 and 15. He presented information regarding volunteer shifts and stated a report will be forthcoming following data collection and analysis. b. Budgeting for Outcomes Boardmembers discussed priorities for offers as suggested by Patton-Mallory Chair Caldwell stated the highest desired offers based on feedback he received from Committee members were for the Harmony Power Trail grade-separated crossings. Patton-Mallory stated she ranked those offers as being the lowest priority as they are not urgent. Ayers stated the Transportation Board ranked those offers as important because of the connection to newer developments south of town and the thought that the current major intersection crossing is preventing users from utilizing the Power Trail. Henderson stated this project is the one most mentioned by users as being valuable to improving travel flow. Hunt stated the intersection has provided a barrier for Poudre School District bike trips. Krieg stated this project addressed a safety and convenience factor, particul arly for young riders. Chair Caldwell stated the next highest prioritized budget offer is Bicycle and Pedestrian Infrastructure Maintenance. Sizemore noted this budget offer provides for maintenance of new infrastructure. He stated the hope is to make a transition to a more wholistic approach with construction and maintenance and making it part of the ongoing growth in the regular funds. BICYCLE ADVISORY COMMITTEE TYPE OF MEETING – REGULAR 08/27/2018 – MINUTES Page 3 A committee member stated it is important to note there is an expectation that this will be built into base funding in future years. Houdashelt asked if there is already a budget item for existing infrastructure. Sizemore replied the base level of maintenance is part of the ongoing budgets for Traffic Operations and Streets. Chair Caldwell stated Hunt identified the North College/Mountain offer as a top priority. Hunt replied it connects underserved areas. Ayers stated the Transportation Board received a presentation on this topic during which the need for multi -modal connections to outlying “closed” neighborhoods. There was discussion around ranking the Linden Street Bridge as a high priority item as the bike riding in the area is high volume and high risk. Discussion ensued about how this offer would mesh with some of the changes being made as part of the whitewater park. Cranmer asked if the Mountain Vista area proposed project is within city limits. Sizemore replied some annexation still needs to occur and this budget item would just provide funding for the enhanced travel corridor plan, not the project itself. He noted the area is entirely within the growth management area. A committee member asked if bicycle counts factor into project prioritization. Sizemore replied that counts may help shape offers but he didn’t believe there has ever been an effort to integrate counts into the BFO process. A committee member requested input regarding the budget item for bicycle-friendly driving education. Krieg replied she ranked the offer highly as it seems to provide a great deal of benefit for the cost. She stated reaching young drivers and bicyclists is the way to think about bike advocacy and mode co-existence in the long term. Committee members discussed the appropriate funding source for this item, suggesting Poudre School District may be a better source. Chair Caldwell suggested the Committee come to a conclusion regarding which items are essential. Buckley agreed with the top three mentioned priorities and stated the West Elizabeth travel corridor completion would also be a priority for him as it would benefit CSU students and staff. Sizemore replied the enhanced travel corridor plan for West Elizabeth is complete and this budget item would fund a targeted study to make the corridor eligible to apply for federal grants for infrastructure construction. Discussion was held about ranking the West Elizabeth item lower as it would not necessarily positively impact bicycle mobility or infrastructure within the city. Buckley stated he also prioritized the Transportation Demand Management position and Laporte Avenue improvements. BICYCLE ADVISORY COMMITTEE TYPE OF MEETING – REGULAR 08/27/2018 – MINUTES Page 4 Committee members suggested clustering offers for a recommendation to the Transportation Board. Sizemore noted the Committee’s motion could authorize the Chair to customize the recommendation once the City Manager’s recommended budget is revealed. For the highest priority offers, the Committee members discussed the Harmony Trail grade separated crossing and the bicycle/pedestrian infrastructure maintenance offers. The motorist education offer should include a mention of alternative funding. For a second tier of offers which the Committee would support moving a bove the budget cut line, the Committee members discussed the Mountain Vista/North College item, Linden Street, and Laporte Avenue because of the possibility of other funding options from other entities. Hunt discussed the importance of advocating for bicycle offers given the role of this Committee. Committee members discussed the Hampshire low-stress bikeway. Hunt stated he prioritized that highly as it is a highly-trafficked area for student and family cyclists. Other Committee members stated Hampshire is relatively safe already. Hunt agreed, and the Committee opted to put the offer in their third tier of offers which the Committee would understand leaving until the next budget cycle. Regarding the Transportation Options Plan Program, advocated for by Buckley, Committee members agreed transportation demand management planning is important but questioned how the position would be funded. Committee members agreed to place the Transportation Options Plan Program, motorist education, and the West Elizabeth travel corridor as second-tier items. Chair Caldwell stated the Downtown Mountain Avenue reshaping projects falls into a second-tier priority for him. Hunt stated he rated that as a h igh priority for bike movement purposes; however, that improvement will likely be made in the future. Committee members agreed to make that item a third-tier priority. Committee members agreed to make Trail, Bridge and Safety Improvements, Park Maintenance Workers and Maintenance of New Parks and Trails, and Poudre River Downtown Master Plan Feasibility Study third-tier priorities. Hunt suggested adding comments as to why certain offers were ranked as third-tier priorities. Chair Caldwell summarized the Committee’s priorities as follows: First tier: Harmony Power Trail items and Bicycle and Pedestrian Infrastructure Maintenance Second Tier: Laporte Avenue, Transportation Options Plan and Program, Motorist BICYCLE ADVISORY COMMITTEE TYPE OF MEETING – REGULAR 08/27/2018 – MINUTES Page 5 Education, West Elizabeth, and North College/Mountain Vista Henderson made a motion, seconded by Hunt, to request Chair Caldwell draft a letter to the Transportation Board explaining the Committee’s tiered rankings and authorizing Chair Caldwell to revisit the list and draft an update if necessary once the budget recommendations are presented. The motion was adopted unanimously. c. Safety Stop Bill Buckley stated he is in favor of the City being a leader in this realm and stated he is in favor of moving forward with stop-as-yield with the caveat that there be a large education campaign and a minimum age restriction. He noted many communities are reviewing this and as the state has adopted common language, there is still forward momentum on making it a reality. Hunt stated he is opposed to allowing rolling stops as there is effectively a rolling stop allowance by not requiring a foot to be put down. He expressed concern bicyclists would assume they have the right-of-way and stated this would work against the city’s image. He also expressed concern this would have negative impacts on young riders and stated the enforcement discretion is likely the same amount of discretion that would be used if this were legal. He also stated nothing significant has happened at the state level that would push a change. Henderson stated he spoke with Dangerfield today and he questioned what problem this change would solve. Buckley replied being a leader does not necessarily mean a problem is being solved. A committee member suggested there may be a middle ground where cyclists get bikeways through town with better timed lights and a stop -as-yield situation. Cranmer questioned why cyclists should have special rules and stated this would be a large issue with the motorist community. Buckley stated bicyclists are different than cars and questioned why an unenforced, unobeyed law exists. He stated teaching young cyclists involves teaching them how to make judgement calls and appropriate decisions given the unpredictability of roadways. Henderson asked what the Transportation Board would like to receive from the BAC. Ayers replied the Board would like a recommendation on whether the BAC feels strongly enough to change City Code to allow bikes to yield at stop signs. A committee member stated this would take away the grey area from enforcement decisions. Boardmembers discussed what this change would mean for bicycle predictability. Henderson asked if the new state changes would make the Committee want to recommend changes at this point. BICYCLE ADVISORY COMMITTEE TYPE OF MEETING – REGULAR 08/27/2018 – MINUTES Page 6 Committee members questioned the basis of the original BAC recommendation regarding this issue. Henderson asked if the City would have any ability to recommend otherwise if the state made this a law. Boardmembers also discussed what changes it would take for the BAC to support stop -as- yield and Ayers indicated that the T -Board would not consider this item again unless the BAC initiated it. Patton-Mallory made a motion, seconded by Hunt, that the Bicycle Advisory Committee recommend that the Transportation Board not adopt any change in the current bicycle regulations at this time. Patton-Mallory suggested a motion recommending no changes at this time; however, leaving the possibility of changes in the future and noting the state language has been adopted to allow a uniform language which is not currently enough to justify a recommendation to adopt the language in Fort Collins at this time. Cranmar seconded the motion. Hunt suggested referring to the previous BAC work and recommendation in the motion. A committee member noted the BAC members held differing opinions which ultimately resulted in the motion to not change the existing regulations. Chair Caldwell summarized the motion on the table that the BAC cannot support a change of law at this time for a variety of reasons. He asked if there are other deciding factors for future consideration. Cranmer asked what the new state wording covers. Sizemore replied the default text provided by the state covers both yielding at stop sigs and treating traffic signals as stop signs. Chair Caldwell stated the current motion is that the BAC does not recommend the Transportation Board focus further attention on the stop -as-yield law at this time. Ayers stated that motion may not be enough for the Transportation Board to work from and suggested the Committee may need additional rationale for the motion. Henderson stated the Committee has yet to come to an agreement that it does or does not support stop-as-yield. Hunt made a motion to amend the original motion to state the BAC recommends the Transportation Board not take action on this issue at this time due to the reasons stated in the previous and current BAC recommendations, discussions, and research. Patton - Mallory and Cranmer accepted the change. The amended motion was adopted 5 -3 with one abstention. BICYCLE ADVISORY COMMITTEE TYPE OF MEETING – REGULAR 08/27/2018 – MINUTES Page 7 8. BOARD MEMBER REPORTS a. TRANSPORTATION BOARD REPORT – Ayers Ayers stated the E-bike pilot program is moving forward with a positive recommendation to Council from the Transportation Board. b. COMMITTEE MEMBER REPORTS/COMMENTS None. 9. OTHER BUSINESS a. Staff Report Sizemore stated Open Streets will occur September 9th. 10. ADJOURNMENT The meeting adjourned at 8:29 PM by unanimous consent.