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HomeMy WebLinkAboutTransportation Board - Minutes - 05/17/1995Draft minutes to be approved by the Board at the June 21, 1995 meeting. JU/V 19 TRANSPORTATION BOARD nU� MEETING MINUTES MAY 17,1995 5:55-8:10 P.M. FOR REFERENCE: Chair — Colin Gerety (970)546.0460 Vice Chair — Paul Valentine 493-0100 Council Liaison — Will Smith 223-0425 Staff Liaison — Tom Frazier 221-6608 Secretary — Cindy Scott 221-6608 BOARD MEMBERS PRESENT. Alan Beatty, Mark Egeland, Sara Frazier, Colin Gerety, Dolores Highfield, Elizabeth Hudetz, Paul Perlmutter, and Paul Valentine BOARD MEMBERS ABSENT: Ray Moe STAFFfCOUNCILJGUESTS PRESENT. Eric Bracke, John Daggett, Tom Frazier, Susanne Edminster, Ron Phillips, Rita Davis, Betty Drake, Peggy Catlin, and Cindy Scott. AGENDA: Call to Omer Approval of Minutes A. PUBLIC COMMENT B. ACTION ITEMS C. DISCUSSION ITEMS 1. Signs on Buses - John Daggett 2. Bike Plan - Rita Davis 3. Board Member's Comments 4. Update from Staff 5. Summary/Next Agenda 6. Other Business Chair Gerety called the meeting to order at 5:55 p.m. These was a motion and a second to accept the April 19, 1995 Transportation Board meeting minutes as presented. Board Member Egeland noted that on page 2, CA. PARKS AND RECREATION UPDATE, first paragraph, last sentence, the year should be 1995, not 1998. Scott stated that Mr. Lemberg contacted her to give some points of clarification on what he said on page 3. 1) The traffic lights on Mason/Howes are not timed - period. 2) If you change the one -ways back, then you could use the computer scientists from CSU and the timing could be staggered in both directions - he felt this was not made clear, and 3) As long as they are one-way, time the lights together with Mulberry and Laurel. The Board unanimously approved the minutes as amended. A. PUBLIC COMMENT None B. ACTION ITEMS None C.I. SIGNS ON BUSES - JOHN DAGGETT Daggett stated that the context that surrounds bus advertising and the bus shelter advertisement that was made earlier in the year is the fad that the federal government has cut the operating funds that are flowing to the City of Fort Collins for transit service. In 1995, that cut is $120,000. The projected cut for 1996 is about $140,000 at a minimum, but could be as high as $400,000. External bus advertising differs from bus shelter advertising in the sense that bus advertising is consistent with the City's sign code. It will produce about $120,000 annually in terns of revenue. There are some restrictions that we cannot place on the advertising content of those signs, those that are of a political and religious nature. For example, the advertising of tobacco products could be prohibited, but you cannot prohibit the ability for a person to run a political announcement on the bus. This project is a response to a shortfall in federal funds and this is a revenue source that may, in other years, have been used to promote additional service, but we are proposing this to Council as an advertising program to make up the shortfall. Questions from the Board: Valentine: What are the start up costs? Daggett: Approximately $120 per bus to put frames on them. Highfield: Will the advertising be affordable for local businesses? Daggett: The most expensive sign per square inch is the sign that is on the back on the bus, however, the street side sign is.going to "rent" for about $120 per month. To compare, it costs about $1,100 to take out a full page ad in the Coloradoan for one day. We think it is affordable. 2 Highfield: Will you have any kind of veto power in case there is something that is tasteless, 1 know there are guidelines, but not ... Daggett: We can control the content of the products that are being advertised and we will see the ads before they go on the buses. Again, we cannot control religious or political ads, unless they become obscene or not in good taste. Perlmutter. Is there any advertising inside the bus? Daggett: Yes, in fact the ads on the outside of the bus makes the advertising on the inside of the bus much more interesting as a package. Gerety: Are there any discussions going on in the City about other ways to meet the budget shortfall? Daggett: I'll let Ron talk about transportation in general, but for transit, we are in the middle of a budget process for 1996 and the process doesn't deal with this year's shortfall. In 1996, we are proposing a budget that will be supplemental, put forward to Council to make up what our projected shortfall for 1996 will be, plus other in -kind service enhancement. Phillips explained some changes in the Transportation Services area because this ultimately has financial impacts on many things and in many ways: - There are now two groups in transportation - Transportation Operations and Projects which involves Engineering, Streets and Traffic and a Multi -modal Transportation Planning group which consists of Planning, Transfort, and a new Transportation Demand Management group. - Tom Frazier is the group leader for Multi -Modal Transportation and Gary Diede is the leader for the Operations side. Susanne Edminster has recently joined Transportation Services as a Policy Analyst. He said that he would like to spend more time on all the changes, but will do that at a later time so as not to take up Daggett's allotted time. Perlmutter. Why do we need Council approval if this meets the sign code, can't we just go ahead and make that decision? Daggett: Since programs of this kind have been of keen interest to Council, staff felt this should be brought before them before implementing it. There really is no formal action on the part of Council. Gerety asked the Board if there was any strong feeling on this, enough to send a letter to Council, etc. Hudetz said that she sees it as just an issue of whether or not we're growing more towards the big city rather than the cause of advertising versus more of a resort or the country where you're not being bombarded all the time with marketing. Highfield said that she would rather see the ads on the buses than on the shelters. Egeland said that you should reserve a certain amount for your own advertising. Perlmutter said that he likes the idea of ads on buses. S. Frazier asked how the price for the ads was determined. Daggett: A number of bus companies were called around the region for their quotes. 3 Beatty asked what the status is on the bike racks on buses project and where the racks would be mounted. Daggett: The project is going forward and will be brought to the Board when the plan is roughed out in draft form. The racks will be mounted on the front of the bus. Davis said that the contract has been signed. There was a delay when the State didn't have enough funds, they were over allocated. The final details are being tied down now. Gerety said that since the Board is in agreement with the concept, he will draft a letter to Council Transit Development Plan (TDP) - Daggett provided a hand-out for the Board. This will be discussed at Council's Study Session on Tuesday night. Staff is asking Council to concur with the final product and to agree to push staff in the direction for a vision for the year 2015. He invited any interested Board member to come and share in the discussion with Council. Egeland said that the regional elements are good, such as the park 'n ride. Its very important. C.2. BIKE PLAN - Rita Davis Davis said that the process has been on -going for 11 months now. The plan is going to be on the agenda for a City Council Study Session next Tuesday. At that time, staff will present the plan, get their feedback and then take it out to the public. She introduced Betty Drake with Drake and Associates. She is the bicycle planner on the project. Her team is complimented with Peggy Catlin from HNTB. Betty Drake took the floor and thanked the City staff and the focus group members for their hard work and time. She said that this has been a very interactive plan between the consultants and the committee members. This was a "hands-on" project, members went out to locations to see problem areas first hand and inventories were done in the field. This was involvement, not just a bunch of people sitting around a conference table. The group tried every step of the way to document the decision -making process, to try to build a plan in a logical and systematic way that follows a very clear order. We defined goals and objectives and referred back to those. We used them like a template to go through the whole plan and make sure we kept focused. This isn't just a bike plan, it is a comprehensive bicycle program plan in that Fort Collins already has a good start on facilities. She has worked with many cities and most would envy what Fort Collins has. However, the group saw room for improvement in the areas of encouragement, enforcement, and policy programs. The planning process is well documented. The group started out with the question - What's the problem? What's out there that we need to fix? What's good out there that we should jump on and take advantage of and build in? Ms. Drake went on to explain in detail all the steps the group took in developing a vision plan. She also gave some highlights from the survey that are included in the Plan. To develop the actual plan, the group went through a two -tiered level of screening. They went through and divided the projects in the vision plan into smaller segments - about 280 projects - and did a rating for each one of those based on criteria from the goals and objectives that had to do with access, continuity, and safety and the group looked at what those things meant and what they would have to do to get a high rating. Bonus points were given to segments if they had a high scenic value or if they were shown on the regional plan, etc. The group then looked at the ones that came out the highest and chose the finalists. There were three categories that the final ones fell into: Major capital projects; minor fix -ups; and maintenance activities. The group then took the capital projects and HNTB's engineers went out and looked at every one of those, put together detailed cost estimates and the focus group then made a general determination of the types of improvements they wanted to see so the engineers would have something to work from. Another screening was done based on cost and also the idea of balancing the whole system. Enforcement was studied during the process as well as policies, plans and standards. In summary, the group decided that the first priority would be to hire a bicycle education coordinator (programs and policy); the second is maintenance of the facilities we have now, the third priority is new capital projects. Comments/Questions: Egeland said that he was happy with the results of the plan, that education and enforcement aspects are very important. Valentine said that the work of staff and the consultants was commendable. He said that the facilities are okay at this time, but the big thing is to educate people to use them. If people could be encouraged to use their bikes for even two trips a day, this would make a difference in vehicle miles traveled. He noted that rollerbladers were not really addressed in the process, somebody is going to have to address this sooner or later because they use the bike lanes all the time. He said that he is excited about the plan and that we would be better off with someone to handle the enforcement and education coordination. Smith asked if there is any breakdown as far as what is do -able near -tern i.e.: 6 months, t year and 2 year, etc. Drake: No, that has not been done, but it should. S. Frazier said that it was one of the most interesting reports she has read in a long time - well done! She stated that she is concerned about the enforcement (and you have addressed this issue, but let's go further), you have the scenic route and the direct or indirect routes - it is dangerous when bicycles use them at fast speeds. Maybe different lanes for different speeds? Davis: I'll have to check again with Craig Foreman, but I believe that Fossil Creek Park is going to have what you described. They are also looking at the possibility of expanding some of the trails with crusher fines to help relieve congestion. Valentine commented that the group's focus was transportation, not necessarily recreation. Gerety said that he noticed this focus in the plan, but that it is disconcerting not to find yourself in the plan - a fast, recreational biker. He said that the fast cyclists are actually a fair segment of the population and that they also serve to encourage others, showing that long commutes can be done. Ways out of town are needed for these types of cyclists, this is what we lack. He referenced that there is no route to Horsetooth but that there should be, Drake agreed and said she will fix it. Smith said that this plan is well in advance of many of the plans coming together, but going back to policies and programs, with the City Plan and the Transit Development Plan coming into it, somehow we need to figure out how to set these things up. There is opportunity for integration of all these types of components. Phillips: There are a number of elements that have been done separately, for instance, the Natural Resource Plan and others that will be folded into and become part of the City Plan. We're heading toward a Master Transportation Plan for the city that this will become a component of, the TDP will become a component of. There will be a re -do of the street system, there will be a lot of changes in how we do streets in the future. We will look at streets as multi -modal arteries, not just for cars. We will keep these things uppermost in our mind as we proceed. Highfield asked about where the trail goes under I-25 by Timnath, where will it be? There was some confusion about the railroad and the Timnath Town Board and permission to do this. Drake said that it is do -able, it is just a matter of getting approval, which didn't sound like it would be a problem. Highfield asked where the new staff person would fit in. Davis said that they would be a part of Transportation Services in TDM because of the education goal. That is the focus of the TDM - to encourage and educate. Perlmutter asked if the budget for the plan will be presented to City Council. Davis responded that if the top 38 projects were be funded it would be in excess of $20 million. This infomration will be available to them in the report, but once again, our priority is to start with the program things first. We won't be going to Council with a $20 million request. Perlmutter stated that the bike group is making excellent recommendations, but what is it going to cost? How much are you asking for, $10,000 or $10 million? It doesn't say. Drake said that she can clarify this and get it to the Board. She will put it together in a first year, second year, etc. format. Valentine said that on the last page, there is a schedule. He referred to #156. When projects like this are done, we need to be ready for bike implementation. Smith asked Drake how he would perceive the plan if he were a car -only person. Drake responded that that he might say, "Finally somebody's going to do something to get those squirrey bicyclists out of the middle of the road and get them to obey the laws just like I do." Paul Valentine was designated as the Transportation Board member to attend the City Council Study Session for the Bike Plan. C.3. BOARD MEMBER'S COMMENTS Valentine said that he finally has the bike survey results!! CA. UPDATE FROM STAFF - Rick Ensdorff has announced his resignation effective June 2. He has accepted a position with Centennial Engineering. M • 0 . Rita Davis is leaving Transportation for a position in Police Services as a Project Manager. - Phillips would like to have Transportation Services Re -organization on the next agenda. - Smith asked if a final date has been set for the County Road 9 opening? He talked with some riders who requested that the road be opened 1-2 days earlier for bike riders. - New bike racks are being installed throughout downtown/old town. - Travel Demand Management (TDM) Update: 15,000 travel diaries went out and the travel intercept began, so far so good. Bracke would like to have the TDM on the next agenda, as well as a copy of the revised Transportation Improvement Program for the Board's review. He will also talk more about the Statewide Plan process next time. - Phillips gave an overview of two highway bills. C.S. NEXTAGENDA - Transportation Services Re -organization - TDM Update - Overview of all current plans and discuss board member representation - Dial-A-Ride/Care-A-Van Update (Beatty asked for a review of some of the complaints and the action items of all three: DAR; CAV; and Transfort. What do they do to solve problems? This can be at some point in the future.) C.S. OTHER BUSINESS -The one-way couplet report is done, this will be put on a future agenda as the next one is full. - City Manager candidates will be at the Lincoln Center from 4:30-6:30 if anyone would like to stop by and meet them.. There being no other business, the meeting adjourned at 8:10 p.m. &4d 64/) bW- Cindy L. Scoff, Secretary