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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCOUNCIL - AGENDA ITEM - 11/26/2019 - MOBILITY AND TRANSPORTATION WORK SESSIONDATE: STAFF: November 26, 2019 Dean Klingner, PDT Interim Director Paul Sizemore, FC Moves Manager Drew Brooks, Transit Director WORK SESSION ITEM City Council SUBJECT FOR DISCUSSION Mobility and Transportation Work Session. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY The purpose of this item is to provide an overview of the current state and future opportunities for transportation and mobility in Fort Collins and the surrounding region. Discussion will include regional trends, multi-modal transportation, and the transit system. GENERAL DIRECTION SOUGHT AND SPECIFIC QUESTIONS TO BE ANSWERED In what mobility area(s) should the City prioritize or invest? BACKGROUND / DISCUSSION The City Council has identified the following as a Council Priority: Encourage and Increase Transfort Use / Additional Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) Corridors. The recent City Plan update included an update to the Transportation Master Plan and Transit Master Plan. These plans reflect the strong community desire and input to enhance multimodal (transit, bike and pedestrian) options. The Pedestrian Plan and corresponding Sidewalk Prioritization Model outline citywide pedestrian needs while the Bicycle Master Plan reflects strategies to make bicycling attractive for people of all ages. Transportation Master Plan The Transportation Master Plan includes a near-term action item to update the Master Street Plan. The update would reflect changes to the street network highlighting some roadway expansion in areas where new development is still occurring, such as Northeast Fort Collins. Most existing roadways in the center part of the community will see very limited changes or expansion. The Transportation Master Plan recommends intersection improvements, signal optimization and travel demand management strategies to continue managing congestion. Transit Master Plan The Transit Master Plan recommends a future transit network that focuses on high-frequency transit (15 minute or better service). The future transit network will provide transit access to 85% of residents and 96% of employees and high-frequency service access to 53% of residents and 76% of employees. To accomplish this, and dependent upon future land use, high frequency coverage would be expanded, including new Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) routes along the North College, West Elizabeth, and Harmony Road corridors. In addition to traditional fixed-route service, the Transit Master Plan recommends the introduction of Mobility Innovation Zones in areas where land-use and population density are not currently supportive of high-frequency service. Funding sources and mechanisms are crucial to the implementation of the 2040 transit network. One of the first action items of the Transit Master Plan is to seek community input through an in depth funding study. The Transit Master Plan also includes strategies to encourage transit supportive development along planned high frequency corridors and mobility hubs for convenient transfers between transportation modes. November 26, 2019 Page 2 Pedestrian Plan The Pedestrian Plan outlines citywide pedestrian needs like sidewalk network gaps, safer ways to cross the street, and better ramps at street corners. The action items from this plan have led to many of the current systems and improvements to the pedestrian network such as evaluating pedestrian level of service during development review and the creation of the sidewalk prioritization model and program. However, the plan was last updated in 2011 and it is nearing the point where revisions are needed. One option currently being considered is to combine this plan with an updated Bicycle Master Plan to create an Active Modes Plan. https://www.fcgov.com/planfortcollins/pdf/ped-plan.pdf Sidewalk Prioritization Model The Sidewalk Prioritization Model reflects the build out of the sidewalk network and uses location, health and equity, and safety to prioritize sidewalk inventory for construction. https://www.fcgov.com/engineering/pdf/pedneedsreport2018.pdf?1551382806 Bicycle Master Plan The Bicycle Master Plan proposes a comprehensive set of strategies to create a safe and comfortable bicycling environment for people of all ages and abilities. It was adopted in 2014 and has been instrumental in guiding programming and infrastructure development in the City. The central concept of the Plan is the “low stress bicycle network”, which emphasizes safe, comfortable, easy to ride streets that parallel major arterial roads and connect the City. While the City is still working through some of the planned improvements in the 2014 Plan, an update to this plan to address both bicycle and pedestrian needs would be an innovative new solution that is evolving to be a current best practice. https://www.fcgov.com/bicycling/pdf/2014BicycleMasterPlan_adopted_final.pdf?1461016033 Regional Transportation The impact of regional travel patterns within the north front range area and the larger Denver region are significant to mobility and congestion within Fort Collins. This includes a commute pattern of about 32,000 people leaving town daily and almost 39,000 people commuting into town daily (according to 2015 Census data). This exchange of trips is primarily between Fort Collins and Loveland, Greeley and Timnath-Windsor. For the most part these trips are car trips, due simply to a lack of other travel options. Regional transit service includes the FLEX service that goes to Loveland (and ultimately to Boulder), and the Bustang, which goes to Denver with stops in Loveland. A new regional transit route between Fort Collins and Greeley will launch in 2020. These travel patterns are likely to continue with Fort Collins serving as a regional job, shopping and cultural center. The opportunity as a region will be to shift as many car trips (especially people driving alone) to either shared trips or to transit. In Fort Collins this may include capturing trips at the edge of town at park and rides and finishing trips on our Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) network. The MAX line is already doing this with commuters parking at the South Transit Center and riding MAX into town. Providing regional transportation choices will be important to Fort Collins and our neighbors to avoid growing congestion and resulting decline in mobility and quality of life. Assets and Operations City Transportation assets include almost 600 miles of roadways, over 300 bridges, and over 800 miles of sidewalks in addition to bus stops, traffic signs and signals, pavement markings, and on-street bicycle facilities. In addition, City operations include snow plowing, street sweeping, traffic operations, parking, and Transit service. Asset Maintenance and Operations are vital to all modes of Transportation in the City. If these assets are not maintained to their current level of service the resulting replacement cost will eventually be much higher. Without the current level of operations, residents will see a reduction in safety and multi-modal transportation options. November 26, 2019 Page 3 Transportation and Climate Action Plan Ground Transportation emissions of greenhouse gasses account for approximately 25% of total community emission. In the current Climate Action Plan Framework, the modelled path to meeting the community’s greenhouse gas reduction targets included approximately a 30% reduction in per capita vehicle miles travelled, which equates to a net reduction in total miles. Efficiency improvements and electrification of the vehicle fleet are partial solutions, but are not adequate to result in the emissions reductions we need in order to meet our goals. While the City has enjoyed many successes in this area, from the launch of MAX and ensuing increase in transit ridership, to the gradual buildout of the low stress bike network, the reductions in vehicle miles travelled and emissions have not been enough to overcome population growth. The community’s per capita miles and emissions have decreased, but total miles travelled continues to rise. The City is currently in the early stages of an update to the Climate Action Plan as a part of the Our Climate Future effort. Transportation staff are engaged in this effort and are looking at ways to strengthen the links between Transportation Master Plan action items and the Climate Action Plan. Access and Equity During the update to the Transportation Master Plan equity became a central theme that permeates the document and has dedicated policies and objectives. The Transportation Equity Subcommittee, an internal team of City staff, reviewed policies and made recommendations to ensure both the approach and language of the plan were appropriately incorporating equity considerations. The plan acknowledges health impacts of poor air quality and lack of physical activity and how these disproportionately impact people who are historically marginalized and typically underrepresented. It also considers the planning process itself and included targeted outreach to communities that are typically not reached by traditional engagement efforts. One of the major recommendations of the plan includes the need to expand transit with high frequency service, since frequency presents a major barrier to transit ridership. Recognizing that access to transit and other mobility services transcends service level and includes many institutional, cultural, and linguistic elements, staff from PDT have assembled a Barriers to Transit Working Group. Although still in its initial stages, this group’s purpose is to review the many sources of data and feedback available, determine whether new or more research is necessary, and to form partnerships between City departments and external collaborators to help reduce these barriers. We anticipate that the lessons learned from this exercise can help inform other evolving areas of mobility such as access to shared mobility services like e-scooters and bike share. Achieving Vision Zero In recent years there has been increasing awareness of Vision Zero initiatives that aim to achieve a transportation system that produces no fatalities or serious injuries. While this philosophy may be implicit in many of the efforts that cities make, there is also great value in being explicit about this goal and developing targeted action items to achieve it. In 2016, the City of Fort Collins became the first municipality to join the Colorado Department of Transportation’s Moving Toward Zero Deaths Initiative. This initiative is the State of Colorado’s commitment to the Vision Zero mission. The City’s commitment to safety was reaffirmed in the Transportation Master Plan, which included a chapter dedicated to transportation safety as well as a safety focus throughout. The City regularly produces a Roadway Safety Report and is developing a process to expand this effort into a full Vision Zero Action Plan that will include all of the tools available to improve roadway safety in the City. These are commonly referred to as the “Five E’s” of engineering, education, encouragement, enforcement, and evaluation. Through targeted improvements informed by data, the City regularly implements enhancements to the system to help improve safety for all modes. November 26, 2019 Page 4 Emerging Trends The Transportation Master Plan recognizes that new technologies are emerging daily that fundamentally change the way people think about moving around the community. As such the plan calls for being innovative with shared mobility, preparing for autonomous vehicles and drone deliveries, and ensuring Fort Collins is ready for widespread adoption of electric vehicles. Possible Projects to Prioritize/Fund City staff would like input from City Council reflecting which Mobility area(s) should the City prioritize or invest. Examples include:  Transit Funding Study  Project Development – West Elizabeth BRT  Project Development – North College BRT  Project Development – Transit Maintenance Facility/Mobility Hub  Microtransit Pilot  Protected Bicycle Lanes  Safe Bicycle and Pedestrian Roadway Crossings  Bicycle and Pedestrian Grade Separations  Update the Bicycle Master Plan and Pedestrian Master Plan as a combined Active Modes Plan  Sidewalks  Vehicle safety and congestion projects such as intersection improvements ATTACHMENTS 1. Powerpoint Presentation (PDF) Mobility and Transportation November 26, 2019 City Council Work Session ATTACHMENT 1 Strategic Alignment 2 NC1 ATTACHMENT 1 Question for Council In what Mobility area(s) should the City prioritize or invest? Slide 3 ATTACHMENT 1 Transportation Framework Slide 4 ATTACHMENT 1 State of Mobility Approximately $75M a year goes toward transportation assets and operations 5 ATTACHMENT 1 Mobility Programs Slide 6 • Bicycle Program • Safe Routes to School Program • Sidewalk Program • Streets Maintenance Program • Bridge Program • Traffic Operations Center ATTACHMENT 1 Mobility Plans Slide 7 • City Plan / Transportation Master Plan • Master Street plan • Capital improvement plan • Modal Plans: • Transit Master Plan • Pedestrian Plan • Bicycle Master Plan • Corridor and Neighborhood Plans ATTACHMENT 1 City Plan Transportation Vision “The City recognizes the importance of an integrated and balanced transportation network that supports access and mobility for all people… This plan outlines a bold vision to improve the accessibility, mobility, reliability, and safety of the transportation system for all modes.” -Transportation Master Plan Introduction 8 ATTACHMENT 1 Regional Travel Patterns ~32,500 trips leaving daily* ~38,800 trips entering daily* *2015 Census Data Top Three Travel Exchanges with Fort Collins 1. Loveland 2. Timnath/Windsor 3. Greeley Slide 9 34,500 daily internal trips ATTACHMENT 1 Vehicle Miles Travelled 10 ATTACHMENT 1 Mode Share Slide 11 Key Trends: • Single-occupant vehicle trips remain the primary travel choice • Biking & transit experiencing strong ridership growth • Commuting to/from the region is increasing Fort Collins Transportation Mode Share Single Occupancy Vehicle: 76% Carpool: 10% Bicycle: 8% Walking: 4% Transit: 2% ATTACHMENT 1 Mobility Trends §Mobility as a service - embrace innovation as new technologies and travel options emerge §The Shared Economy- less ownership, more choices: e-scooters, bike share, car share, ride share §Mobility management – Reduce congestion with system upgrades and shifting trips to biking, walking and transit ATTACHMENT 1 Mobility Hubs § Mixed-use activity center § Transit station § Bike share § Car share § Park-n-Ride § On-demand § Walkable urban design § Customer information 13 ATTACHMENT 1 Transit Ridership 14 NC2 ATTACHMENT 1 Future Transit Network 15 Plan Highlights High frequency focus • 3 new Bus Rapid Transit routes • 30 minute service or better throughout the system (other than BRT routes) § Regional connections § Mobility Hubs § Innovation Zones (on- demand service) ATTACHMENT 1 Innovation Zones Alternative services such as: § Microtransit § On-demand shared trips § Autonomous vehicles § Public-private partnerships 16 ATTACHMENT 1 Future Transit Needs 17 Transit Master Plan Costs: • Estimated Capital Infrastructure costs are $300M • Estimated annual operating costs increases from $15M to $30M NC3 ATTACHMENT 1 Key Challenges & Choices § Achieve Vision Zero § Reduce Vehicle Miles Traveled § Reduce people driving alone § Increase walking § Increase bicycling § Increase transit use § Funding strategies § Leverage emerging technologies Slide 18 ATTACHMENT 1 Question for Council In what Mobility area(s) should the City prioritize or invest? Slide 19 ATTACHMENT 1 Backup Slides Slide 20 ATTACHMENT 1 Transit Master Plan – Short Term Slide 21 ATTACHMENT 1 Transit Master Plan Capital Projects Slide 22 ATTACHMENT 1 Transit Propensity & Equity Slide 23 ATTACHMENT 1 Elements of Transportation 24 Actual Safety: Number and severity of crashes Infrastructure / Coverage / Connectivity First/last mile Accessibility, etc. Mode Choices Transit, bikes, vehicles, pedestrians System Efficiency / Predictability Travel times Congestion Perceived Safety: Comfort / Mobility Safety Mobility ATTACHMENT 1 Safety • Annual Roadway Safety Report – Data Driven 25 262 239 264 307 262 214 0 50 100 150 200 250 300 350 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 Severe Crashes Through 9 months ATTACHMENT 1 Safety • Data Driven • Focuses on number and severity of crashes • “Safety” is complex and has a relationship to mobility 26 Perceived Safety Needed to encourage more pedestrians / cyclists (supports mobility) Perceived Safety Needed to encourage more pedestrians / cyclists (supports mobility) Actual Safety Needed to keep road users safe (good data) Actual Safety Needed to keep road users safe (good data) Nominal Safety Meeting ‘the standard’ Actual Safety Number and severity of crashes Perceived Safety Does it feel ‘safe’? ATTACHMENT 1 Transportation & Mobility 27 Bicycle Facilities Sidewalk Condition ATTACHMENT 1 Climate Action 28 Key Trends: • Community emissions decreasing • Emissions have decoupled from population/economic growth • Innovation and transformation Change in Emissions, 2005-2016 ATTACHMENT 1