BPAC Feb 2017
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NORTHEAST OHIO AREAWIDE COORDINATING AGENCY M E M O R A N D U M TO: Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Council Members Samuel Alai, Mayor, City of Broadview Heights Joyce Braverman, Director, Planning Department, City of Shaker Heights Barb Bickel, Executive Director, Visit Lorain County Walter “Skip” Claypool, Commissioner, Geauga County Andrew Cross, Traffic Engineer, City of Cleveland Timothy DeGeeter, Mayor, City of Parma Erin Fink, P.E., Lake County Engineer Representative Leslie Farley, ODOT District 3 William F. Hutson, Commissioner, Medina County Marty Kader, Bicycle and Pedestrian Coordinator, Cleveland City Planning Commission Martin Keane, Councilman, Ward 17, City of Cleveland David E. Marquard, Design and Construction Administrator, Cuyahoga County Depart. of Public Works Sean McDermott, Chief Planning and Design Officer, Cleveland Metroparks Allen Pennington, Engineer, City of Mentor Anthony Ratajczak, Medina County Bicycling Community David Short, ODOT District 12 James M. Sonnhalter, Manager of Planning, Cuyahoga County Planning Commission Robert Stefanik, Mayor, City of North Royalton Michael Summers, Mayor, City of Lakewood Sal Talarico, Interim City Manager, City of Oberlin Jacob VanSickle, Executive Director, Bike Cleveland Richard Wong, Planning Director, City of Cleveland Heights James Ziemnik, Director, Lorain County Metro Parks FROM: Richard Wong, Chair DATE: February 10, 2017 RE: Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Council Friday, February 17, 2017 from 10:30 a.m. to noon NOACA Offices 1299 Superior Avenue, Cleveland, Ohio I look forward to seeing you on Friday, February 17th at 10:30 a.m. at the NOACA offices. NOACA Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Council Friday, February 17, 2017 – 10:30 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. NOACA Offices – 1299 Superior Avenue Cleveland, Ohio 44114 Phone: (216) 241-2414; website: www.noaca.org AGENDA Page 1. Approval of Minutes of BPAC Meeting held on November 18, 2016 1-1 2. Public Comments on Current Agenda Items Oral 3. Chair’s/Executive Director’s Report Oral 4. Action Items a. None 5. Presentation / Discussion Items a. Future Action/Discussion i. TLCI Project Applications 5-1 ii. Project Planning Reviews – 4th Quarter of SFY 2017 5-13 b. Information/Discussion i. ODOT’s Safe Routes To School (SRTS) Program: New Criteria 5-19 ii. Broadway Avenue Corridor Study 5-21 iii. ODOT Active Transportation Funding Program 5-23 6. Old Business 7. New Business 8. Adjournment NEXT MEETING: Friday May 19, 2017 – 10:30 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. 7358c Agenda Item No. 1 MINUTES Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Council November 18, 2016 NOACA Offices 1299 Superior Avenue, Cleveland, Ohio 44114 Present: Please see the attached attendance record. Mr. Richard Wong convened the Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Council (BPAC) meeting at 10:35 a.m. Meeting Minutes Ms. Sara Maier asked that the construction year of the “Re-connecting Cleveland” project be changed from 2020 to 2017 in the minutes. A motion was made by Mr. Dave Schroedel to approve the amended BPAC meeting minutes of August 19, 2016. The motion was seconded by Mr. Nick Gorris. The motion passed by voice vote. Public Comments No public comments were made at this meeting. Chair’s Report / Executive Director’s Report No report was given at this meeting. ACTION ITEMS No action items were presented at this meeting. PRESENTATION / DISCUSSION ITEMS Project Planning Reviews for 3rd Quarter SFY 2017 Mr. Ed May reviewed the Project Planning Reviews (PPRs) for the following projects: Road Improvements in Garfield Heights - The improvements are located on Transportation Boulevard, IR-480 westbound exit ramp, and Granger Road. The estimated total cost of the project is $8.7 million. Mr. Wong asked if NOACA staff will assess how the project will affect bicycle/pedestrian comfort. Mr. May said yes. Mr. Marty Cader asked if the area has sidewalks. Mr. May said yes. Mr. David Short added that the east side of Transportation Boulevard has a sidewalk. Mr. Gorris suggested removing the sidewalk on the west side of the bridge near the slip ramp because it is in an unsafe area. 7359c 1 - 1 I-90 at Martin Luther King Jr. Drive Safety Project - This project will improve traffic flow and reduce crashes. The estimated total cost of this project is $2.9 million. Mr. Wong asked Mr. Cader how bikes will get to the lakefront from Martin Luther King Jr. Drive (MLK). Mr. Cader said bike riders would use the existing underpass on the west side. Mr. Cader also mentioned that there was a Transportation for Livable Communities Initiative (TLCI) plan done in the area that involved some improvements to the underpass and additional enhancements to the trail under I-90. Mr. Cader asked if the roundabout considered for the area was dropped. Mr. Short said yes. Ms. Maier asked if the improvements (more specifically the removal of the median) on the west side underneath the bridge of MLK Drive have been dropped. Mr. Short said he did not have that information on hand. Mr. Cader asked if signalization is being added to the north side of the off-ramp. Mr. Short said yes. Mr. Wong asked if the Ohio Department of Transportation (ODOT) can forward a response to NOACA regarding the TLCI recommendations so staff can forward that information to the BPAC. Mr. May said he would follow up on this matter. Bridge Replacement in Willoughby Hills - This project involves replacing the ramp bridges from I-271 northbound to I-90 westbound. The estimated total cost of this project is $10.6 million. Safe Routes to School Project in Elyria Township - This project involves installing a sidewalk on Griswold Road, Murray Ridge Road, and Adelbert Street. The estimated total cost of this project is $335,000. Bridge Replacement in Henrietta Township - This project is located on Gore Orphanage Road. The estimated total cost of this project is $3.3 million. Mr. May mentioned that none of the above-referenced projects will receive NOACA funding. He also noted that NOACA staff will forward comments to the sponsors. UHBikes Mr. Mike Foley, Director of Cuyahoga County Department of Sustainability, and Ms. Alex Baca, General Manger of UHBikes, presented information on the UHBikes program. Mr. Foley discussed the development of the bike sharing program. Ms. Alex Baca explained how the program works; reviewed the data collected; and discussed how the program is financed. Ms. Baca mentioned that the bikes are dock based and are equipped with GPS. Ms. Baca used a heat map to show where people are riding the bikes. She stated that 1,901 people signed up for the program; 7,128 trips were recorded; 13,745 miles were traveled; and bike utilization was .28. She mentioned that Cyclehop uses the revenue and the funding from the 7359c 1 - 2 title sponsor (University Hospitals) to cover the operating expenses; and uses the funding from NOACA and Bike Cleveland to cover the capital expenses. Mr. Bill Davis asked if usage is based on time or distance. Ms. Baca stated that once the bike has been locked at a location, the user is no longer charged. She noted, however, that the user can put the bike on hold (up to 60 minutes) for a fee. Mr. Wong inquired about the meaning of the dash boundary on the map for the program. Ms. Baca said the dash boundary represents the system area boundary. She noted that the boundary may be expanded in the future, but for now, users who take the bikes outside of the system area will be charged $20.00. Mr. Wong mentioned that the City of Cleveland Heights has one of the highest usage rates of bicycles in the region that may have been overlooked for the University Circle area. Mr. Foley stated that Cleveland Heights would be considered if the program is expanded. Mr. Jacob VanSickle commented that funding is needed in order to expand the program. Ms. Baca talked about the cost of running the bike share program. She said four more bike stations will be installed soon in the Cleveland area. She mentioned that the bikes will be available throughout the winter. Mr. Cader talked about the challenge of getting the permits approved by Cleveland City Hall. He noted that Cleveland is looking forwarded to the program expanding to various communities and surrounding suburbs. Ms. Ann Klavora asked who is taking the lead to expand the program. Mr. Foley stated that the expansion of the program is being addressed by an oversight committee that meets quarterly. Mr. VanSickle commented that the density of the communities needs to be looked at before expanding the program. Ms. Baca talked about the challenges of getting funding for the program. Mr. Tom Jordan asked if businesses are for or against the bike stations in their communities. Ms. Baca said she was not aware of any objections from the businesses. She noted that there is plenty of information available on the benefits of a bike sharing program for businesses to review. Mr. Jim Sonnhalter asked the average cost of a bike kiosk. Ms. Baca said $25,000 covers the racks, bikes and operation services. Mr. James Ziemnik asked if there have been any private investments in the bike stations. Ms. Baca said no. Mr. Foley mentioned that the bikes were put in place quickly to ensure people had access to them during the Republican National Convention (RNC). Ms. Maier asked how long are the bikes expected to last and if replacement bikes are built into the operating reserves. Ms. Baca stated that there is no bike sharing system older than 6 years in the United States. She noted that maintenance is done on the bikes to ensure that they last as long as possible. 7359c 1 - 3 Mr.