ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
CITY COUNCIL A. Douglas Echols, Jr., Mayor Ann Williamson, Mayor Pro Tem, Ward 5 Sandra Oborokumo, Ward 1 Kathy S. Pender, Ward 2 Kevin Sutton, Ward 3 John A Black III, Ward 4 James C. Reno, Jr., Ward 6
PLANNING COMMISSION PUBLIC PARKS AND Thomas B. Roper, Chair RECREATION COMMISSION Randy Graham, Vice Chair Brother David Joseph Boone, Chair Duane Christopher Rene Brannan Georgia Thomas Beverly A. “Bev” Carroll Gladys Robinson John Elliott “Topsy” Coleman Justin Smith Larry Erwin Shelly Goodner Joseph B. “Bennie” Evans Merritt King James C. Rhea, III Edwina Roseboro-Barnes
Prepared by: PLANNING & DEVELOPMENT and PARKS, RECREATION, & TOURISM DEPARTMENTS Tom Bell, Outdoor Education Supervisor Bill Berry, Jr., Maintenance Superintendent Alex Boyce, Planner I Cliff Goolsby, Transportation Manager Bill Meyer, AICP, Planning & Development Director Erin Musiol, AICP, Senior Planner
Special thanks to the working group for their contributions in meetings, to the citizens for their participation at the public meeting, and to City staff from various departments for their input.
2 | CONNECT ROCK HILL TABLE OF CONTENTS
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 4 BACKGROUND 6
INTRODUCTION 6 PLANNING PROCESS 7 BENEFITS OF WALKING & BIKING 8 STRENGTHS & CHALLENGES 10 TYPES OF BICYCLISTS 15 EQUITY ANALYSIS 16 COLLISION ANALYSIS 17 TYPES OF BIKE/PED FACILITIES 18 EXISTING AND FUNDED FACILITIES 20
GOALS & RECOMMENDATIONS 24
PLAN GOALS 24 POLICY RECOMMENDATIONS 25 NETWORK RECOMMENDATIONS 27 IMPLEMENTATION ACTION PLAN 44
SHOVEL-READY PROJECTS 44 RESTRIPING/REPAVING PROJECTS 47 NEW CONSTRUCTION/RECONSTRUCTION PROJECTS 50 SIDEWALK GAP AND INTERSECTION IMPROVEMENT PROJECTS 55 PROJECT PRIORITIZATION 55 FUNDING 56
BICYCLE & PEDESTRIAN MASTER PLAN | 3
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The Connect Rock Hill Bicycle and Pedestrian Master Plan moves beyond the largely recreational focus of the Trails and Greenways Master Plan and the limited area of the College Town Area Bicycle & Pedestrian Plan to provide goals, policy recommendations, and network recommendations for the entire City that serve both the transportation and recreation needs of all ages and skill levels.
PLAN GOALS
The plan has three major goals:
Provide a safe, well-maintained pedestrian network everywhere people want to walk in the City
Expand bicycling beyond recreation and exercise to a viable transportation option
Develop more nature-based trails and greenways to enhance quality of life and promote tourism and economic development.
POLICY RECOMMENDATIONS
The plan includes five policy recommendations, which each include action items outlining how it can be achieved.
Elevate funding of new bicycle and pedestrian facilities from occasional special projects to routine budget items.
Include bicycle and pedestrian facilities on every new road where they are planned and ensure they are appropriately designed.
Create a strong bicycle and pedestrian culture where all ages and abilities can safely and confidently walk and bike throughout the City
Coordinate with partners to get more high-quality bicycle and pedestrian facilities constructed in the City.
Improve the planning for bicycle and pedestrian facilities to increase confidence in project selection.
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NETWORK RECOMMENDATIONS
The proposed overall bicycle and pedestrian network is divided into six route types:
Primary Routes: “the Box”
College Town Area Loops
Preferred Parallel Alternative Routes
Priority Roadway Corridors
Recreational Routes
Neighborhood Routes
This mix of route types ensures facilities that link all ages, abilities, and types of users to a wide variety of destinations. The plan will better serve people walking and biking out of necessity, while encouraging and enabling others to better integrate walking and biking into both their recreation and transportation routine.
The plan also identifies sidewalk gaps and intersections in need of improvement that will not be addressed as a part of an identified project.
IMPLEMENTATION ACTION PLAN
The plan is manageable and realistic to implement. It is designed to be implemented incrementally over time through a mix of City-completed projects, projects completed by others as a part of larger road projects or planned repaving projects, and projects completed opportunistically through partnerships.
Each project falls into one of three implementation mechanisms:
Shovel-ready
Restriping/repaving
New construction/reconstruction
The City’s role is clearly outlined for each project type and cost estimates are provided when feasible.
The most important pieces to successful implementation of the plan are ensuring that the City routinely discusses and prioritizes bicycle and pedestrian projects, regularly allocates funding for new bicycle and pedestrian projects, and increases funding for bicycle and pedestrian facility maintenance.
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BACKGROUND
INTRODUCTION
Rock Hill is invested in becoming a more pedestrian- and bicycle-friendly community. While the City has been providing parks and recreation services since the 1920s, it wasn't until the early 2000s that it began to focus on connectivity. In 2003, the City adopted its first Trails and Greenways Master Plan that developed a comprehensive network of trail and sidewalk connections between major destinations. The plan was updated in April 2008. In November 2012, the City also adopted the College Town Area Bicycle & Pedestrian Plan, which focused on improving safety and pedestrian access along Cherry Road and increasing bike access to and from Winthrop University.
The City has implemented several projects recommended in these plans including construction of the Piedmont Medical Center Trail, painting sharrows on Oakland Avenue, and the striping of bike lanes on Charlotte Avenue. The City has also made significant investments in downtown to make it more walkable and bikeable. In Riverwalk, the City has developed world-class cycling venues within a highly walkable and bikeable mixed-use development. These efforts, in conjunction with education, encouragement, and enforcement strategies, led to a bronze-level Bicycle Friendly Community designation in 2013, which was recently renewed in 2016.
To continue this momentum, the City is updating and incorporating these previous documents into a Bicycle and Pedestrian Master Plan that envisions a more complete, functional network of biking and walking routes that connect residents and visitors to the destinations that matter to them. The Connect Rock Hill Bicycle and Pedestrian Master Plan moves beyond the largely recreational focus of the Trails and Greenways Master Plan and the limited area of the College Town Area Bicycle & Pedestrian Plan to provide goals, policies recommendations, and network recommendations for the entire City that serve both the transportation and recreation needs of all ages and skill levels.
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BACKGROUND
PLANNING PROCESS
Staff began work on the Bicycle and Pedestrian Master Plan in early 2016. Initial tasks included collecting, analyzing, and updating GIS data, field visits, and reviewing and vetting relevant plans and studies. Staff formed a Working Group that met monthly to discuss policies and plan and network goals, to identify where new facilities were needed, to determine the appropriate facility type, and to assist in the development of prioritization criteria. The Working Group consisted of representatives from the York County Planning and Development Services Department, Catawba Regional Council of Governments, Winthrop University, Rock Hill Planning & Development Department, Rock Hill Parks, Recreation, & Tourism Department (PRT), Riverwalk Bike Club, and the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control (DHEC).
In late 2016/early 2017, staff shared draft materials with various committees including the York County Bicycle and Pedestrian Task Force, the Rock Hill Outdoor Center Advisory Committee, the Trails and Greenways Advisory Committee, the Rock Hill Economic Development Corporation Quality of Life Committee, the Rock Hill Council of Neighborhoods, and the Active Community Environments Subcommittee of Eat Smart, Move More York County.
The City also hosted a public meeting on January 31, 2017, at Manchester Meadows.
Staff reviewed all of the comments and began drafting the plan document. Staff presented the draft plan to the Planning Commission and Public Parks and Recreation Commission at a joint workshop on March 7, 2017. The plan was also presented to City Council at a workshop on April 24, 2017. The plan was finalized and presented to City Council for approval on XXXXXX.
Staff also developed a plan website, complete with an interactive mapping tool at www.cityofrockhill/connectrockhill.
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BENEFITS OF WALKING & BIKING
Walking and biking provide numerous benefits: health, recreation, transportation, environmental, and economic.
HEALTH
Walking and biking help promote weight loss and reduce the risk of stroke and diabetes, which is important in a state that consistently ranks as one of the most obese in the nation for both adults and adolescents. Studies In 2015, South have shown that the more opportunities people are given, the Carolina ranked more people walk and bike, and the longer they walk and bike. 13th in the nation in Walking and biking has also been shown to improve mental adult obesity rates. health by reducing stress and improving concentration.
RECREATION Walking and biking facilities enhance opportunities for the optimal use of people’s limited free time. They provide safe opportunities for people to connect with both natural and cultural features in the community, as well as other amenities like recreation centers and parks.
Fifth-graders participating in the Bike History Tour Program.
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TRANSPORTATION
The biggest deterrent to increased non-motorized transportation is a lack of facilities. A comprehensive network of biking and walking facilities provides choice for people who own a car, while making it possible for people who cannot drive or do not own a car to get to where they need or want to go. It also has the potential to reduce the number of trips taken by car, which reduces roadway congestion and maintenance required for the roadway system.
ENVIRONMENTAL
The most walkable and bikeable communities and developments are compact and offer a mix of uses, which preserves land and decreases impervious surfaces. Walking and biking instead of driving a car also decreases carbon emissions and lowers fuel consumption. Additionally, many shared use paths adjacent to water bodies (also known as greenways) provide buffers that help preserve water quality.
ECONOMIC
Reducing obesity and chronic disease translates to huge health-care savings. Additionally, neighborhoods and developments with walking and bicycle amenities are desirable places to live and have a positive impact on property values. Having a comprehensive bicycle and pedestrian network also has a positive impact on businesses and the local economy. It increases commercial activity and brings in tax dollars from people eating, shopping, and staying in the City. Lastly, walking and biking are much more affordable than driving and leave more disposable income for a family for other necessities.
According to the League of American Bicyclists, the annual cost of operating a bicycle is approximately $308 a year, which is less than the average monthly car payment.
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STRENGTHS & CHALLENGES
WALKING
STRENGTHS
Rock Hill has a lot of opportunities for walking. First, it has a very walkable downtown. The City has invested millions of dollars in recent years to further strengthen the walkability of the downtown – adding and repairing sidewalks, installing curb ramps, and improving intersections.
The City also has walking trails as an amenity in many of its parks. In total, almost nine miles of park trails exist. The walking trails are regularly used by thousands of residents and visitors. According to the City’s Parks, Recreation, & Tourism Department, trail usage from January to June 2015 averaged more than 3,000 users per month at Cherry Park, close to 2,300 users per month at Manchester Meadows, and more than 7,300 users per month at the Piedmont A walking trail in Glencairn Garden. Medical Center trail.
Additionally, many schools and civic destinations Since 2003, Citizen (such as the library and parks) are located within Survey results have walking distance of residential neighborhoods. shown 95% or more of respondents The City requires sidewalks in new residential subdivisions and support sidewalk nonresidential development (see Appendix C). Pennies for enhancements. Progress also typically includes sidewalks on both sides of all approved Pennies projects in urban areas like Rock Hill.
The overwhelming majority of Rock Hill citizens (95% or more since 2003) support sidewalk enhancements. As a result, the City has undertaken several planning efforts to increase walkability and has incorporated many sidewalk-related goals into its Strategic Plan (see Appendix E).
The City also uses some of the tax increment financing (TIF) funds collected in its three TIF districts on construction of new sidewalks within those districts.
Lastly, the City, several local organizations, and many of its schools participate in the Safe Routes to School (SRTS) program. To date, 14 schools in Rock Hill are
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SRTS partners. A few of the schools have developed walkability assessments and travel plans that assess walkability to the schools, and one school (Rosewood Elementary) successfully secured a grant to make pedestrian improvements on its campus. CHALLENGES
The City has several major roadway corridors like Cherry Road, Albright Road, Celanese Road, and Dave Lyle Boulevard that are difficult for pedestrians to cross. The distance across these roadways and between safe crossing points is long, and pedestrians wait for an extended period of time for traffic signals to change. Additionally, many roadway corridors have sidewalk gaps or need maintenance such as concrete repairs, tree trimming, and sediment removal. In addition to large roadway corridors, pedestrians face other physical barriers like Interstate 77, the railroad, major creeks, and the Catawba River.
Many of the City’s busiest retail areas are located along high- traffic, high-speed, wide roadways that are difficult to access by foot. The design of developments along these corridors (low density, high frequency of curb-cuts, lack of pedestrian connections from the sidewalk to the front door, and large parking Many times sidewalks are built lots in front of businesses) further decreases walking comfort and without a planting strip, resulting in obstructions that impede walkability. increases walking distances and potential safety issues.
Many sidewalks that do exist along major corridors lack design features that make for a safe and enjoyable experience. They are adjacent to fast-moving traffic, constrained by obstructions such as utility poles or maintenance issues, and lack landscaping, Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) compliance, street furniture, and pedestrian-scale lighting. Additionally, many non-advanced cyclists do not feel safe biking on the road (with or without bicycle facilities) and opt to bike on the sidewalk which creates conflicts with pedestrians.
Many older neighborhoods lack sidewalks. Although newer neighborhoods have internal sidewalks, they are not always connected to the larger network. While neighborhoods are often located close to schools, parks, and shopping areas, it is often difficult or unsafe to access them by foot. Additionally, many of the City’s business parks lack pedestrian amenities, which can be a major attractor for both employers and employees.
Pedestrians and motorists do not always follow the rules of the road, which causes frustration as well as safety concerns.
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The City lacks a city-wide inventory and conditions assessment of its sidewalks, making it difficult to identify needs and to prioritize where to spend available funding. Additionally, the City does not conduct pedestrian counts outside of its most popular trails, so staff does not have a true understanding of how many people walk and to where, and does not have baseline data available to monitor trends in usage.
The greatest challenge to increasing the pedestrian network is funding. Almost half of the streets in the City (46%) are owned by the South Carolina Department of Transportation (SCDOT), but the SCDOT has limited funding and seldom maintains sidewalks once installed. Meanwhile, the City budgets $100,000 annually for repairing trip hazards and installing handicap ramps on City- maintained roads. However, the majority of this budget is used for emergency repairs, like water main breaks, so little progress can be made on correcting previously identified needs. Additionally, the City does not have a dedicated funding source to construct new sidewalks or fill in sidewalk gaps.
BIKING
STRENGTHS
The number of people who ride bicycles or who are interested in riding in Rock Hill has greatly increased over the past few years. Increased ridership and interest can be attributed to many factors.
First, the City has made significant investments in its cycling venues at the Rock Hill Outdoor Center (RHOC) at Riverwalk. In 2010, the City opened the Piedmont Medical Center Trail, a shared use path along the Catawba River. The City also connected the trail to River Park, providing for more than 3.5 miles of continuous path. The Giordana Velodrome opened in March 2012. It hosts national and international cycling events as well as offers cycling programs to people of all ages. In 2014, the City opened the Novant Health BMX Supercross Track. This track offers the only Olympic-quality BMX track in the eastern United States and will host the 2017 World Championship. The RHOC also includes mountain bike trails and a closed Criterium Course, which is an enclosed area that is only open to cyclists.
The Giordana Velodrome. Finally, the City plans to build a Cyclocross course
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in the future where cyclists will navigate various obstacles over different types of terrain. In addition to hosting international and national events at the RHOC, the City also regularly hosts local events to encourage ridership and to promote bike safety (see Appendix B).
The City requires bicycle facilities on all new City arterial and collector streets, and bicycle racks at large-scale developments with 50 parking spaces or more (see Appendix C). The SCDOT also requires consideration of bicycle facilities during its design process, and provides guidance on design requirements for new projects (see Appendix C).
The City has many boards, committees, and clubs interested in promoting bicycling including the Trails and Greenways Advisory Committee, the Active Community Environments subcommittee of Eat Smart Move More York County, and the York County Bicycle and Pedestrian Task Force. There are also two active bicycle clubs in Rock Hill: the Rock Hill Bicycle Club and the Riverwalk Bicycle Club. Details on boards, committees, and clubs can be found in Appendix D.
The City has undertaken several planning efforts to increase bikeability (see Appendix E) and has implemented several recommendations from these plans. These efforts helped the City obtain a bronze-level Bicycle Friendly Community designation in 2013, which was renewed in 2016 (see Appendix F). The City is one of only five bicycle friendly communities in South Carolina.
Dedicated bike lanes were not historically included in older Pennies for Progress road projects because they were not politically popular, but many of them included wide outside lanes that can be striped One of Rock Hill’s street with bicycle lanes in the future when these roads are resurfaced. sweepers. Dedicated bike facilities and shared use paths are now included in many Pennies for Progress projects.
In addition to the wide outside lanes constructed as a part of Pennies projects, the City has some additional roads or portions of roads that have extra pavement including Main Street, Black Street, Wilson Street, Constitution Boulevard, and Willowbrook Avenue. These roads could support bicycle lanes in the future with minimal challenges and for minimal costs.
The City’s Public Works Department also sweeps streets to keep them free of debris. downtown streets are swept weekly, main arterials and collector streets are swept 12 to 16 times a year, and residential streets are cleared four times a year.
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The City has a lot of low-volume, low-speed neighborhood streets bordering downtown that offer beginner cyclists route alternatives to streets with higher traffic volumes and speeds. The City has signed three of these routes: two Park- to-Park routes that provide safe access to a few of the City’s key park destinations, and a route in proximity to the Saluda Street corridor that helps residents access the neighborhood parks in the area.
Finally, the City has developed bike resources like the Bike Rock Hill brochure and park to park route maps to promote its existing facilities. CHALLENGES
Many large physical barriers limit overall connectivity within the Rock Hill area. Barriers include I-77, the railroad, the Catawba River, and high-traffic, high- speed roads, such as Cherry Road, Celanese Road, and Dave Lyle Boulevard.
While the City does have some wider roads that could accommodate bicycle facilities in the future, many roads in the City are narrow, According to The League change width multiple times, or lack the right-of-way of American Bicyclists, necessary to add bicycle facilities. South Carolina ranks 44th in the Bicycle Friendly State The existing bicycle network is fragmented and limited. ranking. Most residents must travel by automobile to access existing bicycle facilities and cannot get between key City destinations by bike. Many schools, parks, and shopping centers are not accessible by bicycle. Additionally, most businesses lack bicycle parking.
The regional bicycle network is even more limited. The County recently signed five bicycle routes, but it does not have any dedicated bicycle facilities.
Although the City has street sweepers, bicyclists complain about debris in bike lanes and at the edges of the lane, and most residents feel that roads are unsafe for cycling due to higher speeds, high traffic volumes, lack of shoulders, presence of rumble strips, and narrow road widths.
Although the City supports construction of a rail trail along the unused Norfolk Southern rail line that runs along Ebenezer Road, Norfolk Southern does not. A rail trail cannot be constructed without support of the railroad.
Many bicyclists and motorists are not educated on the rules of the road and roadway safety, which causes frustration as well as safety concerns.
Although many City departments, York County, and the York County Convention and Visitors Bureau all promote existing bicycle facilities and events, no single resource or webpage documents all existing bike and trail facilities. As
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a result, some residents and visitors are unaware of all the facilities the area offers.
The City does not conduct bicycle counts, so there is no baseline data on the number of riders in the City. Without baseline data, the City cannot track ridership trends over time.
The greatest challenge to increasing the bicycle network in Rock Hill is funding. The City allocates $100,000 annually for trail construction, which funds less than a quarter mile of trail a year. The City allocates $50,000 for trail maintenance, but the Parks, Recreation, and Tourism Department has identified more than $3 million in trail maintenance needs in FY16. The City does not regularly assess the condition of its bicycle facilities nor does it have a dedicated budget for on-road bicycle facilities or maintenance. TYPES OF BICYCLISTS
To understand the planning process for cycling facilities, it’s good to understand the different types of cyclists. Four general categories of bicyclists exist:
Strong and Fearless (advanced) riders make up the smallest percentage of bicyclists, about one percent or less. They ride their bikes regardless of roadway conditions like speed, traffic volumes, or presence of facilities.
Enthused and confident (intermediate) riders make up a small but growing percentage of cyclists - about nine percent. Enthused and confident bicyclists are citizens who are and could be attracted to regular riding. They are comfortable sharing the road with automobiles, but prefer to have a dedicated bicycle facility or to ride on roads that have been redesigned to accommodate cyclists. They also want shorter trip distances and better end-of-trip facilities.
The vast majority of citizens fall into the interested but concerned (beginner) category - about 60 percent. They are either curious about bicycling or enjoy cycling and would like to ride more but they are scared. This group of bicyclists rides occasionally for recreation, but only ride on paths without cars or on quiet neighborhood streets with low speeds and low traffic volumes. They would ride more if roadway conditions were more suitable.
The last group is the “no way, no how” non-cyclist. This group is not interested in riding a bike and wouldn’t ride no matter how many barriers were addressed or what improvements were made to roadway conditions. This group represents about 30 percent of the population.
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EQUITY ANALYSIS
In 2016, the Rock Hill-Fort Mill Area Transportation Study (RFATS) hired Alta Planning + Design to develop a bicycle and pedestrian connectivity plan for eastern York County and the panhandle of Lancaster County. The plan, Bike Walk RFATS, included an analysis that determined Census tracts with a greater need for bicycle and pedestrian facilities. Using 2015 American Community Survey estimates, the equity analysis analyzed six socioeconomic characteristics that included seniors, children, non-white populations, low-income households, households with no motor vehicle access, and households with English as a second language.
As shown in Map 1 below, Old Town and areas southwest of Old Town have the greatest need for bicycle and pedestrian facilities in the City.
Map 1: Equity Map
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COLLISION ANALYSIS
Between July 2012 and February 2017, 30 bicycle and 96 pedestrian collisions occurred in the City (see Map 2).
The majority of pedestrian collisions occurred in downtown, in areas south of downtown, and along major corridors like Cherry Road, Celanese Road, and Albright Road/E. Main Street. The higher number of accidents in these areas is likely largely due to greater pedestrian activity. Although collisions were caused by a variety of factors, opportunities may exist for safer crossings and other safety enhancements.
Fewer bicycle collisions occurred largely because the City has fewer cyclists than pedestrians. The majority of bicycle collisions occurred in areas where bicycle traffic is high and bike facilities are not available like on Cherry Road near Winthrop University and between Ebinport Road and Mt. Gallant Road.
Map 2: Collision Map
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TYPES OF BIKE/PED FACILITIES
The following facilities are known as separated facilities because they are physically separated from motor vehicle traffic.
Sidewalk — a paved walkway for pedestrians at the side of a road.
Shared Use Path — an off-street bicycle and pedestrian facility physically sepa- rated from motor vehicle traffic (also called a trail, greenway, multi-use path, or sidepath).
Park Trail — a shared use path internal to a park (often creating a loop) where the primary function is to serve as a recreational amenity for residents, employees, and visitors.
Bicycle Lane — an on-street facility located between a car travel lane and either the curb, shoulder, or parking lane that designates a portion of the road for the exclusive use of bicyclists through pavement markings and striping.
Paved Shoulder — additional pavement outside of the travel lane. While commonly included to reduce crashes and maintenance costs, the space can also be used for bicycle and pedestrian travel.
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The following facilities are known as shared facilities because the roadway is shared by bicyclists and motor vehicles. SH
Enhanced Shared Roadway — a roadway shared by bicyclists and motor vehicles incorporating one or more of the following design treatments: signage, pavement markings, wide outside lanes, and/or traffic speed and volume management measures that discourage “through trips” by motor vehicles.
Shared Lane Marking (or “Sharrow”) — a pavement marking used on roads shared by bicyclists and motor vehicles that recommends the proper position of the bicyclist and alerts drivers to the presence of bicyclists on the street.
Wide Outside Lane — an outermost lane of a roadway wide enough to be safely shared side-by- side by a bicycle and a motor vehicle at the same time.
Signed Bicycle Route — a shared lane designated with route signage to notify bicyclists of the preferred roadway to reach a specific destination and alert drivers to the presence of bicyclists on the street. Signed bike routes often include additional signage that inform bicyclists of route direction and confirm route direction, distance, and destination.
A more detailed description of each facility type, along with design considerations, information on the target rider, and when the facility is desired or appropriate, is provided in Appendix A.
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EXISTING & FUNDED FACILITIES
PEDESTRIAN FACILITIES
The City has a well-developed sidewalk network in its downtown. Many older neighborhoods near downtown have a grid street pattern and sidewalks that are conducive to walking. Newer developments built in the late 1990s or later when the City began requiring sidewalks have sidewalks internal to the site, but the sidewalks do not always connect to areas outside of the development. The majority of the City’s housing stock is located within suburban neighborhoods that lack sidewalks and have limited to no connectivity to other neighborhoods or the larger sidewalk network.
In total, slightly less than half of the roads in the City (48%) have at least a sidewalk on one side of the road.
Construction of new sidewalks is typically limited to new development and redevelopment, but sidewalks are also often constructed as a part of Pennies for Progress projects.
More than 11 miles of new sidewalks will be built as a part of approved Pennies for Progress projects currently under construction or not yet under way. Roads that will have new sidewalks include Riverview Road, Mt. Gallant Road from Anderson Road to Dave Lyle Boulevard, Mt. Gallant Road from Celanese Road to Twin Lakes Road, along the south side of Saluda Road from Mt. Holly Road/ Saluda Street/Albright Road intersection to Rambo Road, Ebinport Road from Cherry Road to India Hook Road, University Drive from Bird Street to Eden Terrace, Cel-River Road from Cherry Road to Paragon Way, and the US 21/ Anderson Road/Cowan Farm Road Intersection Realignment from Cowan Road Extension to Pinewood Road.
Map 3 shows the existing and funded pedestrian facilities in Rock Hill.
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Map 3: Existing & Funded Pedestrian Facilities
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BICYCLE FACILITIES
Rock Hill has a limited, yet growing, number of bicycle facilities. The City has about six miles of bike lanes found throughout Riverwalk, on Cherry Road just outside of Riverwalk, on Cel-River Road from Cherry Road to Eden Terrace, along Charlotte Avenue, and around Fountain Park. More than 5 miles of dedicated bike lanes will also be constructed or are currently under construction as a part of several approved Pennies for Progress projects including Ebinport Road from Cherry Road to India Hook Road, Red River Road from Paragon Way to Dave Lyle Boulevard, University Drive from Cherry Park to Bird Street, and Mt. Gallant Road from Dave Lyle Boulevard to Anderson Road.
The City has shared bicycle markings or “sharrows” on about two miles of City streets. Sharrows are located near Winthrop University along Oakland Avenue, on Alumni Drive between Cherry Road and Steward Avenue, on Stewart Avenue between Oakland Avenue and Alumni Drive, and on Eden Terrace from Evergreen Lane to Myrtle Drive.
Eight roads, totaling nearly 13.5 miles, in the City have wide outside lanes. Almost one-mile of wide outside lanes will be constructed as part of the Riverview Road Pennies Project.
The City has 13 miles of shared use paths, the most notable of which is the Piedmont Medical Center (PMC) Trail. In 2015, the City connected the PMC trail to River Park, creating more than 3.5 miles of continuous path along the Catawba River. Other shared use paths include the Winston Searles Trail, a one- mile portion of the Airport Loop, the Rawlinson Road Trail, Tech Park Trail (Phase II), Hood Center Trail, South Pointe (Phase I), Northside Trail, St. Anne’s Trail, Arcade Trail, and Eagle Trail. A shared use path will be constructed on the north side of Saluda Road in conjunction with the SC 72 Pennies project.
The City also has more than 10 miles of park trails at various City park facilities and business parks including Cherry Park, Hargett Park, Manchester Meadows, River Park, Armory Park, Confederate Park, Emmett Scott Recreation Center, Fewell Park, Friedheim Park, Tech Park, Morgan Park, and Southland Park. A 1.5- mile State Park natural surface trail named the Heritage Trail is located within the Blackjack Heritage Preserve.
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Two of the five signed County bicycle routes, the Central York County Bicycle Route (Route 1) and the Reservation Bicycle Route (Route 2), run through or along the fringe the City. Riverwalk also contains mountain bike trails that can be accessed from the PMC trail.
The City has almost 15 miles of signed bicycle routes: a 7.2-mile bike route through the neighborhoods immediately surrounding Saluda Street and the Saluda Corridor, a 4.2-mile route between the YMCA/Glencairn Garden and Cherry Park, and an approximately 4-mile route from the YMCA/Glencairn Garden to Manchester Meadows.
Map 4 shows the existing and funded bicycle facilities in Rock Hill.
Map 4: Existing & Funded Bicycle Facilities
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GOALS & RECOMMENDATIONS
Connect Rock Hill has three goals designed to ensure that all residents and visitors, no matter their age or skill level, can walk and bike for both transportation and recreation. Achieving the plan goals and addressing the challenges identified earlier in this plan will take a combination of policy and network recommendations.
PLAN GOALS
Provide a safe, well-maintained pedestrian network everywhere people want to walk in the City.
Expand bicycling beyond recreation and exercise to a viable transportation option.
Develop more nature-based trails and greenways to enhance quality of life and promote tourism and economic development.
24 | CONNECT ROCK HILL GOALS & RECOMMENDATIONS
POLICY RECOMMENDATIONS
Elevate funding of new bicycle and pedestrian facilities from occasional special projects to routine budget items.
Allocate money annually for the construction of new bicycle and/or pedestrian projects and increase the budget for bicycle and pedestrian facility maintenance and improvements to keep up with the inventory.
When feasible, consider constructing natural surface trails as a short-term solution for high-priority trail projects until funds for paving are available. Include bicycle and pedestrian facilities on every new road where they are planned and ensure they are appropriately designed.
Design and manage all areas within downtown to accommodate bicyclists and pedestrians as well as vehicles, and ensure the presence of bicycle parking, benches, and other bike/ped amenities.
Design bicycle and pedestrian facilities in accordance with adopted local, state, and national standards.
Include amenities appropriate to the facility and the area (lighting, signage, furniture, street trees, etc.) in the design and budget of bike/ped projects. Create a strong bicycle and pedestrian culture where all ages and abilities can safely and confidently walk and bike throughout the City.
Promote the use of bike/ped facilities by residents and visitors.
Expand the Bike Rock Hill webpage to include information on all bike facilities in the area so residents and visitors can easily find where they can ride.
Educate the public on the benefits of walking and biking and rules of the road.
Enforce the rules of the road for motorists and bicyclists.
Support local groups who promote walking and biking.
BICYCLE & PEDESTRIAN MASTER PLAN | 25 Coordinate with partners to get more high-quality bicycle and pedestrian facilities constructed in the City.
Work with partner agencies (York County, SCDOT, RFATS) to ensure implementation of the plan recommendations in new projects and resurfacing programs.
Work with developers and private property owners to retrofit existing development to make it more bike/ped friendly.
Encourage and support the construction of bike/ped facilities on school campuses that coordinate with the planned network.
Continue to work with partners to pursue the conversion of the Norfolk Southern railroad from downtown to York into a rail trail. Improve the planning for bicycle and pedestrian facilities to increase confidence in project selection.
Regularly conduct an inventory and conditions assessment of all City sidewalks and intersections.
Integrate the plan with policy documents that guide transportation decision- making in the City (Strategic Plan, Comprehensive Plan, Long Range Transportation Plan, Zoning Ordinance).
Regularly reevaluate the prioritization criteria and reprioritize bike/ped projects annually before selecting projects for funding.
Regularly collect bike/ped counts at key locations to monitor trends in non- motorized travel.
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NETWORK RECOMMENDATIONS
The initial focus of the plan is on connecting the City’s key destinations: Downtown (including Winthrop University and Knowledge Park), the Galleria/ Manchester shopping areas, the Catawba River/Riverwalk, and Cherry Park/ Winthrop Farm.
The plan then identifies safer, alternative routes to high-speed, high-volume roadways not specifically designed to accommodate bicycles.
Next, the plan focuses on improving walkability and bikeability around schools, parks, and major employment and shopping areas, and ensuring neighborhoods are connected to these uses.
While many suburban neighborhoods without sidewalks would like them, creating internal neighborhood sidewalks are the lowest priority of this plan because 1) it is extremely difficult and expensive to retrofit neighborhood streets to include sidewalks, 2) they only serve a limited number of users, and 3) these roads are generally low-volume and low-speed, and do not create safety concerns for pedestrians.
In order to accomplish these goals, the City has divided its network recommendations into six route types: primary routes, college town area loops, preferred parallel alternative routes, priority roadway corridors, recreational routes, and neighborhood routes. Each route type serves a unique purpose within the overall bicycle and pedestrian network. Details on each route type, including projects and facility types as well as likely funding sources, are provided on the following pages. Full project details and available funding sources are provided in Appendix G and Appendix I.
BICYCLE & PEDESTRIAN MASTER PLAN | 27 PRIMARY ROUTES: “THE BOX”
The City’s initial focus is on connecting its key destinations: Downtown (including Winthrop University and Knowledge Park), the Galleria/Manchester shopping areas, the Catawba River/Riverwalk , and Cherry Park/Winthrop Farm.
These key destinations are the places that most residents say they would like to access by bike or by foot on a regular basis. They are a mix of places people go to recreate, work, and shop. As such, the facilities connecting these destinations should be designed to meet the needs of all ages, types, and levels of users. Individually these facilities are the City’s primary routes. The City’s four key Collectively, these routes are referred to as “the Box.” destinations are: Several portions of the Box along Eden Terrace, on and Downtown/Winthrop near Dave Lyle Boulevard, and around Manchester University/ Meadows are existing. Bike lanes and sidewalks are also Knowledge Park currently being constructed on Cel-River Road. Galleria/Manchester Some missing connections on Eden Terrace and on and shopping areas near Dave Lyle Boulevard are critical to completing the Catawba River/ Box. Better bicycle connectivity is also needed between Riverwalk downtown destinations.
Cherry Park/ While the Hood Center Trail provides opportunities to both Winthrop Farm walk and bike off of Dave Lyle Boulevard, the trail is set well off the road. People are regularly observed walking and biking along Dave Lyle Boulevard or in the drainage ditches in the median as a direct route to employment uses in the Galleria/ Manchester shopping areas. While constructing this direct route may be difficult, the recent clearing of landscaping in this area may help. This route would be a complement to the recreational Carolina Thread Trail route along Manchester Creek.
In order to ensure that all users can travel between these destinations, the majority of the proposed facilities are shared use paths. In downtown where a robust sidewalk network already exists, the focus is on better bicycle connectivity. Proposed facilities in downtown include enhanced shared roadways and bike lanes.
Many of the remaining projects will be expensive to complete on their own and will likely only be improved as a part of larger road projects funded through mechanisms like Pennies for Progress and RFATS. Additionally, a portion of the
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remaining projects are part of the larger proposed regional Carolina Thread Trail network, which opens up additional funding opportunities.
The City should take the lead on increasing and improving facilities between the downtown destinations, while strongly advocating for funding for the larger road projects. Map 5: Primary Routes: “The Box”
BICYCLE & PEDESTRIAN MASTER PLAN | 29 COLLEGE TOWN AREA LOOPS
Two key loops identified in the College Town Area Bicycle & Pedestrian Plan are still relevant to the City’s overall networks goals.
The loops keep bicyclists off high-volume, high-speed roads (Cherry Road and Dave Lyle Boulevard) not designed to specifically accommodate bicyclists. They also allow for circulation around two dense areas of the City and play a role in connecting projects that are a part of the Box. Downtown Loop
The Downtown Loop is comprised of Wilson Street, Charlotte Avenue, Elizabeth Lane, and Johnston Street. It is designed to help cross-town traffic safely and easily go around downtown. It allows bicyclists to bypass the downtown portion of Dave Lyle Boulevard, where speeds and traffic volumes are high and few destinations exist. It also creates a boundary around the downtown area, where on- street bicycling and walking are encouraged through lower speeds, wider sidewalks, available bicycle
Bike lanes and sidewalks on Elizabeth parking, wayfinding signage, and traffic calming Lane. measures.
The Downtown Loop has been started with bike lanes along Charlotte Avenue and portions of Elizabeth Lane. To complete the loop, bike lanes are needed on Johnston Street, North and South Wilson Street, Elizabeth Lane and other portions of Charlotte Avenue. Cherry Road Loop
The Cherry Road Loop is comprised of Evergreen Lane/Circle, North Avenue, Ebenezer Avenue Extension, Ebenezer Road, and Eden Terrace. It provides bicycle accommodations in an area with high ridership near the Winthrop University campus on streets that are safer and better suited for bicyclists. It also allows bicyclists to cross Cherry Road at less congested intersections that are safer for bicyclists and to access Cherry Road businesses from side streets within the loop.
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The Cherry Road Loop will further enhance funded pedestrian safety improvements on Cherry Road, which include intersection improvements at Oakland Avenue and Cherry Road, and a new intersection at Ebenezer Avenue Extension and Cherry Road.
A portion of the loop, the painting of sharrows on Eden Terrace, has been completed. Proposed projects are primarily enhancements to existing roads, but some new sidewalks and a shared use path behind The Commons at Winthrop shopping center are needed to complete the loop. The City could partner with Winthrop University and property and business owners of the shopping center to construct portions of the loop. Map 6: College Town Area Loops
BICYCLE & PEDESTRIAN MASTER PLAN |31 PREFERRED PARALLEL ALTERNATIVE ROUTES
Major corridors like Celanese Road and Cherry Road are preferred transportation routes because they provide quick, direct access to shopping and employment opportunities. These corridors, however, have the highest speeds and traffic volumes in the City and were not designed to specifically accommodate bicyclists. As a result, they are not desirable bicycle routes and are only rarely used by the bravest of bicyclists.
As such, the City has identified two safer, more enjoyable and feasible routes that run parallel to Celanese Road and Cherry Road.
Another preferred regional connection, the Ebenezer Rail Trail between York and Rock Hill, would provide a very desirable recreational route in the City. Unfortunately, Norfolk Southern does not support a rail-to-trail or rail-with-trail at this time. As a result, the City has identified an alternative route that serves as a similar network connection. Alternative to Celanese Road
This alternative route allows a bicyclist to travel between the Newport Wal-Mart Supercenter and the Catawba River, a key destination. The route includes Laurel Creek Drive, Homestead Road, Pennington Road, and the proposed Dutchman Creek Trail. It allows a cyclist to bypass Celanese Road completely, while still offering many opportunities to access destinations along Celanese.
The route is a mix of bike lanes, enhanced shared roadways, shared use paths, paved shoulders, and sidewalks.
While construction of some portions of the route could be required of developers, the majority of projects will need to be funded by the City. Grants, private development, or Hospitality Tax Funds may be available for shared use path projects, and County Transportation Funds (C-Funds) could be used for needed repaving projects (see Appendix I). Alternative to Cherry Road
This alternative route allows a cyclist to travel between Heckle Boulevard and Mt Gallant Road, while still offering access to downtown and Cherry Park (two of the City’s key destinations) and many other destinations along Cherry Road. The route includes Marett Boulevard, McDow Drive, several roads through the Fewell Park neighborhood, and a combination of Westerwood Drive, Longview Drive, and Elder Road out to Heckle Boulevard.
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The route is a mix of bike lanes, enhanced shared roadways, and sidewalks, and some intersection/crossing improvements are also needed where the route crosses India Hook Road and Ebenezer Road. Unlike the Celanese Road alternative route, the majority of this route could be completed in a short time and for a minimal cost.
While the majority of projects will need to be funded by the City, other possible funding sources include SCDOT repaving funds, SCDOT intersection improvement funds, and C-Funds. Alternative to the Proposed Rail Trail
The alternative to the rail trail is pedestrian and bicycle facilities along Ebenezer Road. Sidewalks exist from India Hook Road to Old Pointe Avenue. Old Pointe Avenue to Dotson Street was improved through a previous Pennies referendum, but no bicycle facilities were included.
Proposed facilities include an enhanced shared roadway from India Hook Road to Herlong Avenue, and bike lanes and sidewalks from Herlong Avenue to Celanese Road. The City would need to undertake the enhanced shared roadway improvements since this stretch was already improved through Pennies, while the bike lanes and sidewalk extension could be part of a future Pennies referendum. Map 7: Preferred Parallel Alternative Routes
BICYCLE & PEDESTRIAN MASTER PLAN | 33 PRIORITY ROADWAY CORRIDORS
Priority roadway corridors are the other regionally and locally significant routes in the City. Projects with regional significance were identified in Bike Walk RFATS and include the Ebenezer Rail Trail, McConnells Highway, Meadow Lakes Road, Herlong Avenue, India Hook Road, Mt. Gallant Road, Eden Terrace, Red River Road, Dave Lyle Boulevard, W. White Street, E. Black Street, E. Main Street, Firetower Road, Saluda Street/Road, Ogden Road, and Oakland Avenue. Locally significant routes were identified by City staff.
Priority roadway corridors provide quicker, more direct access to destinations than most neighborhood or recreational routes. They are regularly used or a desire to use exists by people walking and biking for transportation as well as more of the intermediate level cyclists.
Improvement of priority roadway corridor projects would reflect a mix of bike lanes, enhanced shared roadways, shared use paths, and sidewalks.
Some of the proposed projects are on roads improved through previous Pennies referendums and include wide outside lanes. Bicycle lanes could be striped during the repaving process. Other projects are candidates for future Pennies projects. Funding sources for remaining projects Portions of Charlotte Avenue (shown include SCDOT Guideshare funds, private development, C- above) have bicycle facilities. Charlotte Avenue is one of the City’s Funds, and the City’s General Fund. local priority roadway corridors. Because of the importance of these corridors, the City should be opportunistic in looking for ways to complete even short segments of facilities that connect to key destinations.
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Map 8: Priority Roadway Corridors
BICYCLE & PEDESTRIAN MASTER PLAN | 35 RECREATIONAL ROUTES
Recreational routes consist of shared use paths in more natural settings and the City’s signed bike routes on low-volume streets.
Shared use path recreational routes are located along natural features, utility corridors, or railroad corridors. Existing recreational routes include the Piedmont Medical Center Trail, the Winston Searles Trail, the completed portion of the Airport Loop, Tech Park Trail, Hood Center Trail, St. Anne’s Trail, Waterford Trail, and all City park trails.
The City also has three signed bike routes designed for leisurely, family-friendly rides between local parks: a 7.2-mile route through neighborhoods surrounding the Saluda Street corridor, a 4.2-mile route between the YMCA/Glencairn Garden and Cherry Park, and a 4-mile route from the YMCA/ Glencairn Garden to Manchester Meadows.
Funding for existing shared use path recreational routes is usually limited to Hospitality Tax Funds, private development, and grants. Because of funding limitations, proposed recreational routes are limited to the extension of the trail along the Catawba River, completion of the loop around the Airport, and extension of the Winston Searles Trail. Although the City fully supports the rail trail project, it cannot be completed without the support and cooperation of Norfolk Southern.
No new signed park-to-park routes are
Wayfinding signage to help riders navigate proposed. The existing signed routes may be one of the City’s signed bike routes. modified as new roadway and bike/ped projects are completed.
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Map 9: Recreational Routes
BICYCLE & PEDESTRIAN MASTER PLAN | 37 NEIGHBORHOOD ROUTES
The neighborhood routes are designed to connect residential areas to schools, parks, jobs, and shopping. They are primarily located on low-volume, low-speed residential streets.
Outside of the facilities within Riverwalk, the Rawlinson Road Trail, and South Pointe Trail Phase I, most of this network is undeveloped.
The proposed projects are a mix of enhanced shared roadways, bike lanes, neighborhood connectors, sidewalks, and shared use paths.
While completing the neighborhood routes is not as essential as completing some of the other route types, the City could construct many of these routes relatively quickly and economically, which would provide more safe opportunities for people to ride or become interested in riding. For any proposed new neighborhood connectors, the City should meet with the neighborhoods in question to gauge interest and support before undertaking the project.
A bike lane and wide sidewalk in The City would be the primary funding source for Riverwalk. these projects. Other funding sources include Safe Routes to School, C-Funds, SCDOT repaving funds, and Transportation Alternative Set-Aside Program funds.
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Map 10: Neighborhood Routes
BICYCLE & PEDESTRIAN MASTER PLAN | 39 OVERALL NETWORK RECOMMENDATIONS
The six route types together comprise the overall bicycle and pedestrian network. This mix of route types ensures facilities that link all ages, abilities, and types of users to a wide variety of destinations. The network will allow residents to bike or walk to school, the store, or their jobs as well as for exercise and recreation. There are routes that satisfy the advanced cyclist as well as options for the person getting on a bike for the first time.
No matter the age, ability, or user, these routes will be safer options for walking and biking.
This mix of routes will better serve people walking and biking out of necessity, while encouraging and enabling others to better integrate walking and biking into both their recreation and transportation routine.
Map 11 shows the overall network recommendations and how the different route types relate to one another.
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Key Destination H IGHW C HIG AY MT HOLLY RD H 324 UR WA W D ParkE Y 5 R TO K N E F MOBLEY STORE RD HIGHW E E AY 3 R RR Miles 24 E C City of RockY Hill S R Y D 0 0.5 1 L E E N SIDEWALK GAPS & INTERSECTION IMPROVEMENTS
Another important component of connecting people to key destinations, improving walkability and bikeability around schools, parks, and shopping, and connecting neighborhoods to destinations is filling in sidewalk gaps and improving intersections.
Sidewalk gaps are small missing segments of sidewalks in an otherwise complete sidewalk network. Sidewalk gaps force pedestrians into the street, present challenges for people with disabilities, and can cause injuries.
Filling in sidewalk gaps should be a joint effort of the City, SCDOT, and private sector.
Map 12 shows the sidewalk gaps identified as a part of this planning process.
For purposes of this plan, intersection improvements are pedestrian improvements needed at existing intersections including marking/remarking crosswalks, adding ADA compliant curb ramps, installing pedestrian signage or signal heads, and changing the location of vehicular stop bars. In limited instances, intersection improvements may include more costly or complex projects like raised crosswalks, curb extensions, pedestrian refuge islands, and active warning beacons.
Although many intersections could be improved to include additional markings for bikes, these improvements are considered too advanced for the City’s current bicycle network at this time.
For all proposed bicycle and pedestrian projects detailed under each route type, intersection improvements should be included as a part of the project. Potential funding sources for remaining intersection improvement projects include RFATS, SCDOT, and the City’s General Fund.
Map 12 shows the intersections that need improvement and would not likely be improved as a part of a larger bicycle and pedestrian project.
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Map 12: Sidewalk Gaps and Intersection Improvements
BICYCLE & PEDESTRIAN MASTER PLAN | 43 IMPLEMENTATION ACTION PLAN
After defining the route types and determining what type of facilities are needed where, staff then looked at how easily each project within each route type could be constructed, how it could be funded, and how the project should be prioritized.
At first glance, the overall network plan can be overwhelming, but several factors help automatically divide the projects into more manageable buckets. These factors include condition of the road, road ownership, and project constructability. SHOVEL-READY PROJECTS
Shovel-ready projects are projects that could be designed and implemented in a short period of time. Road conditions are good (or at least acceptable), no major ancillary construction is necessary, and costs are relatively low.
Although shovel-ready projects may not be the most important projects to the overall network, and often do not include dedicated facilities, they are effective in getting more people interested in getting out to ride and walk.
Common projects in this category include:
striping bicycle lanes on unmarked roads in good condition with sufficient extra pavement area
painting sharrows on roads with acceptable speeds and traffic volumes too narrow to accommodate other facilities
adding signage and/or traffic calming measures on roads in good condition
adding sidewalks in areas where right-of-way exists and there are no major conflicts with trees or utilities
Table 1 reveals all of the proposed shovel-ready bicycle projects, and Table 2 reveals all of the shovel-ready pedestrian projects in the proposed network. The average cost for a shovel-ready bicycle project is around $4,800, whereas shovel-ready pedestrian projects are more expensive. Although all shovel-ready projects could be started quickly, it sometimes does not make sense timing-wise to undertake the project in the short-term. If the project would not tie into the
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larger network, the City should wait until other proposed projects are completed before initiating some shovel-ready projects. Shovel-ready projects that should be postponed until other projects are completed are italicized in Table 1. CITY’S ROLE
Because shovel-ready projects are often on City streets or State roads that do not have regional significance, the majority of these projects will need to be funded by the City and can be implemented incrementally over time. Partnership opportunities may exist with SCDOT for certain projects.
Table 1: Shovel-Ready Projects Bicycle Projects Proposed Length Project Name & Route Type Extents Facility Cost (mi) Type
From Winthrop Alumni Dr/ Winthrop Founds Internal Winthrop Ln to either Cherry Rd/Winthrop Ebenezer ESR 0.43 $3K Campus Route Ave or Oakland Ave/Eden Ter
Ebenezer Ave Extension From Cherry Rd to Ebenezer Rd ESR 0.26 $2K
From E. White St to Existing Bike Lanes on Elizabeth Ln Bike Lanes 0.11 $1K Elizabeth Ln in front of CN2 Evergreen Ln/ From Eden Ter to the driveway behind The ESR 0.25 $2K Evergreen Cir Commons at Winthrop Shopping Center
Ebenezer Rd From Herlong Ave to India Hook Rd ESR 1.37 $9K
From Ebenezer Rd/Sedgewood Dr to either Glendale Dr/Alexander Charlotte Ave/Glendale Dr or Ebenezer Rd/ ESR 1.09 $6K Rd/Sedgewood Dr Oakland Ave/North Ave/India Hook Rd
Homestead Rd From Bryant Blvd to Twin Lakes Rd ESR 0.55 $3K
Laurel Creek Dr From Twin Lakes Rd to India Hook Rd Bike Lanes 1.24 $4K
From Mt. Gallant Rd/Marett Blvd to Marett Blvd/McDow Dr Bike Lanes 2.56 $11K Ebinport Rd/McDow Dr
Pennington Rd From Museum Rd to Airport Rd ESR 0.29 $2K
Charlotte Ave From Lucas St to McDow Dr Bike Lanes 1.26 $6K
Constitution Blvd From Cherry Rd to Herlong Ave Bike Lanes 1.28 $6.5K
E. Black St From Elizabeth Ln to Albright Rd Bike Lanes 1.24 $6K
Firetower Rd From E. Main St to W. Springdale Rd ESR 1.60 $7.5K
Saluda St From Johnston St/Elizabeth Ln to Heckle Blvd ESR 1.33 $9K
PEDESTRIAN & BICYCLE MASTER PLAN | 45 Table 1: Shovel-Ready Bicycle Projects Continued Proposed Project Name & Length Extents Facility Cost Route Type (mi) Type
W. Main St From N. Wilson St to Constitution Blvd Bike Lanes 0.38 $2K
W. White St From N. Wilson St to Columbia Ave ESR 0.64 $3.5K
Bird St/ From University Dr/Bird St to ESR 0.91 $5K N. Garrison Rd N. Garrison Rd/Dave Lyle Blvd From Marett Blvd Extension/McDow Dr Deas St ESR 0.72 $4K to Cherry Park
Dorchester St From Bose Ave to Cherry Rd ESR 0.23 $1.5K
From end of existing sidewalk that connects Landry Ln/ to Northwestern High School and Rawlinson ESR 1.24 $6K Jackwhite Dr Rd Middle School to Meadow Lakes Rd
N. Confederate From E. Black St/N. Confederate Ave ESR 1.15 $6K Ave/Annafrel St to Dave Lyle Blvd/Annafrel St Pinewood Rd/ From E. Main St/Pinewood Rd to ESR 1.07 $5.5K Eastwood Dr N. Jones Ave/Eastwood Dr Riverview Rd/ From Celanese Rd/Riverview Rd to ESR 0.83 $4.5K Fieldcrest Cir Mt. Gallant Rd/Fieldcrest Cir
Italicized projects are time contingent ESR = Enhanced Shared Roadway
Table 2: Shovel-Ready Pedestrian Projects Proposed Project Name & Length Extents Facility Cost Route Type (mi) Type
Pennington Rd From Museum Rd to Rocket Rd Sidewalks 0.08 $11K
From Harvest Ministries to S. Anderson Rd Sidewalks 0.28 $30K Springdale Rd Interchange
Italicized projects are time contingent
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RESTRIPING/REPAVING PROJECTS
Restriping/repaving projects are timing-specific. To ensure that limited funding is used efficiently, roads should not be striped, marked, or otherwise enhanced with bicycle facilities if the road is in poor condition. Bicycle facilities should be added when the road segment is repaved. Sometimes only a portion of a project or road is in poor condition. These roads should be considered higher-priority during repaving considerations because repaving a small portion would allow a larger project to be completed. Restriping/repaving projects are divided into two categories: City and State. CITY RESTRIPING/REPAVING PROJECTS
City Restriping/Repaving Projects are typically projects on City roads classified as in poor condition (i.e. roads that received a rating of 69 or lower during the annual assessment). Common projects include:
striping bicycle lanes on City roads in poor condition with extra pavement
enhancements (signage, sharrows, traffic calming) on City roads that are in poor condition that are not wide enough for bike lanes
Two funding sources are available for repaving City roads: County C-Funds and the City’s General Fund (G-Fund). Roads with identified bicycle projects are competing against all City roads classified as in poor condition and in need of repaving.
Table 3 lists the City Restriping/Repaving Projects identified in the Plan. The project costs reflect the additional cost of adding bicycle facilities to an already scheduled repaving. The average cost for a City restriping/repaving project is around $3,800. CITY’S ROLE
The intent for City restriping/repaving projects is to wait until the road is scheduled for repaving and include the recommended bicycle facilities as a part of the repaving process. The City should consider the roads (or the portion of the road identified for bicycle treatments) listed in Table 3 when finalizing its repaving list and the list it submits to York County for C-Fund consideration.
PEDESTRIAN & BICYCLE MASTER PLAN | 47 Table 3: City Restriping/Repaving Projects Proposed Project Name & Length Extents Facility Cost Route Type (mi) Type
From W. White St Roundabout to Columbia Ave ESR 0.22 $1.5K Winthrop Alumni Dr
North Ave From Marydale Ln to Charlotte Ave ESR 0.06 $0.5K
Ebenezer Ave From N. Wilson St to Stewart Ave ESR 0.42 $2.5K
Stewart Ave From Constitution Blvd to Ebenezer Ave ESR 0.38 $2.5K
From Annafrel St/Morris St to Morris St/Dunlap St* ESR 0.30 $2.5K N. Jones Ave/ Dunlap St
Prescott Glen Pkwy/ From Mt. Gallant Rd/Prescott Glen Pkwy to either Lexington Commons Riverview Rd/Riverchase Blvd or Riverchase ESR 2.15 $10.5K Dr/Riverchase Blvd Blvd/Proposed Catawba Riverfront Trail
Willowbrook Ave/ From N. Confederate Ave/Willowbrook Ave to Bike 1.43 $6.5K Princeton Rd S. Anderson Rd/Princeton Rd Lanes
*Project spans both City and State roads that need repaving ESR = Enhanced Shared Roadway
STATE RESTRIPING/REPAVING PROJECTS
SCDOT Restriping/Repaving Projects are projects on State roads SCDOT has classified as in poor condition or completed Pennies for Progress projects that have wide outside lanes.
Common projects include:
striping bicycle lanes on State roads in poor condition with extra pavement
enhancements (signage, sharrows, traffic calming) on State roads in poor condition not wide enough for bike lanes
all roads previously improved through Pennies for Progress with wide outside lanes
SCDOT allocates funding annually for resurfacing projects, but there is often short notice to the City on which projects have been selected. The cost of striping bike lanes during the repaving process is minimal and the SCDOT will likely cover the majority if not all of the costs of adding bicycle facilities as part of these projects.
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Table 4 lists the State Restriping/Repaving Projects identified in the Plan. The project costs reflect the additional cost of adding bicycle facilities to an already scheduled repaving. CITY’S ROLE
Although the City does not have control over which roads are chosen by SCDOT for repaving, the City should regularly communicate and coordinate with SCDOT to ensure it receives the repaving list as soon as its available and that SCDOT is aware of desired bicycle projects on roads scheduled for repaving.
Table 4: State Restriping/Repaving Projects Proposed Length Project Name & Route Type Extents Facility Cost (mi) Type
Johnston St From Saluda St to S. Wilson St Bike Lanes 0.51 $3K
Elder Rd/Longview Rd/ From Heckle Blvd/Elder Rd to ESR 1.23 $6.5K Westerwood Dr Ebenezer Rd/Westerwood Dr
Albright Rd** From Heckle Blvd to E. Black St Bike Lanes 1.73 $9K
Mt. Gallant Rd** From N. Anderson Rd to Celanese Rd Bike Lanes 1.56 $8K
From Albright Rd/Saluda St/Mt. Holly Rd Mt. Holly Rd** Bike Lanes 3.18 $16K to I-77
S. Cherry Rd** From Heckle Blvd to W. Main St Bike Lanes 0.92 $5K
W. Main St** From S. Cherry Rd to Montgomery Dr Bike Lanes 3.36 $17K
Bose Ave From Deas St to McDow Dr ESR 0.74 $4K
Midvale Ave/S. Jones Ave/ From Saluda St/Midvale Ave to ESR 2.45 $12K N. Jones Ave N. Jones Ave/Manchester St/Easterwood Dr From Annafrel St/Morris St to Morris St/Dunlap St* ESR 0.30 $2.5K N. Jones Ave/ Dunlap St
Nicholson Ave/Downey St/ From Marett Blvd/Nicholson Ave to Madison St/Country Ct/ ESR 0.85 $5K Dutchman Dr/Rosewood Dr Hilltop Rd/Rosewood Dr
Renowned Blvd/Notable From Renowned Blvd/Hollis Lakes Rd to Ln/Huntington Pl/Greenfield ESR 1.22 $6.5K Steeplechase Dr/ Herlong Ave Dr/Steeplechase Dr *Project spans both City and State roads that need repaving **Pennies for Progress project with wide outside lanes ESR = Enhanced Shared Roadway
PEDESTRIAN & BICYCLE MASTER PLAN | 49 NEW CONSTRUCTION/ RECONSTRUCTION PROJECTS
New construction/reconstruction projects are often the highest priority projects, but typically present the most challenges and take a lot of time and money to construct. Many new construction/reconstruction projects serve more of a regional purpose and are eligible for additional types of funding. The most likely funding sources are SCDOT Guideshare and Pennies for Progress, but private development, grants, or other special funding sources also could be used.
Common projects in this category include:
road widening projects
new road construction projects
road reconstruction projects (including curb and gutter)
adding sidewalks or sidepaths in areas where right-of-way has to be acquired and/or there are major conflicts with trees or utilities
shared use paths in natural settings (greenways)
neighborhood connectors across creeks or existing barriers
New construction/reconstruction projects are divided into potential candidate Pennies projects and other projects.
POTENTIAL CANDIDATE PENNIES PROJECTS
Potential candidate Pennies projects are projects on roads that have regional significance, but have not yet been improved by Pennies for Progress (see Table 5).
If these projects get included on future Pennies referendums, bicycle and pedestrian accommodations should be included as a part of the larger road project. Since project timing and scope is highly variable, costs were not included for these projects. According to Pennies staff, adding a shared use path to the standard shared lane project increases the construction costs about 3% (does not include additional right-of-way), while adding bike lanes increases construction costs by about 10%.
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CITY’S ROLE
For these projects, the City’s role is to advocate for inclusion of these projects on future Pennies referendums. Also, if and when the projects are selected, the City should ensure that bike/ped facilities are designed and built in accordance with this plan.
Table 5: Potential Candidate Pennies Projects Project Name & Route Proposed Extents Length (MI) Type Facility Type
Constitution Blvd From W. Main St to Cherry Rd Bike Lanes 0.59 From Wilkerson Rd to current end of SUP Eden Terrace SUP 1.57 on Eden Ter at the Rock Hill Tennis Center
Future I-77 Flyover From John Ross Pkwy to Galleria Blvd SUP 0.78
Bike Lanes + Bike Lanes 1.55 Ebenezer Rd From Herlong Ave to Celanese Rd Sidewalks Sidewalks 1.35
Adnah Church Rd/ Paved From Old York Rd to Ogden Rd 8.30 Eastview Rd/Falls Rd Shoulder
Cherry Rd From W. Main St to Constitution Blvd Bike Lanes 0.27 Bike Lanes + Ebinport Rd From India Hook Rd to Celanese Rd 0.45 Sidewalks
Firetower Rd/Neelys From W. Springdale Rd to Lesslie Hwy/Old SUP 3.26 Creek Rd/Lesslie Hwy Friendship Rd/Proposed Carolina Thread Trail
Firetower Rd From E. Main St to W. Springdale Rd Sidewalks 1.60 Hollis Lakes Rd/ Bike Lanes + From Rawlinson Rd to India Hook Rd 5.95 Twin Lakes Rd Sidewalks From Celanese Rd to India Hook Rd SUP 3.10 Proposed Catawba Riverfront Trail
Meadow Lakes Rd/ Bike Lanes + Bike Lanes 1.84 From McConnells Hwy to Heckle Blvd S. Herlong Ave Sidewalks Sidewalks 1.15
Mt. Gallant Rd From Celanese Rd to India Hook Rd Bike Lanes 2.36
Mt. Gallant Rd From Old York Rd to India Hook Rd SUP 6.53
Bike Lanes + Bike Lanes 1.83 W. Main St From Quiet Acres Rd to Eastview Rd Sidewalks Sidewalks 0.76
John Ross Parkway From Mt. Gallant Rd to Cinema Dr Sidewalk 0.41
Bike Lanes + Bike Lanes 2.13 Museum Rd From Celanese Rd to Mt. Gallant Rd Sidewalks Sidewalks 1.55
Bike Lanes + Bike Lanes 1.37 Springsteen Rd From S. Anderson Rd to Dave Lyle Blvd Sidewalks Sidewalks 1.18 ESR = Enhanced Shared Roadway SUP = Shared Use Path
PEDESTRIAN & BICYCLE MASTER PLAN | 51 OTHER PROJECTS
Other projects are new construction/reconstruction projects essential to the overall network, but are unlikely to be funded through Pennies either because the road was already improved through a previous Pennies referendum or because it is an unlikely future candidate Pennies Project (see Table 6 and Appendix G).
Common other projects include neighborhood connector projects, recreational shared use paths, projects on private roads/development, sidewalk only projects, and bike/ped projects on proposed roads or roads already improved through Pennies.
Since project timing and scope is highly variable, costs were not included for these projects. According to the Parks, Recreation, and Tourism Department, the cost of building a recreational shared use path is around $800,000/mile (including design, fencing, signage). Funding sources could include private development, grants, Hospitality Tax funds, or special funding sources, but these are rare and project costs are high. CITY’S ROLE
The City should continue to look for opportunities to get these projects constructed through partnerships with Safe Routes to School, local universities, business owners, homeowner associations, and other governmental agencies.
Table 6: Other New Construction/Reconstruction Projects Project Name & Proposed Facility Length Extents Route Type Type (MI)
From Charlotte Ave to 800’ east of SUP/Bike Dave Lyle Blvd Corridor 4.17 Waterford Park Dr Connection/ESR
Galleria Blvd From future I-77 Flyover to Dave Lyle Blvd SUP 0.46
Earthfare Goat Path From Evergreen Cir to Marydale Ln SUP 0.13 from Johnston St/S. Wilson St. to Charlotte S. Wilson St/N. Wilson St Bike Lanes 0.73 Ave/N. Wilson St From Mt. Gallant Rd & Rosewood Dr/ Dutchman Dr to Big Dutchman Creek/ Dutchman Creek Trail SUP 2.25 India Hook Rd & Little Dutchman Creek/ India Hook Rd
Pennington Rd From Museum Rd to Old York Hwy Paved Shoulder 1.90
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Table 6: Other New Construction/Reconstruction Projects Continued Project Name & Route Proposed Extents Length (MI) Type Facility Type
Albright Road/E. Main St From E. Black St to Pinewood Rd SUP 0.45 From Celanese Rd/Cel-River Rd to Faith Cherry Rd SUP 0.23 Blvd
Hampton St/S. Dave Bike Lanes + Bike Lanes 3.54 Lyle Blvd/Friedheim Rd/ From Johnston St to Robertson Rd/Falls Rd Sidewalks Sidewalks 0.92 Ogden Rd
From Old York Rd/Pennington Rd/ Heckle Blvd Buchanan Pkwy to Mt. Holly Rd/Saluda St/ SUP 6.81 Albright Rd Herlong Ave/India Hook From Heckle Blvd to Celanese Rd SUP 2.83 Rd
Bike Lanes + Bike Lanes 1.34 McConnells Highway From Meadow Lakes Rd to Heckle Blvd Sidewalks Sidewalks 1.42
Oakland Ave/ From Cherry Rd to Herlong Ave/India Hook Bike Lanes 1.51 India Hook Rd Rd RFATS Collector Rd From Langston St to Riverview Rd SUP 1.18 Study Proposed Road From Pinewood Rd to Bird St/N. Garrison S. Anderson Rd SUP 2.22 Rd From Heckle Blvd to Mt.Holly Rd/Saluda St/ Saluda St SUP 0.30 Albright Rd Springdale Rd/ From Firetower Rd to Dave Lyle Blvd SUP 3.38 Red River Rd New Road + From end of Congaree Dr to India Hook Congaree Dr Extension Bike/Ped 0.30 Rd Connection
Hearn St Trail From Hargett Park to Cherry Rd SUP 0.29 Holly Hill Neighborhood From Oakdale Rd to Holly Hill Bike/Ped TBD Connector Neighborhood Connection From Celanese Rd either Hospitality Dr/ Home Depot Blvd/ Cherry Rd or Faith Blvd/Cherry Rd/ SUP 0.61 Hospitality Dr/Faith Blvd or Faith Assembly of God
Hopewell Rd From Springdale Rd to Neely Store Rd SUP 1.82
Bike/Ped Marett Blvd/Andora Dr From Mt. Gallant Rd to Cherry Rd TBD Connection
Northgate Ln/Whimbrel Bike/Ped From Ebinport Rd to Hargett Park TBD St/Sandpiper Dr Connection
Nuthatch Dr/Alysia Ct/ Connects Nuthatch Dr/Alysia Ct/ Ped TBD Yesteryear Ct Yesteryear Ct Connection
PEDESTRIAN & BICYCLE MASTER PLAN | 53 Table 6: Other New Construction/Reconstruction Projects Continued Proposed Project Name & Extents Facility Length (MI) Route Type Type
Oakdale Rd From Saluda Rd to Mt. Holly Rd SUP 2.06
Piedmont Medical From the Greenfield Acers/Steeplechase Ped TBD Center Connection Neighborhood to Piedmont Medical Center Connection
Rambo Rd/ Bike Lanes Bike Lanes 2.02 From Saluda Rd to Ogden Rd Robertson Rd + Sidewalks Sidewalks 1.01
Rawlinson Rd From Heckle Blvd to Ebenezer Rail Trail SUP 0.15 From end of existing Rawlison Rd SUP Rawlinson Rd Trail SUP 1.13 to Landry Ln
RFATS Collector Rd New Road/ From Haynes St to Study Proposed Sidewalk + 1.16 Neely Rd/Crawford Rd Road ESR
Riverchase Blvd From end of Riverchase Blvd to SUP 0.13 River Connector Catawba River Rock Hill School SUP + SUP 1.17 District Three STEAM From Neely Rd to Saluda Rd Sidewalk Sidewalk 0.26 Campus South Pointe Trail From end of existing South Pointe Trail to SUP 0.76 Phase II Robertson Rd Sturgis Rd From Springdale Rd to Catawba River SUP 3.23 SUP + Waterford Park Dr From Red River Rd to Sturgis Rd 1.61 Sidewalk Airport Loop From Ebenezer Rail Trail to Airport Loop SUP 0.05 Connector From existing Airport Loop on west side to Airport Loop Phase II SUP 3.07 existing Airport Loop on east side Catawba River Trail From I-77 Bridge to India Hook Rd SUP 2.68 Future Phase East Catawba River From Waterford Trail to Burgis Creek SUP 2.58 Trail Ebenezer Rail Trail From N. Wilson St to Ross Rd SUP 8.17 From Manchester Meadows Trail to John Ross Pkwy SUP 0.14 Dave Lyle Blvd St. Anne's Trail Phase From University Dr to Dave Lyle Blvd SUP 0.49 II
W. Baskins Rd From S. Anderson Rd to Hood Center Dr SUP 0.13
Wildcat Creek From end of Winston Searles Trail to Squire Rd SUP 2.74 Greenway ESR = Enhanced Shared Roadway SUP = Shared Use Path Note: Sidewalk only projects are not included in Table 6. For the full list of Other Projects, see Appendix G.
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SIDEWALK GAP AND INTERSECTION IMPROVEMENT PROJECTS
A complete list of sidewalk gaps and intersections in need of improvement is included in Appendix H.
Currently the City only allocates $100,000 for sidewalk repairs and installation of new ADA ramps, which covers emergency sidewalk repairs and the construction of about 30 ADA ramps per year. To fill sidewalk gaps and make more significant improvements to intersections, the City would need to increase the sidewalk budget. PROJECT PRIORITIZATION
It is important to understand the various types of projects and potential funding sources before thinking about prioritization.
Because connecting the City’s key destinations is the initial focus of this plan, all projects on primary routes comprising “the Box” are the top priority. The City should continue to advocate for funding to complete these projects and construct the few shovel-ready projects when the timing is appropriate.
Outside of completing the Box, the City’s highest priorities include:
Creating safe, alternative routes to major corridors that cannot support bicycle facilities and do not provide an enjoyable pedestrian experience
Providing direct access to schools, parks, major employment areas, shopping opportunities, and residential neighborhoods
Constructing bicycle and pedestrian facilities in the areas with the greatest need (Census tracts with high concentrations of seniors, children, non-white populations, low-income households, households with no motor vehicle access, and non-English speakers)
City Management, Department Heads, and other key staff should meet annually prior to budget discussions to ensure all departments agree on and are aware of the highest-priority bicycle and pedestrian projects, sidewalk gaps, and intersections needing improvement. These projects should be presented to City Council for consideration of inclusion in the annual budget.
PEDESTRIAN & BICYCLE MASTER PLAN | 55 The City is in the process of selecting a consultant to complete a City-wide sidewalk inventory and assessment. The results of this assessment should be considered when selecting high-priority sidewalk projects, sidewalk improvement projects, and intersection improvement projects. FUNDING
Many entities play a role in designing, funding, and constructing bicycle and pedestrian projects in the City.
The main way bicycle and pedestrian projects are constructed to date are as a part of larger Pennies for Progress road projects and by private development through required development standards.
RFATS also manages transportation funds used to build regionally significant transportation projects. Bicycle and pedestrian facilities can be a part of larger transportation projects or stand-alone projects. Funds include SCDOT Guideshare funds, Transportation Alternatives Program funds, and Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality (CMAQ) funds.
SCDOT has some funds to repave and restripe roads, improve intersections, and undertake road projects on State roads.
The County is awarded C-Funds annually, which are used to pave and repave roads in poor condition.
Finally, the City allocates a limited amount of funds to bicycle and pedestrian projects. It allocates $150,000 annually from the Hospitality Tax Fund for trail construction and maintenance ($100,000 for new trail construction and $50,000 for trail maintenance). These funds are managed by the Parks, Recreation, and Tourism (PRT) Department. Additionally, about $100,000 from the General Fund is allocated annually for sidewalk repairs and installation of ADA ramps. These funds are managed by the Public Works Department. The City also funds some smaller road and intersection projects identified by the Planning & Development Department in planning projects. The number of projects and amount of funding varies from year to year.
While repaving projects are not directly tied to bicycle City paving crew repaving a and pedestrian projects, roads in better condition are neighborhood street safer and more enjoyable for cyclists to ride. The City
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increases its paving budget annually, with $1 million in General Funds allocated in FY16. Opportunities exist to better tie repaving projects to bicycle projects.
For a full list of funding sources, see Appendix I.
For most projects funded by other entities, the City provides input into the selection and design process, but ultimately does not have the final decision on which projects are funded or the final project design. Because these entities are planning for larger areas than Rock Hill or for multiple jurisdictions, their priorities do not always align with the City’s priorities. Additionally, the available funding (especially funding for bicycle and pedestrian projects) is significantly less than the needs identified.
While the City has steadily increased its paving budget, retrofitting roads to include bicycle facilities has not been a part of the repaving process. Additionally, the monies allocated to trail construction, trail maintenance, and sidewalk maintenance are small and have remained stagnant. With current funding levels, PRT is only able to construct about one-quarter mile of trail a year (at best). PRT has also identified six times the maintenance needs on trails than monies allocated for trail maintenance. The $100,000 for sidewalk repairs only covers emergency sidewalk repairs and around 30 new ADA ramps per year.
New sidewalks, new bicycle facilities, and routine sidewalk and bicycle facility maintenance are not currently routine budget items.
Residents continue to express a strong desire for better bicycle and pedestrian connectivity. The City has recognized these desires and has approved many plans that recommend new facilities and maintenance of existing facilities. Unfortunately, the level of funding allocated to bicycle and pedestrian projects has limited the City’s ability to make the desired improvements. In order to have real success, City Council should both start including bicycle and pedestrian projects as routine budget items and increase the budget for maintenance and improvements to keep up with new construction.
PEDESTRIAN & BICYCLE MASTER PLAN | 57 16 | CONNECT ROCK HILL