Riverview Corridor Pre-Project Development Study
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Riverview Corridor Pre-Project Development Study Policy Advisory Committee Meeting Thursday, July 13, 2017; 9:00 AM - 12:00 PM Red Cap Room, Union Depot* 214 E. Fourth Street, Saint Paul AGENDA Discussion Leader Item Action Requested Chair Rafael Ortega 1. Welcome and Introductions Chair Rafael Ortega 2. Approval of the Agenda Approval Chair Rafael Ortega 3. Approval of the May PAC Meeting Summary Approval Mike Rogers 4. June PAC Update Information Mike Rogers 5. Meeting Objective Information Mike Rogers 6. Study Overview Information April Manlapaz 7. TAC Recommendation for Public Review Information April Manlapaz 8. PAC Approval of Detailed Evaluation of Alternatives for Approval Public Review Mike Rogers 9. Next Steps Information Chair Rafael Ortega 10. Public Comment Information *The Red Cap Room is located on the second floor. It can be reached from Elevator #6. Riverview Corridor Pre-Project Development Study Policy Advisory Committee (PAC) Meeting Summary – May 11, 2017 Participants See sign-in sheet at the end of this document for a list of attendees. Summary Meeting handouts included: • Agenda • PAC Meeting Summary – April 13, 2017 • Presentation • Technical Appendix • Public Comments Received – April 1 - April 30, 2017 Action Items • Chair Ortega requested PAC members receive information to review in June in order to make upcoming decisions at the July PAC meeting. • Supply PAC members with information regarding the economic development potential of ABRT, DBRT and rail alternatives. • Provide alternatives analysis-level Green Line and Blue Line ridership estimates as well as actual ridership numbers from recent years • Quantify the potential revenue loss from metered parking in Saint Paul that would be potentially impacted by the proposed alternatives. • Show draft 2040 ridership forecasts for related bus routes such as Routes 46 and 84. 1. Welcome and Introductions Chair Ortega convened the meeting at 9:07 a.m. and led introductions. 2. Approval of the Agenda Action: The PAC unanimously approved the meeting agenda (K. Beckmann motion; R. Noecker second). 3. Approval of the April 13, 2017 Meeting Summary Action: The PAC unanimously approved the April meeting summary (T. Busse motion; R. Noecker second). 4. PAC Meeting Summary RCRRA staff recapped the actions taken and key discussion topics from the April 13, 2017 PAC meeting, including: a service planning presentation by Metro Transit, draft results of the Environmental criteria applied to the original 10 alternatives, and a refresher of FTA New Starts criteria. Staff also discussed feedback from Riverview Study presentations at the Midway Chamber of Commerce and the Minneapolis Park Board during the month of April, as well as the April TAC meeting. The agenda for today’s PAC meeting includes a high-level review of the original 10 Most Promising Alternatives and the results from the Community, Transportation, and Cost detailed evaluation criteria. 1 Riverview Corridor Pre-Project Development Study These results will help the PAC make three key upcoming decisions regarding mode, route, and the location of the Mississippi River crossing. In June, the TAC is anticipated to recommend that the PAC release the detailed analysis results on the 16 Most Promising Alternatives to the public for review and comment, including a recommendation on which alternatives to carry forward. The PAC canceled its June meeting, but directed staff to provide the information that would have been provided in the June agenda packet in early June so that they would have time to review it prior to the July agenda packet being distributed. At the July meeting, the PAC will review the detailed evaluation results of the 16 Most Promising Alternatives and take action on the anticipated TAC recommendation to release the results of the detail analysis to the public for review and comment including any recommendations on which alternatives to carry forward. Discussion: • Can you provide us with more information on the July 13th PAC meeting? At the July PAC meeting, the PAC will be asked to take action on the release of the detail analysis on the 16 Most Promising Alternatives for public review and comment as well as any TAC recommendation on alternatives to carry forward. • Will there be a June PAC meeting? No. The June meeting has been canceled. Project staff will be available to answer PAC member questions in June and July prior to the July 13th PAC meeting. • Chair Ortega requested PAC members receive information to review in June in order to make upcoming decisions at the July PAC meeting. 5. Initial Results Summary Project staff shared initial results regarding differentiators among mode, route, and river crossing. Discussion – Ford Pkwy vs. Hwy 5: Ford Pkwy and Hwy 5 are two potential options for crossing the Mississippi River. Technical analysis shows that a route crossing at Hwy 5 will have higher ridership and a faster end-to-end travel time compared to a route crossing at Ford Pkwy. Initial capital costs indicate Ford Pkwy routes are more expensive than Hwy 5 routes because of their additional length. Ongoing operating costs are also more expensive for Ford Pkwy routes. • Why would we still need Route 54 if a premium transit service is constructed? If Riverview crosses on Ford Pkwy, there will still need to be a robust bus service traveling directly to the airport. The estimated 2040 ridership for the route via Hwy 5 is 6,000 to 7,000 trips per day. • If Riverview is on West 7th St., would there still be a need for Route 54? Yes. If the river crossing is at Hwy 5, the service needed would be less frequent and have fewer hours of service than what exists today. We would also need Route 54 if Riverview uses the CP Spur. These buses were included as part of the ridership projections. • If Riverview goes to the Ford Site, why not have a “bus spur” between Sibley Plaza and the airport and Mall of America rather than a full bus route? It seems like it would be duplicating service that already exists. A short bus spur was not looked at. A connecting bus spur would result in more transfers, which is not ideal for riders. 2 Riverview Corridor Pre-Project Development Study • The Ford Pkwy and Hwy 5 bridge crossings are portrayed as an-apples-to-apples comparison, but they are not. There would still need to be additional bus service for either route, but the background bus service for each alternative is different given the different routing. • If Riverview crosses at Hwy 5 and a new bus service from W. 7th St. to the Ford Site were added, would the ridership for the new bus service to the Ford Site decrease the projected Riverview ridership for alternatives along W. 7th St.? No, not significantly because the current ridership assumes that connecting bus service to the Ford Site is part of any Riverview crossing at Hwy 5. • The Ford Site has a higher population and more jobs, so why is there less ridership? Because of travel time? Yes, travel time is one reason. People also want to travel to a variety of end markets. People on W. 7th St. want a direct route to the airport and mall. People at the Ford Site want to travel to several different areas, many outside of the area served by Riverview, and have more transit options already available. The Blue Line and A Line already serve this area. • Concern that slide 13 summarizing the differentiators felt leading and that the $200M cost difference between Ford Pkwy and Hwy 5 was marginal compared to the potential $1B cost of the project. • Do the capital cost estimates include bridge improvements? Wouldn’t rail cost more? Yes. The draft capital cost estimates include an allowance for the river crossing. Rail is more expensive than BRT. Discussion – Bus/BRT vs. Rail (LRT or Streetcar): Project staff discussed the differentiators between BRT and rail modes. Rail alternatives have more daily ridership, but rail is more expensive to build and maintain. Rail would negatively impact on-street parking and it has the highest potential construction impact. DBRT has a medium potential construction impact, and ABRT has the lowest potential construction impact. • Have you estimated construction time yet? No, but generally construction is 3-4 years for rail and 3 years for Dedicated BRT. • Is there data behind the numbers or are they from regional experience? They are based on experience in the region. Discussion – W. 7th St. vs. CP Spur and St. Paul Ave. vs. CP Spur: Project staff discussed the differentiators between W. 7th St. and the CP Spur. The CP Spur is more expensive; however, a route along W. 7th St. would remove on-street parking and have more construction impacts than routes using the CP Spur. • Is there a significant difference in ridership between W. 7th St. and the CP Spur? No; the difference between the two routes is approximately 800 trips per day, which is not significant. • Slide 15 makes it seem like all parking would be removed. However, only some will. I think that needs to be clarified for the public. Noted, this slide will be revised for future presentations. Discussion – Summary of Ridership and Cost: • Why does LRT have the highest estimated daily ridership? Is it because of vehicle size or frequency? The increased ridership is because of mode bias in the Met Council travel demand model. This mode bias is based on ridership data from the Blue and Green Lines. • Are these numbers for ridership on top of concurrent bus service numbers? Yes. 3 Riverview Corridor Pre-Project Development Study • Is Arterial BRT only on Hwy 5? Yes, for the draft results presented to the PAC this month. In July, the Study Team will present the draft ridership results for the additional 6 BRT alternatives requested by the PAC, including Arterial BRT to the Ford Site.