APPENDIX G: NJDOT Local Technical Assistance Multi- Jurisdictional Mercer County Bicycle Plan Mercer County Multi-Jurisdictional Bicycle Plan NJDOT Local Technical Assistance Program inceton 5 Tr n 5 prepared by OF TRANS T PO EN R M TA T T R O A P N E D T H Y E E S S R TA JE October 2010 TE OF NEW Multi-Jurisdictional Bicycle Plan for Mercer County Table of Contents Executive Summary ............................................................................................................... ES-1 thru 3 1.1 Introduction – Background, Purpose, Area Description ................................................ 1 1.2 Methodology – process flow chart ................................................................................... 3 1.3 Community Participation ................................................................................................ 7 1.4 Evaluation & Analysis ..................................................................................................... 9 Identifying Capital Improvement Priorities ................................................................................ 9 Identifying Demand ........................................................................................................................ 9 Identifying Priority Links for Capital Investments..................................................................... 10 Identifying Priority Intersections for Capital Investments........................................................ 10 Identifying Trails Opportunities for Capital Investments and Study & Development ........ 11 Opportunities & Constraints Maps: o Map 1: Existing Conditions o Map 2: Bikeability o Map 3: Activity Nodes & Connecting Corridors 1.5 Recommendations for Capital Improvements ............................................................... 12 Recommendations for Priority Candidate Roadway Links ....................................................... 15 o Table 1: Recommendations for Priority Candidate Roadway Links Recommendations for Priority Candidate Intersections ........................................................... 16 Recommendations for Trail Connections ................................................................................... 18 o Table 2: Recommendations for Trail Connections Recommendations Maps: o Map 4: Candidate Links & Intersections o Map 5: Trail Connections 1.6 Policies and Procedures for Implementation (Other Recommendations) ..................... 19 (J400021_TOC_Final/G) Multi-Jurisdictional Bicycle Plan for Mercer County Appendices Appendix A: Design Guidelines Appendix B: Federal and State Policies Appendix C: Funding Sources Tech Memo Appendix D: Demand/Suitability Tech Memo (BCI) Appendix E: Steering Committee Appendix F: Outreach Material Appendix G: Mercer County Applications for Technical Assistance Appendix H: DVRPC Interactive Bikeability Map Appendix I: Document Bibliography Appendix J: MUTCD Request to Experiment (J400021_TOC_Final/G) Multi-Jurisdictional Bicycle Plan for Mercer County EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Multi-Jurisdictional Bicycle Plan for Mercer County Executive Summary Background In June of 2009, Mercer County Planning Division requested support from the New Jersey Department of Transportation (NJDOT) Office of Bicycle and Pedestrian Programs to develop a bicycle component of the Mercer County Master Plan Mobility Element. The County‟s application cited recent efforts to develop priorities for County bicycle facilities including the development of the Mercer County Bicycle & Pedestrian Task Force with the Greater Mercer Transportation Management Association (GMTMA), working with the Delaware Valley Regional Planning Commission (DVRPC) to develop a trails inventory and an interactive Bikeability Map, and a NJDOT funded study to develop a concept plan for a designated Delaware and Raritan Canal “Canal Banks,” Trenton bicycle facility along Mercer County Route 546. The NJDOT approved Mercer County‟s request for technical assistance. The RBA Group of Parsippany, New Jersey, being under agreement to the NJDOT to provide on-call bicycle and pedestrian related planning services, was selected to provide planning assistance by developing a comprehensive Bicycle Plan for the County. The Plan is intended to provide guidance on a process for accommodating bicyclists on any roadway in Mercer County „depending on context and use‟ and to serve as the basis for the Bicycling Component of the Mercer County Master Plan (2010) Mobility Element, as well as municipal bicycle facility plans. A Public Planning Process The project engaged public and private stakeholders in a collaborative process during the development of the Plan. Key among the efforts to gather public input was the establishment of the Mercer County Pedestrian & Bicycle Task Force as key constituents of the Steering Committee. The Committee includes representatives from the County, the Bicycle Coalition of Greater Philadelphia, most municipalities in the County, and GMTMA. The Steering Committee‟s role was to guide the planning process and direct the project team toward the Task Force‟s vision of “a future where more people choose to bike and walk to their destinations.” Bill’s Olde Tavern at 5 Points, Hamilton Township In addition, the Mercer County Interactive Bikeability Map developed by DVRPC was used as a basis for identifying roadways and intersections that are potential candidates for capital improvements. DVRPC, in cooperation with Mercer County, initially calculated bikeability scores using the Bicycle Level of Service (BLOS) model, which generates a grade for roadways based on traffic volumes, traffic speeds, pavement widths, and whether there is a usable shoulder. Using an interactive web (wiki) tool, bicyclists and other stakeholders throughout the County had the opportunity to access the Bikeability Map and provide input and comments with respect to the bikeability of the roadway network in the County. Taking into account user (J400021_Plan_Executive Summary_Final/G) Page ES-1 Multi-Jurisdictional Bicycle Plan for Mercer County comments, some bikeability scores were changed and the map was modified. Important destinations and recommended bicycle travel routes throughout the county were determined from information gathered during the process of developing the Mercer County Interactive Bikeability Map. Stakeholder interviews and materials from the public outreach process for the Mercer County Master Plan 2010 Update were also used to identify bicycle trip attractors and activity clusters throughout the County. Identifying Priority Needs Priorities for capital improvements were identified based on an analysis of the existing or potential bicycle demand for a given link to access destinations in the county, as well as the link‟s ability to safely and comfortably accommodate bicycle traffic. Because the DVRPC bikeability and trails data contained over 6,000 links, this Plan focused on links that were unfavorable in terms of their bikeability and were located within or provided access to key activity clusters or trip attractors within the County. The 273 links that met these criteria were considered primary candidates for capital investments to improve bikeability of the overall roadway network in the County. Based on user comments provided during the development of the DVRPC Interactive Bikeability Map, a number of problematic intersections located within activity nodes (or along roadways providing access to them) were identified. These Main Street, Lawrenceville locations were also considered priority locations for capital investments to improve bikeability. Finally, by analyzing mapping of existing, planned and proposed trails, priorities required to create an interconnected system of trails within the county were identified. The selection of candidate roadway links and intersections presented in this Plan is one means of prioritizing locations for capital improvements. A different cut of the data could identify locations where relatively low-cost, simple, and systematic improvements might be made, such as striping a 4' shoulder. Either strategy offers a starting point for strategically integrating bicycle improvements into Mercer County's capital program. Cutting the data to focus on streets under municipal jurisdictions enables towns to develop their own capital programs. Menu of Options A series of recommended treatments were provided for each of the candidate links and candidate intersections based on the severity of the deficiency, local land use, as well as roadway and traffic characteristics. A set of Design Guidelines containing descriptions and illustrations of all the traffic control and design options that are included among the treatment recommendations was prepared as part of the Plan. These options run the gamut from relatively simple, even quick and inexpensive treatments that involve pavement marking and signing, to more complex and costly solutions, such as removal of parking and pavement widening. Turning Basin Park, Princeton (J400021_Plan_Executive Summary_Final/G) Page ES-2 Multi-Jurisdictional Bicycle Plan for Mercer County A table of Action Items was also prepared that identifies policies and programmatic activities that are needed to support the implementation and maintenance of the Plan. Finally, a listing of potential funding sources that might be used to fund both capital projects and programmatic improvements were prepared. Bicycle Plan for Mercer County The purpose of this Plan is not to identify a bicycle network per