Appendix A. Project Concept Guidelines Everett has been working for the past decade to implement bikeway projects in order to encourage cycling and improve the quality of bicycling so that it becomes an integral part of daily life. In many locations within Everett, the urban infrastructure has already been constructed; so many future projects will involve retrofitting existing streets and intersections. The city has significant changes in topography, a high demand for on-street parking, a roadway system heavily reliant on arterial roadways, and many other complex situations. When looking to implement bike lanes or other improvements, most standard design manuals offer limited solutions. These project concepts are based on bikeway guidelines for bikeway situations provided in the Design Manual, Chapter 1020 published by the Washington State Department of Transportation, the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) Guide for the Development of Bicycle Facilities, and the Manual of Uniform Traffic Control Devices (MUTCD), Part 9 Traffic Controls for Bicycle Facilities as amended by Washington State law. These guidelines use these documents as a set of minimum conditions, and are intended to recommend creative solutions to a wide range of bicycle facility types. The guidelines will allow Everett to improve the quality of the bicycle network. The guidelines use the Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices (MUTCD) to provide the transportation professional with the information to make informed decisions using engineering judgment as the preferred approach, with options identified that the City can implement at their discretion. The following terms are defined by the MUTCD: Standard: A statement of required, mandatory, or specifically prohibitive practice regarding a traffic control device. Guidance: A statement of recommended, but not mandatory, practice in typical situations, with deviations allowed if engineering judgment or engineering study indicates the deviation to be appropriate. Option: A statement of practice that is a permissive condition and carries no requirement or recommendation. Options may contain allowable modifications to a Standard or Guidance. Support: An informational statement that does not convey any degree of mandate, recommendation, authorization, prohibition or enforceable condition. Relevant signs from the MUTCD are included in this document, while examples of signing in specific situations can be found in the MUTCD. The inclusion of project concepts and options not included in the MUTCD does not constitute tacit approval of the recommendations by the City or State. The following are key principles for these guidelines: Roads in Everett are legal for the use of bicyclists, (except those roads designated as limited access facilities which prohibit bicyclists). This means that most streets are bicycle facilities, and will be designed and maintained accordingly. Bicyclists have a range of skill levels, from inexperienced / recreational bicyclists (especially children and seniors) to experienced cyclists (adults who are capable of sharing the road with Alta Planning + Design | Page A-1 motor vehicles). These groups are not always exclusive – some elite level athletes still like to ride on shared-use paths with their families, and some recreational bicyclists will sometimes use their bicycles for utilitarian travel. Facilities will be designed for the use by inexperienced cyclists, with a goal of providing for recreational cyclists to the greatest extent possible. In areas where specific needs have been identified (for example, near schools) the needs of appropriate types of bicyclists will be accommodated. All roads are legal and preferred by experienced cyclists. Everett is working on a complete network of on-street bicycling facilities to connect to the existing and proposed off-street pathways. A -2 1. Shoulder Bikeways Guideline Summary Typically found in on streets without sidewalks, shoulder bikeways are paved roadways with striped shoulders (4’+) wide enough for bicycle travel and shared pedestrian use. Shoulder bikeways often, but not always, include signage alerting motorists to expect bicycle travel along the roadway. Discussion In some cases it may not be possible to develop a bike lane at full standard width until many years in the future. Rather than waiting – for example – for a roadway widening project scheduled ten years in the future, It is possible to stripe the shoulder in lieu of bike lanes under certain conditions. If the Shoulder bikeways are appropriate along wide rural roads area is 50 percent of the desirable bike lane width, where vehicles can avoid passing close to bicyclists and the outside lane width can be reduced to the AASHTO minimum, bike lanes may be installed in anticipation of the future expansion that would bring the bike lane up to standard width. If the available bike lane width is 2/3 of the desirable bike lane width, the full bike lane treatment of signs, legends, and an 8” bike lane line should be provided. Where feasible, extra width may be provided with pavement resurfacing jobs, but not exceeding desirable bike lane widths. Older neighborhoods in Everett sometimes lack sufficient off-street parking, causing people to park on the street. Wide Outside Lanes A wide outside lane may be sufficient accommodation for bicyclists on streets with insufficient width for bike lanes but which do have space available to provide a wider (14’-16’) outside travel lane. Wide outside lanes may encourage drivers to create 2 lanes where only 1 is intended. | A -3 2. Bike Lanes Guideline Summary Designated exclusively for bicycle travel, bike lanes are separated from vehicle travel lanes with striping and also include pavement stencils. Bike lanes are most appropriate on arterial and collector streets where higher traffic volumes and speeds warrant greater separation. Discussion Most commuter bicyclists would argue that on-street facilities are the safest and most functional facilities for bicycle transportation. Bicyclists have stated their preference for marked on-street bike lanes in numerous Bike lanes with signage on a popular commuting and national surveys. Many bicyclists – particularly less recreational route in California experienced riders – are far more comfortable riding on a busy street if it has a striped and signed bike lane. Part of the goal of this Plan is to encourage new riders, and providing marked facilities such as bike lanes as one way of helping to persuade residents to give bicycling a try. Bike lanes can promote bicycle riding. Bike lanes are desirable for bicycle commute routes along major roadways. Bike lanes help to define the road space for bicyclists and motorists, reduce the chance that motorists will stray into the cyclists’ path, discourage bicyclists from riding on the sidewalk, and remind motorists that cyclists have a right to the road. One consideration in designing bike lanes in urban settings is to ensure bike lanes and adjacent parking lanes have sufficient width so that cyclists have enough room to avoid a suddenly opened Bike lane pavement markings vehicle door. Stripes delineating bike lanes should be striped at a width of 6 inches on the side of bike lanes adjacent a travel lane, and 4 inches on the side of bike lanes adjacent to parking. These figures are minimum stripe widths; several cities use an 8 inch stripe adjacent to travel lanes for enhanced visibility and distinction. Where a bike lane is adjacent to a curb, no striping is necessary on that side. Bike lane striping should have no profile. In the past, some jurisdictions have provided textured bike lane striping, under the belief that a textured warning strip would reduce or prevent drivers from drifting into the bike lane. However, this treatment is highly discouraged as any bumps may cause cyclists to lose control of their bicycle while crossing the line. Bike lane striping is included in the width of the bicycle facility. A -4 Additional Guidance The AASHTO Guide for the Development of Bicycle Facilities guidance notes that “longitudinal pavement markings should be used to define bicycle lanes.” The guideline states that “if used, the bicycle lane symbol marking shall be placed immediately after an intersection and other locations as needed. The bicycle lane symbol marking shall be white. If the word or symbol pavement markings are used, Bicycle Lane signs shall also be used, but the signs need not be adjacent to every symbol to avoid overuse of the signs.” The following pages describe guidelines for implementing bike lanes on streets with on-street parking (both parallel and diagonal) and without parking. Additional sheets highlight particular considerations for bike lanes, including conflicts with right-turning motorists, left-turning bicycle movements, bike lanes at intersections, and techniques for adding to bike lane visibility (including colored bike lanes and bike boxes). The following sections discuss a variety of methodologies for retrofitting bike lanes to existing roadways. Preformed thermoplastic bicycle lane pavement markings are commercially available from traffic safety product suppliers (see the Bibliography for examples1). | A -5 2.1. Bike Lane Configurations 2.1.1. Bike Lane Adjacent to On-Street Parallel Parking Guideline Summary Bike Lane Width: • 5’ recommended when parking stalls are marked Travel Lane Width • 12’ for a shared lane adjacent to a curb, or 11’ minimum for a shared bike/parking lane where parking