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05.09.22 TAB MinutesTAB Minutes May 9, 2022 Page 1 of 6 CITY OF BOULDER BOULDER, COLORADO BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS MEETING MINUTES Name of Board/ Commission: Transportation Advisory Board (TAB) Date of Meeting: May 9, 2022 Contact Information Preparing Summary: Meredith Schleske 303.441.3204 Board Members Present: Alex Weinheimer, Chair; Rebecca Davies; Tila Duhaime; Ryan Schuchard; Triny Willerton Staff Present: Natalie Stiffler, Interim Director for Transportation and Mobility Valerie Watson, Transportation Planning Manager Gerrit Slatter, Principal Transportation Projects Engineer Mark Shisler, Civil Engineering Principal Project Manager Devin Joslin, Transportation Engineering Senior Manager Mike Sweeney, Transportation Engineer Senior Project Manager Veronica Son, Transportation Engineer Jean Sanson, Transportation Principal Planner Chris Hagelin, Transportation Principal Planner Danny O’Connor, Principal Transportation Planner, Transit Program Manager Melanie Sloan, Principal Transportation Planner David “DK” Kemp, Transportation Senior Planner Gastonia Anderson, Budget Senior Analyst Edward Stafford, Planning and Development Civil Engineering Senior Manager Meredith Schleske, Board Secretary Also Present: Craig Schoenburg, Toole Design Group Kevin Crouse, Boulder B-cycle General Manager David Sedbrook, Lime Transportation Company Type of Meeting: Advisory/ Regular Agenda Item 1: Call to Order [6:00 p.m.] Instructions to Virtual Meeting Participants (not an agenda item) – Veronica Son, technical host reviewed rules and technical operations on the virtual platform. Agenda Item 2: Approval of April 2022 Minutes [6:03 p.m.] Motion: Approval of April 2022 Minutes as submitted. Motion: Duhaime Second: Weinheimer 4:0 Motion Passes. Agenda Item 3: Public Comment [6:04 p.m.] • Chuck Brock – sits on Parks and Recreation Advisory Board (PRAB) and Community Cycles Advocacy Committee, speaking for himself. Request TAB to consider for future agenda item, given Vision Zero (VZ), Transportation Master Plan (TMP) and city’s climate goals, why did city staff agree with University of Colorado (CU) on that turn lane to Broadway? That wouldn't invite and funnel out of town vehicles and bus traffic across one of the busiest multiuse passes in the city on a downhill slope. VZ is supposed to be the guiding principle of our street design decisions, and that means systematically identifying and eliminating hazardous conditions that will predictively lead to serious crashes, not building new sources of conflict. Hope you can determine how this design was even considered as a possibility, what was the process that led to this decision and is the outcome the best approach or does it need to be reconsidered. Thank you for considering this request and for your service to our community. Triny Willerton joined the meeting at 6:05 p.m. • Kurt Nordback - also from Community Cycles, following up on their email regarding Design and Construction Standards (DCS) on agenda tonight but not a public hearing. Appreciate that update is happening, looking forward to it for many years, overall layout is not friendly, urge extending the project to TAB Minutes May 9, 2022 Page 2 of 6 include full DCS that includes a lot of street design. It has been 27 years - beneficial to update more frequently. • Lynn Segal – watching out for safety, a lot of issues, drive every six months, the more cars the more biking issues, must make a stand against CU. Can’t act as TAB watching out for best interest of bikers without impact of CU South potential, would be devastating to Boulder economy. Issue of inner city transportation, East Boulder Sub Community, impact on city, for example, Diagonal Plaza. Boulder Housing Partners (BHP) is getting free recreation center passes. High end apartments are getting storage for one bike/unit, so will drive. What is TAB saying about that? Copeland Development will not allow BHP residents to swim there so they have to drive to recreation center. Think about 30,000 foot issues in Boulder, how it impacts TAB budget. • James Lieberman – company is Environmental Information Systems Inc., experienced near miss, emailed TAB requesting fairly quick attention, will go to City Council if necessary. Near miss is usually indicative of underlying problem that could result in injury. Use information to modify policy, specifically at 19th Street and Quince. Narrows to a single lane on a two-lane highway via flexible reflective markers, twice on bike almost collided with a confused auto driver. It’s not a chicane, it’s a transition. Giving feedback if the board is willing to take action; if not, will go to the city council for the attention it deserves. Know you’re trying to create s safe community. • Megan Richer – lives on Quince, has two young children ages two and five, supportive of Vision Zero Innovation Program (VZIP) infrastructure on Quince, example of commitment to 20 is Plenty. Most real threat to my children is the cars that drive on our street, anything we can do to slow speed of travel on residential streets in our city is saving lives. Surrounded by young families, constantly walking and biking, Harmony preschool and Lucky grocery store are in the community. Requests constant awareness from all drivers, forces to coordinate. Make the VZIP installation permanent, more beautiful. Innovative treatment. o TAB Comment - update is on tonight’s agenda, Duhaime offered to be communications point with community for TAB if permissible. Agenda Item 4: Public hearing and TAB recommendation regarding Denver Regional Council of [6:20 p.m.] Governments (DRCOG) Transportation Improvement Program (TIP) Projects Jean Sanson and Gerrit Slatter made the report to the board. Executive Summary The City of Boulder is proposing to submit transportation project funding applications to the Denver Regional Council of Governments (DRCOG) as part of the 2022-2025 Transportation Improvement Program (TIP). The purpose of this agenda item is to share the city’s proposed list of subregional project applications for council review and consideration. This DRCOG TIP call for project applications was issued May 2, 2022 and applications are due June 24, 2022 to Boulder County and DRCOG. With the input of the Transportation Advisory Board (TAB), the city’s proposed projects both further the adopted TMP and are competitive in terms of the DRCOG TIP application scoring criteria. Projects are also in support of the DRCOG Metro Vision Plan and will advance safety improvements to the Boulder Core Arterial Network (CAN) and regional multimodal corridors. The projects summarized in Attachment A of the memorandum were presented for TAB’s review and consideration of a motion to recommend City Council authorize the city to submit up to all four projects for the 2022-2025 TIP. The TIP process requires that the city manager sign the submittal form for the final projects sent to DRCOG. The four projects are: • 30th Street Preliminary Design (CO7/Arapahoe - CO119) • CO93/Broadway & Table Mesa and CO93/Broadway & Regent Transit Priority Intersections • Baseline Enhanced Transit Stops & Protected Bike Lanes (30th Street – Foothills Parkway) • US36/28th Street West Side Multi-Use Path (Four Mile Canyon Creek Bridge – Jay Road) TAB Action Requested TAB is asked to review the proposed projects and provide a recommendation to City Council to endorse submitting the six projects from this proposed set of projects for the 2022-2025 TIP. TAB Clarifying Questions • Question regarding posted material, subsequently corrected. • Inquiries whether projects are ranked by staff, how many have been approved in past. • Question about cost of 30th Street study compared to the 30th and Colorado corridor study, comparative length and study detail; whether staff would consider adding a short segment of Pearl Street in the context of this study because it's an important first/last mile connection into Boulder Junction. • Comment regarding important bus connection from 28th Street in Boulder Junction; Pearl Street from 28th Street to Junction Place could also be added. Additional intersections to Broadway/Table Mesa may be more cost effective to include transit enhancements at Broadway intersections with Regent and Table Mesa plus TAB Minutes May 9, 2022 Page 3 of 6 transit signals at Dartmouth and 27th Way and Table Mesa at RTD Park and Ride. That might expand scope and increase cost effectiveness. • Inquiry if option exists to indicate willingness to accept smaller amount. • General questions regarding main expenses of transit intersections, definition of feasibility as applied to such projects, interest expressed in rightsizing, narrowing, lane reduction, comment regarding amazing opportunity for residents along 30th Street. • Question whether technical advisory committee provided feedback beyond the meeting that Weinheimer and Schuchard attended that could cause change of direction. o Staff response - there will be no further input. Public Participation – there was none. [6:51 p.m.] TAB Discussion • Support expressed for mix of projects; comment that Baseline addresses both sides of street, designated as “favorite” project by several TAB members. • Observation that 30th Street is funded in tiny sections, transit supports regional movement. • Caution stated regarding funds for 28th Street multi-use path, remembering TIP funds previously awarded for Table Mesa multi-use path then returned. Important to get them right. • Straw poll requested concerning omission of US36/28th Street West Side Multi-Use Path (Four Mile Canyon Creek Bridge – Jay Road) as a TAB recommendation to city council for TIP application – all TAB members support not recommending this project. o Staff comment that it would begin to respond to community feedback concerning crashes north of Jay Road, not comparable to previous potential Table Mesa project, there will be another opportunity later in 2022. o Noted that, based on TAB feedback and additional staff analysis, the northern extent of this project, which was originally Violet Avenue, was truncated to terminate at Jay Road, thereby reducing the project cost from $8.5M to $3.5M. project because it is single modal. • Question about whether proposed 28th Street multi-use project would improve safety, would lessen likelihood of award by increasing the total request to $9.4 million of total $16 million pool. • Recommendation to check box for partial funding option on Table Mesa transit project. Motion Motion to recommend to City Council to approve the proposed submittal to the Denver Regional Council of Governments for the 2022-2025 Transportation Improvements Program Subregional Project Selection Process for the following projects: • 30th Street Preliminary Design (CO7/Arapahoe - CO119) • CO93/Broadway & Table Mesa and CO93/Broadway & Regent Transit Priority Intersections • Baseline Enhanced Transit Stops & Protected Bike Lanes (30th Street – Foothills Parkway) Further, TAB does not support submittal of the proposed US36/28th Street West Side Multi-Use Path (Four Mile Canyon Creek Bridge – Jay Road.) Motion: Duhaime Second: Weinheimer 5:0 Motion Passes. Agenda Item 5: Staff briefing and TAB feedback regarding 2022-2027 Capital Improvement [7:08 p.m.] Program (CIP) (Part I of III) Gerrit Slatter made the report to the board. Executive Summary Each year, the city goes through an annual budget process in which departments create a six-year Capital Improvement Program (CIP). This year the time period is 2023 through 2028. The Transportation Advisory Board (TAB) role in this process is identified in the Boulder Revised Code (BRC) TITLE 2 GOVERNMENT ORGANIZATION, Chapter 3 Boards and Commissions, Section 14 - Transportation Advisory Board; “. . . to review all city transportation environmental assessments and capital improvements.” This agenda item is intended to continue TAB’s guidance with the city’s CIP development process by providing background information and analysis, a tentative schedule and key issues for this year. TAB will have the opportunity to review and discuss the CIP again at the upcoming board meeting in June and then be asked to make a formal recommendation to council at the July TAB meeting. Staff appreciates the beneficial role that TAB provided during the development of the 2022-27 CIP and looks forward to a collaborative effort for this next Transportation CIP. Request for TAB Staff requests that TAB review the background information and provide feedback to staff on how we can best support board discussions and deliberations. TAB Minutes May 9, 2022 Page 4 of 6 TAB Feedback • Question whether there is a rollup that shows funding by mode; suggestion to address as number of people served. • Inquiry regarding bad/good/excellent road condition photos and if weight of vehicle is considered. • Question about what signal projects are, for example, RTOT (Regional Transportation Operations and Technology Program.) Gerrit Slatter offered to conduct a CIP working meeting and bike tour for TAB. Agenda Item 6: Staff briefing and TAB feedback regarding Transportation Standards (DCS) [7:39 p.m.] Update Gerrit Slatter made the report to the board. Executive Summary This memo provides a status update on Phase 2 of the transportation portion of the City of Boulder Design and Construction Standards (DCS) Update. Phase 1 updates, which took place in 2019/2020, provided specific updates to Chapter 2, with a focus on clarification of standard, buffered and separated bike lane standards such that the DCS would be consistent with the Low-Stress Walk and Bike Network Plan. Phase 1 also updated the pedestrian ramp standards in Chapter 11. The Phase 1 update was adopted in February 2020. The Phase 2 DCS update will focus on Street Geometric Design and Streetscape/Landscaping Design and Maintenance and will also include an update to the Sight Triangle portion of the Boulder Revised Code 9-9-7 (BRC) (The BRC are regulations adopted though the legislative process by the City Council.) The purpose of the Phase 2 update is to align these sections with recently adopted policy and technical documents (e.g., Transportation Master Plan, Low-Stress Walk and Bike Network Plan, and internal Transportation Landscapes Plan) and to ensure that industry best practices are being followed. The DCS is used to help guide public infrastructure built by both private development and city funded capital infrastructure and maintenance projects. The Phase 2 project was initiated in June 2021, with an initial round of community engagement in September 2021. The team has developed initial “60%-level” recommendations for changes and is collecting input on these from the community and from boards in April-May 2022 with anticipated adoption of final updates to the documents in Q3 2022. Questions for TAB 1. What questions do you have about the community engagement? 2. What suggestions do you have to enhance the proposed changes? TAB Feedback • Question if city staff will respond to suggestions made by Community Cycles online recently, and to what level of detail. • Interest expressed in a floating bus stop with bike lane access from the back and including shelter in some places, consideration of cantilevers and lean rails. • Inquiry whether bike parking falls under DCS. o Staff response - There are bike rack standards which will be addressed in a future update; required bike parking is in Boulder Revised Code (BRC) Title 9 of land use code updated a few years ago; bike parking adequacy will likely be addressed in Access Management and Parking Strategy (AMPS) review. • Question about where slip lanes, officially termed right turn bypass island, standards are addressed. o Staff response – there are no current standard/rule/specification. • Question about where double left turn lane standards are addressed, why dual left lanes do not require director approval as do triple left turn lanes. o Staff response - Guidance within the highway capacity manual is typically the prevailing standard used, includes measures such as volume turning thresholds, but not necessarily City of Boulder default. Staff will be proposing second left turn lane westbound 28th Street to southbound Colorado for additional throughput to keep transit lane clear. • Inquiry about sight triangles and potential speed limit revisions with higher speed skateboards, e-scooters and e-bikes allowed on sidewalks, and safety for slow-moving users. Reconsider if there should be some speed expectation. • Question about when and why we allow mixing zone design; if the goal is separation of users and less conflict, why do our design standards allow a car to cross a separated lane. o Consultant response - Safer than some other designs when constrained by right-of-way access; for example, better than just allowing the vehicles to cross through bike lane. o TAB suggestion - indicate consultant’s preferred design also. TAB Minutes May 9, 2022 Page 5 of 6 Agenda Item 7: Matters [8:16 p.m.] A. Matters from Staff/Non-Agenda 1. VZIP Evaluation Briefing and Feedback – Devin Joslin. Evaluation and report in process; goal is to complete evaluation of 20 projects in six Neighborhood Speed Management Program streets by using transparent framework to determine whether project should remain as is, be revised, or be removed. Data collection started in April, draft to be issued in August, final report to TAB in September/October. Communication includes mailers to residents, field signage, social media. Documenting lessons learned, implement recommendations in early 2023. TAB Comments a. Question of when Quince Street project was installed – September 2021. b. Inquiry if lifecycle or ongoing maintenance costs of the installations will be a factor in evaluating their effectiveness. c. Question about how often data is updated, comment that access to information is important. Noted that data shows Quince Street treatment to be effective in reducing speed. d. Comment about treatment performance in winter, design projects to test multimodal and safe streets in winter conditions and heavy snow and ice. Noted public surprise that we are doing innovation on public streets, sell the idea. 2. Shared Micromobility Program Update – David Kemp. Objective: To provide community members safe, equitable and sustainable forms of transportation to improve quality of life, provide connections to transit and key destinations; and replace motor vehicle trips to reduce traffic congestion and transportation-related greenhouse gas emissions. Want to get more devices by 2023, increase number of rides, reduce crashes. Sustainability via fee income. Staff is monitoring, revisions planned to be implemented January 2023. TAB Comments a. Comment that conversion to e-bikes has been a huge factor in usage, inquiry whether we have data on out-of-town users. Consultant response - not enough visitors/data yet, hope to see more in summer. Not back to 2018 volume yet. b. Observation that materials reference helmets available on request; question if can we offer access in Boulder. Consultant response - working with Trek bike store. B. Matters from the Board [8:48 p.m.] 1. TAB Retreat Agenda Review – May 23, 6-10 PM, virtual. 2. TAB Appointments a. Greenways Advisory Committee (GAC) – Weinheimer; Duhaime alternate b. Vision Zero Community Partnership Committee – Willerton; Davies alternate. Note: Pending Boulder County acknowledgement that Vision Zero Community Partnership Committee will continue; Joslin to follow up. c. Access Management and Parking Strategy (AMPS) Working Group –merged into Access Allies d. Access Allies for the Curbside Management Project – Schuchard; Duhaime alternate 3. Open Board Comment a. Duhaime – continued concern regarding serious and fatal crashes, lack of information. Also perplexed that with recent talk about buses around University Hill at the new hotel, why TAB has not been consulted. How can TAB have a seat at the table? Staff response - Planning and public engagement process began many years ago, not seen as a transportation project at the time. Going forward, TAB members are welcome to send comments and concerns to stafforde@bouldercolorado.gov. Duhaime – Opinion that there are times when planning board and planning staff don’t think far enough outside the envelope with the building, think that’s been a longstanding sentiment among TAB members long preceding these currently seated board members. b. Schuchard – desire to renew climate discussion, no process/procedure to develop transportation climate plan yet, recommends IPCC as resource. If there is any opportunity to attend any meetings, offers to attend. c. Duhaime absent from July 11th TAB meeting, could attend alternate July 25th date if necessary for quota. Davies out of country for June 13th TAB meeting. TAB Minutes May 9, 2022 Page 6 of 6 d. Davies - where can recent crash data in City of Boulder be accessed? Staff response - request via City of Boulder Police Department records, Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT) has records through maybe 2020. TAB response - may need to request per crash. Agenda Item 8: Future Agenda Items [9:08 p.m.] Agenda Item 9: Adjournment [9:08 p.m.] There being no further business to come before the board at this time, by motion regularly adopted, the meeting was adjourned at 9:08 p.m. Motion: Moved to adjourn: Schuchard Second: Duhaime Motion passes 5:0 Date, Time, and Location of Next Meeting: The next meeting will be a regular virtual meeting on Monday June 13, 2022 at 6:00 p.m. unless otherwise decided by staff and the Board. APPROVED BY: ATTESTED: ___________________________________ ____________________________________ Board Chair Board Secretary ___________________________________ ____________________________________ Date Date An audio recording of the full meeting for which these minutes are a summary is available on the Transportation Advisory Board web page. 6/13/2022