Memorandum

City of Lawrence/Douglas County

Planning and Development Services

TO:	David L. Corliss, Lawrence City Manager
FROM:		MPO Staff
Date:	04/10/12
RE:	Proposed Projects & Bikeway System Planning Update

During the Complete Streets discussion at the March 27^th, 2012 City Commission meeting, two bicycle and pedestrian projects were presented by citizens to the City Commission. The projects, a 7^th Street bicycle and pedestrian bridge crossing Iowa and a pathway connecting the Burroughs Creek Trail to City Hall and the Kansas Riverfront in Downtown Lawrence, were presented and discussed by the Bicycle Advisory Committee (BAC) in 2010 and 2011/2012 respectively. The BAC recognized the value that these connections would have to the network and indicated that those corridors would be included in areas of focus for upcoming planning efforts. However, the BAC did not want to commit to the specific routing and projects proposed. The BAC would like to take the opportunity to include those two corridors in the upcoming Countywide Bikeway System Plan and other bicycle planning activities that the BAC will be involved with soon as a first step to improving the network and prioritizing projects.

That upcoming planning study will be funded through the MPO’s successful application for competitive Consolidated Planning Grant (CPG) funding from KDOT. The study will update and expand the existing 2009 Bikeway System Map; it will also replace the existing 2004 Lawrence-Douglas County Bike Plan. The study is set to begin in summer 2012 and take about a year to complete.

The study will provide a list of priority connections and projects for the region to build when funding becomes available. Areas of planning interest identified by MPO and Parks and Recreation staff include the corridors of the two projects proposed to the Lawrence City Commission on March 27^th, as well as gaps in the SLT path connections to existing trails, bicycle and pedestrian connections to the Eudora and Baldwin City elementary schools, and difficult intersections and bicycle access along 23^rd Street.

This study will serve as the first step to compiling, planning and prioritizing the network improvements for bicycle infrastructure, including bicycle routes, bike lanes, shared use paths and sharrows (shared lane markings). The public process will solicit and consider all public input to help Lawrence, Eudora, Baldwin City, Lecompton, and Douglas County plan bicycle infrastructure.