Memorandum

City of Lawrence

Public Transit

TO:	Diane Stoddard , Interim City Manager
FROM:	Robert Nugent, Transit Administrator
CC:	Casey Toomay, Assistant City Manager
DATE:	June 18, 2015
RE:	Transit Center Update

Background:

In smaller cities like Lawrence, the ability of transit to operate efficiently is greatly affected by the design of the service. Since all routes cannot serve every possible location it is necessary to provide for transfers from one route to another. In order to make each trip as easy a possible a centralized transfer hub is generally used. In addition, routes are usually timed so that passengers have a minimal wait time for a transfer. Ensuring short wait times is extremely important in cities like Lawrence where the majority of the routes operate every 30 or 60 minutes. Without a centralized transfer hub and “pulsed” timing of the routes it would be extremely difficult for passengers to understand and use the system.

Since the start of service in 2000 the majority of Lawrence Transit transfers have been occurring in the Downtown. As we currently operate the most of our routes bring people to this transfer hub to make connections to get to their final destination. To do this, buses line up on approximately 300 feet of curb in the 700 block of Vermont, across from the Lawrence Library. In years prior our operations have been located on 9^th Street at Massachusetts and 9^th Street at New Hampshire.

However, over the last few years our transit operations have experienced continual service failures as the result of property development, increasing demands for on-street parking and increases in special events and activities in the downtown. As ridership and service has increased we have also experienced increasing complaints resulting from the activity we generate with our current transfer hub operation in the Downtown. Having several buses parked at a curb with groups of people moving to and from each bus is often viewed negatively by businesses nearby.

Ideally, having an “off-street” location to act as our primary transfer hub would address many of these concerns by limiting the amount of activity to a controlled location. Over the years staff has also attempted to include an off-street location as part of several new developments. There have also been attempts to incorporate a transit hub in likely places like the local train station. None of these attempts have been successful.

In our efforts to identify a location that can adequately function as a “transit center” for our community and allow for long term operational planning and capital investments a study was initiated in February 2013.

Transit Center Location Analysis Study - This study was initiated to determine a candidate site, and conceptual costs, for a new transit center which would also serve as the major transfer hub for the city transit routes. The study used a GIS process and various socio-economic and transit-related geographic parameters, to identify a general geographical area to focus the study’s attention.

Potential sites within this geographical area were further examined for suitability as a transit center, based on general development constraints, impact on the transit route structure, and opportunities for synergy with existing and/or potential land use and ridership patterns. After considerable evaluation and directions from City Commission, the project focused on evaluating two separate sites at 925 Iowa, and 2021 Stewart Avenue.

The costs associated with the Iowa site were higher than the Stewart site due to the necessity to reconfigure an adjacent parking lot, and repave 9th Street between Iowa Street and Rockledge Road to handle additional wear and tear from buses. Conversely, the annual operating costs for the Stewart Avenue site were more than the Iowa site primarily due to route re-networking.

An important caveat is the fact that land acquisition costs were not included in these cost summaries. The site at 925 Iowa is privately owned and would need to be either purchased or leased. The site at 2012 Stewart Avenue is owned by KU Endowment and has been offered for use at no cost.

As part of the public involvement process, neighborhood meetings were held to get feedback from the public on the two final sites for a transit center.

A neighborhood meeting was held to acquire public feedback on the potential site located at 2021 Stewart Avenue location. A notice of the meeting was sent to residents and property owners within the area which was bounded on the north side by 19^th Street, the east by Naismith Boulevard, the south 23^rd Street, and the west by Iowa Street.

The primary concerns and issues raised at the meeting were associated with potential increases in traffic and activity in the general area of the site. They included the following:

The amount of through traffic that would be generated by a traffic light at 21^st and Iowa.
The safety and security of the neighborhood that would result from having the activity of transit center near a residential area.
The amount of noise and pollution that would result from a transit center close to residences.
The effect that a new traffic light would have on the surrounding access point such as shopping areas south of the site.

A similar neighborhood meeting to acquire feedback on the potential site located at 925 Iowa was not conducted. Although responsive in the initial stages of the Transit Center Analysis Study, the owner did not respond to any from staff in attempting to set up a neighborhood meeting or to discuss the possible sale or lease of the property. Therefore, without concurrence from the property owner no neighborhood meeting was held pertaining to their site.

Special Note:

Recently Commission directed staff to renew efforts to communicate with the owner of 925 Iowa. Staff was able to communicate with the owner about the property. However, the owner stated that the proposed site for the transit center would not be available because of ongoing leases and plans for future development.

Since the issues raised during our public meetings were traffic related Commission approved amending the Olsson and Associates contract to allow for a traffic impact analysis for both sites.

Traffic Impact Study - This report studied traffic impacts regarding the proposed construction of the Lawrence Transit Center that was proposed at two possible sites. The first location, 925 Iowa Street, is in the southeast quadrant of the intersection of 9^th Street and Centennial Drive and the second location, 2021 Stewart Avenue, is in the northeast quadrant of the intersection of 21st Street & Iowa Street.

The objective of the study was to evaluate the existing traffic and roadway conditions and the traffic impacts expected from the proposed Transit Center. The appropriate intersection geometrics and traffic control improvements necessary to accommodate the increased traffic on the study area roadways were identified. For the purpose of the study the Existing and Existing plus Proposed Transit Center scenarios were evaluated for both AM and PM peak hour periods.

The analysis found that buses accessing the transit center did not significantly increase the level of traffic at either site. The study did find that the intersection at 21^st and Iowa warrants a traffic signal under current conditions. The study also found that the implementation of a signal at that intersection would increase the amount of traffic by as much as 20%.

A follow-up meeting in the neighborhood associated with the 2021 Stewart site was held at which 27 people attended. Staff provided a status update and additional information pertaining to traffic, landscaping, security and safety associated with a potential transit center. Several traffic calming approaches were presented as possible methods to help mitigate perceived traffic issues surrounding the site. These included the use of a neighborhood entrance islands, the implementation of one way streets with bike lanes, roundabouts, partial diverters, speed cushions, and realigned intersections.

Staff provided the attendees with clarification on water runoff and landscaping maintenance. A brief overview of what would be included in the possible site such as a retention pond, sustainability items, security systems and approaches and parking of vehicles. Conceptual site elevations were presented to illustrate how landscaping and site design could be used to mitigate issues with both sound and perceived unsightliness. Staff also provided clarification on how vehicles would access the site and how these movements would interact with the surrounding neighborhood and activities.

The result of this meeting was presented to City Commission on June 3, 2014. At that time City Commission directed staff to perform a more detailed analysis of mitigation strategies. Olsson Associates scope of work was amended a second time to include facilitation and participation in a series of neighborhood meetings to discuss traffic calming and enhanced bike facilities on 21^st Street between Naismith Drive and Iowa Street.

Traffic Calming Public Engagement - Three public meetings were held to engage the neighborhood around 21st Street and Stewart Avenue on what traffic-calming measures that would be preferred to address the potential increases in traffic that may be generated by a new traffic signal at 21st Street and Iowa Street. This traffic signal would be installed as part of the proposed transit center on 21st Street and Stewart Avenue.

The meetings introduced traffic-calming concepts and facilitated identification of select traffic-calming techniques for further development. From this list of alternatives, the group identified installing chicanes as a traffic-calming measure on the east side of the corridor, and realigning the 21st Street and Stewart Avenue intersection with a traffic diverter that would prevent traffic from traveling east on 21st Street past Stewart Avenue.

The chicanes would include 4-foot bike pathways between the chicane islands and the adjacent curb. The chicanes would accommodate a 19-foot two-way drive lane. This is the same width as the current drive lane when parking is present in the corridor.

The realignment of 21st Street and Stewart Avenue intersection would require westbound cars on 21st Street to turn left to continue on 21st Street. In addition, a partial traffic diverter would not allow eastbound traffic to enter the neighborhood on 21st Street. A 4-foot bike pathway would allow eastbound cyclists into the neighborhood. Emergency vehicles would be able to navigate both ways through the traffic diverter on 21st Street at Stewart Avenue, as well as through the chicanes.

At this point only one site is under consideration for the location of a future transit center. Transit operations are continuing to take place at the temporary hub at 7^th and Vermont until a new site can be chosen and any necessary improvements made to accommodate the new location.

On May 13, 2014 the Public Transit Advisory Committee unanimously voted to support the proposed site at 2021 Stewart as a potential transit center location.

Staff Comments:

Having a permanent location for transfer activities is paramount to the future success of transit in Lawrence. This is true regardless of whether our transfer hub remains in Downtown or if it is located at a different site. If a decision is made to relocate our transfer activities there will be a considerable amount of lead time needed for the installation of a traffic signal and the actual construction of the facility. The lead time for the installation of a signal at the proposed site at 2021 Stewart Avenue is approximately 6 months and would have to be completed prior to any start of operations at a new site. Construction is expected to take up to 12 months depending on whether the facility is built using a design-build or traditional approach.

In examining the possible 21^st and Stewart location, staff believes that the location would serve the purposes of a transfer facility appropriately for the following reasons:

The 1.8 acre site accommodates all necessary activities of a transit center.
The location is centrally located and allows travel times to be relatively the same to all parts of our community. This also helps reduce the number of vehicles that would be needed to improve the level f service (60 to 30 minutes).
The site is directly adjacent to a major arterial on the corner of a street that can be signalized which would provide easy access for the buses to the primary north-south arterial in Lawrence.
Coordination between Lawrence Transit and KU-On-Wheels would be greatly enhanced with a transfer location close to the KU campus.
The location is close to the KU campuses which is the largest single trip generator (including origins and destinations) in our community.
The site is owned by KU Endowment who would make the property available for use as a transit center at no cost. If the city were purchasing a piece of property directly adjacent to a major arterial in the community, the cost of the land purchase would be substantial.
The location allows for movement of buses in and out of the facility without traveling on residential streets.
The intersection of 21^st and Stewart currently warrants a signal and would require signalization at some point in the near future.

The neighbors have legitimate concerns regarding the potential impact on their neighborhood if the transit center would be located at this site. It is important to note that these concerns will be present at any viable centralized site for this use in Lawrence. Also, staff believes that the concerns can be substantially mitigated in the following manner:

Staff has made a commitment to not route any buses, other than the existing route, on 21^st Street to the east of Stewart.

Regarding the concern about increased cut-through traffic on 21^st Street as a result of signalizing the intersection, staff believes that there are several traffic calming alternatives that have been proposed that would help minimize cut-through traffic, while continuing to accommodate the neighborhood and emergency vehicles.
The facility will be monitored for security and regularly maintained regarding trash, etc.
Bus schedules will be optimized to ensure that passengers can get form one bus to another without unnecessarily long wait times.
Restroom facilities at the location will be accessible only by drivers. Public restrooms, if available, will be access controlled to prevent loitering and vandalism.
The facility would be designed to be aesthetically pleasing, as well as functional. The addition of a landscaping berm and vegetation on the southeast corner of the property would minimize line of site issues and create a buffer regarding noise from activity for the adjacent neighborhood.
No fueling or maintenance activities would take place on the site.

If it is determined that the remaining candidate site is not a viable location for our activities serious consideration should be given to whether a second study should be conducted to locate an appropriate site.

Action Requested:

Receive staff’s report and provide direction, as appropriate.