Giving Notes

All documents referenced below are publically available on the SECOG website. Enjoy.

Long time readers will remember that I serve on the CAC of the UDC which is the MPO of the SECOG. Don't know what that means? Neither did I for a long time.

Here are my notes from a recent meeting:

1. Project: 41st Street Corridor Study - from and including the I-29 Interchange to Kiwanis Ave. There will be copious opportunities for public input beginning in March. I have input! 14ft outside lanes, fewer driveways and a raised median. Get a handle on some of the 297 turning opportunities between I-29 and Minnesota to make it safer for EVERYONE. Other's might push for bike lanes.

2. Project: Harrisburg Transportation Master Plan. The first draft has been published. This plan informs the transportation decisions for the major Harrisburg roads for the next 25 years. HOPEFULLY, the idea to have two single 12ft lanes separated by a median gets properly labeled as bad. In the case of a crash the road will be clogged. Because a 12ft lane is too narrow to safely share with a bicycle riding one as a vehicle will function like a slow moving crash. This is unacceptable for all the citizens of Harrisburg.

Additionally, apparently, in the next 25 years there will be sidewalks on the main roadways. When I strain really hard I can hear someone saying, "But nobody walks there, why do we need sidewalks?"

3. Project: Tea Brian Street/Main Avenue Corridor Study. A draft study has been published. Planners are accepting public input through Feb 15. These are the main roads in Tea. There are statements in the study that deserve commentary along the lines of, "yeah! let's fix that."

Statements like, "The Sioux Falls MPO Bicycle Plan also recommends a shared bicycle/parking lane with an 8’ width. Widened sidewalks or side-paths may also be used to serve bicyclists, but require bicyclists to stop and yield when crossing streets and driveways."

4. Project: MPO Multi-Use Trail Corridor Study. The people who put this study together are quite impressive. They aren't guessing much when they talk about various methods of providing bicycle facilities, both on the road and on paths. The implementation content in this study could and should be copied by the other consultants and engineers that were in the room.

This is an awesome project. It's very exciting. I think it deserves ATTENTION. Indications are there it may get mentioned in the Thursday Argus Leader.