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HomeMy Public PortalAbout2018-12-12 rbspacm1. INTRODUCTIONS TOWN OF TRUCKEE Reimagine Bridge Street Project Advisory Committee MEETING MINUTES December 12, 2018 5:00 — 6:30 p.m. Town Hall — Prosser Room 10183 Truckee Airport Road, Truckee, CA CALL TO ORDER — Jessica Thompson, Senior Engineer, called the meeting to order at 5:04 p.m. Committee members present: Paul Schectman, Morgan Goodwin, Phoebe Landre, Bill Kenny, Stefan Schuster, Michael Monroe, Stefanie Olivieri, Jason Hansford, and Judy Zachariasen. Project consultants present: Debbie Jenkins, Eastern Sierra Engineering; Loren Chilson and Dylan Axtell, Traffic Works. Staff present: Dan Wilkins, Public Works Director/Town Engineer; Becky Bucar, Engineering Manager; Jessica Thompson, Senior Engineer; and Kelly Larson, Administrative Technician. Members of the public: Nancy Costello, Tanzy Maxfield. 2. FINAL BRANDING AND OUTREACH LOGO The final project logo was chosen based on a majority vote from the previous meeting with small adjustments taken into consideration from the committee's feedback. 3. ADDITIONAL INTERSECTION ALTERNATIVES Public Works Director/Town Engineer Wilkins, stated that a good goal for the meeting would be to select alternatives to present to Council in order to provide a progress report and ensure Council is in agreement with the Committee's process. Three new alternatives were introduced in a presentation by Loren Chilson of Traffic Works to expand on inquiries from prior group discussions (presentation on file with the Town Clerk). Alternative I — Truck/Vehicle Undercrossing Alternative I undercrossing at Bridge Street would require a 26-27 percent grade in order to satisfy Caltrans vertical clearance requirements for trucks and cars beneath the railroad tracks. The grades exceed Town of Truckee standards. There is also an extensive and expensive permitting process through UPPR for undercrossings. This alternative was considered infeasible based on Union Pacific Railroad (UPPR) and Town standards. Alternative J — Two -Way East Couplet Town of Truckee December 12, 2018 Relmagine Bridge Street Project Advisory Committee Page 1 Alternative J would extend Truckee Way across the railroad tracks to East River Street and close the section of Bridge Street between River Street and Donner Pass Road (DPR). Alternative J is not optimal for traffic distribution where Gateway, Downtown, Pioneer Center and the freeway are major destinations. The four gates/medians would still allow for a railroad Quiet Zone status. When the gates are down, traffic would backup at Church Street. The "at -grade crossing" permit and approval process are not guaranteed by UPPR; federal mandate limits the number of new, allowable crossings due to pedestrian safety concerns. Alternative K — Bridge Street Closure Alternative K closes Bridge Street to vehicles between DPR and River Street, changing traffic patterns. Vehicles would be routed to McIver Crossing via West River Street and include construction of a new roundabout planned at West River/McIver Crossing. The Donner Pass intersection would improve but more analysis is needed to determine if there would be a projected traffic increase. Pedestrians and bicyclists could continue to use the at grade crossing on Bridge Street. The scenario is easier for pedestrians because it would take through traffic out of downtown and encourage a walk downtown model. However, the free right movement at River Street/Bridge intersection is not desirable for pedestrian circulation and safety. The committee discussed other ways to create a pedestrian friendly situation in relation to Alternative K by adding pedestrian over or undercrossings. Going downtown by car would become more difficult which would limit direct access to businesses. Gas stations are still accessible to vehicles. Other drivers who would be affected are those going north as well as to Glenshire (likely a local). Some people may also divert in the future from the Sierra Meadows neighborhood. Traffic destined for the Gateway area can choose to take a left at West River Street. Questions asked from the committee about Alternative K include: • What if Bridge Street was one-way North or one-way South? • What is the conflict with users going downtown versus users passing through? • Do we want to funnel traffic or provide access in a more intelligent way? • If we do this option, what is the viability of opening a crossing on East River Street? There was a group vote to move Alternatives J and K into the discussion. Voting results: Yes No Maybe Alternative J 0 11 2 Alternative K 8 3 2 4. ALTERNATIVES ANALYSIS AND SELECTION Senior Engineer Thompson presented a Comparison Matrix with legend and defined color coding in the columns whereby red text indicates where the situation worsens, green text indicates where the situation improves, and black text means the situation remains the same (Comparison Matrix on file with the Town Clerk). From the Matrix, Town Engineer Wilkins highlighted the alternatives showing improvements and framed the topic by asking how much the Committee would work to determine details within each alternative versus using the additional information from further analysis to narrow down to the best overall selections. Town of Truckee December 12, 2018 Reimagine Bridge Street Project Advisory Committee Page 2 Senior Engineer Thompson added that it was still too early to introduce cost as a decision making tool. Rather, she suggested that the committee continue to focus on the ideal scenarios and potentially talk about phasing more expensive alternatives if necessary. For the upcoming Council presentation, it was proposed to combine alternatives with the same letter into one grouping. Alternatives Al versus A2 — Quiet Zone and Sidewalk Al includes a new median on the south side of the East/West River Street intersection for pedestrian safety. This alternative provides a single northbound lane within heavy northbound movements. When the train passes, traffic could queue back up to half a mile, which is a significant flaw with or without the train. A2 includes a median island on Bridge Street between the two intersections for protected pedestrian crossings at both East/West River Street and Donner Pass Road. A2 stays the same as it is today but adds gates on two sides and crosswalks for pedestrians to cross both lanes at the same time. A2 creates slightly worse (than current) traffic operations due to crosswalks where pedestrian use may increase delays. The Committee asked if these scenarios would be too similar to existing conditions as driver confusion would still exist northbound into the intersection. The question was asked if there was a point in re -hashing all of the alternatives. It was also pointed out that all of the Alternatives improve pedestrian flow and so why would the Committee look at Alternatives that worsen traffic flow. Roundabouts lock up when trains are present and of the 10 out of the 25 times per day that the train passes, 10 of those times are times of heavy traffic. Alternative E1 and E2 These alternatives propose mini -roundabouts at both intersections. They include both roundabouts and railroad pre-emption lights that would shut down traffic in all directions when the train passes. E1 roundabouts are smaller than E2 and would be flatter and lower profile. Questions from the Committee include: • How much gridlock could exist with a roundabout scenario? Traffic is continually increasing. • What choices would drivers have during gridlock, would they stop and not move? • Can traffic be diverted to West River Street? • Since roundabouts cut into people's property, why would we choose this alternative if there is another option? • What about safety issues? Gridlock with the train could possibly take 15 minutes to clear out. Although the General Plan has an aversion to traffic signals, the Committee concurred this is an instance where roundabouts may not be the best option at an intersection. A suggestion was made to request that Council take roundabouts out of consideration. Aside from traffic signal alternatives, others which meet the minimum requirements include Alternatives K and A2. The suggestion was made to get rid of Al and go with A2 if one of these options were to be further considered. There were no objections to taking Al out of consideration. Town of Truckee December 12, 2018 Reimagine Bridge Street Project Advisory Committee Page 3 Alternative K Committee resumed discussion on Alternative K, agreeing that it would be an option to revisit if Council doesn't like the traffic signal alternatives. More statistics and evaluation will be needed. With a full street closure to vehicles, many drivers would take Highway 267 to loop around and come back into downtown. In the downtown area, traffic would divert to West River Street. Operations at Bridge Street/Donner Pass Road are better than the existing situation because conflicts are removed. Alternative K is best by far for traffic when railroad gates are down. Alternative K had mixed opinions from the Committee. People trying to get north of the tracks going to places like the Truckee -Donner Recreation Center and the downtown Post Office are stymied in many circumstances. Traffic diversion due to street closure could cut downtown visits and parking close to the businesses becomes more challenging. More parking especially on West River Street would be needed to create a viable solution for pedestrians. Pedestrian crossings would need to be installed across the tracks. With the street closure, you could provide an additional plaza or event space on Bridge Street. This is a cost-effective alternative, where funds not spent on roads could potentially be redirected toward funding more substantial pedestrian improvements. The roundabout that is part of this alternative is also part of the traffic impact fee program. TRAFFIC SIGNAL ALTERNATIVES Four options for traffic signals were discussed. The biggest difference amongst the traffic signal alternatives is in the signal timing. It was pointed out that traffic lights are also a low cost alternative and could leave money for substantial pedestrian improvements. Each of the traffic signal alternatives have signalized pedestrian crossings on all legs. Alternative G1 Alternative G1 runs signals in permissive mode where there are no exclusive left turn arrows. Pedestrians are treated at a slightly lower level where right and left turns "yield" to pedestrians. Crosswalk studies have shown between 20 to 120 pedestrian crossings occur in these areas every hour even where there are no crosswalks. Alternative G2 Alternative G2 has protected crosswalks and removes left turn conflicts from pedestrians entirely. When the train is passing, there is no opportunity to turn right which causes a backup on Commercial Row. While the lane configuration is better for pedestrians, there is a higher impact on traffic with one particular leg moving to an E or F rating. With permissive phasing, you can get more traffic through but have higher pedestrian conflicts. With protected phasing, there are fewer conflicts because pedestrians wouldn't cross at the same time; protected phasing handles less traffic when the train is present. Alternative G3 Alternative G3 is a mixed phasing situation where there is protected phasing running North/South and permissive phasing running EastlWest. G3 is very good for traffic operations and slightly safer for pedestrians from Alternative G1. All pedestrians move on one phase and vehicles run on another phase. In low traffic environments, a risk to consider is that some pedestrians might "make a run for it." It was asked if it would be worth doing a Town of Truckee December 12, 2018 Reimagine Bridge Street Project Advisory Committee Page 4 pedestrian scramble. Mr. Chisholm responded that pedestrian scrambles work well in bigger intersections where there is a long distance to cross. Alternative G4 Alternative G4 achieves all the project objectives with slightly better operations from G3. Finite control measures are created at the very complicated intersections. Right turn lanes are very short. This option impacts private property and would require additional right of way. 5. PEDESTRIAN CROSSINGS DISCUSSION A pedestrian crossings discussion that included four types of crossing options was presented by Debbie Jenkins of Eastern Sierra Engineering. Ms. Jenkins explained one obstacle to installing the crossings is finding public spaces to land them. A slide with potential locations was shown where the crossings could land at a required 25 feet from the railroad tracks (presentation on file with the Town Clerk). Option 1 Option 1 is a pedestrian undercrossing that includes a 10-12 foot sidewalk. There is a 10 foot clearance with a six-foot structural section. The width can vary depending on goals related to the level of comfort and attractiveness. This option renders the minimum of a 12 - foot width which is standard for a bike path. Option 2 Option 2 is the same pedestrian undercrossing as Option 1 with the addition of stairs, ramp, and elevator. Safety considerations that would need to be resolved are ensuring there are light and security measures installed in the stairwells and elevators. The group was less supportive of an undercrossing, compared to an overcrossing, due to safety concerns (people sleeping, dark, creepy, etc). Option 3 Option 3 is a pedestrian overcrossing. A snow removal plan would need to be considered. Option 4 Option 4 is an at -grade crossing. Some considerations for an at -grade crossing include if it would affect Quiet Zone Status and pedestrian safety in crossing the tracks. There is a federal mandate to reduce the number of pedestrian crossings across the railroad tracks. The pedestrian crossings all come down to constructability details and what UPPR will accept. Installing new crossings entails a long process with the Railroad for what they will allow. Ultimately, the group decision was to recommend to Council a signal option, such as G3, that optimizes pedestrians and traffic flow and meets all the minimum criteria. In addition, they were supportive of pursuing future pedestrian crossings. Meeting adjourned 7:45 p.m. Town of Truckee December 12, 2018 Reimagine Bridge Street Project Advisory Committee Page 5 6. NEXT MEETINGS Committee members are encouraged to attend the Council presentation on January 22, 2019. A staff report will be presented to capture the Committee's direction. Approved: e i a ompson, Committee Chair Respectfully submitted by: r Committee Secretary Town of Truckee December 12, 2018 Reimagine Bridge Street Project Advisory Committee Page 6