On Monday night I attended a hearing by the Middleton Plan Commission on proposed changes to PBR on the southern portion of the road (from Century Ave almost to Balzer).
The city planner gave a fairly detailed discussion of background and proposed changes. [historical note: the road was built in the 1861 as a result of a petition from the village of Pheasant Branch]. This is motivated in part by increasing traffic: 1994 450 vehicles/day 2001 1100 '' 2002 1400 '' 2010 4000 '' (est) ( My estimate, based on his data) Another factor is that the street was designated a 'collector street' in 1994 (because the city agreed not to put a collector through the Middleton Hills development). The road is currently very narrow ( between 18' and 22'), and has a lot of hills and curves that limit sight distance. The planner mentioned the several regional bike plans that all included PBR as an important route. Both Bombay and Bike Fed had contacted his office to remind them of this. (Thanks!) The proposal calls for straightening some curves, widening the road (to include 5' bike lanes as an option), and even lowering one of the hills. A city forester surveyed the area and identified a number of mature trees that would probably be lost (about half of the 30 otherwise healthy mature trees). Because the road is narrow, and there are steep slopes on either side, it will require a significant amount of engineering. They expect this project (if approved) could happen in 2005. After the presentation, there was chance for citizens to speak, and they did. Mostly, there was opposition to widening the road, and why can't we keep a quiet rural road the way its always been? Also, there was mention of the cost, and keeping speeds down ( 85th percentile of traffic is about 40mph, with speeds measured up to 60mph). A few people (including yours truly) mentioned the North Mendota Parkway, which is a big unknown. I also reinforced the importance of this escape route for bicyclists, and expressed my frustration over the lack of a 'consistent vision' (the latter term was used by one of the other speakers, and I liked it). I've asked a few people about adding bike lanes on PBR, I was told that we don't need to do that because it will remain a rural country road. Now I find out its been designated a collector for quite some time. Apparently i'm not the only one who was surprised to hear this, and this was a room full of people interested in local transportation issues! The plan commission is taking any immediate action on this. Middleton residents (or other interested parties) have an opportunity to give them input. -darin _______________________________________________ Bikies mailing list [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://www.danenet.org/mailman/listinfo/bikies
