On July 20, the Middleton City Council plans to discuss whether to include bike lanes as part of a reconstructed Pheasant Branch Road.
The current plan as proposed by city engineering staff and recently approved by the city's public works committee calls for one 11' driving lane and one 4' (plus the curb & gutter section) in each direction, from near Century Avenue north to the city limits. An alternative design without bike lanes has been proposed due to concerns over the potential for a wider road leading to increased auto traffic, higher speeds, greater tree loss, and increased project costs / assessments. Advocates of removing the bike lanes cite preservation of the road's "rustic" character and traffic calming benefits as the primary reasons for their position. If no bike lanes are provided on Pheasant Branch Road, some bicyclists may decide to use the existing off-road gravel trail that runs parallel along the edge of the Pheasant Branch Conservancy. Obviously, many bicyclists will want to continue to use the road, and of course they are entitled to do so. So the issue is, bike lanes or no bike lanes on Pheasant Branch Road? While the plan doesn't call for converting the road to four lanes as happened with Old Sauk Road, I've been surprised by how little discussion this matter has received on this list. Over the past few months, I've only heard from a couple bicyclists. This is the final chance to provide your input in a proactive manner. The Council meeting is at 7:30 on Tuesday at Middleton City Hall, 7426 Hubbard Avenue. See http://www.ci.middleton.wi.us/Projects/PhBrRd/main.htm for more info. FYI: Due to a condition of approval of the Middleton Hills subdivision in 1995, there may be a need to have a 3/4 vote of the Council--6 out of 8 members--in order to widen the road, even to add bike lanes. Mark Opitz Assistant City Planner & Zoning Administrator City of Middleton voice (608) 827-1094 fax (608) 827-1080 e-mail [EMAIL PROTECTED] web www.ci.middleton.wi.us > > -----Original Message----- > From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On > Behalf Of Robbie Webber > Sent: Friday, May 07, 2004 12:54 PM > To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] > Subject: [Bikies] Pheasant Branch Rd design > > From a friend who can't post to the list, so asked me to pass this on: > -- Robbie > > begin forwarded message > ************************ > I found out today that the City of Middleton is considering not painting > the 4" stripe to delineate a bike lane on the new Pheasant Branch Road but > instead just use a 15' wide shared use lane. This is not the end of the > world, but I believe it would slow traffic and give bikers a safer route if > they just put the stripe down to indicate two 10' foot lanes and a 5' bike > lane or two 11' lanes and a 4' bike lane. There will be curb and gutter so > the 4' lane will work. > > The AASHTO Guidelines do point out on page 17 that a 15' wide lane can > encourage drivers to drive two cars abreast in the lane. > ***************** > end forwarded message > > Robbie here again. > > Anyone out in Middleton or thereabouts (other than Mr. Optiz) want to let > the City know how you feel? > > Not only does the stripe signal, "This is not two lanes", but the visual > narrowing of the main lane tend to slow traffic. This would be good since > Pheasant Branch may become a major commuter route. It needs all the traffic > calming it can get! > > _______________________________________________ > Bikies mailing list > [EMAIL PROTECTED] > http://www.danenet.org/mailman/listinfo/bikies _______________________________________________ Bikies mailing list [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://www.danenet.org/mailman/listinfo/bikies
