The Statewide Plan is not complete. It’ still being worked on….
Bill Austin, AICP
Executive Director
Morgantown Monongalia MPO
180 Hart Field Road
Morgantown, WVA 26508
304-291-9571
304-692-7225 Mobile
From: jimrye_adelphia1@comcast.net
[mailto:jimrye_adelphia1@comcast.net]
Sent: Sunday, August 22, 2010 1:54 PM
To: Don Spencer
Cc: Bill Austin; Frank Gmeindl; Bicycle Board
Subject: Re: [Bikeboard] [Bike board] Bicycle Plan
I see in Don's
feedback an appendix listed: WVU Bicycle Plan Summary. I
did not know there was one or perhaps I have forgotten...but would like to
examine if it exists. This relates to the Kanawha Plan--I did a quick
search for "employer" of the executive summary and various other
components, and did not surface the term. I think that any community wide
bicycle plan needs serious input and involvement from major area employes, in
our case WVU, WVU Hospitals, Mon County Board of Education, Mylan, Mon
Gen Hospital....
I
support all of Don's comments. I support education and signage (latter being
part of engineering and education) as areas needing major attention in
conception of the plan as wekk as critical early outputs and outcomes of
the plan.
"The first
wealth is health." -Ralph Waldo Emerson
----- Original Message -----
From: "Don Spencer" <dspencer36@comcast.net>
To: "Frank Gmeindl" <frank.gmeindl@comcast.net>, "Bicycle
Board" <bikeboard@cheat.org>
Cc: "Bill Austin" <baustin@moncpc.org>
Sent: Saturday, August 21, 2010 1:20:35 AM
Subject: Re: [Bikeboard] [Bike board] Bicycle Plan
Frank – I too strongly support the development of a comprehensive
bicycling plan, but I do have some reservations about the applicability for the
Greater Morgantown area of what I understand the Kanawha and Putnam County Plan
to be.
I think that it is prudent for us to proceed with an organization
of the plan which continues to gives prominence to the SIX E’s. The framework
of the K&P plan is essentially three large chapters which contain lots of
different types of information but does not give a structure which would likely
increase an understanding of the issues by our policy makers or many other
readers. Other important uses for a plan are 1) creating a means for
communicating with the League of American Cyclists; 2)
orienting/providing-a-reference our own new Bicycle Board members as new
members continue to join the board each year; and 3) providing clear background
for on-going, changing media personnel as to WHY we are doing each of type of
things that is being done. I do not think that the K&P Plan organization
would effectively serve each of those purposes for us.
1.
We certainly would need an overview and executive summary.
2.
We also need state-of the-art explanations on the importance of
cycling: its benefits, the priorities in creating bicycling friendly
communities, and an explanation of our existing conditions in the Morgantown
area.
3.
We need a description of local cycling’s government environment and
the relationship of cycling in the Morgantown to the WVDOT, GMMPO, city and
county government. Included with this could be an explanation of the background
of the planning process.
4.
We need an explanation of recommended national and state standards
or policies for infrastructure, signage, bicycle law, parking, inter-modal
interface, and bicycle driving and/or any other matter relating to streets,
roads, greenways or other classifications of thoroughfares.
5.
We need a section which, in light of the priority standards and
policies presented, provides a ranked list of recommended changes for
infrastructure and engineering.
6.
We also need overall policy goals/objectives/projected action steps
with rationale relating to education, enforcement, environment, evaluation, and
equality.
7.
We also need a plan for developing safe cycling to middle schools
and high schools as well as a description of collaborative planning with WVU.
8.
We need a discussion of our state and local bicycle law environment
and plans/priorities for change and advocacy.
9.
We need a financial plan for implementing priority cycling
improvements.
10.
And we need an ongoing plan which will describe a) on-going role of
the Bicycle Board, b) means by which infrastructure will be maintained, c) ways
by which education and training can be continued, d) methodology by which
progress of community cycling will be measured, and e) method by which new
planning will be continued.
Appendices: List of
governments participating in planning – including MPO, Morgantown Traffic
Commission and Bicycle Board; Vision/mission/guideline/membership of Bicycle
Board; MPO/City of Morgantown Complete Streets Policy; Street Design Guidelines
prepared by Dan Burden; MPO Non-Motorized Transportation Plan, WVU Bicycle Plan
Summary; County/City Transit Routes and Planning Summary; Bicycle Accident
Data; State Code information on bicycles; City codes on bicycles; Copy of DOT
Grant Award for Education to City of Morgantown; report on program
implementation to date; MRTC rail trail information; overview of League of
American Bicyclist’s Bicycle Friendly City Awards Program; list of cities and
states which have received League Bicycle Friendly City/State recognition;
summary of status of other municipal bicycle development in West Virginia, 2000
charrette survey results; other research reports; newspaper articles,
brochures; maps, pictures, illustrations, graphs; pocket with folded Bicycle
Map of Greater Morgantown prepared by the Morgantown Bicycle Board; pocket with
folded map of Rail Trails of North Central West Virginia; etc.
These are some suggestions for a
comprehensive foundation document. Hopefully this may help with the planning
for comprehensive planning; perhaps a committee can look this over along with
other ideas and responses from others. I am willing to help with the
preparation of a draft plan if requested.
Don
From: bikeboard-bounces@cheat.org [mailto:bikeboard-bounces@cheat.org] On
Behalf Of Frank Gmeindl
Sent: Friday, August 20, 2010 9:58 AM
To: Bicycle Board
Cc: Bill Austin
Subject: Re: [Bikeboard] Bicycle Plan
Hugh, Nick, Chet,
Thanks for your affirmation of the
need for us to have a comprehensive plan. I doubt any BB member will
argue against such.
I'd like to see some feedback on
the substance of the plan. e.g. What do you think of their organization
for doing the plan? what do you think of their process for identifying
needs? for defining improvements? What do you think of their
planned improvements?
Frank Gmeindl
Cyclists fare best when they act and are treated as drivers of
vehicles
On Aug 20, 2010, at 8:26 AM, Hugh
Kierig wrote:
Frank
I think that it would be a great thing to do, similar to the
Pedestrian Safety Plan that the Ped Board is taking through the approval
process now.
Hugh E. Kierig, AICP, Director
Department of Transportation and Parking
West Virginia University
Post Office Box 6561
1112 Van Voorhis
Morgantown, West Virginia 26506
304-293-9095 (o)
304-293-3939 (f)
>>> Frank Gmeindl <frank.gmeindl@comcast.net> 8/19/2010 7:52 PM
>>>
Bicycle Board Members,
From the very beginning of the Bicycle Board, some of us felt we
need a comprehensive bicycle plan. Our 2007 application for the LAB
Bicycle Friendly Community award was our attempt to organize such a plan.
Subsequently, we have continued to view our initiatives in the 5E
categories that I think helped us maintain a balanced on focused program.
Bill Austin wants to create a Greater Morgantown Bicycle Plan.
The Charleston area MPO, Regional Intergovernmental Council, completed a
walking and cycling study 2 years ago. It can be found at
http://www.wvregion3.org/Transportation/bike-ped_plan.htm
I'm wondering what you think of it because we could use it as a model.
Please keep this among ourselves because Dennis Strawn from
Charleston sent this to me to help develop the presentation that we'll make to
the statewide MPO conference in October with the understanding that I would not
distribute it beyond the Morgantown BB.
Please send me or to the BB your comments about the Charleston
plan or about a Greater Morgantown Plan. Ultimately, if we're going to
develop a comprehensive bicycle plan, we'll have to have a plan for how to do
that:P
Frank Gmeindl
Cyclists fare best when they act and are treated as drivers of
vehicles
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