AgdaPkt 2013-02-25 - Laserfiche WebLink

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9.A - Page 2 ANALYSIS The interrelated and complex, varied aspects of transportation projects must be considered and balanced. For example, when evaluating removal of on-street parking to provide another travel lane for motorized vehicles, staff will consider numerous factors including: • Increased vehicle capacity may result in faster vehicle speeds, reducing overall safety for everyone (drivers included) and greater difficulty for pedestrians crossing the street. • Removal of parked cars, which serve as a buffer between the driving lane and the sidewalk, may increase traffic noise and reduce pedestrian comfort. • Increasing the number of travel lanes could encourage more people to drive who might otherwise walk, ride a bike, or take transit, thereby reducing physical activity and impacting public health. • Removal of on-street parking could negatively impact fronting businesses if there is a real or perceived lack of nearby parking. These and other trade-offs are typically presented and discussed through a community planning process that is proportionate to the scope of a proposed project. Looking forward, Council may decide to be more involved in project prioritization, to focus its role on project approval, or both. Some options to consider: • For project prioritization, staff could program Complete Streets projects as part of the annual capital improvement program (CIP) process. In this case Council may also wish to outline a process for accommodating projects that are identified mid- year or between budget cycles.� • For project approval, and following the community and design process: o Projects that are expected to have local impacts could be brought to the General Plan Subcommittee for final approval before proceeding to construction. o Projects that have the potential for citywide or regional impacts could be brought to Council for final approval before proceeding to construction. ' For example, many grant cycles are extremely short, with limited time between the call for applications and submittal deadlines. In these cases, City staff typically identifies and submits Complete Streets grant applications to match timing of grant funding opportunities, the dollar amount of grant funding available, and the grant funder's project criteria/objectives (e.g. bike/ped, Safe Routes to School, emissions reduction, or other). Because eligibility guidelines can change from year to year and cycle to cycle, it is imperative to maintain a flexible process that adapts to funding opportunities as they arise.