Village Board Presentation April 2nd, 2012 Madison Street Corridor - - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

“Streets are not just for moving traffic, they are our shared public spaces”.

Madison Street Corridor Plan and Streetscape Project

Village Board Presentation

April 2nd, 2012

Madison Street Steering Committee – Composition and Purpose

T TOPOGRAPHIC

OPOGRAPHIC

S SURVEY

URVEY John Murphy, PE, PLS John Murphy, PE, PLS

P PROJECT

ROJECT

E ENGINEERS

NGINEERS Jason Souden, PE Jason Souden, PE Bryan Luke, PE Bryan Luke, PE

PHASE II PHASE I

Christopher B. Burke Engineering, Ltd.

Christopher B. Burke Engineering, Ltd.

PHASE III

Christopher B. Burke Engineering, Ltd.

C CONSTRUCTION

ONSTRUCTION

M MANAGER

ANAGER

• W. Daniel Crosson, PE
• W. Daniel Crosson, PE

R RESIDENT

ESIDENT

E ENGINEERS

NGINEERS Lisa Gasperec, PE Lisa Gasperec, PE Tracy Wais, EI Tracy Wais, EI

D DECORATIVE

ECORATIVE

L LIGHTING

IGHTING John Caruso, PE John Caruso, PE Anthony DeRicco, PE, LEED AP Anthony DeRicco, PE, LEED AP

thomas engineering group, llc

Comments by Trustees Change is needed It is not working well now It needs economic regeneration Many empty sites If we are going to do it we do it well We need to set the stage for redevelopment Our widest thoroughfare is in need of reinvention Madison Street should be: Progressive, Distinctive, Forward looking Pedestrian friendly, Promote Health Cutting edge, Sustainable, Welcoming, Make a regional and national statement, Put Oak Park back on the map But make good on our investment

Goals of the Project – This is what we heard at the beginning of this project

National and International Trend Reinventing the Street - A highway has only one function: traffic circulation The Street as Shared Public Space has many Functions Not just one thing at one time in one place

Capacity or Community

Some Comments from Residents We avoid Madison unless travelling across town A barrier between neighborhoods For outsiders - we do not use it (Regional versus Local, No perceived ownership) 25 to 30% users go straight through do not stop Merely a traffic bye pass for I-290? Not ped friendly - Traffic is too fast Scary and Dangerous, Slow traffic down But protect the neighborhoods

Comments by Neighbors

Madison Street is seen by some as an intrusion into the fabric of the community

Some Comments from Business Owners Improve safety and security Sustainable design Walkable, ped friendly, healthy, sense of community Slower traffic - better for business, Need pedestrians and vibrancy Was auto oriented - lively but that’s gone Connect North South across Madison Harlem has major backups If redeveloped we will need more parking Tough just trying to stay in business

Comments by Business Owners

Many very similar comments

Similar Commentary from all groups

Madison Street is an underutilized resource Not working economically or socially Designed to carry high volumes of traffic, trams and buses But Traffic Volumes and Speed are not bringing prosperity No one has asked for more traffic on to Madison Street so we assume people want to keep traffic volumes the same or less It has a regional role as a traffic bypass for I-290 But how do we best use Madison Street to serve the needs of Oak Park?

Madison Street should be: Progressive, Distinctive, Forward looking Pedestrian friendly, Promote Health Cutting edge, Sustainable, Welcoming, Make a regional and national statement, Put Oak Park back on the map But make good on our investment

Process

Meetings with a Steering Committee - citizens, business and property owners worked diligently for 6 months on Concepts for a Renewed Madison Street Meetings with Community Groups and Open Community Meetings

Community Open House

Staff Participation and Direction

Madison Street Regional Role – Arterial/I-290 Bypass

Was auto oriented - lively but that’s gone

Business Owner

Coming trend Standard Strip

Madison Street Lake/Oak Commercial I-290 Arterial and I-290 Bypass

Staggered intersection and cul-de-sacs

Barrier? Madison Street is wider than surrounding streets

120 ft - 6 Lanes plus an intermittent median Wide cross section relatively low traffic volumes = Fast Traffic Speeds & difficult to cross Some streets do not go through - Staggered Intersections make traffic movement more difficult Cul-de -sac

Who have we designed this street for?

Here are the vehicular movements accommodated

But no safe crossing for pedestrians - Crossing is actually discouraged by design

We will not solve this with traffic islands

. The Result?

CAPACITY over COMMUNITY

“We have made it safer for cars and trucks than for our kids” --Resident

Major schools are North and South of Madison

St Catherine's/ St Lucy

Path is cut by turning lanes, blocked by signs, have to walk in CVS property, has no island refuge. So what is really important at this intersection? Moving cars - 1 Thing in 1 Place at 1 Time

Right hand turn lane - 8 turns per hour at peak – No Space for Pedestrians

.

Culturally were are still stuck in Oak Park making the LEAP from thinking about CAPACITY to COMMUNITY

Consensus that Madison Street should be a COMPLETE STREET

Oak Park adopted a “Complete Streets” policy The entire right of way is designed and operated to enable safe access for all users with RESPECT for all users

Madison St. is a barrier for the community

too wide, traffic too fast, scary

Then make it narrower!!

After many iterations of street design We began examining the possibility of

Lane Reductions and Traffic Calming

Reducing the number of lanes or lane width and adding the space to pedestrian realm and adding bike lanes

Benefits of Lane Reductions and Traffic Calming include:

• Increased Safety – auto, ped and bike
• Reduced vehicle speeds
• Reduced collisions and injuries
• Street Crossing is easier
• Improved livability and quality of life
• Improved use by pedestrians and cyclists
• Improved Retail environment
• New image for the entire street

120 ft wide

Comparison of Street Widths

120 ft wide with intermittent median

76ft crossing down to 68ft Bike Lane replaces car lane, and larger parkway (22’ becomes 26’)

With bump outs at the corners the crossing distance is reduced to 52 ft. Making street feel much narrower 68ft down to 52ft.

• “Eliminating one through-lane in each direction does not result in a proportional

loss of car-carrying capacity

• The addition of a dedicated left-turn lane helps reduce congestion. Adding turn

lanes in this manner can also decrease accidents, because it results in fewer lane changes and better visibility for on-coming traffic.”

Making Streets Slim Down is Good for Pedestrians, Businesses and Even Traffic, June 14, 2010, Michael Bohn

With bump outs at the corners the crossing distance is reduced to 32 ft. Making street feel much narrower Cycle Track

Madison at Euclid—Existing Conditions and Proposed

Madison at Euclid—Existing Conditions and Proposed

Madison at Ridgeland—Proposed looking West

Madison at Ridgeland—Existing Conditions and Proposed

Civic Plaza in front of Village Hall

Case Studies of Lane Reduction Projects Altamanu

Safety and Reduced Speeds – In depth study results Seattle Washington - 24 lane reduction “traffic calming” projects since 1972 5 recent reductions 4 lanes to 2 lanes with left turn channelization, bike lanes and parking. Same as Proposed for Madison The results between the five are consistent

• 85th percentile speed reduced
• The “top end” speeders reduced significantly (fastest ones)

Note a pedestrian struck by a car at 30 MPH has a 50% chance of survival. A pedestrian struck by a car at 40 MPH has a 10% chance of survival.

BRIAN DOUGHERTY Seattle Department of Transportation Traffic Management Division 700 Fifth Avenue, Suite 3700

brian.dougherty@seattle.gov

Safety and Reduced Speeds

Direction A Opposite Direction B Study 1

• 4%
• 34%

Study 2

• 74%
• 27%

Study 3

• 7%
• 17%

Study 4

• 64%
• 63%

Study 5

• 80%

Na

Seattle Washington - 24 lane reduction “traffic calming” projects since 1972

• Car to car and car to pedestrian accident volumes decreased significantly
• Traffic volumes in some instances increased slightly - others slightly decreased
• The continuous left turn and constant cross section helped move traffic
• There were NO findings of diversions to other streets.

Accident data -4% up to -80% Reduction in Accidents

Safety and Reduced Speeds - 4 lanes reduced to 2

• St. George Street Toronto
• 4 to 2 lanes
• Widened sidewalks, Slowed traffic
• Speeding decreased
• Traffic collisions decreased 40%
• Initial decrease in traffic volumes but

by 2003, in 6 years virtually the same number of cars travelled on the road

• Based on the success of the St. George

road diet, the city narrowed other roads

Return on Investment Altamanu

They may be safer but what about ROI?

Retail and Business - Return on Investment THE IMPACT OF TRAFFIC PATTERNS ON CORRIDOR RETAIL STUDY - 2007

• “most of the information presented has been from the perspective
• f the traffic engineer, rather than from the perspective of the

retailer.”

LELAND CONSULTING GROUP

• “Successful urban retail environments are quantifiably dependent
• n traffic speed and direction, street width, parking orientation, and,

more esoteric features such as “intimacy” and “friction”.”

• “At issue, is the retailer’s goal for access and the engineer’s goals

for improved traffic flow and regional connections.”

Retail and Business - Return on Investment THE IMPACT OF TRAFFIC PATTERNS ON CORRIDOR RETAIL STUDY - 2007

• Negative relationship on “heavy streets” (synchronized lights/high volumes)

between both the awareness of one’s surroundings and willingness to interact within those surroundings.

• Both drivers and pedestrians are less able to describe the details of streets

they travel everyday when those streets are fast, loud, and perceived as dangerous (Madison Street?)

• The implications of this input for a store-front retailer are obvious

“Speed Kills Retail”

Retail and Business - Return on Investment THE IMPACT OF TRAFFIC PATTERNS ON CORRIDOR RETAIL STUDY - 2007

Speed and Friction

• Speed is widely perceived as the single most important transportation factor

impacting retail performance……the perception that high speeds are detrimental to retail is nearly universal.

• Streets designed for moving traffic, by definition, reduce the “friction”

(between cars and cars, cars and people, cars and the vitality this “friction” brings to urban commercial streets.

• High speeds reduce awareness of one’s surroundings, intimidate pedestrians,

and serve to divide the sides of a street into separate entities. (Madison Street)

Madison Street with Lane Reductions

• Slower Speeds more

“Friction”

• Safer for all
• Easier/safer to cross
• Increased synergy between

sides of street

• Access to retail on both

sides of street

• Access to parking on both

sides of street

• “Continuous left adds to the

“action” doubling accessibility for Retail”

Retail and Business - Return on Investment Results of the Valencia Street Bike Lane - Merchant Survey 4 lanes to 2 lanes with left turn channelization, bike lanes and parking. Same as Proposed for Madison 4.5 years later majority of merchants supported bike lanes 66% stated they had positive impact on business/sales

Economic Effects of Traffic Calming on Urban Businesses, by Emily Drennen, Department of Public Administration, San Francisco State University, December 2003

Examples in Brief 4 lanes reduced to 2 Similar Results elsewhere

El Cajon, CA

• 4 to 2 lanes
• Widened sidewalks, Slowed traffic
• Property values increased 181%
• 179 new businesses opened and 746 jobs were created
• Much safer with fewer collisions

Number of Customers who ride bikes – 63% of merchants thought that bike lanes have increased the number of customers. One merchant said, “The bike lane brings in a lot of people from all over. It gives people the ability to mobilize, especially a younger crowd. Bikes can stop easier than cars, which means they can decide to stop and shop” Area residents shopping locally – 56 % of the merchants thought bike lanes helped local residents do more shopping locally. One response was, “If they are more comfortable riding their bike in the area, they’ll go there more.” Effects of reduced auto speeds on sales – “At a reduced speed, more people look in and notice your store; if people drive slower, they have a better

• pportunity to see my store; it brings more exposure……

National Trends – Bikes and Retail – Comments by Business Owners/Merchants

Bike Projects and Return on Investment "Other studies have shown that investments in bicycle and pedestrian facilities can reduce carbon emissions and improve quality of life. Here we find that these investments bring an additional benefit to the community: they are an important source of job creation.“ Pedestrian and bike projects are top job generators Estimating the Employment Impacts of Pedestrian, Bicycle, and Road Infrastructure for a given level of spending, on-street bike lanes create the greatest number of jobs. Each $1 million spent creating on-street bike lanes directly creates 7.9 jobs and creates a total of 14.4 jobs when we include the indirect and induced effects."

Heidi Garrett-Peltier Baltimore case study Massachusetts Institute of Economics

“Cyclist purchase small quantities each time they

• shop. However they tend to shop more regularly and

are thereby more exposed to the temptation that shops love to inflict upon us.” “Barely 25% of motorists leave a shop with two or more bags (as opposed to 17% of cyclists).” From Complete Streets National Trends – Bikes and Retail

National Trends – Bikes and Retail Studies looking at retail sales showed:

• Cyclists shopped more often than motorists
• Increase in (bike) cross-neighborhood movement

when they introduced a 30 km/h speed limit for cars

• More than 30% increase of visits to the shopping

area with additional community interaction and visits to “Third Places”

• Ratio between the value of purchases made and the

parking area used by each customer over a year: The profitability was highest in the case of the cyclists

• Cyclists increase sales.

Retail Report “Cyclists Are Better Shoppers Than Motorists”

National Trends – Bikes and Changing Life style About Livable Communities “Focus on community design, bicycles and pedestrians and creating charismatic, vibrant and economically successful communities.” "... people do want alternatives. They want out of their cars; they want to live in livable neighborhoods... This is the end of favoring motorized transportation at the expense of non-motorized."

Ray LaHood, USDOT Secretary, March 2010

National Trends – Bikes and Changing Life style Megatrends Report by US Realtors “The Next Generation of Home Buyers want Livable Bike-abel Communities” “Some communities are preparing for the future others will be left behind”. US Realtors now advertise The Top 10 Great Places to Ride a Bike Survey 47% unsafe to cross a street nearby 54% would like to walk or bike 72% of trips by car 1Mile or less could be by bike

Chicago has been setting the local trend now Evanston is pulling ahead

Going to school 1964

And 2012

National Trends – Changing Perception and Life Styles Health – Obesity and Diabetes Epidemic Formerly diagnosed primarily in individuals over the age

• f 45, type 2 is now presenting in younger age groups

due to the recent epidemic of childhood obesity. 1 in 3 American Children will grow up to have diabetes 365,000 Americans die/year due to illness caused by inactivity and poor nutrition

We have a choice – Potential Regional Role for Madison Street

What is Coming (With streetscape improvements or not) Standard Auto Oriented American Commercial Strip w/ Drive-Throughs and/or Large Parking Lots

What is the highest and best use? Auto Corridor/Strip or a new Contemporary Greener Image COMMUNITY OR CAPACITY? Regional Role - Working with City of Chicago 10 Mile bike connection from Oak Park to Downtown Chicago Regional and Local Role - Change in life style more biking and walking with local people using local stores

Traffic on Madison KLOA

Existing Physical and Operating Characteristics

Madison Madison Street Street Physical Physical & & Operating Operating Characteristics Characteristics

Roadway Characteristics Madison Street Roadway Classification Arterial Number of Lanes 4 Center Left-Turn Lane / Median No / Yes Left-Turn Lanes at Primary Intersections Yes Right-Turn Lanes No Signalized Intersections 8 Daily Traffic Volume 16,900 to 18,300 Number of Crashes (Nov 2008 – Oct 2011) 706 Average Speeds (mph) 28 - 31 85th Percentile Speeds (mph) 34 - 37

Dis Distribution tribution of D

• f Daily

aily Traffic Traffic Volumes Volumes

Volume Volume to to Number Number of

• f

Lanes C Lanes Comparison

• mparison

Volume Volume to to Number Number of

• f

Lanes C Lanes Comparison

• mparison

Road D Road Diet iet Traffic Traffic Volumes Volumes

• “Ideal road diet locations have four lanes and carry 12,000

to 18,000 trips, potentially up to 25,000 trips.”

• Madison Street daily volume = 16,900 to 18,300
• “Operational impacts may be minimal at volumes less than

750 vehicles per hour per direction (vphpd), that these impacts should be more closely considered between 750 to 875 vphpd and that volumes above 875 to 1,000 vphpd may introduce operational changes and concerns.”

• Madison Street peak hour vphpd = 700 to 980

Source: Road Diet Handbook Setting Tends for Livable Streets Four-Lane to Three-Lane Conversions: An Update and a Case Study

Desi Design Features gn Features Proposed Proposed Road Diet Road Diet

• Right-turn lanes at major intersection
• Ridgeland Avenue
• Oak Park Avenue
• Center left-turn lane
• Left-turn lanes at all intersections
• Extended left-turn lanes at intersections
• Extended left-turn lane at Harlem Avenue
• Five-Lane cross section at Austin Avenue

Madison Madison and R and Roosevelt

• osevelt

Roadway Roadway Characteristics Characteristics

Roadway Characteristics Proposed Madison Street Existing Roosevelt Road Roadway Classification Arterial Major Arterial State Truck Route Number of Lanes 3 3 Center Left-Turn Lane / Median Yes Yes Left-Turn Lanes @ Major Intersections Yes Yes Right-Turn Lanes @ Major Intersections Yes No Signalized Intersections 8 5 Daily Traffic Volume 16,900 to 18,300 22,400 to 23,600

Madison Madison and R and Roosevelt

• osevelt

Operating Operating Performa Performance nce

Operating Performance Existing Madison Street Existing Roosevelt Road Average Travel Times (minutes) 4.0 to 6.0 6.0 to 9.0 Maximum Travel Times (minutes) 7.5 14.5 Vehicles Clear Intersections During One Traffic Signal Cycle Generally Not Always

During Peak Periods

Number of Crashes (3 Years) 706 482

Potential Potential Traffic Traffic Div Diversion ersion

• Potential diversion of traffic to other east-

west streets

• Washington Street and Jackson

Boulevard

• Approximately 25 Percent of Madison

Street Traffic Avoiding I-290 During Peak Periods

Potential Potential Washington Washington Street Street Enhance Enhancements ments

• Exclusive Turn Lanes
• Washington/Harlem
• Washington/Oak Park
• Signal Phasing/Timings Modifications
• Washington/Oak Park
• Washington/Ridgeland
• Interconnect Traffic Signals
• Peak Period Parking Restriction
• Washington/Home

Safety and Traffic Calming SSE

Speed and Saving Lives

Lane Reduction Safety Benefits

Humboldt Park

• 85th percentile speed reduced

7 percent

• 58 percent reduction in drivers

traveling over 35 mph

• 59 percent of people found it

easier to cross the street

Lane Reduction Safety Benefits

Nickerson Road, Seattle

• Speeding is down 63 percent
• 92 percent reduction in drivers

traveling 10 mph over speed limit

• Number of crashes down 23

percent

Neighborhood Traffic Calming - Speed Humps

• Force vehicles to slow
• Typically require parking

to be removed

• Less noise from vehicles

and reduces

• pportunity to speed

Neighborhood Traffic Calming – Traffic Circles

• Reduce vehicle speeds at

intersections by requiring drivers to travel in a circular direction

• Not a traffic control device
• Can increase green space

Neighborhood Traffic Calming - Bump-outs/Curb extensions

• Narrows the lane width
• Reduces turning radius
• Reduces pedestrian

crossing distance

• Improves visibility for all

users

Neighborhood Traffic Calming - Chicanes

• Mid-block curb extensions

narrow travel lane and require drivers to wind their way through a roadway

• Typically require parking

to be removed

• Less noise from vehicles

and reduces opportunity to speed up

Neighborhood Traffic Calming – Diverters in Oak Park

• Diverters already installed in

Oak Park Images supplied by Community Group

Parking CBBEL

Costs CBBEL

We can accomplish what was requested by the Trustees, Community and Business Community Reinvent the street for Changing Lifestyles Regional Role - Still an arterial but also a bike arterial Safer and Slower - better for the Community and Business A Complete Street Overcoming barriers Physical and Psychological Community Cohesion Changing life styles - local people using local stores Healthier Lifestyles More Sustainable

COMMUNITY BEFORE CAPACITY

Plans if needed Harlem to Home

Home to Oak Park

Oak Park to East

East to Ridgeland

Ridgeland to Lombard

Lombard to Austin

Parking