Office of Planning & Engineering 645 Pine Street, Suite A

Burlington, VT 05402 802.863.9094 P / 802.863.0466

F 802.863.0450 TTY www.burlingtonvt.gov/DPW

Chapin Spencer

DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC WORKS

Date: September 30, 2014

To: City Council

From: Nicole Losch, Transportation Planner

Subject: North Avenue Corridor Study: Project Summary

Why North Avenue?

In 2011 the Burlington Transportation Plan was unanimously

adopted by the City Council as a chapter of the city’s

Municipal Development Plan, which classified North

Avenue as a Complete Street. The Transportation

Plan provides very clear guidance for

implementing Great Streets (emphasis added):

“A major component of this Transportation Plan is a shift to a “complete streets” strategy and the new Street Design Guidelines. Streets are classified (see Figure 1) as: 1. Complete Street; 2.Transit Street and the Bicycle Street; 3. The Slow Street; 4. State Truck Routes; and 5. Neighborhood Streets.

In general, Burlington’s gateway streets must carry all travel modes – cars and trucks, buses,

bikes, and pedestrians - because no alternatives exist. Typically, these streets today include four travel

lanes with no space for bikes and poor pedestrian crossings. A Complete Street could include: 1) enhanced

transit stop; 2) traffic calming by removing a lane of through traffic; 3) short pedestrian crossings; 4) bike

lanes; 5) updated utilities and lighting; 6) landscaped median island and turn lane; 7) stormwater planters; and 8) tree belts.

Memo

Figure 1:

Some of the Complete Street conversions in Burlington will involve reducing the number of travel lanes from four to three. There will be concerns about whether a single through travel lane in each direction is sufficient to carry traffic. This issue will need to be addressed on a case-by-case basis in the scoping process, but preliminary analysis suggests that conversion is possible for the four-lane sections identified in Figure 1 except for Main Street through the UVM Campus where no changes are recommended. In addition, conversions elsewhere in the U.S. generally have resulted in reduced [crash] rates and less speeding. In almost all cases, urban street capacity is limited at intersections rather than along street segments. Therefore, it is often possible to reduce width without increasing congestion. Furthermore, in a four-lane street, the left lanes operate inefficiently due to conflicts between left-turning vehicles and through vehicles. Moving the left turning vehicles out of through traffic removes these conflicts and also generally reduces accident rates.

Some features of the design shown in Figure 2, including the median treatment, could be modified during the scoping process. In many cases, a Complete Street can be tested with simple re-striping. The only essential element of a complete street is accommodating all travel modes safely and efficiently.”

The Corridor Study Process

At the request of the DPW, the Chittenden County

Regional Planning Commission (CCRPC) advanced this

corridor study in 2013. An Advisory Committee was

convened to provide input from a range of

perspectives, review materials throughout the process,

communicate with their organizations / constituents,

and participate in developing the vision, goals,

improvement concepts and recommendations for

consideration by the City. The Advisory Committee

included Burlington City Council; Neighborhood

Planning Assemblies for Wards 4, 7, and 3; Chittenden

County Transportation Authority (CCTA), AARP,

Burlington Partnership for Healthy Communities, Local

Motion, and Burlington City Departments.

Three public meetings were hosted during the study:

1) to report the existing conditions and to allow the community to identify issues; 2) to

identify concepts that may remedy the issues; and 3) select the concept(s) that should be

considered for implementation. Special meetings were also organized to gather feedback

from schools and residents of senior housing along the corridor, and additional feedback

was solicited through the project website, an online map-based input tool, emailed

comments, and feedback from Advisory Committee-member led meetings.

Figure 3: Corridor Study Process

Figure 2:

EXISTING CONDITIONS & KNOWN ISSUES

North Avenue has a consistent 66’ right-of-way (ROW), although the functional ROW south of

Convent Square is less due to the proximity of development directly adjacent to, or encroaching within,

the ROW. CCTA services North Avenue via Route 7, traversing the corridor along travel lanes that

vary from wide 2-lane sections to 4 narrow lanes. Bicycle facilities are inconsistent and on-street

parking regulations and use change throughout the corridor. Several intersections are skewed

and offset, encouraging high-speed right turns and presenting challenges with visibility. Driveways

are frequent, and land uses vary from single family, multi-family, scattered retail, and institutions.

The greenbelt accommodates overhead utilities and street trees and is generally quite wide, except for

the west side of the corridor north of Institute Road.

Given the varied land uses and potential for growth throughout the corridor, future traffic conditions

are projected to increase 5% on the VT 127, 10% between Plattsburg Avenue and the VT 127

intersection, and 15% south of the VT 127 intersection. Current average daily traffic (ADT) volumes

reflect the housing that is accessed via North Avenue: the highest traffic volume exists between the VT

127 intersection and Ethan Allen Parkway (19,100 ADT), the lowest between Plattsburg Avenue and

Staniford Road (10,800 ADT), and moderate volumes elsewhere (13,700 ADT between Staniford Road

and Ethan Allen Parkway; 12,000 ADT between VT 127 and North Street).

Nearly one-half of North Avenue experiences more frequent crashes than the average rate for similar

roadways statewide (Figure 4).

North Avenue between Lakewood

Parkway and Ethan Allen Parkway

experiences the most severe

crashes, largely involving at-angle

crashes associated with turning

traffic. Six of the corridor crashes

involved pedestrians.

Pedestrian crossing opportunities

are very infrequent and

pedestrian facilities (sidewalks,

curb ramps, and signals) are in

poor condition or insufficient. On-

street parking is permitted in many

sections, but the wide travel way

and lack of parking pavement

markings north of Shore Road

makes parking unclear.

Figure 4: High Crash Locations

VISION AND GOALS

In 2012 the EPA hosted a “Complete Streets Implementation Workshop” for Burlington. The workshop

included local decisionmakers and city staff, and a citywide vision for complete streets was drafted. This

vision was refined for North Avenue by the Advisory Committee and through public meetings:

North Avenue will continue to serve as the primary transportation corridor connecting Burlington’s

New North End with the rest of the City.

As the North End’s “Main Street,” North Avenue will provide for safe, inviting, and convenient

travel for all users of all ages and abilities—including motorists, pedestrians, bicyclists, and

public transportation riders.

The need to move people through the corridor will be balanced with the need to provide

access to homes, businesses, and local institutions.

The corridor will develop into an attractive public space through creative streetscape,

signage, and other site design features.

The corridor will become more livable and desirable by promoting social interaction,

public health, economic development and environmentally sustainable initiatives.

To implement this vision, our goals for North Avenue are:

• Remake the North Ave corridor into a “Complete Street” that accommodates the

safe and efficient travel for all users of all abilities and provides transportation choices.

• Achieve a world class transportation corridor that offers quality of service and highest

safety for those who walk, bicycle, and travel by motor vehicle or transit.

• Identify near-term improvements that can be implemented now to improve the safe and

convenient accommodation of all corridor users.

• Develop a longer-term plan for fully remaking the corridor according to “Complete

Streets” principals.

• Improve safety for all users.

• Pedestrians – improve condition of sidewalks and upgrade to meet current ADA

standards; identify convenient/desirable crossing locations; and incorporate high

visibility and driver awareness measures at crosswalks.

• Bicyclists – provide dedicated space and bicycle treatments to form a continuous, high

quality bicycle corridor that facilitates travel in and out of the New North End.

• Design facilities with all users in mind including children and seniors.

• Address high crash locations and congested locations.

• Improve access management and left turn accommodations on the corridor to reduce

conflicts.

• Calm traffic and moderate travel speeds.

• Provide a range of convenient and efficient travel options and improve multimodal

connections.

• Promote transportation options.

• Improve transit service in the corridor:

• Reduce headways

• Add shelters

• Increase span of service during the day and weekend service

• Ensure efficient flow of buses along the corridor

• Improve access (sidewalks, bike access) to transit shelters/stops

• Improve pedestrian facilities.

• Develop a safe, efficient and continuous bicycle network.

• Promote Transportation Demand Management (TDM) initiatives in the corridor.

• Develop strategies that support vibrant and livable neighborhoods in the New North End;

enhance the quality of life of residents and visitors; and support sustainable economic growth.

OPTIONS FOR NORTH AVENUE

To address existing and future transportation issues in the corridor several types of improvements

were considered for intersections, travel lanes, parking, pedestrian facilities, and bicycle facilities.

The universe of options that were considered included:

Intersection signal improvements, re-alignment, high-speed turn elimination, and/or

roundabouts.

Travel lane width reduction, travel lane reduction, turn lane creation, and/or lanes for bicycle

facilities.

On-street parking on one-side, both sides, and/or parking removal.

Pedestrian-related crosswalks, signal improvements, and/or gateway treatments.

Bicycle-related on-road improvements (shared lanes or buffered/protected/regular bike lanes)

and/or protected bike lanes.

Concepts were refined through public meetings and Advisory Committee input, and the concepts

were evaluated for their ability to meet the vision and goals for North Avenue. Cross-section

concepts (lane assignments and parking) were analyzed and presented in an evaluation matrix to reflect

their consistency with Burlington’s Complete Streets Design Guidelines; impacts on safety for all users

(traffic stress for bicyclists, turning conflicts, transit conflicts, accessibility, traffic speed); multi-modal

connectivity (transit access and amenities, access to bicycling destinations); ROW impacts (greenbelt

and new ROW needs); and maintainability. Intersection concepts were analyzed and presented in an

evaluation matrix to reflect their impacts on transportation choices (traffic operations: LOS, vehicle

delays and queues); safety for all users (traffic stress for bicyclists, accessibility, pedestrian experience,

and traffic speeds); and ROW impacts (greenbelt and new ROW needs).

Concepts were also evaluated for their potential to improve the physical health and mental well-being

of the North End Community. The Vermont Department of Health completed a Health Impact

Assessment (HIA), which “is a systematic, flexible approach that uses data, research, and stakeholder

input to assess the potential health impacts of policies or projects.” This HIA complements the North

Avenue corridor study by answering the following questions: What are the potential health impacts of

proposed changes to North Avenue? Which proposals have the most potential to improve the health of

vulnerable populations? Figure 5 explores the relevant components of the proposals, the most

important health impacts, and the linkages between the two.

Figure 5: HIA Exploration of North Ave Concepts and Linkages to Health Impacts

A QUICK INTRODUCTION TO DESIGN TERMINOLOGY

Split phasing: two

intersection

approaches will have

consecutive signal

time rather than

concurrent

(no image)

Leading Pedestrian

Interval (LPI): a head

start for pedestrians

entering an

intersection before the

concurrent green

signal for traffic in the

same direction

Bike Lanes: a

dedicated space for

cyclists, delineated

with a white line

(encroachment by

vehicle doors when

adjacent to a parking

lane)

Buffered Bike Lanes:

one or both sides of a

bike lane incorporate a

painted buffer for

increased cycling

comfort and to reduce

the risk of dooring

On-street one-way

protected bike lanes:

street-level bike lane

between the motor

vehicle travel lane and

the sidewalk,

protected from

moving traffic by a

physical barrier

Raised one-way cycle

track: a protected bike

lane raised to sidewalk

level

On-street two-way

cycle track: street-

level two-way bicycle

lane between the

motor vehicle travel

lane and the sidewalk,

protected from

moving traffic by a

physical barrier

Raised two-way cycle

track: a two-way cycle

track raised to

sidewalk level

NORTH AVENUE CORRIDOR DRAFT IMPLEMENTATION PLAN FOR TRANSPORTATION IMPROVEMENTS

After deliberation across two meetings, the Advisory Committee and the Study Team identified the final

concepts and implementation schedule for the City to consider. The draft implementation plan was

presented to the Transportation, Energy, and Utilities Committee (TEUC) at their September 10, 2014

meeting and the Committee voted to advance the following draft implementation plan for

consideration by City Council.

The DRAFT implementation plan is based on:

• Short term = minimal design, with additional public process as required for regulatory changes

or project benefit, and completion within 1-3 years

• Medium term = design needed, with public process included in design process and estimated

completion within 3-7 years

• Long term = evaluation, scoping and design needed, with public process included throughout

those processes and the estimated completion is more than 7 years

Short-Term DRAFT Implementation Concepts

The short-term cross sections will involve a pilot

project with the following elements (see Figure 6):

Three-lane configuration between

Shore Road and VT 127, with 10.5 foot

travel lanes and 4.5 foot bike lanes

All parking eliminated north of

Washington Street*

Bike lanes, enhanced/buffered where

space allows

Protected bike lanes (with flex posts)

from VT127 to Institute Road

As needed, replace drainage grates with

bike friendly grates

*Please note that the elimination of parking will

require approval by the Public Works Commission.

The short-term intersection improvements will

include:

1. At all intersections, ADA-compliant curb

ramps, crosswalks on all approaches of

signalized intersections; audible pedestrian

countdown timers with a minimum 5-

Figure 6: Recommendation for Short-Term Cross Sections

second (push-button) Leading Pedestrian Interval (LPI); and bicycle facilities maintained

through intersections (where provided in advance of intersections).

2. Shore Road: increase pedestrian crossing

times, split phasing for the Shore Road /

Heineberg Road approaches, pedestrian-

activated no right turn on red

3. Ethan Allen Shopping Center: increase

pedestrian crossing times, pedestrian-

activated no right turn on red.

4. VT 127: optimize the signal timing to

achieve more efficiency, close the high-

speed northbound ramp, remove the free-

flow westbound ramp and the gantry over

North Avenue, gateway treatments.

5. Institute Road: fix motor vehicle detection,

reduce intersection footprint with paint,

relocate northbound bus shelter, realign

southbound sidewalk, pedestrian-activated

no right turn on red.

6. New unsignalized crosswalks were also offered at regular intervals that would meet the

Transportation Plan guidelines and provide access to transit stops across North Avenue. These

potential locations were narrowed with input from the community through the online input tool

and final public meeting. This shortened list was prioritized by the Advisory Committee, for

implementation of 3-5 new crosswalks within the short-term implementation plan (listed in

order of priority/tied votes):

1) Burlington College

2) Gosse Court

3) Killarney Drive / Village Green Drive (only compatible with a 3-lane cross section)

4) Green Acres / Cayuga Court

5) Ward Street

Each crosswalk location will be evaluated to determine the best type of treatments, ranging from a

basic crosswalk consisting of crosswalk markings and signs to a fully enhanced crosswalk consisting of

warning beacons, advanced warning signs, and refuge islands.

Short-term transit improvements will include:

1. Up to three additional shelters at high ridership stops (pending funding)

2. Larger shelters at Burlington High School

Medium-Term DRAFT Implementation Concepts

The medium-term preferred concepts for intersections include:

1. Plattsburg Avenue: eliminate high-speed

northbound right turn (realign signal and

extend southeast curb), resolve Tracy Drive

/ Merola’s Market access , exclusive

pedestrian phase on south crosswalk,

pedestrian activated no right on red,

gateway treatments

2. Shore Road: if ROW is donated or easily

acquired, realign Shore Road, keep longer

crossing times and pedestrian-activated no

right on red.

3. Ethan Allen Parkway: scoping study to

relocate Park entrance and remove from

intersection, add Little Eagle Bay into

signal, eliminate high-speed northbound

right turn.

4. North Street: parking lot right in / right

out or curb cut removal, realign north and

south crosswalks, add protected /

permitted southbound left turns,

pedestrian-activated no right turn on red.

5. Washington Street: raised intersection,

pedestrian-activated rapid flashing beacon,

gateway treatments (pavement

material/color to be decided)

6. Additional unsignalized crosswalks at Saratoga Avenue, Poirier Place, Loaldo Drive, and

Lakewood Parkway; the first three will only be compatible with a 3-lane cross section.

7. Transit service at 15-minute peak weekday headways and increased weekend services on

North Avenue.

Long-Term DRAFT Implementation Concepts

With 60% of the Advisory Committee’s votes and the Study Team’s input, the preferred concept for the

cross section of North Avenue is Concept D, on-street one-way protected bike lanes (Figure 7):

The long-term preferred concepts for intersections include:

1. Plattsburg Avenue: scoping for single-

lane mini-roundabout or other alternatives

Figure 7: Concept D - On Street One-Way Protected Bike Lanes

2. Ethan Allen Shopping Center: reconstruct

curb and sidewalk at Farrington’s Mobile

Home Park and Bamboo Hut to reduce

curb cut and define the driveway.

3. Ethan Allen Parkway: implement scoping

study recommendation (signal or single

lane roundabout)

4. VT 127: scoping study for roundabout or

other alternative

5. Institute Road: scoping study for

roundabout or other alternative, resolve

bus driveway

6. Additional unsignalized crosswalks at Staniford Road, mid-block at the bus stops south of the

VT 127 ramps, Convent Square, and Canfield Street.

NEXT STEPS

At the City Council meeting, Joseph Barr of Parsons Brinkerhoff will present the short-, medium-, and

long-term implementation plan, including an initial analysis of the VT 127 short-term intersection

recommendations. Staff of the DPW and CCRPC will also be available to answer any technical or

procedural questions related to the North Avenue Corridor Study.

The City Council is asked to authorize implementation of the North Avenue Corridor Study, which

will apply the established vision and goals to the North Avenue corridor. To foster collaboration

between city departments and the community during implementation, creation of a North Avenue

Task Force (city staff and residents) is recommended. The Task Force will participate in all phases of

project development and will keep the Council and area Councilors apprised of progress on the North

Avenue plan.

Councilors are encouraged to review or reference the complete North Avenue Corridor Study,

which includes detailed Public and Stakeholder input, the Existing and Future Conditions, the

Improvement Concepts, and the Recommended Implementation Plan. Where this memo is a brief

summary of the sections of the Corridor Study, the full report is an informative and comprehensive

depiction of our multi-year study.

The full report will be available on the project website on October 3, 2014: www.bit.ly/north-ave