Targeted Projects from Trail Plan & Bicycle Friendly Community Comments

I reviewed the Bicycle Friendly Community comments, and the key measures that they suggest Dubuque improve upon are mainly infrastructure issues.  There suggestions are to increase bicycle parking at popular destinations, add wide shoulders or bike lanes along arterials and accommodate bicycles at intersections and mult-use path crossings (i.e. time traffic lights for bicycles).  The non-infrastructure suggestions included increasing the time the bicycle and pedestrian manager spends on bike projects, offer bicycling education to the public and promote/host more bike related events.

I went through the Tri-State Trail plan, and I tried to find infrastructure projects that would be feasible to take in the next year or two.  From the cost estimates in the plan, most of the projects that we could take on are signed-on road routes.  The list of projects I picked out are (they are in no particular order):

1)Arboretum Drive-32^nd Street to Marshall Park; signed on-road route ($1,470)

2)Pennsylvania Ave-Flora to Radford Road; signed on-road route ($3,555)

3) St. Anne Street to Flora Park; St. Anne St. from Chaney through Flora park to Pennslyvania Ave; signed on-road route ($870)

4) Wilbrich Lane-Asbury Road to Flora Park; signed on-road route ($210)

5)9^th St.-Iowa St. to Kerper Boulevard; signed on-road route ($945)

6) 11^th St-Main St to Kerper Boulevard; signed on-road route ($1,350)

7) 14^th St-Iowa Street to Audobon Overlook Trail; signed on-road route ($810)

Some ideas from the BFC comments, but not in the trail plan:

1)      Increase secure bike parking at popular destinations.  We could install bike parking at every trail head, bus stop and park for starters.

2)      Install shared lane arrows.  The trail plan does not mention the use of shared lane arrows.  On some of the streets that are currently designated as trails, but are too narrow to allow for bike lanes, we could use shared lane arrows.  In particular I am thinking of west Locust heading into the downtown, and the Heritage Trail as it passes through town.