City of Clawson supports Complete Streets policies

Clawson's Main Street design with bike lanes

Back in early December, Clawson’s city council passed a resolution supporting a Complete Streets policy.

According to the minutes, City Manager Mark Pollock provided this background prior to the vote.

Complete Streets is a design or planning principle to enable safe access for all users, including pedestrians, bicyclists, motorists and transit riders of all ages and abilities. ?The City of Clawson already incorporates many of the goals of the Complete Streets philosophy into the projects it undertakes. This is evidenced by the recent renovations of the downtown main intersection and streetscape projects. ?The resolution supporting a Complete Streets Policy pledges the City’s continued commitment to the complete streets philosophy and may assist the City in applications for funding available under the revised statutes. My recommendation is the resolution supporting a Complete Streets? Policy for the City of Clawson be approved and forwarded to the Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT) and State Transportation Commission (STC).

City council passed the Complete Streets resolution unanimously. That resolution is below the fold.

Clawson now joins Berkley, Ferndale and Novi as Oakland County municipalities that have adopted Complete Streets ordinances or policies — or have good intentions.

Now perhaps it’s time to revisit those bike lanes planned for Main Street that never got constructed.


From the Clawson City Council minutes of December 7th, 2010:

CM 12-194-10 CONSIDERATION OF A RESOLUTION SUPPORTING A COMPLETE STREETS POLICY FOR THE CITY OF CLAWSON

MOTION BY: Councilmember Airriess

SUPPORTED BY: Councilmember Moore

RESOLVED, the resolution supporting a Complete Streets? Policy for the City of Clawson be approved and forwarded to the Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT) and State Transportation Commission (STC).

A RESOLUTION

of the Council of the City of Clawson, Michigan

Supporting a Complete Streets Policy for the City of Clawson

WHEREAS, Complete Streets? are defined as a design framework that enables safe and convenient access for all users, including pedestrians, bicyclists, transit riders, and drivers of all ages and abilities; and

WHEREAS, Complete Streets are achieved when transportation agencies routinely plan, design, construct, reconstruct, operate, and maintain the transportation network to improve travel conditions for bicyclists, pedestrians, transit, and freight in a manner consistent with, and supportive of, the surrounding community; and

WHEREAS, development of pedestrian, bicycle, and transit infrastructure offers longterm cost savings and opportunities to create safe and convenient nonmotorized travel; and

WHEREAS, streets that support and invite multiple uses, including safe, active, and ample space for pedestrians, bicycles, and transit are more conducive to the public life and efficient movement of people than streets designed primarily to move automobiles; and

WHEREAS, increasing active transportation (e.g., walking, bicycling and use public transportation) offers the potential for improved public health, economic development, a cleaner environment, reduced transportation costs, enhanced community connections, social equity, and more liveable communities; and

WHEREAS, the City of Clawson’s Master Plan addresses multiple forms of transportation; and

WHEREAS, Complete Street? principles have been and continue to be adopted nation-wide at state, county, MPO, and city levels in the interest of proactive planning and adherence to federal regulation that guide transportation planning organizations to promote multi-modal transportation options and accessibility for all users; and

WHEREAS, in response to the Complete Streets Initiative, the State of Michigan adopted an amendment to the Planning Enabling Act in 2010 stating that a community’s master plan shall include all components of a transportation system and their interconnectivity including streets and bridges, public transit, bicycle facilities, pedestrian ways, freight facilities and routes, port facilities, railroad facilities, and airports, to provide for the safe and efficient movement of people and goods in a manner that is appropriate to the context of the community and, as applicable, considers all legal users of the public right-of-way.

NOW, THEREFORE, THE CITY OF CLAWSON RESOLVES:

That the Council of the City of Clawson hereby declares its support of Complete Streets? policies.

That the Planning Commission is hereby directed to review the master plan in order to determine whether the elements required under Public Act 134 of 2010 Section 33(b)(i) have been satisfied and if not, to prepare an amendment which will bring the master plan into compliance with Public Act 134 of 2010.

Introduced and Passed at a Regular City Council Meeting on Tuesday, December 7, 2010.

AYES: Councilmember Airriess, Mayor Luebs, Councilmember Moore and Palmer

NAYS: None

ABSENT: Councilmember Phillips

ABSTAINED: None

MOTION CARRIED:

Tags: ,

7 Responses to “City of Clawson supports Complete Streets policies”

  1. Ben Says:

    I just came back from Budapest and noticed a very interesting bike lane solution that seems MUCH safer for everyone involved. Rather than have the bike lane next to the traffic, they have it situated between the sidewalk and the a parking lane. This way drivers don’t have to cross paths with bicyclists nearly as much and the cars protect riders from traffic.

  2. Adam D. Says:

    Yes, other countries, such as The Netherlands, have protected bike lanes, utilizing on-street parked cars just as you describe. NYC is begining to convert to more protected bike lanes as needed too. While the parked cars provide protection for bikes, the problem in this setup is interacting traffic at intersections and maintaining proper sightlines. The parked cars, if permitted to park too close to intersections, might obstruct a turning driver’s sight of a bike traveling in the same direction, especially when turning right. It would also make a left turn by bike very problematic, without bike boxes or different signals. This is a main reason why safety paths are such a hazard. This could be mitigated with different traffic signals for bicyclists and motorists, just like for peds at crosswalks. However, it would have a limiting effect on traffic volumes and increase travel time for all modes because each mode would require it’s own signal. Additionally, bike lines can and do use curbs and concrette barriers for areas without on-street parking, such as highways.

  3. MisterG Says:

    Interesting discussion/points about “barrier-lanes.”
    I suppose the walk-away could be that complete streets is a big bag of tricks:
    Safe Routes, sidepaths, bike lanes, barrier lanes, segrated paths, etc. Different solutions for different enviroments/situations each with thier own strength, weaknesses and fea$ability.

  4. Todd Scott Says:

    Yes, correct. There is no single Complete Streets recipe.

    Excellent response, Adam. We’ve discussed them for Detroit. Besides the lost parking, they are much more expensive. Besides, the maintenance cost would likely be higher since the city may not have the proper equipment to keep these narrow ROW’s clear of debris, snow, and ice.

    And, Adam mentioned intersections being a big issue. Some streets, especially in Europe, don’t have as many driveways as we have on our streets. That makes them better candidates for these protected bike lanes (also called cycletracks.) That said, one possible candidate in Detroit would be along Lower Woodward with the M1 Rail.

  5. Adam D. Says:

    Couldn’t agree more. There’s never a silver bullet that will always work, so with any infrastructure project they need to be studied and evaluated what option will work best to fulfill the needs for a specific area.

  6. Clawson becomes 4th Oakland County Community to support Complete Streets « Michigan Complete Streets Coalition Says:

    […] Oakland County, Policies | by League of Michigan Bicyclists Editor’s Note: Thank you to m-bike who posted the initial report on Clawson’s Complete Streets […]

  7. Hilary Best Says:

    […] from m-bike This entry was posted in Uncategorized. Bookmark the permalink. ← Complete Streets: An […]

Leave a Reply