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Jun 11 2015

Road Diet Bill to be heard on Senate Floor Tomorrow!

lakepine

LEGISLATIVE ALERT – ACTION NEEDED

 

Please contact your state senator today regarding House Bill 44 to ask them to oppose the bill, or at least the road diet provision, Section 7:

 

Board of Transportation approval of bike lanes. In a real overreach, this section does not allow local governments to convert travel lanes of streets or highways to bike lanes without first obtaining a majority vote of the NC Board of Transportation. So-called ‘road diets’ can help improve traffic flow and expand safe bike and pedestrian options. Local businesses can also benefit from the increased bike and pedestrian traffic. While the state has a legitimate interest in traffic flow, that is already protected through the involvement of Department of Transportation staff. The Board’s role is to set policy; it should not be voting on individual projects.

 

BACKGROUND:

The Road Diet provision originally in Senate Bill S617 was inserted into HOUSE BILL 44 today and approved at the Senate Ag&Env committee meeting. The bill is going to the Senate Floor tomorrow, Thursday, June 11 for a full vote.

Section 7 – the Road Diet Provision:

(b) Reduction of travel lanes to accommodate the addition of bike lanes within the 4 existing paved and marked travel lanes of any State highway system street or highway located 5 within a municipality shall be approved by a majority vote of the members of the Board of 6 Transportation.”

 

WHY OPPOSE THIS PROVISION:

  • DOT Board has entrusted staff to make those decisions (such as road diet)
  • Also, at the Division level, DOT will have evaluated volumes of traffic to insure that the roadway’s level of service will not be compromised by the modification and have measures in place to mitigate any negative impact of the change
  • DOT Board does not operate on a project-by-project basis, but rather at a higher policy level and therefore do not need to be approving local projects.
  • DOT Board has adopted the Complete Streets policy and this provision makes it more difficult (more “red-tape”) to implement this important policy which aims to:
    • Make it easier for travelers to get where they need to go;
    • Improve safety for pedestrians, cyclists, and motorists.
    • Increase connectivity between neighborhoods, streets, and transit systems; and
    • Encourage the use of alternative forms of transportation

Information on the benefits of “Road Diets” can be found at the following links:

  • Smart Growth America’s report on the safety and economic benefits of complete streets

and USDOT’s Federal Highway Administration’s Safety information at:

  • Road Diets
  • Road Diets Info Guide

 

 

 

Written by Lisa Riegel · Categorized: Advocacy

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Dr Donald Acton says

    June 11, 2015 at 3:17 pm

    I believe bike lanes should be decided by the local community

  2. Sarah says

    June 11, 2015 at 6:37 pm

    I DO NOT approve of the “ROAD DIET” HB 44. I am a cyclist and I want to improve our infrastructure in NC to promote alternative forms of transportation in our state. This helps to improve health and mood and helps people feel connected to their communities. I think all of these aspects are important for a healthy state and society. Make NC a desirable place to live, support infrastructure that caters to the increase demand for alternate transportation on our roadways and make our state bicycle friendly. Improve the safety for pedestrians, cyclists, and motorists. Increase connectivity between neighborhoods, streets, and transit systems; and Encourage the use of alternative forms of transportation!!!!

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