1 There Are Many Ways to Put A Road on a Diet Jack Witthaus Sunnyvale Transportation & Traffic Manager

2 Road Diets in Sunnyvale Seven + Roads “Dieted” Primarily 4 lane to 2 lane + TWLTL Impetus –Community Concerns –Bikeway Network Expansion

3 How Did Roads Get Dieted? Location-Specific Concerns/Studies/Projects Quick Decision, Opportunistic Projects Planned, Studied, Designed Projects

4 Location Specific, “First Generation” Diets Pre-Livable Community, Bike Network Movements Driven by Community Concerns –Safety Concerns (Not Safety Issues) –Pedestrian Safety –Bike Safety –Speed, Volume of Vehicles

5 Process Location-Specific Studies Outreach to Effected Neighborhoods Citizen-Driven Designs –Refuge Islands – Old San Francisco Road –No Bike Lanes

6

7 Results No Traffic Impact Other than Island Crashes Mixed Community Response –Bicyclists Hated –Islands Get Hit, Some People Don’t Like Them –Pavement Deterioration

8

9 “Second Generation” Diets for Bikeway Expansion Bicycle Opportunities Study – 1998 –Citywide Bike Lane Study of Arterials and Collectors –Methods Studied Geometric Changes Parking Modification/Removal Road Widening Travel Lane Removal

10

11 The Bike Opps Road Diet “Golden Ratio” Uncongested Travel Lane Capacity= 360 Vehicles per Hour –Free Flow Capacity 1800 VPH – Reduced to 1200 VPH to Account for Traffic Fluctuation, Future Growth –Reduced to 360 VPH Assuming 30% Green Time in Non-Free Flow Conditions

12 Practical Results of Bike Opps Underlying Justification, Basis for Operations and Capital Improvement Decisions Proactive, Catalyst

13 What Was Catalyzed? Modification of Roadway Geometry Following Pavement Projects Grant Applications Capital Project Programming

14 Operations “Projects” Geometric Changes Following Pavement Rehabilitation Little/No Technical Confirmation of Opps Study No Public Input Opportunistic

15 Results of Operations Projects Successful Operationally Hurried “Designs” –Less than Optimal Geometry –Less than Optimal Traffic Signal Equipment Placement Some Public Backlash

16

17 Planned, Scheduled, Designed Capital Projects Attractive Grant Opportunities Follow-on Study of Intersection, Operational Impacts Public Outreach Well Developed Designs

18 Results Next to No Public Outcry Expensive Operationally Successful Defensible Projects Public Interest in Road Diets is Growing

19

20 Conclusions “Fat” Roads Exist Road Diets Can Be Successful –Operationally –Public Acceptance Diligence in Project Planning and Design Helps –Do Comprehensive Area-Wide Planning –Do Comprehensive Capital Project Engineering and Outreach