1.  Rice Street Traffic Study Proposal Presentation to the Saint Paul CIB Committee March 31, 2015

2.  Rice Street is a busy thoroughfare. Connects downtown to northern suburbs and neighborhoods Has few if any left turn lanes Has numerous bus stops Is challenging for drivers and those who walk, bike, or take a bus Was not built for multi-modal means of transportation

3. Rice Street Left: The study area would focus on Rice Street from Sycamore (South) to Larpenteur (North). Above: Intersection of Rice and Cook (across from Rice Fields, Rice Street Library, and retail shops). The street is wide and busy.

4. Rice Street is a NEIGHBORHOOD street. Four schools (Grades K-12) Sylvan Field, Rice Fields, Lewis Park, Rice-Arlington Sports Complex Rice Rec Center and Teen Zone Rice Street Library Many businesses (retail, service, office, nonprofit) A Daycare An Elder Day Care Churches A large number of pedestrians

5.  Traffic Rice near Sycamore: 15,600 vehicles/day (Sept. 2010) Rice near Jessamine: 13,750 vehicles/day (Oct. 2011) Rice near Ivy: 15,350 vehicles/day (Oct. 2011) Rice near Larpenteur: 14,475 vehicles/day (Oct. 2011) *Information provided by the St. Paul Public Works Department

6. MTC Service Rice Street One of the most heavily used routes in the system Route Length: 12 Miles 84 buses southbound 83 buses northbound Runs every ½ hour

7. Short Term Ideas Stripe crosswalk at Hoyt Ave. and Rice. Relocate and improve signage to better notify traffic of lane closing (from 4 to 3 lanes). Identify and mark additional crosswalks Review Rice Street speed limit in northern section (35MPH?) Implement Rice Street Parking Study recommendations Support MTC bus shelter improvements Move bus stop at Rice and Maryland Northbound Work with SPPS for Safe Routes to Schools planning and grants

8. Long Term Possibilities Streetscape improvements (Plantings, Medians, Bump-outs, Shorter Crossings, etc.) Signals and signage (What’s innovative and What works?) Medians (Planted, Pedestrian Refuges) Lane configuration changes (Turn lanes, etc.) Parking changes (Striping, Shared Parking, etc.)

9. Thank you! There is a lot of neighborhood activity in the North End and Rice Street, even though the majority of uses on Rice Street are commercial; it needs to be recognized as not only an arterial street but also one of our neighborhood streets.