Salem Bike Path Committee
Minutes of Meeting
Wednesday, March 10, 2010
A regular scheduled meeting of the Salem Bike Path Committee was held on Wednesday, March 10, 2010 at 7:00 PM in Meeting Room 314 at City Hall Annex, 120 Washington Street.
Members Present: Dan Shuman, Jeff, Bellin, David Pelletier, Christine Michelini, and William Peck. Also present was Staff Planner Frank Taormina
Members Absent: none
Public in Attendance: Gary Hebert (FST Engineering), Laurie Bringal (Salem Resident)
Chairman Shuman called the meeting to order at 7:05 PM and acknowledged that all the members were present for the record.
Chairman Shuman mentioned that he was informed that three (3) new members were recently appointed to the Committee by the Mayor’s Office to fill vacant spots. He stated that they will be confirmed by the City Council at the March 25th City Council Meeting. The new members should be present at the April Committee Meeting. The Committee is now an eight (8) Member Committee.
J. Bellin pointed out one minor edit: on page one the word ensured should be ensued. Motion was made by D. Pelletier to approve the February 17, 2010 Meeting Minutes seconded by C. Michelini and approved unanimously.
Chairman Shuman acknowledged Gary Hebert from Fay, Spofford, and Thorndike Consulting Engineers and Salem Resident Laurie Bringal. No comments were taken at this time.
- Implementation of Bike Circulation Master Plan
F. Taormina issued copies of the newly completed City of Salem Bicycle Circulation Master Plan to each of the Committee Members. He stated that he forgot to add the reproduction of 10-15 color plans into FST Engineering’s contract, so he had to get quotes and have an outside copy center print out the master plans.
D. Pelletier made a motion that in the future, that Frank add additional funds into Consulting Contracts to cover the cost of color originals so that the City does not have to pay for those services after-the-fact. Seconded by w. Peck and approved unanimously. F. Taormina apologized for the oversight and agreed that he would add reproduction costs as a final deliverable in future consulting contracts.
F. Taormina explained to the Committee that the City will be implementing the priority bike route identified in the Bike Circulation Master Plan as the Green Line Bikeway. He stated that he is waiting for the City to execute the On-Call Engineering Contract with FST Engineering. Once completed, he will contract with FST to have them prepare the construction and bid documents for the construction of the bike route, as described in the master plan.
F. Taormina mentioned that Gary Hebert (FST) called him earlier in the week and mentioned that he wanted to come to the meeting tonight to discuss some research that he has been doing on the side regarding non-skid pavement markings and the implementation of the priority bike route.
G. Hebert (FST) described his research with the Committee and elaborated on the use of a non-skid epoxy used for pavement markings. He mentioned that it is a bit expensive, roughly $5 a square foot, but it lasts much longer that traditional pavement marking paint and is not slippery like the raised thermal plastic pavement markings. The non-skid epoxy also has a longer lifespan, especially on lesser travelled roads such as the majority of the priority bike route, and can stand up to plows in the winter as it is not raised like the thermal plastic pavement markings. G. Hebert showed the Committee some literature regarding the versatility of the epoxy use on roadways.
F. Taormina stated that once FST Engineers is on board, he would work with them on the exact cost and longevity of the different pavement marking materials and determine what the best option for the City is, and then include that into the construction and bid docs.
G. Hebert mentioned that there may be several different ways to utilize more than one pavement marking option, such as painting the bike lanes and then using the epoxy in place of the thermal plastic for the actual bike symbol pavement markings and bike sharrow pavement markings.
F. Taormina echoed that point and stated that the City of Salem DPW has the ability to stripe street centerlines and crosswalks, and perhaps if mutually agreed upon, DPW could maintain the bike lane lines and have them re-striped on an annual or bi-annual basis.
D. Pelletier mentioned that why doesn’t the City just purchase the bike symbol and bike sharrow pavement marking template and just re-paint those pavement markings on an annual or bi-annual basis as well. F. Taormina, G. Hebert and all the Committee Members agreed that that was a great idea.
F. Taormina mentioned that he would look into the cost of the templates, or perhaps include the purchase of the templates into the construction and bid docs, for future use by the City.
D. Pelletier thanked G. Hebert for all his work on the master plan. He stated that the master plan looks great!
G. Hebert (FST) thanked the Committee for their time and effort as well and stated that he is eager to get the priority route underway.
F. Taormina mentioned that as the City resurfaces streets in the future, he will work with the City Engineer to make certain that the Bike Circulation Master Plan is utilized to determine which roadways slated for resurfacing shall include bike lanes and/or bike sharrows and/or bike signage and build that into the cost of the overall project.
D. Pelletier asked about some recently resurfaced roadways, like Loring Avenue toward Vinnin Square, and whether those could be striped as called out in the master plan.
Chairman Shuman agreed that Loring Avenue is clearly wide enough to accommodate a bike lane and if there was anyway to include that into the next round of resurfacing projects by the City.
F. Taormina stated that he would have to talk to the City Engineer about that.
Chairman Shuman asked what would happen is you and the City Engineer left the City. He could easily see how bike accommodations called out in the master plan for various City Streets could be overlooked.
F. Taormina mentioned that the Committee needs to be mindful of how to implement the goals and objectives of the bike circulation master plan. The Committee as a whole should refer to the plan in the future and remind any future Staff Planner or City Engineer of their role and responsibilities should one or both of them ever leave the City.
Chairman Shuman asked if any of the Committee Members had any other questions or comments at this time. There being none, the Chairman thanked G. Hebert (FST) for coming to the meeting tonight and on behalf of the Committee look forward to working with him I the future to implement the priority bike route.
Public Comment Letter regarding the MBTA’s 30% Design Plans for the Salem Commuter Rail Station Intermodal Center
F. Taormina informed the Committee that he received and incorporated all their comments into the draft letter, except for one recommendation from D. Pelletier. He stated that D. Pelletier suggested that we include a request to have the MBTA create an at-grade crossing over the freight rail tracks near the North Street Overpass to connect the MBTA Commuter Rail Station to the North Salem Neighborhood. F. Taormina mentioned that those freight tracks are owned by Pan Am Railways/Guilford Rail and the property abutting those tracks, adjacent to the North River in between the overpass and the Car Wash is privately owned. He added that the MBTA will not consider that request and it was better to leave that comment out of the letter.
F. Taormina mentioned that after he added the Committee’s comments into the letter, he called the Chairman and had him review and sign it. He added that the deadline for public comments was last Friday, March 5th. He submitted the letter on March 2nd to the MBTA via e-mail and US mail. He stated that he got an e-mail response from Karen DeSpirito, Senior Community Affairs Coordinator for the MBTA. She mentioned that she would forward our comments to their design consultants, AECOM, who will review them.~ Sometime after the comment period deadline, the results of AECOM’s review will be posted on the MBTA website. He mentioned that he will continue to check the MBTA’s website and once AECOM has responded to the Committee’s comments he will print that out and
forward to the Committee.
Bike Path Extension Update
F. Taormina gave a quick update on his ongoing efforts to extend the Salem Bike Path to downtown Salem. He stated that there is one remaining items that need to be resolved in order for the City of Salem to enter into a lease agreement with the MBTA to utilize an abandoned railroad right-of-way (ROW) and a portion of their active railroad ROW: confirmation from Pan Am Railways that their freight rights have been abandoned in the ROW. He explained that he is still in discussions with Pan Am Railways and hopes that he will have better news to report at the next meeting.
Bike Safety Material for City website and distribution to Schools
W. Peck reported to the Committee that he met with with Patrolman Ross Phalan from the Salem Police Department’s Community Impact Unit regarding the Committee’s mission of promoting bike safety. He asked if the Police Department ever stops kids riding bikes without bike helmets, or with hooded jackets, or in dark clothing without any reflectors on the bike or body, and remind them about bike safety. He mentioned that the Officers response was no.
W. Peck also mentioned that he placed a call and left a message with Superintendant Cameron regarding the distribution of bike safety material throughout the school system.
W. Peck also added that he has reached out to the Salem Chamber of Commerce to see if they would be interested in assisting the Committee in the cost of printing the bike safety pamphlets.
C. Michelini asked if the Committee ever reached out to Bill Wholley at Salem Park and Rec.
F. Taormina replied stating that Bill would not be able to assist in the cost of printing the pamphlets but he could be a great resource as we put together the information on the pamphlet, as Bill is an avid cyclist who commutes to work in Salem everyday from north Beverly, year round.
Chairman Shuman stated that he has been in discussions with Christine Rodgers and Marcie Clausen at the Carlton School. Apparently, the Carlton School has a bike safety event scheduled in the coming months and would be interested in having the Bike Path Committee be a part of it.
Christine Michelini asked if bike events such as the one at the Carlton School could be added to the City of Salem Bike Path Committee Website. F. Taormina said that that is very easy to do and that he would be willing to add any relevant bike info, including bike events and website links onto the website.
J. Bellin asked about informing the adult cyclists about bike safety and the rules of the road.
D. Pelletier mentioned that J. Bellin should contact Leo Jodoin at Salem Public Access TV and film an episode of Salem Now surrounded entirely around bike safety geared toward the adult audience. Once taped, that material could be shown at events or even placed on the city website as a link. Discussion regarding the matter ensued.
D. Pelletier made a motion to have J. Bellin contact Leo Jodoin at Salem Public Access TV on behalf of the Committee and inquire about the filming of a bike safety show geared toward the adult cyclist. Seconded by J. Bellin and approved unanimously.
F. Taormina asked the Committee how they should proceed with the preparation of the bike safety pamphlet for the city website and for distribution to Schools. He suggested perhaps W. Peck could take all he information gathered to date and put together a draft pamphlet that we could use as a starting point.
W. Peck offered to look at all the bike safety information complied to date and put together a draft pamphlet. He asked if Frank could forward him all the info that he and other members previously submitted for consideration. F. Taormina agreed to get him the info directly after the meeting.
J. Bellin made a motion to have W. Peck review all the bike safety material compiled to date and prepare a draft pamphlet for review at the next meeting. Seconded by D. Pelletier and approved unanimously.
F. Taormina offered to help W. Peck should he have any questions or if he needs help with the formatting of the pamphlet.
Chairman Shuman mentioned that there is a new website that was recently created that was created for people that bike called www.peopleforbikes.org He heard about it at the National Bike Summit in Washington D.C. that he attended. He asked if Frank could add the link to the City Bike Path Committee Website. F. Taormina agreed to add it to the website.
D. Pelletier asked if people could report dangerous pot holes that are hazardous to bikers and vehicles to the City. F. Taormina stated that he believes that you can report them via the DPW website or via a hotline phone number. He offered to look into it and post one or the other onto the City Bike Path Committee Website.
D. Pelletier asked if DPW could pave around the locked bike gates and or open the bike gates slightly and pin it to the pavement so that it can accommodate bike and pedestrian access but still deter vehicular access. F. Taormina mentioned that he forwarded that request to DPW last fall. He will follow up with DPW and ask if that can do one or the other this spring.
Adjournment
Chairman Shuman asked if there were any further old/new business items to discuss tonight. There being none, he asked for a motion to adjourn. D. Pelletier made that motion, seconded by C. Michelini and approved unanimously. Meeting was adjourned at 8:22 PM
Respectfully submitted by:
Frank Taormina,
Planner/Harbor Coordinator
BPC 3-10-2010
| 
