Salem Bike Path Committee
Minutes of Meeting
Wednesday, July 13, 2011
A rescheduled meeting of the Salem Bike Path Committee was held on Wednesday, July 13, 2011 at 7:00 PM in Meeting Room 312 at City Hall Annex, 120 Washington Street.
Members Present: Dan Shuman, Ernest DeMaio, David Pelletier, David Hallowes and Jeff Bellin. Also present was Staff Planner Frank Taormina
Members Absent: Jamie Metsch, Christine Michelini, and William Peck
Public in Attendance: None
Chairman Shuman called the meeting to order at 7:07 PM. He acknowledged those members absent and present for the record.
J. Bellin made a motion to approve the June 15, 2011 Meeting Minutes, seconded by E. DeMaio, approved unanimously.
None
Chairman Shuman took the meeting agenda out of order and heard the New Goals for 2011 item first, as that item was tabled at the last meeting.
Discussion of New Goals for 2011
E. DeMaio sent a memo to the Committee prior to the June 15th Meeting outlining proposed goals for the Committee in the coming year. He briefly reviewed the memo with the Committee, which focuses on three major categories: Planning, Promotion, and Education.
E. DeMaio stated that social media is a great way to allow the public to share ideas with the Committee and the City with respect to all things biking.
D. Pelletier agreed that Facebook in particular is a great outlet for the public to comment. He suggested that there be a soundboard for the public to comment on anything bike related, and perhaps each month the Committee could review and respond to some of those comments.
F. Taormina stated that he does not have the ability to maintain a Facebook page for the Committee, so that is something that the Committee would have to maintain and update.
D. Hallowes already created a Facebook page for the Committee. E. DeMaio stated that a Facebook page maintains itself; all the Committee would need to do is view it and update it a couple times a month.
E. DeMaio also stated that there should be a biking calendar on the City Website or on the Facebook page. He stated that there are bike events, races, etc happening all over the North Shore throughout the summer that no one knows about. The Committee should have a one-stop-shop calendar of bike events. The Committee agreed.
Chairman Shuman stated that the Witch’s Cup Bike Race held in Salem will be on Wednesday, August 10th at the Salem Common/Washington Square.
E. DeMaio stated that the City of Salem Bicycle Circulation Master Plan preceded him, and he understands that that is a blue print for future bike routes.
F. Taormina stated that the major goal of the Master Plan was to implement the Priority Bike Route, which was recently completed (Bike Lane throughout Salem). Perhaps in the next year or two the Committee could update the Master Plan and prioritize the routes to be implemented.
E. DeMaio stated that he specifically likes the goal of connecting bike routes to our surrounding communities. He would like to see the City/Committee reach out to those communities and coordinate those efforts.
D. Pelletier stated aside from the Salem Bike Path, which does connect with the Marblehead Trail, he doesn’t see other opportunities to connect an off-road bike path with other neighboring communities. He stated that perhaps if Guilford Rail releases their rights, then a bike path from Leslie’s Retreat Park could be extended into Peabody.
F. Taormina stated that it is more likely to see on-road bike lanes connect with surrounding communities. He mentioned that he had a discussion with an individual who stated that people in Marblehead have already taken notice of the recently completed bike lane on Lafayette Street (Rte 114).that ends at the Marblehead town line, and would like to see them extended into Marblehead. Frank stated that other bike lanes that are striped on roads that end at other neighboring city/town limits could easily be extended as well.
E. DeMaio continued reviewing his memo with the Committee discussing items such promotional events through the Salem Chamber of Commerce, encouraging private businesses and large employers in Salem to be more bike friendly, etc. He closed with stating that there needs to be more energy in promotion and education of biking in Salem. The Committee agreed that at a future meeting they would determine which two or three goals would be pursued.
Review Draft Bike Safety Pamphlet
D. Hallowes made edits to the previous iteration of the bike safety pamphlet and forwarded the revised draft to each of the Committee Members.
J. Bellin requested that the statement “Helmets are necessary for all riders at all times….” Should be in bold, or in a different color, or italicized so that it stands out better. He also suggested that under the heading “See and Be Seen” that the following be added: “ride in a straight line as much as possible, weaving in and out of traffic or riding in the parking lane makes you less visible”. The Committee agreed to include both changes.
D. Pelletier suggested that under “Must follow Rules for Cycling” that “See and Be Seen” should be the second item on the list, directly under “Always wear a helmet”. He suggested that some additional photos or graphics which speak to how one can be seen be added as well. The Committee agreed to include all his changes.
F. Taormina state that there should be a direct link added under “Know the Rules of the Road” which directs people to the laws that govern biking and the rules of the road. The Committee agreed.
D. Pelletier suggested that the Facebook address be spelled out on the back of the pamphlet, instead of “Follow us on Facebook”. He stated that we don’t want people to find us, we want them to type in the exact link and go to our page.
F. Taormina stated that the Facebook link will be added to the City Website so that people can find out more information about the Committee through that portal.
D. Hallowed agreed to make all the changes discussed tonight and revised the bike safety pamphlet accordingly.
Creation of User Friendly Bike Routes Map
F. Taormina showed the Committee the revised draft bike routes map that the City GIS Administrator prepare.
E. DeMaio stated that it looks better than the previous map.
The Committee discussed which symbols would be useful for bikers and which symbols they would like to see on the map, aside from the actual bike routes. They agreed that they wanted to include: parks, schools, public restrooms, bike shops, information, MBTA Commuter Rail, Salem Ferry, beaches. The Committee would also like to see a note that explains that bikes can be brought onto the MBTA Buses, MBTA Commuter Rail, and on the Salem Ferry.
D. Pelletier stated that we should add the bike route (multi-use trail) in Leslie’s Retreat Park and on the other side of the North River Canal, fronting Commercial Street. He would also like to see the Bike Path Committee’s website site and Facebook page link added to the map.
F. Taormina stated that he will work with the City GIS Administrator and have all those edits made and further refine the map and bring that to the next meeting.
Bicycle Friendly Community Designation Application
F. Taormina explained to the Committee that the Mayor asked him to determine whether or not the City of Salem could qualify as a Bicycle Friendly Community through the League of American Bicyclists. He stated that there is a score card which you fill out and it assesses whether or not your community is ready to apply for the designation as a bicycle Friendly Community. He reviewed the scorecard with the Committee, which yielded that the City of Salem scored a 13. Communities which score at least a 9 can apply for designation.
F. Taormina stated that the Committee has accomplished a lot since its inception in 2006. If the City is designated, it would recognize those accomplishments and help steer the City toward more grants and funding. Additionally the recognition as a Bicycle Friendly Community is somewhat prestigious, as there are only 2 municipalities in the State (Somerville and Northampton) and only about 100 in the whole Country.
F. Taormina stated that the application for designation is 28 pages long and that we will be preparing and submitting that in the coming months.
Bike Lane Construction Update
F. Taormina reported that the bike lane is almost completed. He believes that all the pavement markings and signs have been installed, but he has not performed a final inspection with Gary Hebert (FST) City’s Engineering Consultant.
F. Taormina stated that he has received a lot of feedback with respect to the new bike lane, mostly good, but some negative. He stated that some residents do not like the location of some of the associated bike lane and traffic signs, and that he is working with them to have them relocated or stacked on the same pole. He also stated that even though he has not inspected the entire site, there are several pavement markings that were striped incorrectly by the Contractor (Markings, Inc.), which need to be corrected. He insured the Committee that any discrepancies will be fixed and the entire route will be completed has designed and engineered, pursuant to MUTCD standards.
He stated that there has already been some positive press about the bike lane in the Salem Gazette and in Salem Patch. The Salem News is currently working on an article and it should be in the papers soon. He stated that he will coordinate with the Committee and the Mayor’s Office regarding a ribbon cutting event in the near future.
Chairman Shuman asked if there is any further old or new business to discuss tonight. There being none, he asked for a motion to adjourn. D. Pelletier makes that motion, seconded by E. DeMaio and approved unanimously. The meeting was adjourned at 8:35 PM.
Respectfully submitted by:
Frank Taormina,
Planner/Harbor Coordinator
Minutes approved by the Salem Bike Path Committee at their September 14, 2011 Meeting
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