{{section.number}}a
CITY OF GLENDALE, CALIFORNIA
REPORT TO THE CITY COUNCIL
AGENDA ITEM
Report: Project update- Bicycle Transportation Plan
COUNCIL ACTION
Item Type: Report Only
Approved for January 9, 2024
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The City Council initiated the update of the Citywide Bicycle Transportation Plan in February 2022, with a vision to shape the next two decades of safe, convenient, and inviting biking infrastructure in Glendale.
Engaging the public through an interactive online map and significant outreach events, inputs from the technical team, Project Development Team (PDT), Sustainability Commission (SC), and Transportation and Parking Commission (TPC) resulted the development of a well-connected citywide preliminary bicycle network. In this report, staff presents an update on the progress of the Bicycle Transportation Plan development, and respectfully seeking city council inputs and recommendations. The overarching goal has been to establish an all-ages, all-abilities network for the entirety of Glendale.
RECOMMENDATION
This is a report only. Councilmembers may ask questions or provide feedback. 2{{section.number}}a
4 8
6 6
BACKGROUND/ANALYSIS
On February 15, 2022, City Council awarded a contract to Buro Happold Consulting Engineers, Inc.to develop an update to the BTP. The update of the BTP will be one that addresses components of a complete system including infrastructure, community outreach, and evaluation of policy and infrastructure improvements that will ensure greater success of the city’s multi-modal infrastructure.
The updated BTP will consolidate existing and previous bicycle policy initiatives into one user-friendly and comprehensive format. It will also present an opportunity to update the plan to accommodate and pursue best practices in bicycle transportation planning that may have evolved since the plan’s original adoption in 2012. This update has been informed by plans that have been newly adopted and those that are still in progress, including the recently adopted Citywide Pedestrian Plan, the West Glendale Sustainable Transportation and Land Use Study, the Verdugo Wash Visioning, and the Metro NOHO- Pasadena BRT project. The goal of updating the plan is to include new insights and ideas in today ‘s context and interventions developed in active transportation planning at the regional and state levels. The BTP seeks to improve bicycle and pedestrian safety, both serving as important Council priorities.
In addition to organizing existing City policies into one cohesive document, the following aspects (tasks) have been assessed and included in the updated BTP:
•Identifying viable bicycle and pedestrian corridors, linking to the City’s existing mobility policy and plan structure, including the Citywide Pedestrian Plan, Safe Healthy Streets Plan and West Glendale Sustainable Transportation and Land Use Study, Safe Routes to School and Citywide Safety Education Plan. •Assessing intersections and corridors with high bicycle incident rates, as well as identifying intersections with high bicycle and pedestrian volumes. •Targeting improvements and developments of bicycle infrastructure which provides safety and connectivity in Glendale’s multimodal system. •Creating a coordinated and targeted community outreach strategy throughout the update of the plan development, including coordination with any ongoing city education and safety programs, so that each effort informs one another. •Ensuring equity and that disadvantaged communities fully share in BTP program benefits; and
3{{section.number}}a
4 8
6 6
•Incorporating policy and infrastructure recommendations based on field work assessments, best practices in active transportation, and feedback received from the community.
Progress to Date
The BTP has entered the preliminary recommendations phase of the project, and the preliminary draft bicycle network has been available for public comment. The project team has established existing conditions including an extensive crash and safety analysis; established project priorities and goals; and has conducted public engagement at a variety of events around the City including a bicycle ride with the Mayor, public outreach and continued collaboration with the PDT. These activities have given the BTP team the inputs, analysis, and public feedback needed to draft preliminary recommendations that fulfill the project goal of creating a safe, connected, and all-ages all-abilities bicycle network for Glendale. Draft recommendations were reviewed by city staff; the PDT and released to the public through online resources and through a series of outreach events, which resulted a preliminary draft bicycle network (Exhibit 1).
Crash Analysis
The crash analysis utilizes data on bicycle involved crashes from California’s Statewide Integrated Traffic Records System (SWITRS) and reflects requested changes from both city staff and the PDT, including expanding the date range from 5 to 10 years to better understand pre- and post-pandemic trends. Property Damage only crashes were also included in the analysis after comments from the PDT.
Overall, the data shows crashes involving cyclists declining over the analysis period.
Compared to Pasadena and LA County, Glendale has lower crash rates. The crash analysis also highlighted corridors with a greater safety concern. These corridors tend to be the wider arterials through downtown that carry large volumes of traffic during rush hour and have higher speeds when not congested. This list includes segments of Glenoaks Blvd., south Brand Blvd., Colorado St., Broadway, south Glendale Ave., north Glendale Ave., Verdugo Rd., Pacific Ave., San Fernando Rd., south Central Ave., and Chevy Chase Dr.
The crash analysis, along with an analysis on equity, demographics, trip demand, PDT recommendations, public input and surveys results informed the preliminary draft bicycle network. (Exhibit 2)
4{{section.number}}a
4 8
6 6
TPC and SC Comments and Recommendations
We received comprehensive comments and feedback from the TPC on November 21, 2023, and the SC on December 6, 2023, regarding the Preliminary Bike Network. The notes from both commissions have been carefully considered and incorporated into the Preliminary Proposed Bike Network (Exhibit 3). This collaborative effort aims to enhance the safety and connectivity of the bike network across Glendale.
Preliminary Bicycle Network Recommendation:
Technical Analysis:
Developing the preliminary bicycle network recommendations was a careful process that combined analysis of existing conditions, public feedback, and input from staff and the PDT. The goals for the project were established through outreach with the public and the PDT, with the greatest priorities being to create a safe, connected, and all-ages all- abilities network. Other priorities include incorporating public feedback and developing an implementable network. With project priorities in mind, the project team established two network principles: connected neighborhoods (i.e., connections within neighborhoods) and “spiderwebs” (i.e., connections between neighborhoods). An analysis was then conducted to combine the crash and destinations data with public input on where people would like to bike. This analysis produced the first preliminary draft network. Using guidance from the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), Caltrans, and that National Association of City Transportation Officials (NACTO), the facility type was selected for each corridor based on three primary factors: road typology, vehicle volume, and speed limit. The facilities selected for each corridor maximizes safety and connectivity for cyclists.
Facility Definitions
•Class I Multi-Use Path: An off-street facility with exclusive space for bicyclists and pedestrians, with minimal crossings by vehicle traffic. •Class II Bike Lane: A conventional striped bike lane denoted by pavement markings.
•Class II Climbing Lane: A striped bike lane in the uphill direction that provides separation between bicyclists and vehicles for bicyclists ascending steep hills. •Class III Bike Routes: Signed bike routes on low-stress streets that use a shared lane, designated through shared lane markings and signage. •Class III Bike Boulevard: Low-stress, marked bikeways located on low-volume, low-speed local streets that operate as shared streets. These require traffic calming features such as neighborhood traffic circles, chicanes, and traffic diverters to maintain low vehicle speeds and volumes.
5{{section.number}}a
4 8
6 6
•Class IV Protected Bike Lane - Future Focus: Locations where speed, volumes, and crash history indicate a need for Class IV protected bike lanes. We also received consistent and repeated public feedback that bike facilities are desired and needed on these corridors. However, under current biking and traffic conditions, building a Class IV facility here would need furthers technical analysis.
This category is intended to strike a balance between bike needs and constrained traffic conditions so that limited resources can be focused on other corridors, while at the same time memorializing these corridors in the plan for future implementation.
Preliminary Proposed Bike Network Mileage Include:
Facility Type Proposed
Miles
Percent of Proposed
Network
Class IV Protected Bike
Lane
37.4 53%
Class II Bike Lane 12.3 17%
Class II Climbing Lane 2.4 3%
Class III Bike Boulevard 15.5 22%
Class III Bike Route 2.9 4%
Total 70.5 100%
The result is the preliminary bicycle network recommendations presented in (Exhibit 1).
These recommendations are the culmination of months of analysis, public outreach, and collaboration between project team members, city staff, and the public.
Next Steps
After receiving comments and recommendations from the City Council, staff will begin incorporating into draft recommendations, including the network map, prioritization criteria, and policy recommendations. The project team will then develop project phasing, project cost estimates, and identify potential funding sources. All recommendations and analyses will be formalized into the draft plan. The draft plan will then be presented to the PDT, SC, TPC and City Council. At the same time, the draft plan will be evaluated under CEQA and the environmental documents will enter a 30-day public comment period. At the end of the comment period, feedback from the public and aforementioned groups will be incorporated into the final plan and submit to City Council for adoption.
Public Works Recommendation: Study Corridors
The Public Works Engineering Division recommends conducting additional engineering analysis to determine the allocation of the proposed bicycle facility and assess its 6{{section.number}}a
4 8
6 6
potential impacts. These analyses may encompass traffic volume, vehicle traffic impact, and roadway repurposing. As the update to the BTP is a long-range plan, the current study scope does not include a detailed traffic engineering impact analysis as recommended by Public Works/Engineering. Consequently, any further analysis will necessitate a separate study and an additional budget. This recommendation is made to take a proactive approach to ensure that all proposed improvements will be viable at the time of implementation.
STAKEHOLDERS/OUTREACH
Outreach was conducted in two phases in order to provide the public with some tangible framework and reference points to ensure the most valuable feedback. During the first phase of the project, which included establishing existing conditions and setting project goals, the project team conducted a variety of public outreach events. Outreach was primarily focused on how people bike or perceive biking in Glendale and make the public aware of the planning process. The team participated in seven events for the first phase of outreach:
1. April 22: City Earth Day Fair, Pacific Community Park
2. April 27: Earth Day Celebration, GCC
3. April 27: Shaping the Future of Energy, Central Library
4. May 17: Bike to Workday
5. June 10: Mayor Bike Ride & Americana at Brand outreach event
6. June 22: Go Glendale Bike Safety 101 Workshop
7. June 24: Bike Safety Day, Pacific Park
During the above seven events, attendees were asked to complete a survey, put their opinions on boards and provide their contact information for our project email list. The survey was available online in English, Armenian, Spanish, and Korean and asked 17 questions about biking, safety, trip types, priorities, and demographics. We received over 400 responses from survey.
The primary takeaways from the survey and outreach events were that people wanted safe, connected, and useable bike infrastructure.
Alongside the public events and survey, the BTP updates and progress were shared online through our city website and non-profit organizations website such as Walk Bike Glendale and Go Glendale. Additionally, details about the plan and outreach efforts were disseminated via e-newsletters from the city, Office of Sustainability, Community Services and Parks, Economic Development, and Walk Bike Glendale. Similarly, physical flyers were distributed to key local locations, including bike shops, the Glendale YMCA, all City libraries, and during the Riverwalk Workday event.
For the second phase of outreach, similar outreach events were conducted by staff. The key difference is that the public was able to view the comments received from phase one 7{{section.number}}a
4 8
6 6
outreach incorporated into a map that can visually demonstrates the public's comments.
Attendees to these events had the ability to comment both digitally and physically on our display boards. This second phase garnered greater interaction by the public as it demonstrated a preliminary bicycle network on a map of Glendale that the public is already familiar with.
Second Outreach for Preliminary Bike Network:
1. October 21: Glendale Annual Fall Festival, Pacific Community Center & Park
2. October 27: Youth & Student Workshop, Glendale Community College
3. November 8: Teen Workshop for 13- to 18-year-olds, Central Library
4. November 11: BTP Open House, Spar Heights Community Center
5. November 12: BTP Open House at the Adult Recreation Center Preliminary Bicycle Network Interactive Map
This preliminary bike network was developed based on an analysis of safety, connectivity, and needs; the feedback we received from community outreach; and input from the project’s technical advisory committee.
FISCAL IMPACT
There is no fiscal impact associated with this report.
ALTERNATIVES TO STAFF RECOMMENDATION
N/A.
ADMINISTRATIVE ACTION
Submitted by:
Bradley Calvert, Director of Community Development
Prepared by:
Arezoo Kamali, Associate Planner
Fred Zohrehvand, Principal Planner
Approved by:
Roubik R. Golanian, P.E., City Manager
Michael J. Garcia, City Attorney
EXHIBITS
Exhibit 1: Preliminary Proposed Bicycle Network
Exhibit 2: Crash Analysis Findings
Exhibit 3: TPC and SC Comments
8{{section.number}}a
4 8
6 6