Links Edition - developing the smart way

Haven't had the time to update this Blog as frequently as I would like.  In reality, I see it morphing toward editorializing and discussion of best practices, rather than an update/discussion on Laurel-specific plans (tough to do the latter when you're no longer in the know).  Strangely, this site gets 300 to 400 hits a month still, mostly from people researching pedestrian and bike safety/infrastructure. Kind of flattering for the City, no?  Regardless, here are some links to articles I've finally gotten around to reading that may be informative to those that still come here:

• College Park City Council gets it: "Among the city’s conditions for approval were moving and reorienting the buildings to make them more accessible to pedestrians on River Road, in advance of future development for a Purple Line station."  
• Fitting an entire village (and all its tax revenue) in the space the of a single non-tax generating County parking lot.
• How much is a bike trail worth? (self explanatory)
• For those that think stop signs always make streets safer.
• The importance of pedestrian and bike master planning.
• Bike can run red lights in Paris. 
• Creating sustainable Cities.(a long, but good, read)
• The case for bike infrastructure (this is a long read but worth your time)

Year in review; and some new ideas, too!

The following is a quick review of pedestrian & bike capital improvements in Laurel. The City:

• added bike lanes on Cypress Street, including the City’s first bike box.
• added sidewalk on 7^th Street in Old Town.
• added Laurel Lakes Drive near the Safeway.
• added a 8’ wide hiker-biker trail on Van Dusen, south of MD 198.
• added bike sharrows on Laurel Lakes Drive
• widened the sidewalk on a large portion of Cherry Lane to 8’ wide.
• Brooklyn Bridge Road was resurfaced by the County with wider shoulders near the gully. The wider shoulders make it easier on bikers and joggers.
• MD SHa, at the City’s behest, installed sidewalk on Route 1 south of Cypress, completing the sidewalk network for the entire length of Route 1 in the City.
• The bike lanes on 4^th Street were completed
• Bike parking was added to City Hall and to the new 5^th Street Community Center.
• Decorative period-style sign posts and sign backers were installed on parts of Main Street.
• The crosswalks were widened on Cherry Lane at 4^th Street.

Very good year for those not dependent on their cars.  Now, let’s keep up the momentum by:

• Installing bike lanes on the Mulberry and Laurel Place to complete the north-south bike route through the entire city.  Conceptual plans have already been drawn up and can be incorporated into the CIP’s resurfacing project for both roads.
• Updating policy and infrastructure goals/designs of the City’s Bike Masterplan.  This should be a winter-time project. I volunteer to lead the public hearings, draft  any policy changes and create the visuals, if need be.  But given that the masterplan is now attached to the City’s Uniformed Land Development Code, it is imperative to keep this plan updated and fresh.
• Prohibit parking on Laurel Place. 
• Consider policy changes that allow bicyclists to treat stop signs as yield signs and signals as stop signs.
• Installing cycle-tracks on Van Dusen and buffered bike lanes on Cherry Lane.
• Completing the 8' trail south of the dog park.
• Planting more shade trees along existing trails.
• Finding a way to get more bus shelters in place – too many “sticks in the ground” are posing as bus stops, without shelters or even sidewalk leading to the stop.  This needs to change if we are going to encourage alternative transportation modes.

Have a great 2012, Laurel!

New Bike Lanes

The City of Laurel is in the initial phase of implementing its Bikeway Masterplan.  As part of this phase, the City has installed their inaugural on-street bike lanes.  The lanes shown below are on 4th Street from Talbott to Montgomery Street.  This segment is one-way only with on-street parking on both sides.  The bike lane has been installed on the left side of the street to reduce the likelihood of bicyclists getting "doored."  The next set of on-street bike lanes to be installed will be along 4th Street from Gude Park to Greenhill Drive.

Bike Plan to begin roll-out

Tomorrow, the City of Laurel will begin implementing the first phase of its City-wide bike master plan. This initial phase is a north-south route that connects several neighborhoods, ending at Riverfront Park to the North and Gude Lake to the South.  The route runs along low-volume 4th/5th Streets and is a mix of on-street bike lanes and shared-route markings/signage, with a short hiker/biker trail connecting the intersection of 4th  and Cherry with the trails around Gude Lake.  In total, the City will be using signage and street markings to designate 3 miles of roads as preferred bike routes, with 1 mile of that stretch to include on-street bike lanes.*  Sharrows and signage will be used on the remaining two miles to emphasize the shared nature of the road. Work north of Greenhill Drive will begin on Friday, with the exception of any sharrows that need to be installed on roads that WSSC is in the process of patching/re-surfacing.  The on-street bike lanes on 4th Street from Cherry to Greenhill will be installed as part of a 4th Street CIP expected to start later this month.

A few of the bike guide signs to be installed

*To put this into context, the City maintains about 56 miles of local roadways and about 100 miles of sidewalk in a 4.5 square-mile municipality.

Public Hearing: New Bike Lanes on 4th Street and 5th Street

A Public Hearing will be held in Meeting Room #2 at City Hall on 7pm, Thursday January 28, 2010 on the topic of adding two miles of bike lanes along 4th Street and 5th Street. The on-street bike lanes will connect the Riverfront Park trail to the paths around Gude Lake Park. In addition, 4th Street provides direct access to Main Street, the Historic District, Laurel Commons and the Laurel Shopping Center.

For those that cannot make the Public Hearing, discussion material is presented below. As always, comments can be submitted directly to the City, DPW, or on this site.

Map of affected routes (shown in green)

Proposed Re-striping of 4th street from Cherry to Greenhill

Proposed Re-striping of 4th Street from Greenhill to Gorman (WB 198)

Proposed Re-striping of 4th Street from Gorman (WB 198) to Talbot (WB 198)










Proposed Re-striping of 4th Street from Talbot (WB 198) to Montgomery Street










Proposed Re-striping of 4th Street from Montgomery Street (WB 198) to Riverfront Park










Proposed Re-striping of 5th street from Main to Gorman










Proposed Re-striping of 5th street from Gorman to Montrose

Map of Designated Bikeways

Bikeway MasterPlan Approved by City

On September 28, 2009, the Mayor and City Council approved Resolution No. 10-09 - a resolution to approve and adopt a City of Laurel Bikeway Master Plan.

City unveils new Bikway Plan

The City of Laurel and the Department of Public Works is proud to release its draft Bikeway Transportation Plan for public review and comment. The draft can be downloaded here (3MB file).