RES 91023 - Laserfiche WebLink

because the gain (2-6 ft. at the 4-lane segment) would not result in any major tree savings and results in minimal grading savings. Given present and future volumes, the driver comfort gained by a wider lane allows the roadway's aesthetics to be appreciated whereas narrower lanes would require more focus on the process of staying on the road. ~ike Lanes The treatment of bike lanes includes taking the safety and convenience of bike riders into consideration, as well as what their accommodation does to the roadway width. Foothill Road's attraction for bicyclists is strong, but the present lane configuration in many places is highly unsafe for bicyclists. As the present configuration shows, however, some bicyclists will continue to use the travel lane. The optimum condition would incorporate separated bike paths for exclusive bike use on both sides of the street, but some bicyclists would still use the street travel lane. Combining pedestrian/bicyclist paths on both sides of the street would match standard City practice in many areas and would still separate these uses from vehicles. Using a two-way bike/pedestrian path on only one side may reduce safety to bicyclists and pedestrians, but saves at least nine feet of street section. Placing bike paths exclusively on the street (providing only a pedestrian path of 5-6 feet) would save 2-3 feet, but it would not provide a place for bicyclists who prefer to stay out of the roadway. Staff opted for a wider than necessary on- street bike path (6 ft. in lieu of 5 ft.) in recognition of the need to increase safety; staff also has incorporated a minimum standard two-way bike/pedestrian path to accommodate bicyclists who choose not to ride on the street. Eliminating on-street bike Paths cOUld result in ma~or tree savinq near Pu~i Court. if the disabled vehicle lane were also deleted. While staff has not opted for the complete separation of bikes and vehicles, staff believes the combination of more than standard width on-street lanes plus a standard two-way off-street path will meet all bicyclist's needs while keeping the roadway at a width feasible to install given the hillside and tree presence constraints. Median Staff explored eliminating the median to narrow the roadway on both 4-lane and 3-lane configurations (saving 10 ft. if the middle lanes are widened to 14 ft.). Although the saving is significant, the "merge length" necessary to get from a protected turn lane to no median is quite long, and, due to the number of street openings and driveways, the saving is minimal and occurs in areas where street width is not critical in saving trees or reducing hillside cuts. Staff felt that establishing landscaping in these areas was a superior plan since even a two lane road (with bike lanes) would have the appearance of significant width (at 38 ft., it would be about the same as most City residential street curb-to-curb widths). SR91:52 11