Tag: Planning

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Climate Action Safety & Education

Our MDOT Five-Year Transportation Plan comments

From the cover of MDOT's draft 5 year transportation plan

We submitted the below comments on MDOT’s 2025-2029 Five-Year Transportation Plan. This year we did not have any comments specific to Detroit projects within the plan. However, we did ask how this plan supports and helps meet MDOT’s Toward Zero Deaths goal and Governor Gretchen Whitmer’s Carbon Neutrality pledge. We’d note that the plan’s cover includes a photo of 14th Street construction in Corktopwn that removed the bike lanes.

Safety

The MDOT trunkline safety goal of zero fatalities and serious injuries by 2050 will not be met by reliance on “several safety initiatives and strategies.” (Page 23) We ask for a more sober assessment that this goal will not be achieved without fundamental changes in how MDOT prioritizes, funds and designs its trunklines while also making investments that encourage modeshift to public transit and active transportation. The latter is critically necessary for MDOT to reach its safety goal, yet we don’t see this mentioned in the plan, even in Public Transportation Program Impacts. (Page 19).

We ask that you show the required annual performance targets to get MDOT to zero by 2050. If you can project pavement and bridge condition through 2040 then there’s no reason why safety can’t be given this similar forward looking graph.

MDOT’s prioritization of safety is not apparent from the provided project list, including the proposed HSIP list. Is MDOT prioritizing safety projects in the high-injury network? By far, Wayne County has more trunkline fatalities and serious injuries than any other Michigan county, yet no proposed HSIP projects are listed for it.

Carbon Neutrality

This plan has a modest mention of MDOT’s Carbon Reduction Strategy (using a broken hyperlink) but doesn’t show how these strategies affect the provided project list. Do these projects reduce carbon emissions and will they get the state to carbon neutrality by 2050?

Similar to our safety comments, we want to see carbon emissions performance targets through 2050. We want to know where we are at today and what changes need to be made to get us to zero.

And as we noted earlier, modeshift to public transit and active transportation must be clearly called out in the plan as a fundamental safety and carbon neutrality strategy.

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Climate Action Complete Streets

MDOT 5 Year Plan Comments

Below are our comments on the draft MDOT 2024-208 Five-Year Transportation Plan. You can submit your own comments before September 8th, 2023.

  • I-94 Modernization Project. We are critically disappointed that funding for this project has apparently been delayed by two decades. The Complete Streets/Multimodal portions of this project were highlighted in prior five-year plans, but with the new time frame, we see these as broken promises to reconnect the community. 
  • Hubbell Street bridge deck replacement over I-96. We would like to see this bridge cross section improved to better accommodate bicyclists with bike lanes, preferably grade-separated bike lanes. This segment of Hubbell is very popular for Detroit bicyclists since it is easier to cross I-96 at Hubbell since there are no interchange nor grade changes. The popularity of this route is shown on the Strava heatmap for bicyclists.
  • Virgil Street bridge deck replacement. This bridge should be also designed to better accommodate pedestrians and bicyclists, preferably with grade-separated bike lanes. This bridge provides a critical community connection across I-96 with  Eliza Howell Park to the north and Rouge Park on the south. City of Detroit plans envision this bridge carrying the Rouge River Greenway. 
  • Pedestrian Bridges. We like seeing the Vassar and Sawyer bridges being replaced as well as the addition of a Verne bridge over I-94. However, we want the Spruce bridge added to the plan as well. This is a critical community connection for North Corktown with no legal, direct, or viable alternative for bicyclists.
  • Fort Street (M-85) road rehabilitation from Rosa Parks to Griswold. We want this designed as a Complete Street. It provides a critical, direct connection between the Gordie Howe International Bridge and Downtown Detroit. 
  • US-12 and Gordie Howe International Bridge. We are glad to see these projects moving forward within this plan. We have led the non-motorized advocacy on these projects and look forward to celebrating their completion. 
  • Carbon Neutrality. We see no mention of MDOT plans to reduce GHG emissions and help make Michigan carbon neutral per the Governor’s commitment. In fact, the plan includes many major and minor widening projects that will induce higher VMT and increase GHG emissions.

At first glance, it appeared this five-year plan removed prior MDOT commitments for the Iron Belle Trail/Conner Creek Greenway bridge over I-94. After conversations with the City of Detroit and MDOT, we learned that it wasn’t removed. It was no longer individually identified and had been wrapped into another I-94 phase line item. This is confusing. We ask that MDOT consistently list projects for each five-year plan so the public can more accurately determine what changes exist or do not exist.

Categories
Complete Streets Greenways

Our Belle Isle Mobility Comments

The below comments on the Belle Isle Mobility Plan draft were submitted to the DNR on July 24, 2023:

While we attended the video presentation (and have since rewatched it many times), we don’t feel we have enough information to fully weigh in on the changes proposed in the mobility study. We still have many design questions that prevent us from offering our full support at this time. However, there’s quite a bit that we do like and there are opportunities to make further improvements – 

10-foot vehicle travel lanes – We would like the plan to consistently use 10’ travel lanes. This will reduce speeding without other negative safety impacts.

Cycletrack on MacArthur Bridge – We like this design as it provides separation from the vehicle traffic. We also ask that:

  • This facility safely and efficiently connects with the West RiverWalk, East Jefferson, and East Grand Boulevard. We understand that the East Jefferson intersection is outside the scope of this plan, but it is absolutely critical that it is designed properly.
  • More information is provided on how this cycletrack connects with the bike lane that encircles the island.
  • The cycletrack is at least 12-feet wide, which can be accomplished with 10’ vehicle lanes. Per NACTO, “the desirable two-way cycle track width is 12 feet.” 
  • The buffer reduces road debris migrating from the vehicle lanes into the cycletrack. 
  • An automated, permanent bike counter and pedestrian counter is installed. 
  • A prominent sign be installed for travel lanes heading on to the island that clarifies bicyclists legal right to travel in the roadway. This can inform motorists and law enforcement on what to expect on the island and what is legal. 

Outer roads – We support the one-way to two-way conversions to improve safety, but think there’s still some opportunity for improvement. We think this will reduce the Vehicles Miles Traveled on the island, which is a benefit to those walking and biking, as well as teh environment. We do support the separated bike lane traveling clockwise around the island. 

  • We like that Sunset Drive remains one-way. For larger, faster cycling groups traveling counterclockwise on the island, this is where the groups are at their widest and the design accommodates that. However, we’re not sure the two roundabouts are necessary and they could cause issues for the larger groups. 
  • We are concerned about the transition from the single-lane on the Strand and would like to see this design. We’re not sure there’s much benefit having two-way vehicle traffic between Fountain Drive and Picnic Way. We’d prefer keeping this one-way for the larger cycling groups to allow them to pass slower moving vehicles, which is common in this busier section of the park. It would be ideal for the larger groups if the one-way vehicle travel continued to Nashua Drive where the Strand gains a travel lane. Again, the roundabouts seem problematic for the faster cycling groups, so their need and design should be very intentional. Other traffic calming treatments might be preferred. 
  • For the constrained section of Lakeside Drive, a 10-foot clockwise travel lane will free up space for cycling groups traveling counterclockwise. We do have a concern about groups making unsafe passing decisions on this constrained segment. 
  • For Riverbank, we would like to see additional space for the larger groups traveling counterclockwise. Having 10-foot lanes would help, but they would also be traveling near angled parking, which would be less safe. As with the constrained portion of Lakeside, we are concerned that the cycling groups will make unsafe passing decisions.

Other roads –  We generally find these roads to be less of a concern for bicyclists compared. 

  • We like the Central and Inselruhe Avenue promenades. 
  • We also like the shared use path along Loiter and Vista Drives but we’re not clear how this interfaces with the promenades, the forest pathways, and Iron Belle Trail loop. 
  • We support the reduction in curb radii as a means of traffic calming and shorting crosswalks.
  • We have received multiple reports of motorists traveling in the Central Flatwoods bike lanes, so we really appreciate this road being converted to a walking and biking pathway. We don’t see the need for any one-way vehicle travel on this segment. 

Bike lane maintenance – We want to see that the DNR and/or MDOT is committed to a maintenance plan for all of the bike lanes.  Too often we’ve seen separated bike lanes suffer from a lack of maintenance, resulting in debris and stormwater collecting at the curb. 

Stormwater Management – We support adding infrastructure and trees that naturally manage stormwater. We also find that removing pavement and other impervious surfaces is an even simpler solution that should be considered in all mobility designs. It seems that this plan adds to the island’s total impervious surface area, which is a concern.

Belle Isle’s Bicycle Heritage – There is a unique opportunity to celebrate the island’s bicycle heritage, especially with the Bicycle Pavillion.  Bicyclists were riding on the island well before the first car was ever driven in Detroit. There were many prominent bicycle events on the island from major races in the 1890s to the Wolverine 200 ride. We would like to see how this connection between history and mobility could be included within the plan. 

Categories
Complete Streets Greenways

A Change of Plans: Maurice and Janet

Major changes are coming to the leadership of the Detroit Planning and Development Department (PDD). Planning Director Maurice Cox and Deputy Director Janet Attarian are both stepping down. Both have had a tremendous impact on moving Detroit forward, but especially with parks, greenways, and biking infrastructure. We’ve really enjoyed working closely with them and learning from them.

One especially memorable moment with Maurice occurred shortly after he came to Detroit. He pulled together many of the long time bicycle advocates with city staff and we met in a Mayor’s office. Here he announced that he wanted to make Detroit the best bicycling city in America. There wasn’t much reaction. We were in shock to hear this coming from the city.

It was also Maurice who early on declared that protected bike lanes would be the design minimum for major Detroit streets. He promoted the 20-minute neighborhood idea, where every Detroiter could walk or bike for their non-work errands in under 20 minutes. He expanded the Joe Louis Greenway vision from a mere trail to neighborhood revitalization tool. He was adamant that the Detroit Riverfront should be developed with world class public spaces for Detroiters.

While he and his team achieved much more, we must mention that he also was a regular bike commuter.

Maurice will step down in September and begin his new role as Planning Director for the City of Chicago.

A Bike Infrastructure Rock Star

Bike to Work Day 2018 with Ashok Patel, Prasad Nannapaneni, and Janet Attarian

Losing Janet is equally tough. She came to Detroit via Chicago where she was their Complete Streets Director. She also led the development of hundreds of other projects, including the McDonald’s Bicycle Station, Bloomingdale Trail framework plan, and more.

We used to hustle to bring bike and trail design rock stars to Detroit for workshops, but with Janet, we had one here full-time. She brought a wealth of experience and a pragmatic approach to making safer streets for everyone. She led the design and development of the protected bike lane designs, such as the ones on Cass and E. Jefferson.

She was also instrumental for the framework planning currently underway with the Joe Louis Greenway. At that time, we weren’t certain that was necessary. Now we now it was the right decision. This greenway planning is bringing a much more diverse community voice into the project that strengthens the greenway’s support.

Janet’s last day with the City is July 26th. She’s being coy about where she is headed, but has said she “will not be going far.”

What’s Next?

It remains to be seen who will be the permanent replacements for these positions. We can easily imagine Mayor Mike Duggan seeking equally qualified candidates. In the meantime, there is still a fully-staffed planning department that supports greenways and Complete Streets. Two former members of PDD are now in DPW and GSD as this work has spread between departments.

In short, we’re not worried.

Continue reading “A Change of Plans: Maurice and Janet”
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Friends of the Joe Louis Greenway Greenways

Joe Louis Greenway: Rollin’ towards reality

Ten years ago, Jim Edwards took me on a bike ride along an abandoned Detroit railroad corridor where he shared his vision for a trail then called the Inner Circle Greenway. It took some time as all major rail-trail projects do, but the greenway is now making serious strides towards becoming one of the most significant urban greenway projects in the U.S.

This month is your opportunity to get more involved in this project through the city’s vision sessions or one of three different bike tours.

City of Detroit Community Visioning Sessions

From Christina Peltier, the City of Detroit’s Joe Louis Greenway Project Manager:

The first series of the Joe Louis Greenway Visioning meetings will be taking place in the next few weeks. All four meetings have the same content and activities so no need to attend all four. Translation services will be available at Lasky Recreation Center and Patton Creek Community Center. Refreshments will be provided.

The Joe Louis Greenway is an approximately 31 mile pathway that will connect many of Detroit’s neighborhoods, people and parks. More information can be found here: www.joelouisgreenway.com

Please share the attached poster and facebook page with you friends and neighbors.

Feel free to email me if you have any questions or if you would like me to present to your neighborhood organization.

Detroit Greenways Coalition Ride on June 23rd

The Detroit Greenways Coalition is organizing a 24-mile Joe Louis Greenway bike ride on Sunday June 23rd. The ride is being sponsored by the SmithGroup and will start near the Clark Park ice rink (1251 Scotten St.) at 8:30am.

This second annual Joe Louis Greenway bike ride will be limited to 100 donating participants. The objective of the ride is to create more awareness of the Joe Louis Greenway and raise money for the Detroit Greenways Coalition.

This year, participants will receive a commemorative pint glass!

For more information and to register

Wheelhouse Detroit greenway bike tours

Can’t make it on the 23rd? We’ve partnered with Wheelhouse Detroit to offer 17-mile guided tours for a portion of the greenway this year. Attendees will get an up close look at this exciting project while helping us make it a reality. Tour Registration

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Friends of the Joe Louis Greenway Greenways

Friends of the Joe Louis Greenway — April 2019

Dequindre Cut Clean Up

On Saturday April 13th from 12 noon to 4pm the Detroit Riverfront Conservancy is hosting a community clean up of the Dequindre Cut. Volunteers are asked to register and meet for check-in at the Dequindre Cut entrances at Woodbridge, Gratiot and Wilkins Street for registration and directions. They will provide gloves and trash bags as well as snacks and water.

The Dequindre Cut is part of the planned Joe Louis Greenway. Supporting the Detroit Riverfront Conservancy and this effort supports the Joe Louis Greenway.

Register for the cleanup

Design Team Selected for Framework Plan

During the last week of March, the City of Detroit announced that the SmithGroup and its team had been selected to complete the Joe Louis Greenway framework plan. The SmithGroup’s extensive greenway experience which includes designing the Dequindre Cut and Detroit Riverwalk helped them to edge out the Spackman Mossop Michaels team who was also a finalist in the selection process. City of Detroit’s announcement

The SmithGroup’s fellow organizational members also contributed to their selection. Their team includes: Toole Design, a nationally recognized firm for creating greenway networks centered around people; Sidewalk Detroit, for harnessing the art and culture to engage residents in an authentic way; Studio Incognita, for building soulful graphic design and messaging strategies; and HR&A Advisors, an industry-leading economic development and public policy firm highlighting the value of public open space.

The City of Detroit’s Request for Proposal stipulated that the Joe Louis Greenway framework planning process should be completed in one year. It also requires the process to have a minimum of 3 public input/community engagement meetings in at least 4 different segments of the JLG, hence a minimum of 12 community engagement meetings.

City of Detroit planners have been communicating with municipal leaders in Dearborn, Highland Park and Hamtramck to help ensure that residents and businesses in these cities actively participate in the planned community engagement meetings. The SmithGroup’s team and City of Detroit planners are working together to determine when and where the community engagement meetings will take place. The Friends of the Joe Louis Greenway hope to know more next month.

Save the Date: Detroit Greenway Coalition Fundraiser Ride

Sunday morning June 23rd the Detroit Greenway Coalition will hold its second annual Joe Louis Greenway fundraiser ride. The 24-mile ride will raise money for the Detroit Greenway Coalition and raise awareness of the Joe Louis Greenway. Last year it got excellent TV2, WDET and Detroit News coverage.

The route will be the same as last year, either on existing portions of JLG or paralleling planned portions. Again, the ride will include a break at the Oloman Café in Hamtramck. We will share the registration link when it’s online.

Joe Louis Greenway Tours with Wheelhouse Detroit

The Detroit Greenways Coalition is collaborating with Wheelhouse Detroit to lead two rides approximately 16 miles in length. The rides are part of Wheelhouse Detroit’s tour listing and are planned for 10am to 1pm, August 24 and September 28. They will include several stops along the Joe Louis Greenway where ride leaders, Todd Scott or Paul Vial, will talk about development aspects. It will be possible to register for these rides later this month after details are finalized.

Registration for the Wheelhouse Detroit tours