Everett Transportation Advisory Committee (TAC)

TAC MINUTES September 18, 2014 In attendance: Members Staff Guests Robert Strickland Tim Miller, Public Works Dave Ramstad Edward Koltonowski Jeffrey Marks, Public Works Keri Moore (Sno Health District) J.T. Dray Ryan Sass, Public Works William Weber Michael Brick, Public Works Victor Harris Ken Dorn, Everett Police Kris Hausmann Trevor Townsend, Everett Police Tom Norcott George Baxter, Transit Jan Meston, Planning 8:15 a.m. Victor Harris called the meeting to order.
M/S/P approving the August 2014 meeting minutes. Announcements & Requests to Add Agenda Items
Victor Harris spoke about the Streets Initiative Task Force. He was concerned that homeless people may impact traffic, specifically at areas related to the railroads. Though the railroad is not connected to the TAC, he felt it was important to highlight the potential problems, as it may spill out beyond the railroad crossings. Ryan Sass commented that an area under the Lombard St bridge had been blocked to restrict access to the area under the bridge.
J.T. Dray spoke briefly about the possibility of having police officers present on transit buses. He mentioned he had talked to the Everett Police Chief about this potential. It would be a cost to add to ET for this service. Citizen’s Comments
None. Engineering Report
Ryan Sass mentioned that bids for the new Broadway Bridge opened on August 26th. The City received 8 bids, and Ryan felt that all was in good shape. He mentioned that the award will go to the second low bidder, by Council on October 1st. The successful bidder, Interwest Construction, will begin to set detours in place beginning in November with bridge demolition to follow in January. Police Report
None. Transit Report
George Baxter mentioned the Everett Transit Arrival program (ETA) is up and working well. Overall, the response has been positive with little to no negative comments from the public. He said Transit is seeing a drop-off in calls to the customer service center as a result. J.T. mentioned he had some minor issues with the ETA, but felt optimistic that these were small “bugs” that would eventually get worked out. Victor wondered if there were numbers available to determine how many people were using the system. George said staff members are working on getting those reports. He stated that most citizens prefer to use texting versus calling. Kris asked if people could talk to a “live” person if they were to call. George stated “yes” if they were to dial the standard 7777 number. The current mode split for Everett Transit is approximately 4%.
In order to reduce operating costs to stay in budget, George stated that Transit will be anticipating services changes in 2015, in early to late Spring.
George mentioned that a $500,000 Commute Trip Reduction (CTR) grant had been awarded to Transit. This is for a two year CTR program. It pays for the program and the staff. The idea is to bring the CTR program to those employers who are not required by law to participate, but encourage them to do so. George explained that the program tries to target the commuter traffic between 6 to 9 a.m., with the intent of lowering single occupancy vehicles on the roadway. Tom asked how enforcement was done for those employers required to be in the program. George outlined that such employers are required to conduct surveys and supply annual reports. Besides that, George wasn’t aware of any penalties that could be levied. Agenda Item: Item 1: Sawdust Trail Naming Proposal
Jan Meston, Community Development Specialist from Planning opened the presentation. She is also is the staff coordinator for the Historical Commission. She explained how naming proposals from the public are presented to the mayor, and then the mayor sends them to the Historical Commission, who then contacts other interested parties for feedback. In essence, the Historical Commission coordinates the review process. During the course, the public has opportunities to comment. The Historical Commission anticipates a public hearing October 28th. The City Council also holds a public hearing and makes the final naming decision. Tom asked if the commission was looking for TAC’s recommendation at today’s meeting. Jan expressed that “yes,” this was the goal. Although she explained that the proposal will evolve as the process unfolds, and there isn’t an estimated time of final approval.
Dave Ramstad gave some background on why the commission had chosen the name “Sawdust Trail” for the proposed trail that goes north from Everett Avenue at East Grand Avenue all the way around the peninsula past Bond Street and concludes at Pigeon Creek Beach Park. He stated that small groups already use the trail, and that it was important to highlight this valuable amenity by giving it a “brand” name. In doing so, it will allow growth and expansion of not only the trail, but of Everett’s overall image. As a lifelong citizen of Everett, Dave explained how the mills dominated the city for 80 years. Proponents of the proposal felt that the name “Sawdust” was apt, given the town’s history with the mill industry. Several TAC members expressed that they felt the name was off-putting; that it didn’t give a good mental- image of what the trail was really about (e.g., the mental image made the trail appear “dusty” or made of actual sawdust, instead of solid paved riding surface). 
Some discussion ensued about the ramifications of what a particular naming convention could produce. Bob Strickland wanted the Economic Development office to be involved in selecting the name. Dave thanked the TAC for the input, and stated that the public will have at least two more opportunities to comment as well. A motion was made to move the concept of naming the trail forward, but without the approval of the name “Sawdust Trail.” This motion was seconded and approved. The TAC fully agreed with the concept of naming the trail and a name that has a historical reference, but was not comfortable endorsing this currently proposed name. Item 2: Transportation Element of Comprehensive Plan – Plan to Engage Consultant Assistance
Tim Miller explained why a consultant was being sought out to help with the update to the Transportation Element of the Comprehensive Plan. The current plan was adopted in 2006, and this update will be generally incremental but there are some changes that need to be made. The update will include: o Existing Conditions Report o Transportation Policy Review o Update Future Transportation Demand Forecast o Transportation Needs Assessment o Funding and Concurrency o Environmental Documentation
Tim explained that the consultant will be chosen on a qualifications basis from the consultant roster. He intends to have the selection results brought to the planning commission by November. Item 3: Transit System Comments
J.T. Dray talked about the need for greater transparency in how the operations of Everett Transit are conducted. He mentioned how he had talked to the mayor five years ago and got the impression that the mayor didn’t spend much time on Transit issues. He felt the current operations were being conducted mainly by the top two ET staff. J.T. proposed an initiative to create a “Director of Communications” position for Transit, as he felt a lot of issues stemmed from a lack of communication, which produces a “lack of transparency” image for the organization. He also mentioned the need for better security at Everett Station. He is concerned that the City Council is not involved in ET matters, and that the City Council’s representative to Sound Transit shows interest in regional transit, but not ET. J.T. stated that he believes that the cuts in ET service will be determined by only two ET staff. Item 4: Proposed School Crosswalk Marking Standards Revision
Tim Miller presented an image displaying an issue related to school crosswalks. Currently the standard plans for crosswalks shows “piano key” markings, with designated school crosswalks having the addition of 1’ wide transverse lines added. In practice these additional lines had been reserved for crosswalks that had crossing guards. It was found that the crossing guards were not a constant factor, sometimes shifting to other locations, and sometimes being entirely deleted. This added to an inconsistency in implementing the practice. Tim pointed out  these transverse lines fade quickly from traffic, and do not present oncoming traffic with a good visual. Photos of several school crossings showing the view to traffic were presented. Tim also noted all school warning signs have been upgraded to the new yellow-green fluorescent high intensity prismatic sheeting. These signs are very conspicuous giving a much clearer indication than transverse lines that the crosswalk is school related. The proposal was to revise the standard plan to delete the use of transverse lines at crosswalks. A motion followed the recommended and was seconded and approved. Item 5: Proposed Speed Limit Revision – 41st Street, East of Colby Avenue
A recommendation was proposed to raise the speed limit from 30 to 35 mph for 41st Street, east of Colby Avenue. Based on the presented data, the proposed speed change would be appropriate. This will require an City Council resolution. A motion was made to approve the proposal, seconded, and approved. Meeting adjourned at 9:55 am The Next Scheduled Meeting is Thursday October 16, 2014.