TRANSPORTATION COMMITTEE

The Transportation Committee Meeting was held on June 24, 2003, at 5:00 p.m., with Chairman Ruane presiding. Members present were Mr. Pitts, Mr. Ritter, Mr. Ornauer, and Mr. Asay. Others present were Mr. DePrima, Mr. Jorgenson, Mr. Lee, Ms. Duca, Ms. Juanita Wieczoreck (MPO), Mr. Laing (Municipal Liaison DelDOT), and Mrs. McDowell.

AGENDA ADDITIONS/DELETIONS

Mr. Ritter requested the addition of item #5-A, Street Width Waivers, item #5-B, RFQ - Dover Parking Authority, and item #5-C, Signage - North and State Streets.

Mr. Ornauer moved for approval of the agenda, as amended, seconded by Mr. Ritter and unanimously carried.

APPROVAL OF MINUTES OF MAY 20, 2003

Mr. Ornauer moved for approval of the minutes of May 20, 2003, seconded by Mr. Asay and unanimously carried.

UPDATE ON CITY COUNCIL ACTION

Mr. Ruane informed members of the following actions taken by City Council during their Regular Meeting of June 9, 2003:

H.B. 111 - Legal Level for Drunk Driving - City Council approved the Transportation Committee’s recommendation of support for House Bill 111. A letter of support (Attachment #1), dated June 17, 2003, was sent to local legislators.

Mr. Ruane, noting that Senator Vaughn appears to have retained H.B. 111 in his committee, requested that a copy of the letter be forwarded to Senator Vaughn.

Mr. Ornauer stated that the President Pro Tem has indicated that if the Bill is not approved during the current session of the General Assembly, he will place it on the Senate agenda in September. The belief is that the Bill will be approved before the October deadline.

Dover Signalization Project - City Council approved the Transportation Committee’s recommendation that they endorse Signalization as the City’s number one project, and that Council bring this matter to the attention of the Secretary of Transportation, Nathan Hayward, along with advising him of the City’s willingness to discuss the phasing and financing of the costs associated with the project and subsequent maintenance. This action was conveyed to Secretary Hayward in a letter dated June 17, 2003 (Attachment #2).

Mr. Ruane informed members that, through the good graces of Representative Donna Stone, the Bond Bill Committee was persuaded to include this project in the Bond Bill. He noted that funding for the project design has been set aside and funding would be set aside next year for construction. Mr. Ruane stated that it is anticipated that the design phase will be completed by Fall of 2003.

Responding to Mr. Ornauer, Mr. Ruane stated that the details of ownership and control of the Dover Signalization System, once it is integrated with DelTRAC, have not yet been decided.

Eden Hill Farm - City Council approved the committee’s recommendation that a letter be sent to Secretary Hayward (Attachment #3) recognizing his memo to the Governor and lauding him for his memo with respect to the openness of the study and his determination to include the concerns of the neighbors in the study and requesting that the City of Dover Transportation Committee be given some role, in either the study group or the hearing process, with respect to the road network issues.

Mr. Ruane advised members that a meeting between the Crossgates/Mayfair/Wedgewood/Mayfair II Civic Association and Secretary Hayward has been tentatively scheduled for August 4, 2003 at 7:00 p.m. at the W. Reilly Brown Elementary School. (Meeting Update: This meeting will be held on Tuesday, July 29, 2003 at 7:00 p.m. in the same location).

MPO/PAC/TAC REPORT (Koenig/Ornauer/Wieczoreck)

Ms. Wieczoreck stated that the MPO’s Revised 2005 List of Projects has been submitted to DelDOT for consideration. She noted that one additional project, located in Smyrna, would be added.

PRIORITIZATION OF CITY TRANSPORTATION PROJECTS - REVIEW OF MEMBER’S RECOMMENDATIONS

Members were provided the list of City Transportation Projects, as prioritized during their Regular Meeting of May 20, 2003. The results of the tally revealed several tie votes; therefore, members discussed various methods of compiling the information.

Ms. Wieczoreck noted that the Clarence Street Extension project was still included in the 2005 MPO TIP and requested that the note indicating otherwise be removed from the list.

Mr. Asay moved to total the placement votes for each study and project, with the lowest number of points being the number one project or study, and so on, seconded by Mr. Ritter and unanimously carried.

STREET WIDTH WAIVERS

During the Regular Council Meeting of May 12, 2003, while considering three (3) separate requests for street width waivers, members questioned if staff had considered modifying the requirements in order to reduce the requests for waivers and suggested that the section of the Code requiring Council approval for street width waivers be amended to allow for administrative approval. Mr. Ruane stated that, as Chairman of the Utility Committee, he would entertain an opportunity for such a change to be brought forward. Mr. Ritter concurred that staff should present Code amendments for consideration. Mr. Jorgenson, City Planner, advised Council that, approximately one year ago, the Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) conducted a study which established recommendations for new road width standards. He noted that there are varying opinions on what the minimum requirements should be. The industry standard is 12 feet for a minimum lane width, along with eight (8) feet provided for parking along the road. Mr. Jorgenson reminded members of the benefits of narrowing roadway widths, such as slowing vehicular traffic.

Mr. Jorgenson provided the Transportation Committee members with a draft amendment to Appendix A - Land Subdivision Regulations, Article VI. Subdivision - General Requirements and Design Standards, Section A - Streets, Subsection 13 of the Dover Code for their consideration prior to review by the Planning Commission. He noted that the amendments would eliminate the option to waive or vary street width requirements of 38 (thirty-eight) feet for streets providing ingress/egress to a subdivision for the first one hundred (100) linear feet following the right of way line of the street providing said point of ingress/egress. They would also require a minimum paved width of a roadway, with the exception of an alley, to be no less than 28 (twenty-eight feet). Mr. Jorgenson stated that the Fire Department has indicated that they have difficulty maneuvering their apparatus on a street with a width of less than 28 (twenty-eight) feet. Mr. DePrima noted that the State fire statute specifies a primary fire lane width of 24 (twenty-four) feet.

Mr. Ornauer asked if parking on both sides of the street would be prohibited on the 28 (twenty-eight) foot streets. Mr. Jorgenson stated that there would be no parking on a street with a width of 28 (twenty-eight) feet or less and the developer would be responsible for the signage in any new developments. He offered to incorporate a comment that would indicate at what width on-street parking is provided for.

Mr. DePrima stated that it would be unprecedented to omit a mechanism to allow for some type of waiver. He suggested providing guidelines for conditions acceptable for waiver requests. Mr. DePrima stated that, invariably, someone will come forward with a waiver request that is reasonable under the circumstances.

Ms. Wieczoreck expressed concern that a required street width of 38 (thirty-eight) feet at the entrance to a subdivision would promote excessive speeding. It was her feeling that the amendment would codify a situation that may precipitate the need to retro-fit.

Mr. Ornauer moved to recommend to the Utility Committee approval of the proposed ordinance amendment, with the addition of restrictions on parking for roadways that are 28 (twenty-eight) feet in width. The motion was seconded by Mr. Pitts and unanimously carried.

REQUEST FOR QUALIFICATIONS (RFQ) - PARKING AUTHORITY

Mr. Jorgenson advised members that the Dover Parking Authority has issued a Request for Qualifications for the evaluation of traffic circulation patterns in downtown Dover, along with current and future needs for addressing parking issues, both in terms of infrastructure investments and other investments that may be required, to include multi-deck parking facilities. Mr. Jorgenson noted that the analysis would also include a review of the current policies and any recommended policy changes. Mr. Jorgenson stated that the analysis should be accomplished within 60-90 days following the award of the contract. He indicated that the results would be shared with the Transportation Committee.

Mr. Ruane noted that the Dover Parking Authority would be conducting a walking tour of the downtown area in the near future and encouraged members to participate.

NORTH AND STATE STREET SIGNAGE

Mr. Ritter stated that, over the past year or so, he has noticed that there is a great deal of congestion in the area near the intersection of North and State Streets. He noted that the congestion occurs when motorists try to make left-hand turns onto North Street from State Street. Mr. Ritter suggested installing signs restricting left-hand turns from both directions onto North Street between the hours of 8:00 a.m. and 6:00 p.m., similar to the restriction of left-hand turns onto State Street from Loockerman Street.

Mr. DePrima expressed concern that the downtown merchants may be opposed to restricting left-hand turns onto North Street for vehicles traveling north on State Street. Mr. Ornauer also reminded members of the 6-story hotel currently being constructed which will be accessed from North Street as well.

Mr. DePrima stated that the traffic is worse when the State and County workers leave; however, after 5:00 p.m. there is barely any traffic. He expressed concern with making accommodations for a 25-minute rush hour. Ms. Wieczoreck recalled that this area may have been a safety location in 1994. She suggested performing a traffic count before taking any action.

Mr. Ritter moved to request Mr. Koenig, Public Work’s Director, to request DelDOT to perform a traffic count, seconded by Mr. Ornauer and unanimously carried.

UPDATES

Clarence Street Project (Jorgenson/DePrima)

Mr. Jorgenson stated that there is $400,000 in federal proceeds for the extension of Clarence Street and the acquisition of properties located in the vicinity for the purpose of establishing “Lincoln Park Center”. He stated that they intend to perform the necessary engineering at an approximate cost of $100,000, with the remaining $300,000 being used for the acquisition of properties. Mr. Jorgenson noted that the Federal Highway Administration is working on an agreement with DelDOT, who will ultimately administer the proceeds. He stated that he would submit a new scope of work for the project to the Federal Highway Administration and an agreement should be in place by October 1, 2003. Mr. Jorgenson indicated that the State Legislative Delegation is attempting to earmark $100,000 for this project and they would like to request additional funds in the amount of $550,000, for a total of $950,000.

Mr. DePrima stated that DelDOT has assigned a project leader for the traffic circle and enhancements on Loockerman and Forest Streets. The project will be scoped, including initial survey work, estimating, and engineering. Mr. DePrima briefly described the project and updated members on its status.

Division Street Railroad Crossing

Mr. DePrima informed members that the improvement of the railroad crossing at Division Street is a part of the Division Street upgrade.

Ms. Wieczoreck asked if anyone was contacting the property owners regarding the striping of left-turn lanes and the elimination of parking. She noted that DelDOT informed the City that they would not perform the work unless the City notified the property owners. Mr. Jorgenson stated that he would contact DelDOT to ascertain what their expectations are and then contact the community. Mr. Ruane requested that an update be provided at the next meeting.

Update - Traffic Study SR1/SR8

Mr. Laing informed members that traffic counts were performed in March 2002 and March 2003, including 27 different collection sites in the general Edgehill area. He noted that, overall, the average weekday daily traffic count climbed approximately 4%. The largest increase in average weekday daily traffic was at East Loockerman Street east of U.S. 13 (nearly 68%). The next highest increases were at Upland Avenue north of Maple Parkway (47%), Rt. 8 west of the Rt 1 off-ramp (29%) and Maple Parkway east of Rt. 13 (29%). Mr. Laing noted that the Safeway/Target shopping center was the reason for most of the increases. The weekend daily traffic increased by approximately 2%, occurring in all the same locations. Weekday average daily truck volumes decreased approximately 28 or 29%. Weekend average daily truck volumes increased approximately 90.7%. The largest increase was 310% on Rt. 8 east of Fox Road. There was a 309% increase on Rt. 8 east of Willis Road and a 239% increase on Rt. 8 west of the Rt. 1 off-ramp. Mr. Laing noted that the weekend truck increases indicate that the trucks are staying out of the area immediately off of Rt. 13 and more near the Rt. 1 off-ramp. On Rt. 8 between Rt. 13 and east of Rt. 1, speeds have decreased or remained the same, probably due to the additional speed limit signs posted in conjunction with the opening of the off-ramp. Speeds on the local roads between Rt. 8 and White Oak Road have remained about the same. A three-way stop sign was installed on Upland Avenue at Maple Parkway, which has affected the speeds in that area.

Mr. Laing stated that the next step will be to reconvene the citizen’s working group to review the statistics and comparisons, then take the information to the Edgehill community before the end of July. He noted that the impact of the three (3) proposed developments near Rt. 1 is being studied separately because they have identified locations that were not included in the traffic data collected in 2002. Mr. Ritter requested Mr. Laing to notify them when the meetings are scheduled.

NEXT MEETING DATE

The next meeting will be held on Tuesday, July 22, 2003 at 5:00 p.m.

Mr. Ritter moved for adjournment, seconded by Mr. Ornauer and unanimously carried.

Meeting Adjourned at 6:29 P.M.

Respectfully submitted,

Eugene B. Ruane

Chairman

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Attachments to Original Minutes and File Copy

Attachment #1 - Letter to General Assembly - Support of H.B. 111

Attachment #2 - Letter to Secretary Hayward - #1 Project - Dover Signalization

Attachment #3 - Letter to Secretary Hayward - Community/City Participation - Development of Eden Hill Farm