SUBJECT:
Briefing and possible action on the status report of the Traffic Analysis related to the Lower Segment of the 2017 Bond Broadway Corridor Project.
SUMMARY:
TCI will provide an informational briefing on the Broadway Corridor Project (E. Houston Street to E. Hildebrand Avenue), a 2017 Bond funded project, located within Council District 1. Specifically, TCI will discuss the Traffic Analysis related to the Lower Segment project (E. Houston Street to IH-35).
BACKGROUND INFORMATION:
On May 6, 2017, San Antonio voters approved the 2017-2022 Bond Program. As part of Proposition 1, Streets, Bridges & Sidewalk Improvements, funds in the amount of $42,000,000.00 were approved for improvements associated with the Broadway Corridor from Houston Street to Hildebrand Avenue.
The project is divided into three segments:
• Lower Segment: Houston Street to IH-35 ($27.15 Million City Funds)
• Upper Segment Phase 1: IH-35 to Mulberry Avenue ($14.85 Million City Funds & $14.0 Million TxDOT Funds)
• Upper Segment Phase 2: Mulberry Ave to Burr Road ($500,000 preliminary design)
Currently, the design of the Lower Segment project is approximately 40% complete. The project scope for the Lower Segment includes full roadway and sidewalk construction, pedestrian amenities, lighting and streetscape with trees, Low Impact Development landscaping, on-street parking, drainage, utility and traffic signal upgrades, and a minimum of 10-foot sidewalks. Due to right-of-way constraints south of Josephine Street, protected bike lanes are proposed as part of a separate project along a combination of Avenue B and N. Alamo from Josephine Street to Houston Street.
TCI provided a briefing to the Transportation & Mobility Committee on August 19, 2019 and stated that a traffic analysis was currently being developed to determine potential impacts from removing an additional vehicle travel lane to provide space for protected bike facilities along Broadway from Josephine Street to Houston Street. The analysis has been completed and TCI will provide an overview of the results.
ISSUE:
Through the use of on-call engineering consultants, TCI analyzed three roadway cross-section options for the Lower Segment project.
• Option 1 (Current 40% Design) - Wider sidewalks, utility/parking lane, four vehicle travel lanes (two north, two south), micromobility lanes on Avenue B/N. Alamo
• Option 2 - Narrower sidewalks, utility/parking lane, three vehicle travel lanes (one north, two south), micromobility lanes (five feet wide)
• Option 3 - Narrowest sidewalks, no utility/parking lane, four vehicle travel lanes (two north, two south), micromobility lanes (five feet wide)
Option 1 (Current 40% Design) provides the highest multimodal level of service of the three options. While not directly on Broadway, micromobility lanes will be provided along portions of adjacent streets, Avenue B and N. Alamo, which connect directly to the existing micromobility facility on Avenue B near the Pearl. Option 2 provides the lowest multimodal level of service of the three options due to a combination of narrower sidewalks, significant congestion for vehicles and transit, and a lower tier micromobility facility. Option 3 provides the best combined operation for vehicles and bikes; however, sidewalks would be very narrow for an urban environment and no utility/parking lanes would be provided which decreases opportunities for landscaping/trees and low impact development features.
ALTERNATIVES:
N/A
FISCAL IMPACT:
N/A
RECOMMENDATION:
TCI staff recommends proceeding with the submitted 40% design that includes four lanes on Broadway with on-street parking, wide tree-lined sidewalks and protected bike lanes on adjacent streets for safer pedestrian and transit use.