To: Honorable Mayor and Members of Town Council
From: Thomas Reiff, Transportation Planner
Title
Resolution Approving the Town of Castle Rock Transportation Master Plan
Body
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Executive Summary
An update to the Town’s Transportation Master Plan has been underway since 2016. The purpose of this item is to ask the Town Council to adopt the update to the Transportation Master Plan.
The Transportation Master Plan is a guiding document that is a part of the Town’s Comprehensive Master Plan. The goal of the update is to identify transportation projects that will reduce congestion, improve mobility, and access throughout the Town as growth continues as envisioned in the Town’s Comprehensive Master Plan. Identified projects include all transportation modes, including roadway, bike and pedestrian facilities, and addresses potential steps for the possibility of future transit service. Improvement projects have been tiered based on priority and what projects are needed within the short term (by 2022), mid-term (by 2030), and long term (by full build out). Short term and mid-term needs can aid staff and Town Council in identifying future Capital Improvement Program (CIP) projects that will accommodate future transportation needs.
Notification and Outreach Efforts
Public outreach and input has been an important element of the Transportation Master Plan update. The following list shows the various efforts the project used to solicit public input.
1. Project web page on Town’s website with interactive map to leave transportation comments and project suggestions
2. Held two public open houses
3. Conducted social media campaign
4. Emails to interested residents from various Town events and survey databases
5. Two meetings with the Downtown Development Authority and Merchants Association
6. Two meetings with the Economic Development Committee
7. Multi-agency outreach and coordination
8. Presentation and discussion with the Douglas County Transit Solution committee
9. Two study sessions with the Public Works Commission
10. Two study sessions with the Planning Commission
11. Several news releases and articles in Town newsletters
Public comments have been classified into key issue areas with comments focused on the following general themes.
• Roadway (41% of comments); including roadway congestion, better roadway connectivity and additional access to I-25, observations of poor signal timing, intersections that need traffic signals, and locations where on-street parking is a concern.
• Bike/Pedestrian (33% of comments); including a desire for more focus on bicycle facilities Town wide, locations missing on-street bike lanes, and missing sidewalk and trail connections.
• Transit (18% of comments); including a desire to provide local transit options, and commuter transit options to the greater Denver area, including potential participation in the Regional Transportation District (RTD).
In addition to the key issue areas mentioned above there are also heavy rail, and development related comments. For a breakdown of all public comments please see Appendix B in the Transportation Master Plan.
As well as receiving public comment, the update process consisted of outreach to other agencies and Town departments to ensure coordinated planning efforts. These other plans include the Parks and Recreation Master Plan, CDOT’s State Highway 83-86 Optimization Plan, DRCOG’s Regional Transportation Plan, and Douglas County’s 2030 Transportation Plan.
These coordination efforts and comments along with technical analysis allowed the project team to develop the Plan’s transportation vision and goals, proposed projects, and recommend studies to address concerns that are not part of the Transportation Master Plan.
History of Past Town Council, Boards & Commissions, or Other Discussions
On August 7, 2017, staff presented the Transportation Master Plan update to the Public Works Commission. At the meeting staff asked the Commission for input and recommend approval of the Plan to Town Council. During the meeting the scope of the project and vision and goals were shared with the Commissioners. In addition, the projected growth and congested traffic areas were discussed along with the proposed multi-modal transportation improvements. Commissioners voted unanimously to recommend approval of the Plan to Town Council.
The second meeting with the Planning Commission was held on April 27, 2017. During this presentation the Commissioners were shown the proposed list of transportation projects to help relieve the projected congested areas. The list of these multi-modal transportation improvement projects can be found in roadway section of the Transportation Master Plan and Appendix A.
Discussion
The last major update of the Town’s Transportation Master Plan was completed in 2011. Since 2011 the Town has seen tremendous growth in population and in the number of single family residences. However, the 2011 Transportation Master Plan took a more conservative growth approach due to the national recession between 2007 and 2009. While not as pronounced, there has also been a significant growth in commercial, industrial and office developments. For example, there is a new hospital in Town and the Promenade commercial development. All of this has led to an increase in daily traffic volumes on the Town’s street network and travel pattern changes.
The Town has completed significant transportation projects that were identified as needs in the 2011 Transportation Master Plan. Among these improvements are:
1. Castle Rock Parkway with a new interchange at I-25
2. North Meadows Drive extension from Butterfield Crossing Drive to US-85 with a new interchange
3. Castle Oaks Drive construction
4. Meadows Blvd widening
5. Wilcox Street and Plum Creek Parkway improvements
6. Founders Parkway and Crowfoot Valley Road Multi-use Sidepath
The Transportation Master Plan update effort focused on several key issues; verify and adapt the Town’s transportation vision and goals, reassess transportation priorities, identify short, mid, and long term transportation projects, and account for the projected growth by coordinating with the Town’s Comprehensive Master Plan. The growth projections assumed full build out of the Town by 2040 in order to identify all transportation projects that may be needed to accommodate the growth. These projects consists of multi-modal transportation improvements, including roadways, bicycle and pedestrian networks, and exploring possible transit.
While many of the projects identified in the 2011 Transportation Master Plan remain, there are new projects. Some of the new larger projects identified include the following;
1. New I-25 interchange in the vicinity of the Black Feather Trail overpass, or Founders Pkwy./SH86 corridor improvements
2. Widen SH-86 east of Ridge Road to Enderud Blvd
3. Widen Founders Parkway from Crowfoot Valley Road to 5th Street
4. Construct east/west collector streets through the undeveloped areas referred to as Pine Canyon and Pioneer Ranch developments
5. Add bike lanes/shoulders to existing arterial and collector streets
6. Construct multi-use sidepaths along Founders Parkway
7. Secure a bus stop and park-n-ride in Town for the Bustang service provided by the Colorado Department of Transportation
There are also several studies recommended in the Transportation Master Plan update. These studies include a Downtown Mobility Study, and a more in-depth analysis of the proposed I-25 interchange in the Black Feather Trail overpass area.
Budget Impact
The update to the Transportation Master Plan was budgeted for Fiscal Year (FY) 2016 and FY 2017. There are no additional budgetary impacts.
Staff Recommendation
Staff recommends that Town Council approve the 2017 update to the Transportation Master Plan.
Proposed Motion
“I move to approve the Resolution as introduced by title.”
Attachments
Attachment A: Resolution