2012-01-11-TGC-draft-rpt - Laserfiche WebLink

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Report of the Transportation Ad Hoc Study Committee (DRAFT) The Ad Hoc Study Committee was tasked to • Review and make recommendations to the BOS for a new committee(s) structure to streamline the oversight of transportation and safety related policies • Specifically identify redundancies and overlap of responsibilities and recommend an improved organizational oversight model. Members represented the following boards and committees Selectmen: Hank Manz and Norman Cohen Planning Board: Michelle Ciccolo and Richard Canale Transportation Advisory Committee: Bill Levison, alternate Sara Arnold Traffic Safety Advisory Committee: Dave Cannon Bicycle Advisory Committee: Peggy Enders Sidewalk Advisory Committee: Jerry Van Hook At Large: Jeanne Krieger, Chair Staff: Linda Vine and Maryann McCall - Taylor Background and Problem Statement Transportation issues are difficult and contentious. Everybody experiences traffic and thus everyone believes they are an expert. Our traffic problems can not all be solved locally. We endure the impacts of overcapacity highways, cut - through commuter traffic and inadequate public transportation. Neither Lexington nor the State invests adequately in solutions. Lexington has failed to keep pace with increasing automobile traffic. It is a time honored Lexington tradition to form a committee when confronted with a thorny issue. There are at least 17 committees involved in addressing transportation and safety issues (Appendix i). Some of these Committees have been existence for 30 years; most for nearly a decade and one was launched during the tenure of the ad hoc Study Committee. The charges of the Committees have not changed during this period, but there have been important changes in the Town's capacity to deal with traffic related issues. • New staff alignment- cf Transportation Program Recommendations, September 6, 2011 (Appendix ii) • Enhanced staff expertise, relieving committees of day -to day operations involvement, • Increased awareness of traffic issues due to the advocacy of the many committees, but nonetheless