HomeMy WebLinkAbout2008-12-29-LBAC-min
MEETING MINUTES
Committee Name: Lexington Bicycle Advisory Committee
Date, Time and Location of Meeting:
December 29, 2008, 7 pm; Room 111,
Town Office Building
Members Present:
Peggy Enders (Chair), Hank Manz (Selectmen’s Liaison),
Stew Kennedy, Mike Tabaczynski, John Frey, Richard Canale (Planning Board
Liaison), Laurel Carpenter, Sandra Shaw (Recreation Board Liaison)
Others Present:
Bill Hadley, Paolo Marinelli, Bob Dangel, David Lees, Stacey
(LNU)
Members Absent:
Marita Hartshorn, George Gagliardi, Abe Shenker, Jerry
Van Hook
This is a brief record of the special meeting called at the end of December to
provide LBAC members a chance to review the status of the Minuteman Bikeway
snow plowing pilot. A series of snowstorms that began on Friday, December 19,
and continued throughout the weekend dumped about 18 inches of snow in
Lexington. The Bikeway was plowed on Friday, December 26. DPW Head Bill
Hadley was present for the discussion and provided some background on the
snow plowing during these storms. He emphasized that the town is committed
to ensuring that all the sidewalks are plowed before the Bikeway can be done.
The Bikeway was plowed with a sidewalk tractor with a blower; one person
plowed the entire length and it took ten hours. He reminded everyone that this
was the first experience with Bikeway plowing, that sidewalk plowing was first
priority for the town, and that the DPW is committed to making this experiment
work.
There was some discussion about ways to improve what was done after the first
snowstorm, including: decoupling Bikeway plowing from sidewalk plowing by
hiring an additional contractor to tend to it before the trail gets compacted and
icy; taking up some of the bollards to allow larger plows to get on the Bikeway at
selected spots where there are long open stretches (e.g., Camilla Way, the
entrance across from the bus stable providing access between Bedford and
Hartwell, etc.); opening the gates before a storm to allow a slightly larger blade
plow to do the job.
Bill said that any decision about bollard removal is up to the chiefs of fire and
police. Hank said we needed to be clearer about the purpose of the bollards:
what purpose do they serve? Richard said that the safety concerns are based on
cyclists using the Bikeway; we have six to eight months to work on those issues.
How can we sensitize folks to the importance of safety at intersections and
improve bike path signage?
Bill said he would review the options discussed during the evening.
Meeting Adjourned at 8:15 pm.
Recorder and Editor:
Peggy Enders