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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1985-12-12-MCBI-min.pdf Minutes of the Bikeway Implementation Committee meeting , December 12, 1985 The first meeting of the Bikeway Implementation Committee took place in the Lexington Town Office Building, Room G-1 , on the twelfth of December Present were Jack Eddison, chairman, Angela Frick, Robert Eby, Webb Sussman, Elizabeth Hughes, Robert Ossman, James Wilson , Jerry Van Hook, and Clair Dean Judy Urig could not be present for this meeting Tom Fortmann, a long-stand- ing advocate of the bikeway attended this meeting, as did Robert Hutchinson, the Lexington Town Manager After some brief introductory statements by each of the committee mem- bers, describing their backgrounds and their interests in the project, Mr Eddison summarized the situation regarding pending State legislative action and the progress on the sewer-line extension which must precede the bikeway construction He read to the Committee excerpts from a letter from Secretary Salvucci to the four concerned towns In that letter the Secretary expressed his in- tention to preserve the Lexington Branch rail Right-of-Way for public trans- portation purposes , not concluding that the establishment of the Minuteman Bikeway would not preclude other transportation uses in the future He was , therefore, directing the MBTA to proceed with the abandonement of the old B and M rail line and instructing the engineering consultants to prepare gen- eral guidelines for the proposed bikeway The Boards of Selectmen of Arlington, Lexington and Bedford have all approved going ahead with the bikeway project. Alan McClennan, Arlington's representative on the bikeway project, has recommended that the three towns contract with Vollmer Associates and its subcontractor, City Design , to do the design studies This would save time since Vollmer is the firm which the MBTA hired to study the possible uses of the ROW As of December 10, the Massachusetts House had passed the transporta- tion bond bill , including provision for the Bikeway, and the bill had been referred to the Senate Ways and Means Committee for study The MDC sewer completion is expected by the end of March 1986 at which point work on the bikeway can begin In planning the 5 .5 mile section through Lexington it will behelpful to draw on the experience of other towns which have built bikeways recently and under similar circumstances Northhampton, Mass has built a bikeway 2 5 miles long on an abondoned rail ROW three years ago The setting is very similar in that the path extends through rural areas and through downtown shopping areas with adjacent parking lots and many secondary crossroads The arrangements for biker safety and limited auto and motorcycle access are very thorough and deserve closer study The macadem roadbed is ten feet wide and was made to normal auto specifications to insure a smooth and long lasting surface With Mr Hutchinson present, the meeting turned to the problem of the current misuse of the ROW in certain areas, particularly near the Maple Street overpass Mrs Hughes, Mr Wilson, and Mrs Dean, whose homes abut the ROW, described the situation where trucks, cars and off-road motorcycles had been misusing it this fall They pointed out how difficult it was for the police to apprehend these people because of the excellent visibility which makes avoidance of the law simple It seems that this will be a problem again with the completed bike way unless an effective system of barriers is emplaced at all road intersections and at other points of access to the ROW. The real challenge will be to devise a scheme which will allow access to authorized vehicles and still discourage misuse -2- Mr Hutchinson said he would look into the use of more temporary barriers at grade crossings and to more effective policing of the ROW during the coming months It was generally agreed that this was an important first step and that citizen acceptance of the bikeway would be determined largely by how well this area was controlled during the interim period Respectfully submitted, Jerrold Van Hook