Agenda - Parks and Recreation Commission - 07/14/2011

Home

b�"'"¢SOr-7,rMinnesota Department of Transportation A o SAFE ROUTES TO SCHOOL 2011 INFRASTRUCTURE GRANT APPLICATION 3A. Provide a brief description of the current condition and identify problems, risks and obstacles that impede safe travel to school. Explain how the problems were identified and summarize relevant supporting documents (relevant planning documents, maps, surveys, and/or crash data) that demonstrates need. Attach at least 1 map per location that identifies routes to school and problem areas. 3. PROJECT INFORMATION b The City of Ramsey, in partnership with Ramsey Elementary School and Anoka County Highway Department, is seeking to fill three gaps in the trail network serving the Ramsey Elementary School area. All three trail gaps are on high traffic arterial streets within a two-mile radius of the school property and in the area with the city's highest residential densities. This K-5 public school is located at 15000 Nowthen Boulevard/CSAH 5 in the southeastem portion of the community, approximately two miles north of U.S. Highways 10/169. For the 2010/ 2011 school year, Ramsey Elementary School reported 1,179 total students in grades K-5. Ramsey Elementary School is located in a residential area with primarily single-family homes and townhomes surrounding the school in all directions. Since Ramsey has a typical suburban street pattem with limited through -streets, travel routes to Ramsey Elementary School are limited to just a few streets. The only street access to/from the school site is from Nowthen Boulevard/CSAH 5. All students walking and bicycling to the school must travel along Nowthen Boulevard/CSAH 5, which currently has two trail gaps to the south between Sunwood Drive NW and Saint Francis Blvd NW/Hwy 47. These two trail gaps are located between'h mile and one mile from the school property. The highest priority trail gap is on the west side ofNowthen Boulevard/ CSAH 5 beginning south of Sunwood Drive NW. The second trail gap is on the east side ofNowthen Boulevard/ CSAH 5, north of the intersection with Saint Francis Blvd NW/Hwy 47. Nowthen Boulevard/CSAH 5, in addition to being a County Highway, is designated as an A Minor Arterial roadway. Nowthen Boulevard/CSAH 5's traffic count was 9,200 average annual daily trips (AADT) in 2009 and projected to grow to approximately 12,000 AADT by 2030. This trail segment would also connect to an existing traffic signal with a crosswalk at Saint Francis Blvd NW/Hwy 47 which had 22,600 AADT in 2009. The third trail gap is located approximately 1.5 miles from the school property along Sunfish Lake Blvd NW/ CSAH 57, south of its intersection with Sunwood Drive NW. Sunfish Lake Blvd NW/CSAH 57, in addition to being a County Highway, is designated as an A Minor Arterial roadway. Since this street is the only north -south through -street west ofNowthen Boulevard/CSAH 57, it is an important north -south travel route to the school from the neighborhoods to the southwest. Sunfish Lake Blvd-NW/CSAH 57's traffic count was 5,400 AADT in 2009 and projected to grow to approximately 11,000 AADT in 2030. The City has gathered data regarding traffic accidents and citations occurring on Nowthen Boulevard/CSAH 5 in the vicinity of Ramsey Elementary School. From 2000-2007, the City recorded 72 accidents occurring between Alpine Drive NW/153rd Avenue (north) and Sunwood Drive NW (south). This number includes 16 traffic accidents reported for the street segment directly in front of the school property. From 2003-2007, the City recorded almost 400 traffic citations on Nowthen Boulevard/CSAH 5 between Alpine Drive NW/153rd Avenue (north) and Sunwood Drive NW (south). Essentially half of these citations were reported for the street segment directly in front of the school property.