Tuesday, September 17, 2013
Fairfax DOT releases list of bicycle and pedestrian projects
With nearly $220 million in new local funding available after passage of HB 2313, Fairfax County is identifying projects to be built over the next 7 years. At the Board of Supervisors Transportation Committee meeting today, DOT chief Tom Biesiadny presented a list of roadway, transit, and bike and pedestrian projects to the Board.
Staff have been compiling lists of projects, developing cost estimates, and doing a Benefit/Cost Analysis which is one of the criteria for selecting projects. The list included approximately 100 [unfunded] pedestrian and bicycle projects. Of the first 80 projects subjected to Benefit/Cost Analysis we identified 3 bike projects:
- Old Dominion On-Road Bicycle Improvements
- I-495 Bicycle and Pedestrian Bridge
- Old Keene Mill Bike Shoulders.
Several projects "were not compatible with Benefit/Cost Analysis Or Project Information is Incomplete." There were several bike projects on that list:
- Government Center Pkwy Road Diet Demonstration Project
- Westmoreland Street On-Road Bike Lanes from Kirby to Arlington Co line
- Improving bicycle access between INOVA Center Medical Education Campus and Franconia-Springfield Metro station
- Van Dorn Street ped/bike access from Oakwood Road to the Alexandria City Line
- Barry Road Metro/VRE Bicycle Parking
- Shipplet Blvd.: Burke Lake Road to Old Keene Mill Road, restripe/Lane Diet with bike lanes
- Hunter Village Road Bicycle Parking
- Fairfax County Parkway Bicycle Wayfinding Signage
While these projects are definitely needed, there are many, many more projects that should be on this list. Are these the 11 most important [unfunded] bicycle projects in the county? We don't think so. See the list of projects developed from the Bicycle Master Plan process or the Top 14 project list compiled by FABB in 2009. We hope to get more information about the lists from the county bike coordinator at our meeting tomorrow. We need to ensure that a comprehensive, prioritized list of bicycle projects is funded with these new transportation dollars.
Update 18Sep2013 - The above list of projects are the UNFUNDED projects. Tom also released a list of funded projects that includes several important bicycle projects including 10-foot trails along Route 7 when it is widened, Burke Road Bike Lanes, Old Courthouse Road bike shoulders at Freedom Hill Park, bike lanes on Idylwood Road, the Vesper Trail into Tysons, improvements to the Ashgrove Trail, the Mason Neck Trail, Lorton Road bike lanes, and several projects in Tysons including the grid of streets, pavement markings and wayfinding signage throughout Tysons, and new crossings of the Beltway.
Update 18Sep2013 - The above list of projects are the UNFUNDED projects. Tom also released a list of funded projects that includes several important bicycle projects including 10-foot trails along Route 7 when it is widened, Burke Road Bike Lanes, Old Courthouse Road bike shoulders at Freedom Hill Park, bike lanes on Idylwood Road, the Vesper Trail into Tysons, improvements to the Ashgrove Trail, the Mason Neck Trail, Lorton Road bike lanes, and several projects in Tysons including the grid of streets, pavement markings and wayfinding signage throughout Tysons, and new crossings of the Beltway.
Labels: bicycle master plan, costs and benefits, hb 2313, priority routes
Friday, March 11, 2011
Costs and benefits of bicycling facilities
From the Victoria Transport Policy Institute newsletter about a new study on the benefits of investments in bike facilities: Costs and Benefits of Bicycling Investments in Portland, Oregon; This study by Thomas Gotschi, published in the 'Journal of Physical Activity and Health,' indicates that bicycle facility investments provide net benefits considering just health care service and fuel cost savings, and far greater economic returns when total benefits to users and society are considered.Methods: Costs of investment plans are compared with 2 types of monetized health benefits, health care cost savings and value of statistical life savings. Levels of bicycling are estimated using past trends, future mode share goals, and a traffic demand model.
Results: By 2040, investments in the range of $138 to $605 million will result in health care cost savings of $388 to $594 million, fuel savings of $143 to $218 million, and savings in value of statistical lives of $7 to $12 billion. The benefit-cost ratios for health care and fuel savings are between 3.8 and 1.2 to 1, and an order of magnitude larger when value of statistical lives is used. Conclusions: This first of its kind cost-benefit analysis of investments in bicycling in a US city shows that such efforts are cost-effective, even when only a limited selection of benefits is considered.
Results: By 2040, investments in the range of $138 to $605 million will result in health care cost savings of $388 to $594 million, fuel savings of $143 to $218 million, and savings in value of statistical lives of $7 to $12 billion. The benefit-cost ratios for health care and fuel savings are between 3.8 and 1.2 to 1, and an order of magnitude larger when value of statistical lives is used. Conclusions: This first of its kind cost-benefit analysis of investments in bicycling in a US city shows that such efforts are cost-effective, even when only a limited selection of benefits is considered.
Labels: costs and benefits, portland
