BPAC’s technical subcommittee reported on Sept. 11 that the Henry Lynch Road reconstruction design has reached or passed the 60% stage and will include two travel lanes in each direction, intermittent left-turn lanes, curb and gutter, and grade-separated bike lanes with a planted buffer and an adjacent sidewalk/multimodal trail.

"This will be the first separated bike lane in Santa Fe," Member Schiff Miller said while summarizing the technical review. The design team agreed to build a 6‑foot sidewalk now with right-of-way and reserved space to expand to a 10‑foot multimodal trail later when the trail connection is extended to Henry Lynch Road.

BPAC members praised the collaboration among city, county, SFMPO and consultants and noted the feature mix aims to serve both faster bicycle traffic (separated lanes) and slower leisure or pedestrian users (multimodal trail). Because the final plan set delivery slipped, construction funding was not available in the immediate funding cycle; the city and county will pursue construction funding together in the next cycle.

BPAC’s technical review recommended continued early involvement of BPAC in project design and suggested the committee consider asking the governing body to amend the resolution that currently specifies BPAC involvement at the 30% design milestone so that BPAC input is formally engaged earlier in projects’ conceptual phases.

The proposal was described by members as a potential precedent for safer arterial design in Santa Fe.