Norman council hears AIM transportation master-plan update emphasizing active-transportation, airport protections and bridge program

Consultants from Garber presented the AIM Norman comprehensive plan update and transportation master plan at a City Council special meeting Tuesday, Feb. 25, 2025, outlining a 20-year vision that prioritizes active-transportation routes, runway protection for Max Westheimer Airport and a bridge program the consultants said covers about 90 city-owned bridges.

The consultants said the update builds on the city’s 2014 transportation plan and six other recent studies, and incorporates public feedback gathered at five to six open houses and multiple pop-up events. “Our role really was not to develop a update the 2014 comprehensive transportation plan,” Brett Cabiness of Garber said, describing the team’s work to apply the plan’s five guiding principles — mobility, maintenance, fiscal stewardship, economic vitality and multimodal access — to the city’s present conditions and projected 2045 land use.

The plan frames transportation as more than roads and bridges, the presenters said, and proposes a network of greenways and buffered side paths to attract “interested but concerned” users who will not use high-stress bike facilities. “We want low stress routes,” James Walden, a Garber lead urban planner, said. The active-transportation map shows off-street greenways, side paths and a spine network designed to connect parks, downtown, Campus Corner and regional links.

The presentation highlighted several sector items: - Aviation: The Max Westheimer Airport master plan, approved by the Federal Aviation Administration in 2024, lists long-range projects the consultants estimated at about $58,000,000; Garber said the city will need policy tools to protect runway protection zones that extend beyond OU property and to improve multimodal access to the aviation academy. - Parking and transit: The 2018 joint city-county parking study and the city’s new transit center informed recommendations for a mixed-use parking garage and improved ADA connectivity between the depot, transit center and parking assets. The plan also references the Regional Transit Authority’s (RTA) commuter-rail concept, noting potential stops at Tecumseh Road, the downtown depot and near Cedar Lane, with an optional game-day stop near the Duck Pond. - Bridges and stormwater: The consultants said the plan mirrors Norman’s 2023 bond outlook and calls for continued annual inspections and ranking of roughly 90 bridges, and recommends coordinating bridge projects with stormwater work when feasible. - Safety and traffic: Consultants presented a 10-year safety snapshot and a crash “heat map” showing concentrated crash activity on Twelfth Avenue East and downtown Main Street. They recommended following the ACOG safety plan, pursuing grants for pedestrian and student safety, expanding roundabout policy criteria and improving signage for bike facilities. - Roadway network: The update revises functional classifications and advances a more robust collector network to increase connectivity and provide alternate routes during congestion. The plan notes several highlighted projects — an east–west corridor to connect to I-35 (using an ODOT-planned overpass studied in the I-35 corridor study), an Alameda special corridor with a proposed three-lane section and sidepaths, Berry Road widening, a proposed roundabout at Porter and Franklin, and other long-range items (about 25 corridor projects were listed in the report).

Presenters warned of two major constraints: changing funding criteria at ODOT and ACOG that can remove projects from funding queues, and recent construction inflation; the consultants said concrete and asphalt prices have risen “almost 60% in the last 18 months,” increasing the gap between older estimates and current costs. Garber said the subcommittee developed project prioritization criteria that emphasize safety, connectivity and active transportation, and that noncommitted items from 2014 and ACOG projects would be evaluated through that scoring.

Council discussion focused on trade-offs between widening roads and prioritizing multimodal options. Councilmember Peacock and others urged caution on converting many two-lane roads to four lanes, citing long-term maintenance obligations funded by local sales tax and the risk of induced demand. Councilwoman Manesh noted that adding travel lanes may reduce bicycle use and urged emphasis on multimodal alternatives. Presenters responded that some corridors could be staged — build two lanes now with right-of-way purchased to allow later addition of a third or fourth lane while providing sidepaths and active-transportation facilities early.

The consultants said staff will finalize a ranked list and package the update in a report they hoped to complete in the coming week; no formal vote was recorded on the transportation plan during the meeting. Several council members praised the focus on safety and connectivity and asked staff to return with design cross-sections, prioritization details and clarification on implementation timing tied to land-use changes.

The meeting moved on to the next agenda item, which included a motion to adjourn into executive session (see separate item).