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Public commenter urges design changes to Franklin Corridor bike lanes to improve accessibility
Summary
At the Dec. 19 meeting of the City of Bend Accessibility Advisory Committee, a public commenter outlined seven technical recommendations for Franklin Corridor and other separated bike-lane designs, and committee members discussed next steps before the project open house deadline.
James (public commenter) told the City of Bend Accessibility Advisory Committee on Dec. 19 that designers should move separated bike lanes adjacent to sidewalks and follow specific tactile, alignment and refuge-island practices to make corridors such as Franklin safer for people with disabilities. The commenter said he has family members with mental and physical disabilities and described seven areas of concern, including the placement and alignment of tactile ground surface indicators and the need for refuge islands between bike lanes and traffic.
The comments matter because the Franklin Corridor design is in public review: committee members noted the city's Franklin open house comment period closes Jan. 7. Several COBAC members said they support reviewing the technical suggestions and weighing whether to send committee feedback to city staff and project leads before that deadline.
In remarks to the committee, James described the design preference and safety rationale: “I have been advocating for roadway designers to pull the bike lane out of the street and put it adjacent to the sidewalk,” he said, and added that when a bike lane is treated as a distinct path of travel, people walking and people with vision impairments need clear surface indicators and refuge locations to cross it safely.
He recommended seven specific changes in his written material and oral remarks: placing tactile ground surface indicators (TGSI) on both sides of separated bike lanes; providing refuge islands where pedestrians must cross bike lanes; using raised (“race”) crossings that continue sidewalks and bike lanes across local streets so drivers are made visibly aware they are entering a non-vehicle priority zone; aligning directional TGSI dots with the direction of intended travel and extending them across the full width of the accessible path; clearly delineating the sidewalk from the bike lane with visual contrast and detectable surface changes; and maintaining consistent pathway types across intersections (either a separated facility on both sides or a shared-use path on both sides) to avoid conflict and user confusion.
COBAC members thanked the commenter and proposed follow-up. Liz Whitman, COBAC member, told the meeting: “We will consider reviewing this more in detail at our January meeting.” COBAC members including John Heelan and Derek Hoffbauer suggested the committee could review the written material and consider whether to send a letter or provide staff with technical questions; Heelan noted the Franklin project open house deadline and asked members to review the draft letter and consider an email vote if timing requires it. Hoffbauer said much of the material is “fairly technical” and recommended coordinating with city staff to understand trade-offs and feasibility before endorsing specific technical prescriptions.
Committee members also discussed how COBAC can best provide input on street designs: members suggested inviting the city’s project staff to brief the committee on design trade-offs during or before public comment periods so COBAC can provide informed feedback. No formal action on the Franklin design was taken at the Dec. 19 meeting.
Looking ahead, members said they will consider the written recommendations and the timing of the open house and may bring a draft committee letter or a staff briefing to the Jan. 23 COBAC meeting for further discussion.
