Traffic commission approves Broad & Chesapeake redesign with bike lanes and 50-foot-plus truck turn restriction

Lancaster City’s Traffic Commission on Nov. 11 approved a package of design changes for the Broad and Chesapeake Street repaving project, endorsing separated bidirectional bicycle lanes, relocated bus stops and a restriction on large truck turns at one intersection.

The commission voted to approve the project elements after staff described a safety-first redesign tied to an upcoming repaving. "This is the Broad And Chesapeake Street project," said Emma Hamm of the city’s public right-of-way division, describing a roughly 1.6-mile corridor slated for repaving and active-transportation upgrades in 2026–27. The plan adds a protected, two-way bike facility on the south side of the street and curb bump-outs to shorten pedestrian crossings.

Why it matters: Staff said the design improves pedestrian and bicycle safety but reduces curbside parking in several locations and requires restrictions on some truck movements to keep pedestrian crossings short. "We're prohibiting the largest size vehicles, trucks with 53-foot trailers," Ben Hogan, the city’s public works engineer, told the commission, explaining that large curb radii needed to accommodate those turns would lengthen crossings and reduce protection for cyclists.

What the commission approved: After public questions about net parking losses and truck routing, commissioners amended the motion to clarify the restriction applies to trucks longer than about 50 feet making the right turn from South Queen onto Chesapeake. The motion also approved replacing two bus stops (South Broad & Circle and Stevens & Chesapeake) with slightly adjusted locations and designating orange-marked segments as parking-prohibited to accommodate the bidirectional bicycle lanes. The motion carried.

Public feedback and next steps: The city held a public meeting on the project the prior evening. Keith Radiciklick of the Parking Authority asked for a net-space estimate to understand tradeoffs; staff said many of the affected curbside spaces are currently underused and not metered. Construction is slated for 2026–27; staff will proceed with the truck-turn restriction, bus-stop adjustments and parking prohibitions and return to the commission if further design adjustments are needed.

The Traffic Commission’s action makes the truck-turn restriction and the other design elements the official recommendation from the commission to be implemented as the repaving moves forward.