HomeMy WebLinkAbout04-05-22 Public Comment - R. Zimmer - Consent Itme H.4 - Needed ChangesFrom:Ralph Zimmer
To:Agenda
Subject:Consent Item H.4 - Needed Changes
Date:Tuesday, April 5, 2022 10:26:54 AM
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Tuesday, April 5, 2022
Mayor Andrus, Deputy Mayor Cunningham, and Commissioners Pomeroy, Madgic, and
Coburn,
This evening you will be voting on Consent Calendar Item H.4 which, among otherthings, approves the 2022/23 work plan for the Transportation (Super) Board.
Quite frankly, there are several omissions in that work plan that disappoint me but let me
lift up three that I think raise to the level that the Commission should address:
1. "Routine Work" is included in Focus Area #1 (parking) but NOT in Focus Area #2
(the work that the Bozeman (Area) Pedestrian and Traffic Safety Committee and theBozeman Area Bicycle Advisory Board use to do). Since the concept was to blend the
work the Parking Commission, PTS, and BABAB the important routine workperformed by ALL three predecessor groups should be included in the work plan.
2. Focus Area #2 calls for the Board to develop criteria for the priorization of
pedestrian and bicycle projects. The plan omits developing such criteria for "road"projects. If it is done for one, it should be done for all. (As an aside, the criteria the
Board develops should be used as a guide in the selection of capital projects but not as adeterminant.)
3. Several years ago, the City entered into an agreement with the MontanaDepartment of Transportation whereby the City would direct the development of the
"Bozeman Community Transportation Safety Plan" but MDT provided the funding andhired the consultant to guide the plan's development. The plan was completed, the
Commission adopted it, and the Commission assigned PTS the responsibility forimplementing it. PTS created a subcommittee to guide PTS and the Commission in that
implementation. The City has a moral and I suspect a legal obligation to implement that plan, but
the Board's work plan makes NO reference to that plan. The implementation is anongoing, continuing process, not a one time event.
This evening you are being asked to adopt a work plan for the Transportation Board. I
encourage you not to adopt the proposed work plan until at least the above three changes aremade in it. It seems to me there are several ways you could make these changes. but here are
the two most obvious ways:
1. Before adopting the work plan, the Commission itself could amend that work
plan. OR
2. The Commission could remove any references to the Transportation Board's work
plan in its consideration of Consent Agenda Item H.4 and direct staff and the Board toconsider amending the plan and then bringing any possibly amended plan back to the
Commission. (I heard City Manager Mihelic tell the Transportation Board that, whiledesirable, it was not absolutely essential they finalize their work plan at their last
meeting.)
Thank you for your consideration. We all collectively need to give great considerationto safety in relation to ALL ground transportation matters.
I apologize for not sending this email earlier but for the better part of a week the
internet/email system has blocked all of my outbound email messages. Finally just last nightmy email provider identified the problem and fixed it. They could not give me an adequate
description of who or what did this or why it was done, but my IP address had been "blacklisted" (their words).
Ralph
Ralph W, Zimmer
cc: Kelly Pohl Jeff Mihelic
Greg Sullivan Mike Veselik
Taylor Lonsdaele Candace Mastel