What is the BAC?

The Tucson/Pima County Bicycle Advisory Committee?

The Tucson-Pima County Bicycle Advisory Committee (TPCBAC) was established to serve in an advisory capacity to local governments on issues relating to bicycle recreation, transportation, and safety.

The TPCBAC is involved in promoting the development of a safe bicycling environment in the City of Tucson and Pima County.
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The following is a brief summary of the August, 2013 meeting.

Tucson Police Report: There were 13 incidents in the past month with one fatality. The fault was found to be that of the cyclist as the rider reportedly was looking down and hit a semi truck. Half of the incidents were cyclists colliding with cars and the bike left the scene. The report came from the automobile driver.

Pima County Sheriff Ryan Roher said some reports of tacks are still coming in, but not as many as before. The reward for info leading to the arrest and conviction of the at“tack”er is now at $2,869. There was a fatality on Mt. Lemmon in July and it was determined that it was result of the cyclist missing a turn.
Appointments- Beth Scott left and she was the rep to the downtown task force. Naomi is the new rep. Citizen transportation advisory committee, CTAC, appoints Colin as BAC representative.

Street Car update from Joe Chase, streetcar construction manager.
Status of Sharrows on 4th. Contractors installed incorrectly and when they removed the paint they destroyed the asphalt. It was an error by the contractor who did not put them where they were supposed to go and the cost of cutting out the existing patches and replacing them will fall on the contractor. There are large sections of 4th Ave. curb that are not red and no parking is allowed. Park wise will start ticketing in the next week. The city might put up some signs or stencil that was not part of the original plan because the large swaths of no parking might confuse people. There is also some fire zones as well. Those parking in the fire zone will be towed, those in the red will be ticketed. Matt Zoll asked about enforcing the 18 inches from the curb parking and Joe said he will look into it. Loading zones on Park are still being worked on.
The green Boxes are all in on University and 4th. Construction crews are still waiting on the final paving downtown. When that is complete a 30 day curing period will be needed. The time line looks solid for late October completion, possibly earlier.
The Bike detection system on the corner of University and Park will be activated this week. Some glitches are anticipated to get it fully dialed in. BAC members had concerns about the intersection. Since this corner has always been a 4 way stop, there is some fear that drivers will be gunning it to make the light and this may pose a threat to peds and bikes. The priority of the light was not known, but it is detection based.
The Cushing street bridge opening day is going to be early to mid September. There is concern with the connection with the loop and no one has a plan for what can be done. It definitely does not work with bikes using trailers. BAC members expressed a strong desire to see ADOT address this issue.
How will streetcar testing work? Most of the testing will be at night to have the as little impact on traffic as possible. First tests will not be on power, just towed. Each car needs a burn period to make sure it is operating correctly. The first car should arrive in Tucson on the 29th of August. All 8 cars will need to be tested prior to being put into service. The first public rides will be next year.
Granada is having a fix to make it better for bikes.
Broadway will be stenciled and have the green bike lane markings in late September or early October.
Putting a Bike box at Time Market is waiting on Tucson Fire.
PSA were filmed last week and will be coming to a media source near you in the near future.
Summary: Most construction will be finished in late October and Tucson will have a streetcar in 2014.

Two videos were presented on two different loops in Marana.
Both have some issues and the summary of those problems will be created and sent on to the Town of Marana. The sharp u-turn and ramp on the Loop North of Cortaro was the greatest concern. The following links are from the presentation.

www.screencast.com/t/5xARwbiXdp
www.screencast.com/t/LxuJmN3vZfC

Downtown links presentation with Kiley: A 50 million voter approved project connecting Aviation Freeway to I-10. The actual cost is not closer to 85 million and it might not be enough to finance the project. The new freeway will parallel the train tracks for the most part. Kiley called this project a “Zombie” road. The idea started at the time we had rotary phones and they just keep coming back over and over. The project was presented to make connectivity for all modes of transportation, but it appears it is not really addressing all bike/ped issues. On the positive side, Union Pacific railroad has agreed to be whistle free in the area. Also, some areas will be removed from the floodplain. The next meeting will be next Monday at Parkwise if you want to put in your 2 cents.
Projects that were on the bond survey that relate the most to the Bike community
Ann Chanecka, City Bike/Pedestrian Coordinator checked out Brownsville Texas night time Cyclovia and Huston’s Bike share program over the summer. How do we get great ideas, we see what is working other places. The city has had lots of requests for bike parking and still have many more to give away. Do you know a business that needs Bike parking?

Matt Zoll with Pima county Bike/Pedestrian: Matt had so much to report that I did not get it all.
The county has received $600,000 in federal and $40,000 in County funds for educations and safety outreach. The money will be spent on working with schools, bike ambassador, and safe route to schools. About 60 schools are working on bike to school programs and walk to school events. The schools are 70 percent city 15 percent county and the rest in other municipalities. Ingnacio will be is at 43 schools this year with the Safe Routes to School Program. Homer-Davis is getting lanes and traffic calming (Did you know Chuck Huckleberry went to school there). Happens chuck went there. 60-70 people per month are taking public classes offered and another 50-60 Lots of loop projects have been completed and it is about 2 years for completing of the loop if all falls in place with fed regulations. 3 bike lane projects worth noting are Alvernon and Aviation Highway, Camino de la Tierra north and the project on Mary Ann Cleveland is waiting on the gas utility. Bike ambassadors are out there teaching people how to do simple repairs on the loop at the new tool and pump stations. With all the new riders hitting the loop some people don’t know some basic bike skills like pumping a tire, so the ambassadors went to mechanic courses. Also, put there to possibly protect tools from theft. Jr. El Tour, boys and girls club, establishing program at the south side of town. 40% of kids in the area live in poverty and many in extreme poverty. Martha Lemon worked out a new MTB manual and it will be used for some beta testing in the classes being offered and other communities are asking for it as well. Snyder to Catalina highway on Houghton construction is complete. Harrison road bike lanes from Harrison to Sabino High is in planning and might go to construction next year.

PAG: A call for a citizen group to look at how to spend one million buckaroos for bike/ped funds. September 12th is the cycle traffic discussion. The Strategic highway safety plan on the state is currently being rewritten. September 12th is the cycle traffic discussion. The old plan did not address bike/ped, but the update may give an opportunity for us to be a part of the plan. ADOT has the final decision, perhaps not the most transparent, but perhaps we will be heard.

Facilities: Cat Tran on Copper and MTN had a collision with a bike. Cat Tran was parked at a sign that clearly says no cars, but is also a stop.

UA: New bike path on the west side of Highland garage from Helen to Mabel that gives cyclist a way of avoiding Mountain and Helen. UA BAC has 35 people on the committee. Several sub committees have been formed.

Living Street Alliance: The next Cyclovia has been set for April 6, 2014. Some plans are in the works for a ride to the pitch at FC Tucson. PAG car free days are coming and just for recording your ride you can win some fab prizes.