Agenda - 05-06-2010-13 (3) - Laserfiche WebLink

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Smith Level Road Task Force Update Page 3 The Board of Aldermen also endorsed a resolution disbanding the task force, and noted that moving forward with the majority of the recommendations requires multi-jurisdictional cooperation and adequate staff resources are not available at this time. April 8, 2008 Orange County Planning staff submitted a report to the Board documenting staffs recommendation for items that Orange County could readily endorse and items that would require further study. Items recommended for further study would be considered in coordination with staff from Carrboro and Chapel Hill. The staff recommendations noted the following concerning the two items of interest: • The entirety of Smith Level Road corridor in Orange County is in the planning jurisdictions of Carrboro and Chapel Hill, and within the Durham-Chapel Hill Carrboro (DCHC) Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) Metropolitan Area Boundary (MAB), and those are the entities that must adopt plans for bicycle/pedestrian facilities along the road; and • The recommendation to impose truck restrictions on the section of Smith Level Road between Damascus Church Road and South Greensboro Street needs more study, and noted that this item should be discussed in coordination with Chapel Hill and Carrboro staff and the North Carolina Department of Transportation. No further action has been taken by Orange County regarding the Smith Level Road Task Force Report. UPDATE Orange County Bicycle Plan Staff recommendation regarding the Orange County Bicycle Transportation Plan is still valid. Although the County is responsible for many services outside the municipal limits of Carrboro and Chapel Hill, transportation planning is the purview of those Towns and the DCHC MPO. Staff has talked with the Town of Carrboro Transportation Planner and he agrees that Oran e County does not need to amend its bicycle plan to specifically endorse the Smith Level Road bicycle facilities. The County's bicycle plan should not include bicycle facilities in Carrboro's Extraterritorial Planning Jurisdiction, as it does not include bicycle facilities in any other municipalities' extraterritorial jurisdictions. Orange County has endorsed, as a member of the DCHC MPO, Smith Level Road bicycle facilities along the entire corridor. The Town of Carrboro adopted a Bicycle Transportation Plan in March 2009 that includes bicycle lanes on Smith Level Road from NC 54 to Rock Haven Road and widened shoulders from Rock Haven Road to Chatham County. Carrboro's Bicycle Plan was included in the 2035 Long Range Transportation Plan adopted by the MPO in May 2009. The DCHC MPO 2035 Long Range Transportation Plan identifies Smith Level Road as a regional on-road bicycle facility. The North Carolina Department of Transportation, in compliance with federal regulations, requires bicycle facilities within a metropolitan planning organization's jurisdiction to be adopted in the MPO transportation plans in order to be considered for federal funding