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1 <br /> ORANGE COUNTY <br /> BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS <br /> ACTION AGENDA ITEM ABSTRACT <br /> Meeting Date: June 16, 2015 <br /> Action Agenda <br /> Item No. 6-1 <br /> SUBJECT: Bicycle and Pedestrian Safety Report <br /> DEPARTMENT: Planning and Inspections PUBLIC HEARING: (Y/N) <br /> ATTACHMENT(S): INFORMATION CONTACT: <br /> 1. Plan to Address Board of County Abigaile Pittman, 245-2567 <br /> Commissioners Petition Regarding Tom Altieri, 245-2575 <br /> OUTBoard/Bicycle Safety Craig Benedict, 245-2585 <br /> 2. OUTBoard Report on Bicycle and Pedestrian <br /> Safety in Orange County <br /> 3. Excerpt from Draft OUTBoard Minutes <br /> PURPOSE: To receive the Orange Unified Transportation Board (OUTBoard) Draft Bicycle <br /> and Pedestrian Safety Report. <br /> BACKGROUND: The issue of bicycle safety has been a topic of interest by various <br /> County groups over the past several years, including discussions by the OUTBoard, the <br /> Board of Commissioners (BOCC), and citizen groups that have consulted with authorities at <br /> the Sheriff's Department, the Highway Patrol, and the North Carolina Department of <br /> Transportation (NCDOT). Discussions regarding bicycle safety have increased over the <br /> past year following incidents between motorists and bicyclists. There has been interest in <br /> developing policies and procedures for enhancing bicycle safety, reviewing State laws, <br /> promoting the development of safer bike lanes, and clearly identifying <br /> agencies/departments for addressing the problems. <br /> At the BOCC's November 6, 2014 regular meeting, a petition regarding bicycle safety was <br /> made by Commissioners Renee Price and Barry Jacobs requesting Planning staff to review <br /> policies related to pedestrian bicycle access and begin working with cyclist groups, law <br /> enforcement and transportation officials to develop a culture of sharing the road. In <br /> response, Planning developed its plan to address the petition, which was provided to the <br /> BOCC as an Information Item at its February 3, 2015 meeting (Attachment 1). The Staff <br /> Plan addresses representation from the BOCC, citizen participation, public outreach, task <br /> objectives, and ultimately a report back to the BOCC in June with recommendations/a plan. <br /> These tasks were addressed through the work of an OUTBoard subcommittee group <br /> consisting of three OUTBoard members and four interested citizens over the course of <br /> approximately three months. The full OUTBoard discussed the issues relative to the <br /> development of the report at its March, April and May meetings. <br />