EASTON, Pa. — Easton is on its way to implementing improvements to pedestrian travel throughout the city, following a look at its Active Transportation Plan.
Easton City Council on Wednesday heard a presentation from Bethlehem-based Traffic Planning and Design Inc. Project Manager Ben Guthrie, detailing the goals, problem areas and proposed solutions for active transportation — essentially, any means of getting around town outside of a car.
Public Works Director Dave Hopkins explained the Active Transportation Plan came from a grant provided by the Pennsylvania Downtown Center.
Hopkins said the city will use the plan to develop a larger effort called Safe Streets for All, which stems from a federal grant received last year.
“Safe Streets for All will then take this plan and go really in depth on safety at probably most of the intersections in the city, and then come up with conceptual plans and fixes for 25 of them."Easton Public Works Director Dave Hopkins
Hopkins said the plan explored pedestrian and vehicle impediments across the downtown area and the neighborhoods, focusing particularly on “active transportation.”
“Safe Streets for All will then take this plan and go really in-depth on safety at probably most of the intersections in the city, and then come up with conceptual plans and fixes for 25 of them," he said.
"That's in the scope of work that we're out to bid for proposals right now, and that effort's probably going to take a better part of a year to complete."
The plan's details
Guthrie provided a more detailed look at the plan, starting with its primary goals.
“The first goal was to connect neighborhoods to the downtown so people can walk and bike from their neighborhood to the downtown," he said.
'The second goal was to improve accessibility within the core downtown. And the third goal was to connect residents to recreational opportunities where they didn't have to get in their car to get them there for recreation."
As many people within the neighborhoods either walk or bike to get to the downtown area, Guthrie said, a pivotal point was “figuring out what the barriers are that prevent people from doing that safely.”
Guthrie and his team analyzed traffic flow throughout the city, using state Transportation Department data to find heavy and fast traffic points.
They also looked into the existing trails, notably the D&L Trail, as a mode of transportation that can link walkers, runners and bikers to the downtown.
Crash data, Lehigh and Northampton Transportation Authority bus routes, topographical information and natural features also were reviewed to see how they impact travel in the city.
Guthrie said his team surveyed the downtown area and found 35 barriers or obstructions that could impede active transportation.
They included broken sidewalks, missing curb ramps, obstructions and other impediments that make crossing busy roads such as Larry Holmes Drive dangerous.
After reviewing the data, the team put together a series of recommendations, with a few larger projects displayed at Wednesday's meeting.
Projects to improve travel
One project involved using road space along Smith Avenue to keep traffic flowing while discouraging speeding and creating walking and biking space.
Plans include a crosswalk at the intersection with Canal Street, connecting three historic staircases with the existing sidewalk, and building a shared-use path along the sidewalk with a buffer separating it from the road.
College Avenue shared similar issues, Guthrie said, and his team explored an option to repurpose the space with a buffered bike lane, making traveling up the hill easier and safer.
“So this could be combined with other measures, such as traffic calming down the hill, a speed feedback board telling drivers what the posted speed limit is and how fast they're going, and ‘share the road’ markings for bikes that are coming downhill will really help to strengthen that bicycle connection between the neighborhood and downtown,” Guthrie said.
Challenging places, crash hotspots
In the West Ward, finding a continuous biking path is a significant issue, Guthrie said, with only Washington, Northampton, and Ferry Streets providing access.
Ferry and 10th streets appeared to be the most amenable to changes, Guthrie said.
To make the location safer, Guthrie and his team suggested extending no parking zones to expand green space and shorten the crosswalk.
In addition, they proposed trimming down a one-way travel lane to create a bike-only lane.
On Larry Holmes Drive, Guthrie pointed out that the area is a “challenging place to cross the street,” and a “crash hotspot for bikes and pedestrians” near McDonald’s and Wawa.
Guthrie suggested reducing the three existing traffic lanes to two, adding more parking spaces by reducing the left turn lane approaching the free bridge, and creating bump-outs to make pedestrians more visible.
Other options include a raised crosswalk, which causes drivers to slow down as they travel over it, islands to make crossing multiple lanes easier, and a crosswalk with a bump-out near the plaza along Larry Holmes Drive.
Possible roundabout, next steps
Another plan, which Guthrie said would take more time for engineering and implementation, would be a one-lane roundabout at Larry Holmes Drive and South 3rd Street.
“The idea of a single-lane roundabout is that all traffic that passes through the intersection has to slow down to a speed of about 12 to 15 miles per hour," he said.
"The conflict areas are well-defined. You eliminate left turns at the intersection and simplify the crossing, except pedestrians are typically crossing one lane at a time with slow-moving traffic.”
Guthrie said that because of a lack of a traffic light, there would be no indication for safe crossing for pedestrians.
"We think this is a concept that could ultimately better serve people competing for space at this location,” he said.
Program and policy recommendations also were briefly addressed, though Guthrie avoided going into too much detail, as “those don’t make for as nice of a visual.”
However, he said the plan had more detailed information covering maintenance, safety and engineering investments aimed at improved pedestrian travel, potential coordination with LANTA and the opportunity to promote active transportation via community events, including community-led bike rides.
Council generally positive
Council members seemed generally supportive of the plan, with only a few questions.
Councilman Roger Ruggles asked about the need for further planning to help safely direct bike traffic off College Avenue into the neighborhoods.
Guthrie said it was a “good question,” and the plan was “an important first step,” and “there’s room to build on it,” potentially with a redesigned bike lane — as well as other improvements across the city not detailed in the presentation.
“This past weekend, on Sunday, we had a cyclist hit at Spring Garden and Larry Holmes Drive by a truck. And I'm very thankful that he's recovering and he'll be okay, but, you know, somebody's going to die if you don't take some kind of action. So I appreciate the recommendations and presentation,”Crystal Rose
Councilwoman Crystal Rose expressed excitement over the recommendations, especially in light of a recent traffic accident.
“This past weekend, on Sunday, we had a cyclist hit at Spring Garden and Larry Holmes Drive by a truck," Rose said. "And I'm very thankful that he's recovering and he'll be OK.
"But, you know, somebody's going to die if you don't take some kind of action. So I appreciate the recommendations and presentation."
According to Hopkins, the plan again will be brought to council in two weeks, after editing by Guthrie based on the council’s input, where it can be adopted.
“We're committing to the Pennsylvania Downtown Center that we're willing to investigate all of the suggestions and try and implement as many of the safety suggestions as we can," Hopkin said.
"And then we'll use this plan to inform the Safe Streets for All plan, which will expand upon this whole effort, but it'll just be way more in depth and look at more intersections.”
