Ordinance No. 20258 - Laserfiche WebLink

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WEST EU~NE PARKWAY MODIF~ED PROJECT_.CONSiSTENC.~f W~TH THE STATEW~DE PLANNING GOALS AND TRANSPORTATION PLANNING RULE For numerous reasons Royal Avenue cannot reasonably accommodate the identified need for a facility handling primarily statewide and regional through traffic. The surrounding residential character of the area, and accesses typical of residential streets, makes it a very poor location i:br major widening. Because of its location primarily in residential areas, it is not suited to accommodate traffic at speeds and volumes more appropriate to serve statewide and regional travel needs. Because many accesses would be taken improvement costs would be very expensive. A widened facility within a predominantly residential area also would significantly disrupt the neighborhood and cause the loss of community cohesion. Widening Royal Avenue to accommodate increased travel also would increase in out-of-direction travel by an average of two miles per trip. Finally, Royal Avenue does not provide a connection through the City of Eugene, as is needed to meet regional travel needs. Beltline Highway connects West 1 lth Avenue to interstate 5. From south of the Barger Avenue interchange to Gateway Street just east of I-5, Beltline Highway is a fully access-controlled facility serving the northern part of the metropolitan region. South of the Barger Avenue intemhange to West 1 lth Avenue, Beltline Highway is a two-lane facility without controlled access. Upon completion of the final two phases of the West 1 lth Avenue-North City Limits projeclg Belttine Highway will become a 4~lane controlled access facility all the way to West 1 lth Avenue. The 2015 level of service and volume to capacity estimates in West Eugene under the No-Build alternative assume the completion of Bettline Highwa~v. Consequently, even with this facility, need for significant additional transportation improvements remain. Widening Beltline Highway would not serve the identified need, as the need is to improve east-west travel rather than access to West Eugene from the nor~. For many people traveling to West Eugene, travel via Bettline Highway would be out of direction and defeat state effbrts to reduce per capita VMT. YKest I8th zlvenue is a minor arterial located approximately 0.6 mile south of West 1 lth Avenue. West 18th Avenue extends eastward from Willow Creek Road past Garfield Street to Agate Street near the University of Oregon. From Willow Creek Road to Bertetsen Road, the roadway is being reconstructed to urban standards. Between Bertelsen Road and Bailey Hill Road, West 18th Avenue is a two-lane facility with bike lanes and parking on both street sides and a posted speed limit of 40 miles per hour. From Bailey Hill Road to Garfield Street, West 18th Avenue is a three-lane section with bike lanes but no parking and a posted speed limit of 30 miles per hour. The area from Bertelsen Road to Garfield Street contains residences, financial uses, churches and five schools. The vertical and horizontal alignments may be designed for running speeds less than the posted speed. West 18th Avenue cannot reasonably accommodate the identified transportation need for manly' of the same reasons Royal Avenue cannot reasonably accommodate the need. Numbers generated by the TraasPian Update indicate that even existing volumes on West 18th Avenue prevent consideration of this route as a serious alternative to the WEP. Moreover, the residential character of the surrounding area makes the roadway a very poor candidate for widening. This residential character, plus the location of five schools along West 18th Avenue, support travel at speeds substantially slower than what is appropriate for a state highway included in the National Highway System. Placing much higher percentages of through traffic along this roadway would increase pedestrian/vehicle conflicts and thus create safety haT_~ards. Further, using West 18th Avenue as an alternative route would require an average out-of-direction travel distance of approximately 1.2 miles, which is inconsistent with the policy objectives in the Transportation Planning Rule. Conclusion with Respect to Alternatives As the above-described analysis demonstrates, alternatives to the West Eugene Parkway have been carefully studied. For all of the reasons stated above, alternative modes, traffic management measures, TDM and improvements to existing transportation facilities, even in combination, cannot reasonably accommodate the identified need for the WEP with it~ Modified Project alignment. EXHIB(T C~l ~ F~NDING$ 33