Lawrence city staff members are recommending a design for the stretch of Massachusetts Street between 14th and 23rd streets that includes 3-foot curbs to separate bike lanes from vehicle traffic.
Community members asked the Lawrence City Commission in April to push for the stretch of road, which was already set for a redesign, to include protected bike lanes. City staff members looked at street designs with protected bike lanes in several cities to help evaluate options.
The proposed design would include one lane of vehicle traffic in each direction, a center lane for turns, and 5-foot-wide bike lanes separated from the street by a 3-foot-wide median. Residents along the stretch could put their trash carts in the median zone, and solid waste workers could complete trash pickup from the lanes of traffic, according to the meeting agenda.
“Option C, collection of solid waste from the median zone, has been done before, is the most efficient protected bicycle lane option for Lawrence Solid Waste, and offers the most lineal feet of bicycle lane protection,” according to a memo to commissioners.
The project will also include improvements to water utilities and stormwater, according to the agenda item.
Lawrence city commissioners on Tuesday will consider an approximately $495,000 contract with Trekk Design Group for the final design of the street.
Update:
• Lawrence city commissioners approve street design with separated bike lanes for section of Mass Street, Dec. 10, 2024
The cost of construction is estimated at $5.6 million. Much of that cost — about $3.38 million — will be covered by grants, according to the agenda, and the city is still waiting to hear if it will receive a third grant.
The city might also need to purchase another skidsteer to plow and sweep the protected bicycle lanes. That’s estimated at $100,000 with the necessary attachments, according to the agenda. The plan could also increase the costs to plow and sweep the street from about $4,000 annually to $13,000.
The Lawrence City Commission will meet at 5:45 p.m. Tuesday, Dec. 10 at City Hall, 6 E. Sixth St.
Meetings are open to the public, broadcast on Midco channel 25 and livestreamed on the city’s YouTube channel, youtube.com/@lawrenceksvideo. See the complete meeting agenda at this link.
The commission accepts written public comment until noon the day of the meeting emailed to ccagendas@lawrenceks.org. The commission hears public comment in person during meetings as well as via Zoom. Register for Tuesday’s Zoom meeting at this link.
Note: This post has been corrected from a previous version.
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Mackenzie Clark (she/her), reporter/founder of The Lawrence Times, can be reached at mclark@lawrencekstimes.com. Read more of her work for the Times here. Check out her staff bio here.
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Molly Adams / Lawrence Times
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