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Transportation Study Circle
Question: How can we create diverse, innovative and safe transportation networks that connect various parts of our city?
Answer: By creating a livable, walkable community.
Contributors: John Bahrt, Tim Casey, Charleton Dobson, Gerry Duffy, Peter Hamelin, Iiro Lehtinen. Jim Noucas, Dean Plager, Shannon Poulin, Steve Sanger
Introduction
To provide some perspective to our report, we thought it might be informative to first consider how the automobile has changed our neighborhoods and the quality of life in Portsmouth over the past century. Here’s what it was like as told by one of our committee members, Steve Sanger.
My house on Mendum was built in 1914 as part of a so-called ‘Trolley Neighborhood’ just outside of the center of Portsmouth off Middle Street. In 1914, you could walk 100 paces down Mendum to Middle, jump on the Portsmouth Electric Car trolley line and go anywhere in the world, without taking another step. The Portsmouth Trolley that ran by my house connected to the Boston & Maine Railroad in Dover. Once on the B&M, the railroad would take you to New York where you could connect to Chicago, San Francisco or where you could hop on an ocean liner to London, Paris or Hong Kong. Imagine, walking a hundred feet from your house and linking with a transit system that could take you wherever you wanted to go.
When my house on Mendum was built, there was no accommodation made for an automobile - no garage, no off-street parking. Who needed a car when you could walk to the end of the block and catch a trolley to California? With no cars on Mendum, the sidewalks were wider and well maintained. Kids could play ball and hopscotch in the street. It was quiet. Not a single resident on Mendum ever called the police station to complain about an auto alarm going off at midnight.
However, not many people could afford to shell out a nickel every time they wanted to go downtown or to the neighborhood store. So they walked. A fifteen minute walk brought you downtown where the stores had everything you needed. A five minute walk brought you to one of several neighborhood stores. Kids walked to schools in their own neighborhoods. The teachers could afford to live in Portsmouth in 1914, so they walked to school too. The kids got to school without traffic lights and crossing guards and the grownups got downtown without having to buy gas, pay to park or sit in traffic.
Our transportation committee understands that we cannot turn the clock back and nostalgia is not a good rationale for a new transportation plan, but the past can be instructive. When we look at Portsmouth in 1914 and at in 2003, we can see the automobile has had a detrimental impact. Our streets are noisier, more crowded, less safe and getting more so.
Our infrastructure is more costly for tax payers to maintain. Our air is less clean and there is a good deal of evidence to indicate our children are far less fit. And while we may think differently, it’s probably not any easier, faster or cheaper today to get to Boston, Dover or Portland than it was 100 years ago.
As the first phase of Portsmouth Listens strongly indicated, the citizens of our town want Portsmouth to be a livable , walk-able community. There is tremendous awareness among our citizens that cars, traffic, parking and pollution are real roadblocks to good health, safe streets and our day to day quality of life. There is even awareness that our excessive reliance on the automobile is extremely costly in terms of lost personal income, increased taxes and an increased cost of doing business.
To address these concerns, our committee has focused its research in four areas.
In researching these issues our committee has discovered there are a lot of valuable resources available to our city and its citizens to help create a more livable, walk-able City of Portsmouth.
Master Pedestrian and Bicyclist Plan
The Challenge
To create a livable, walkable community, the Transportation Study Group believes Portsmouth must develop and implement a city-wide Pedestrian and Bicyclist Master Plan. Without it, we have a city of neighborhoods that are disconnected. For instance the only safe way to go to and from Elwyn Park is by automobile. Like other areas of the city, there are no sidewalks in Elwyn to allow children to walk safely to school or to other neighborhoods. To be able to walk or bike anywhere in the city we need a continuous network of sidewalks and bike paths or lanes.
The idea of a walk-able city is close to the heart of many Portsmouth residents. People are hungry for transportation modes that present an alternative to the automobile, whose presence comes at a high social cost: congestion, air and sound pollution and environmental degradation. Walk-ability was a recurrent theme in the last Portsmouth Master Plan created over ten years ago and during Phase 1 of the Portsmouth Listens initiative, almost every group listed walk-ability as a priority for the city.
The Solution
We believe that a walkable city can become a reality as follows:
Making pedestrian and bicyclist issues a routine part of the traffic and road safety planning in the community. This will require that pedestrian and cycling facilities are integrated into all transportation planning as a whole. There are current state and regional plans which include recommendations for pedestrian and cyclist facilities.
NH State Plan:
http://www.state.nh.us/dot/nhbikeped/pdf/BikePedPlan.pdf
Seacoast Metropolitan Planning Organization (SMPO): http://www.seacoastmpo.org/plan/draft_2003_long_range_transportplan.htm
The proposed Portsmouth Pedestrian and Bicyclist Master Plan should adopt recommendations from both the state and regional plans as a starting point.
Resources need to be shifted from traditional transportation modes to the alternatives. The Federal ISTEA program requires that 10% of Federal highway funds are used to develop alternative modes such as public transport, walking and bicycling. Huge amounts of money are still going into purely automobile-related traffic projects. The $100 million scheduled for the widening of the Little Bay Bridge will only serve to move the traffic congestion further down the road. Some of those funds should be earmarked for fixing the old, combined pedestrian/bicycle bridge and connecting the area bicycle pathways. Funds may also be available for programs that help the New Hampshire seacoast improve its air quality by reducing automobile emissions.
Public awareness and involvement needs to be developed. We suggest a specific federal program that can help give pedestrian and bicyclist issues higher visibility in the community. The program is called the Pedestrian Roadshow.
List of recommendations.
1. Convert the city funds currently set aside for a downtown circulation study to the development of a city-wide Pedestrian and Bicycle Master Plan. Although we respect the need for another downtown circulation study we strongly suggest that the community would be better served by a focus on alternative means of transportation.
2. The master plan should present a comprehensive vision of how to create a walk-able and bike-able Portsmouth. Our vision, is a city of integrated sidewalks and bike paths connecting all parts of the city. It would include, for example, a set of design guidelines and standards for elements such as pedestrian crossings, sidewalks, bike lanes, and signage. Having universal standards for elements such as crossings, would create a visible continuity and would have much greater impact for the safety of pedestrians and drivers alike. See attached table of contents from a sample master plan.
3. The plan should include a section about the elements that make a city walk-able in the first place [see attached list of elements for a walkable city]. One of the key elements and a key factor in making this a reality, is the ability of us to shift our priorities from trying to find funding for implementing this plan to reallocating the resources we have for a better balanced, more livable community.
4. Identify a local sponsor to bring in the Federal Pedestrian Roadshow Program. The Pedestrian Roadshow will involve representatives of the whole community and will produce an evaluation of the existing pedestrian/cyclist facilities and will recommend an action plan. (stakeholders: City Manager, councilors, planning board members, traffic and safety committee, John Burke, Public Works, Police, Hospital, Schools, Fire Dept, neighborhood groups, recreation dept., Portsmouth Herald, elderly housing rep, library, chamber of commerce, representatives of the business and merchant community, churches and civic organizations, etc.)
5. Create a citizens advisory group (like the Mayor’s Blue Ribbon commission on arts) to act as a resource as the city develops and implements a master plan for pedestrians and cyclists. Involve key stakeholders in all stages of the planning and implementation, especially representatives of merchants, civic organizations, commercial interests groups like Bike Portsmouth and SABRE. An early buy-in from these key stakeholder groups would greatly increase the chances of a successful plan and implementation process.
When
We recommend that the City earmark funds for a Pedestrian/Bicyclist Master Plan as soon as possible. The planning process should begin in the next 3-6 months.
Funding opportunities
Redirection of earmarked city funds from downtown circulation study to pedestrian/bicyclist master plan.
ISTEA funds for implementation of projects
Clean Air Act money for reduction in auto emissions.
Critical Mass of Public Transportation
The Challenge
We want Portsmouth to continue to be an attractive, enjoyable town. A city enjoyed by both its residents and those who come to visit. We believe that to retain and improve this character will require a fundamental shift in how Portsmouth plans to meet the transportation needs of those traveling to and from Portsmouth as well as those traveling within the city. This shift in priorities should be away from personal automobiles driving to and parking at every destination at anytime especially within the downtown area. There is also a need to reduce the through traffic in order to retain the quality of our neighborhoods. This recommendation is not at all about eliminating personal automobile traffic. It is about providing alternatives.
The Solution
Portsmouth will need to reduce the volume of traffic in neighborhoods and downtown by building up our public transportation options to a critical mass. To reach this goal, we must make public transportation comparable in terms of incremental cost and convenience.
It is not possible to create an entire system overnight, but what is possible is to concentrate on specific routes and destinations. One obvious destination is the downtown area. Providing an alternative to the “last mile” of driving can be a starting point. Resources can be concentrated so that convenient, frequent bus service can be provided. As the demand increases the same can be done for additional routes.
It is apparent from looking at Portsmouth’s capital budget that the issue is not so much availability of funds but rather how they are allocated. In terms of relieving traffic congestion, it is difficult to believe that the last several “road” projects selected for inclusion in the budget have the same benefit as the last several public transportation projects that did not make the budget. The shift of a small proportion what is spent widening and improving roads would significantly increase the funding available for alternatives.
Specific Recommendations
The shift of a small proportion what is spent widening and improving roads would significantly increase the funding available for public transportation. For this reason the Transportation Study Circle strongly suggests that the city actively pursue changes in transportation funding formulas at the state and federal level.
This can be best accomplished by working with our state and federal legislative delegations. There is however a huge constraint on shifting these funds at the state level. In 1938 the New Hampshire Constitution was amended to restrict and exclusively dedicate gasoline taxes, tolls and fees for the construction and maintenance of highways.
[Art.] 6-a. [Use of Certain Revenues Restricted to Highways.] All revenue in excess of the necessary cost of collection and administration accruing to the state from registration fees, operators' licenses, gasoline road tolls or any other special charges or taxes with respect to the operation of motor vehicles or the sale or consumption of motor vehicle fuels shall be appropriated and used exclusively for the construction, reconstruction and maintenance of public highways within this state, including the supervision of traffic thereon and payment of the interest and principal of obligations incurred for said purposes; and no part of such revenues shall, by transfer of funds or otherwise, be diverted to any other purpose whatsoever.
This law, more than any other single reality, severely limits our ability to fund alternative transportation projects. Our state law should be changed to reflect the federal law, ISTEA, which mandates that at least 10 percent of all federal highway funds must be spent on alternative modes of transportation.
Other recommendations discussed by our committee include:
Public Education and Awareness
The Challenge
The Transportation Study Circle strongly believes that we must cut down on automobile travel in Portsmouth and promote walking, biking and public transportation. However, we understand that this is much easier said than done. As a community and as a culture we are thoroughly addicted to the automobile. Any mention of separating people from their cars causes anxiety. Politically, asking people to reduce their automobile trips is akin to asking people to give up their personal freedom or inalienable rights. The idea of reducing the auto’s presence in our lives and communities is so far beyond many people’s imaginations, the idea is often met with skepticism and even indignation. Our mindsets and our transportation habits are so deeply ingrained, no change will come easily. If our community is to reduce its reliance on the car and promote walking, biking and public transportation,
we must be prepared to undertake a major and on-going public relations and marketing effort to educate, influence and motivate our citizens. And we must be prepared to fund this effort. It will not be enough to make changes in the infrastructure or provide transportation alternatives. We must convince a very reluctant public that if they try it, they’ll like it.
The Solution and Funding Opportunities
The good news is that there are an awful lot of people, organizations and government agencies rallying behind walk-able, livable communities. You might even say there is a thundering herd of citizens and organizations all coming to the same conclusion -- diminish the use and impact of the automobile and we will be a happier, healthier and wealthier nation. By building a coalition of these interest groups, Portsmouth can generate the support, energy and community involvement necessary to shift public opinion and habits. WALKABLE SCHOOL BUS.
Here are just a few of the nation’s most powerful agencies and foundations that are providing significant public education resources and funding to support livable, walk-able communities.
Recommendation
To promote walking, biking and public transportation, The City of Portsmouth will have many allies and interest groups willing to join in the effort. Foundations, government agencies, state legislators, local media, environmental groups, the AARP, local health institutions, walking and biking clubs, the Chamber of Commerce, local schools, even private companies like health clubs and shoe and bicycle manufactures can all contribute to the funds and resources necessary for an effective pr and marketing campaign. The Transportation Study Circle recommends that the Planning Board appoint a citizen committee whose sole task will be to seek support and funding through grant application, sponsorship and legislation in order to create, finance and implement an ongoing public education and marketing campaign.
Traffic Flow and Parking
Traffic flow and parking have traditionally been thought of as how vehicles get from Point A to Point B, and where they park once they get there. The Transportation Chapter in the 1993 Master Plan described a "need to foster and encourage better coordination and interaction between Master Plan elements." Consistent with that, we have observed and learned that how vehicles get from Point A to Point B and where they park have far-reaching implications on all elements of the Master Plan and almost all aspects of our quality of life.
Because traffic flow and parking are pervasive throughout the community, we realized it was impossible to address the entire spectrum of issues and locations involved. Instead, we chose to focus on one area and use it as an example of the need for "better coordination and interaction between the Master Plan elements," starting with traffic flow and parking.
The 1993 Master Plan described the Islington Street corridor as serving two functions: (1) a primary artery from the business district to Route 33; and (2) as serving a mix of commercial and residential land users. The 1993 Master Plan recommended, "in the long term", that a parallel corridor should be constructed to divert traffic from Islington Street, primarily through the use of Borthwick Avenue to connect Route 33/I-95 Exit 3 to
Route 1, and then extending across the Route 1 to the business district.
The current "Existing Conditions Report" identified many congested intersections in the City, five of which would be substantially impacted by a change in the Islington Street corridor. Thus, we decided to examine the "what ifs" for the Islington Street corridor. It also made sense to focus on the Islington Street corridor because, it is our understanding, the City is in the process of planning and implementing a major reconstruction of the Bartlett/Islington Street intersection.
The Islington Street Corridor Proposal
Based on our observations, Islington Street has two distinct sections which include mixed use (commercial, retail and residential) from Congress Street to the Route 1 overpass; and almost exclusively residential use from the overpass to Route 33. We therefore propose the implementation of the 1993 Master Plan recommendation that a parallel corridor be established from Route 33/1-95 Exit 3 to Downtown as follows:
Route 33/Exit 3 Corridor to Downtown: Reconstruct the Borthwick Avenue/Route 33 intersection to establish Borthwick as the primary artery connecting Route 33/Exit 3 to Downtown. Borthwick Avenue would extend across Route 1 to Bartlett Street and attach the corridor to Islington Street. (See Appendix for more detail).
Additionally, the following additional changes to adjacent areas should be made:
A. Islington Street/Route 33 Intersection: Reconfigure the intersection to deter traffic from using Islington Street to connect to downtown, thereby returning Islington Street from the Route 1 overpass to Route 33 as a neighborhood street. (See Appendix A).
B. Plains Park: Close Plains Avenue except for access to the park and for Pearson Street from Middle Road only. Reconfigure park to accommodate safe parking and enlarged children's playground. Close off Islington Street entrance. Add sidewalks along Islington Street, Middle Road and Peverly Hill Road to create safe pedestrian and bicycle access to the park. (See Appendix B).
C. Bartlett Street: Reconfigure Bartlett Street at its intersection with the "new" Borthwick Avenue to deter further use of the Bartlett Street neighborhood as a primary connector to the Portsmouth Traffic Circle. Prohibit truck traffic through the neighborhood that will be able to access area businesses off the Route 1 through the extension of Borthwick Avenue. (See Appendix C)
D. Bartlett Street/Islington Street: Create a traffic flow at the intersection at Bartlett and Islington that will support economic development of the Plaza 800, Old Public Works, Schultz and Malthouse Exchange properties. One possibility is to create a one way "main street" from Bartlett, right onto Islington, then left through a street across Plaza 800, around the Old Public Works and Malthouse Exchange properties back to Islington through Albany. Also make State Street from Albany to Plaza 800 a pedestrian/ bicycle mall/pathway. (See Appendix D)
E. Pedestrian/Bicycle Corridor: Create a pedestrian/bicycle corridor from the Exit 3 area along Route 33 to Islington Street; down Islington Street to Plaza 800; through area between Schultz and the Old Public Works; and down State Street to Downtown. (See Appendix E).
The benefits from these changes will not only include improved traffic flow, but restore two neighborhoods, stimulate the economic development of the Plaza 800 area and enhance a public park. Funding can be obtained through traditional federal, state and local government revenues along with attempts to obtain grants and good financing terms for related private developments. Planning, development and implementation should be accomplished through public/private partnerships including city, county, state and federal staffs and authorities working with a community advisory/work group of neighbors (business and residential) and other citizens and entities willing to volunteer their time and talents to making this vision a reality.
Parking
The continued economic development and growth of the downtown area is dependent upon getting people into a small geographic area in which traffic is regularly congested. The City has done a great job in accessing and developing small satellite parking opportunities. However, in the long run, there is a need to develop a substantial satellite parking area(s) that will allow visitors easy access to downtown.
The City should consider developing a large satellite parking area in the Exit 3/Transportation Center area along Route 33. In particular, the focus use of the satellite parking area should be for visitors to or employees of the downtown area. It could work so long as access through public transportation or other means is readily available between the two areas (i.e., a frequently running trolley system dedicated exclusively to movement between those areas). Potentially, this could be accomplished with a series of incentives and dis-incentives. The dis-incentives would be increased parking rates downtown, coupled with financial incentives to park in the satellite parking area. In addition to low or no cost parking in the satellite area, other incentives might include discounts from downtown businesses being offered to downtown employees or visitors who use the satellite parking area. For example, a visitor would be given a book of downtown discount coupons that could only be used if they had a contemporaneous parking stub. Alternate modes of transportation available from the transportation center could include a variety of privately owned alternatives such as taxis, horse and buggy, or bike rentals.
Summary
We recognize that our proposals are substantial and far-reaching. However, we believe they are very doable if there is a concerted effort of public and private interests to work together to make these things happen. The benefits from the proposed changes would not only include improved traffic flow and parking opportunities, but restoration of two neighborhoods (western Islington Street and Bartlett/Woodbury Avenue); better access to and greater use of the Plains Park; and economic development incentives for the Bartlett Street/Islington Street intersection area. Our community would be better connected through alternative means of transportation.
Is it too much to dream that a visitor would park at a transportation center off Exit 3 and rent a bicycle to tour our downtown and historic areas? Could the economic development of the old Public Works and Schultz warehouse areas include affordable housing and other spaces such as the Button Factory? Might not this traffic and parking plan help make another portion of Portsmouth as special as the downtown area? At a minimum, a liveable, walkable community is a concept worthy of very serious consideration.
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