City Of Richardson | Bike Friendly Richardson

May 2, 2013 • 6:02 am 0

Ride Your Bike To The Cottonwood Art Festival – THIS WEEKEND

Unfortunately, because of scheduling conflicts, Bike Friendly Richardson won’t be hosting a “Cruise To The Cottonwood” ride this spring. That doesn’t mean you can’t ride there. In fact, we think bicycling the best way to get to the festival – especially on such a beautiful weekend.

Also, thanks to the folks at the City of Richardson, we were told that there will be plenty of bike parking at the entrance, close to Belt Line. While we’re on the topic of bike parking, there will also be parking set up at the Wildflower Festival in a couple of weeks.

So, kick off National Bike Month with a fantastic ride with your friends and family and enjoy the wonderful art of the Cottonwood Art Festival.

Filed under: BFR Misc, Cool Richardson Destinations, Bike Parking, City Of Richardson, Cottonwood Art Festival

April 6, 2013 • 9:58 am 3

Pics Of The New Bike Lanes On Collins – North Of Campbell

We got a notice from Dave Carter, with the City of Richardson, that more bike lanes were being installed – with more planned for the summer. I’m excited because the ones installed this summer will be in my neighborhood. Click here to see a map of the completed bike lanes in Richardson (so far).

Another 1.1 miles of new bike lanes are being installed this week on both sides of Collins Blvd from Campbell Rd. northward to tie into the existing bike lanes on Collins Blvd at Palisades Creek. This installation will connect the existing bike lane system on Collins Blvd from the Renner Trail all the way down to Campbell Road.

Later this summer there will be three additional bike lane segments installed as part of the Safe Routes to School program grant received from TxDOT.
Collins Blvd (Plano Rd to Jupiter)
Yale Blvd (Arapaho to Campbell)
Owens Blvd (Woodoak to Campbell)

All of these bike lane segments were discussed in the City Council worksession on 10/22/2012 and continue to address the Council Near Term Action Item #29.

I went out to take some pics:

UPDATE: Here is more information from the City of Richardson.

Filed under: Bike Change, Bike Friendly, City Stuff, Bike Lanes, City Of Richardson, Collins, Collins Blvd, New Bike Lanes

March 15, 2013 • 3:25 pm 2

TxDOT to Study US-75 Corridor from I-635 to Highway 121

From the City of Richardson‘s weekly newsletter:

The City Council on Monday discussed an ongoing TxDOT study of US-75 from I-635 to Highway 121. The study is designed to identify and address mobility needs in the corridor to meet future growth, enhance quality of life, support economic development and improve public safety.

The City of Richardson is developing a vision statement for the project, which identifies goals the City has for the project. Preliminary goals include finding congestion relief on both sides of US-75 and keeping the highway from becoming a greater vertical barrier. The City is also seeking to keep the highway easily accessible for local drivers and enhance pedestrian and bicycle mobility across the corridor.

Study leaders are examining several transportation alternatives in the corridor, including the addition of freeway lanes and managed lanes, arterial improvements and public transportation enhancements.

Watch the work session presentation at http://bit.ly/XHh1z1.

I have to say, I’m certainly glad the City is listening to it’s citizens. It seems like every planning meeting that I’ve attended had folks complaining about the vertical barrier of US-75, splitting the city into two – and that there aren’t any safe, south-side crossings for pedestrians and cyclists. I hope TxDOT takes that into serious consideration.

I wouldn’t mind seeing a nice pedestrian/bike underpass or bridge crossing US-75. south of Belt Line Road. We’ve got some great, under-highway passages on both sides of Renner Road. Let’s give some attention to our southern neighbors.

Filed under: City Stuff, Central Corridor, City Of Richardson, TxDOT, US-75

March 2, 2013 • 6:42 am 3

Richardson City Council Awards Bid for Central Trail Construction

From the City of Richardson weekly newsletter:

The City Council on Monday awarded a bid of $3.4 million to Ed Bell Construction Company to extend the Central Trail 1.9 miles from the Arapaho Road DART Station to the southern city limit. Construction of the 10-foot wide concrete multiuse trail is expected to begin in April and last for about one year.

The $4 million project is funded through Dallas County and the City of Richardson’s 2010 Bond Program. The lowest bid to construct the trail came in about $400,000 over budget, so the City removed some amenities such as irrigation systems, landscaping, and benches to be constructed in a possible second phase at a future date. The City also hopes to use $600,000 in Regional Tollway Revenue funds awarded for the Central Trail to help enhance the project.

The Central Trail currently runs from the Spring Creek Trail in north Richardson and ends at the Arapaho Road DART Station. The extension will run alongside the DART rail line and is planned to eventually connect with the Richardson city limit to the south and a future connection to the Dallas’ White Rock Creek Trail.

Watch the City Council presentation at http://bit.ly/V6oiYQ.

We are extremely excited that this is happening and we’d still like to see the small gap in the plan addressed.

Filed under: Bike Change, Bike Trails and Routes, City Stuff, Central Trail, Central Trail Construction, Central Trail South, City Of Richardson, Dallas County, DART, New Trail, Trail, Trail Construction

October 19, 2012 • 4:06 pm 1

Richardson City Council Receives Update on Central Trail

From the City of Richardson‘s weekly newsletter:

The City Council received an update Monday on the extension of the Central Trail, which runs from the Spring Creek Trail in north Richardson and currently ends at the Arapaho Road DART Station. Plans call for the trail to extend to Richardson’s southern city limit and eventually connect with Dallas’ White Rock Creek Trail.

The City expects to begin construction on the trail in January and complete the project in early 2014. The 1.9-mile extension will cost $4 million and is funded through Richardson’s 2010 Bond Program and Dallas County.

Watch the work session presentation at http://bit.ly/P8H54b.

We’re pretty excited about this extension and what it would mean for connecting the east side of Richardson to the White Rock Creek Trail (although the current plan doesn’t extend that far, just yet). This would make commuting into Dallas – via multi-purpose trails – pretty easy.

We still have our reservations of how the trail is planned just north of Arapaho, connecting to the Arapaho DART station and the existing portion of the trail to the north. So far, it’s just a narrow sidewalk and there are no plans to re-route or widen it. Click here to see our post on this.

Filed under: Bike Trails and Routes, City Stuff, Central Trail, City Of Richardson, DART Trail

October 12, 2012 • 7:39 pm 2

Bike Lane Update

From the City Of Richardson‘s weekly newsletter:

The City Council received an update on efforts to expand the Bike Transportation Program in Richardson at its work session on Monday. The City is among many other municipalities and organizations in North Texas working to provide more bike lanes and improve safety for people who commute by bike. Many of these bike routes are designed to connect across the region when complete.

Expanding Richardson’s bike lane system and enhancing pavement markings and signage is one of the City Council’s near-term goals. Ten miles of a planned 20 miles of bike lanes have been installed, including lanes on Custer Parkway, Grove Road and Waterview Drive. Additional lanes funded through the Safe Routes to School grant are expected to be complete in 2013 along Collins Boulevard from Plano Road to Jupiter Road, Yale Boulevard from Arapaho Road to Campbell Road, and Owens Boulevard from Woodoak Drive to Campbell Road. The Duck Creek Trail Extension will add a route in 2014 along Collins Boulevard from Plano Road to US-75.

The City has installed signs identifying bike routes in Richardson and is working to clearly mark them on roads to improve safety. City officials will continue to work with bicycle organizations, including local partner Bike Friendly Richardson, and neighborhood groups to identify and implement additional bike routes.

Watch the Bike Transportation Program presentation here.

Link to online map

Filed under: Bike Trails and Routes, Bike Lanes, Bike Plan, City Of Richardson

September 21, 2012 • 7:16 pm 5

Proposal for Regional Trail Connection at Breckinridge Park

From the City Of Richardson:

The City of Plano is partnering with the City of Richardson to plan and construct a 1.9-mile trail that would wind through Richardson to connect an existing trail in southeast Plano to the Timbers Nature Preserve Park in Murphy. The trail is completely funded through the City of Plano’s bond program. The City of Richardson would provide the land and future maintenance of the trail if the City Council approves an Inter Local Agreement at a future meeting.

The trail is proposed to be built in two phases, with Phase 1 running from the west side of Murphy Road within an Oncor high transmission line corridor to the existing trail on Rowlett Creek in Breckinridge Park. Construction on this part of the trail is expected to take place in 2013. Phase 2, which is currently unfunded, would connect Rowlett Creek to Otto Middle School. The City of Plano hopes to receive a grant from Collin County to pay for additional trail length, which is set to be constructed in the next two to three years.

Watch the work session presentation at http://bit.ly/Pr38zq.

Filed under: Bike Trails and Routes, City Stuff, City Of Plano, City Of Richardson, New Trails

July 28, 2012 • 9:55 am 0

Notes And Pics From The Main St. & 75 Area Revitalization Study Open House

We’re a little behind on our posts, so apologies for the delay on this. A couple of weeks ago, Bike Friendly Richardson attended the City of Richardson’s open house for the Main Street and Central Expressway Area Revitalization Study.

About the study: The City of Richardson is creating a stately for the redevelopment and revitalization of Main Street and the Central Expressway Corridor – Richardson’s original downtown and the major access routes to the community, its business areas and neighborhoods. This project implements the 2009 Richardson Comprehensive Plan, which identified the Main Street area and Central Expressway Corridor as two of six target redevelopment zones.

The open house was set up as a first step into a long progress of revitalizing several core ‘gateways’ into Richardson. The city has enlisted the help of several outside firms including HOK — Project Management, Visioning/Master Planning, Urban Design; Kimley-Horn and Associates — Transportation and Infrastructure Planning/Analysis; Ricker – Cunningham — Market/Economic Analysis, Implementation Tools, Financing Strategies; Strategic Community Solutions — Community Involvement; Townscape — Architecture to draft a final plan.

In order for them to draft this plan, folks were asked to view several stations including, Corridor Character, Businesses and Activities, Connections, Investments & Improvements, Multiculturalism, Physical Amenities, and Main Street and invited to contribute feedback and help shape the future of this important area.

Of course there was a lot of great feedback, but our goal was to make sure there is a consideration and place for bicycles. The great news is that several folks, outside of BFR, added the need for bike friendly, complete streets and trails to the lists.

It’s not too late to contribute to the study. Go here to take the survey and questionnaire (open until August 30). You can also follow the progress on their Facebook page. Also, Click here for the website.

Here are some pics from the open house:

Filed under: City Stuff, Central Expressway, City Of Richardson, Main Street, Revitalization

March 5, 2012 • 7:56 pm 1

City Of Richardson Gets A New Website And Updated Trail Maps

The City of Richardson just launched their newly redesigned website.

“The new design features a variety of enhancements that promote easy access to municipal services and information.

Design enhancements for Richardson’s web pages have been underway since February 2011. Its creation is intended to align with the City Council’s Statement of Goals, which aims to improve citywide communications, transparency in government operations, marketing of community assets, and encouraging public involvement.” Read more.

Although we’ve lost a few links, most of our favorite content is still available, along with some great new features. We’re looking forward to exploring the new site.

Here are some points of interest:

BICYCLE FACILITIES

BICYCLE ADVOCATE GROUPS (our favorite)

HISTORY OF BIKE LANES IN RICHARDSON

BICYCLIST’S RIGHTS

DFW AREA BICYCLE FACILITIES

PARKS & TRAILS

RICHARDSON TRAIL SYSTEM

Along with some great new trail maps:

Trail System Map
Glenville Trail
Bicycle Route Map
Huck Finn Trail
Breckinridge Trail
Owens Trail
Central Trail
Renner Trail
Duck Creek Trail
Spring Creek Trail

Filed under: BFR Misc, City Stuff, City Of Richardson, New Website, Website Redesign

February 15, 2012 • 4:53 pm 6

Some Exciting News

Bike Friendly Richardson is pleased to announce that we have just submitted the application to have Richardson considered for a Bicycle Friendly Community designation!

This was an idea that we had had for a while and last November, Jenny Rilling took it on as a project. With the help of City staff, we made it happen. The Bicycle Friendly Community program is administered by the League of American Bicyclists. With all the bicycling improvements in recent years, and more to come, it was time to throw our hat in the ring. Not every application receives the Bicycle Friendly designation, however, the LAB staff generously provide feedback to each applicant to help them do better next time.

This is our first time submitting the application, so we don’t know how we’ll do, but we are proud of how far we’ve come, and we’re looking forward to getting feedback on where we can improve. Currently only three cities in Texas have received the Bicycle Friendly Community designation: Austin, San Antonio, and The Woodlands.

We’d like to recognize the following people without whom this wouldn’t be possible:

Richard Wezensky and Jenny Rilling with Bike Friendly Richardson

Dave Carter, the City’s Bicycle Coordinator and Assistant Director of the Transportation Department

Jessica Shutt and Mark Titus in the Transportation Department

Jim Lockart and Jim Dulac at the City

The Richardson City Council, Parks Department, Police Department

And of course, all the BFR friends and everyone out there who said, “Hey, we should improve biking in Richardson”, and everyone out there using the bike trails, bike lanes, and roads and having fun and trying to continually improve things for cyclists.

Thanks, everyone, for all you do. See you out there on the road!

-BFR Staff

Filed under: Advocacy, Bike Friendly, Bike Friendly Community Program, City Of Richardson, League of American Bicyclists