Last updated: 12th October 2005
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The story starts in January, 2004 (see Wider, Improved Highway 763 on State Agenda), when the Missouri Department of Transportation (MoDOT) announced its intention to improve Range Line Street between Big Bear Boulevard and Route VV/Prathersville Road. MoDOT's $12m plan consisted of:
Following the announcement, a disagreement broke out between MoDOT and adjoining landowners. MoDOT wanted to minimize the number of breaks in the planned central raised median for safety reasons, whereas landowners wanted frequent breaks to allow left-turning traffic to access their businesses. The two parties negotiated for more than a year.
After this dispute was finally resolved (in April, 2005), MoDOT announced that the cost of the project had risen to $29m (up from $18m) and that they would have to cut back on specifications (see State alters Range Line plan). Bicycle and pedestrian facilities were widely cited as the place where MoDOT could cut costs and also as the reason the project cost had increased. However, the sidewalk and pedway had always been in the plan - the real reason for the cost increase was the increase in property values along the Range Line corridor, and the real reason for the delay was the disagreement with landowners over the median. In the original plan, the sidewalk and pedway only represent a small part of the total additional right of way required, the majority being for two new travel lanes and two shoulders.
MoDOT has now proposed a new plan for a two-lane road that will reside within the existing right of way. It will have narrow lanes, no shoulders, no sidewalks, and no pedways - in short a dangerous place for cars and a deathly and inhospitable place for cyclists and pedestrians.
Since April, 2005, the myth that bicycle and pedestrian facilities are responsible for the increased cost and delayed schedule of the Range Line project have continued to circulate in Columbia (see the September 1 article Range Line plan snagged over pedway and the October 10 piece Sidewalk holds up 763 plan), leading to an ill-informed discussion of the issue, as exemplified by the follow letter to the editor:
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Published Wednesday, September 14, 2005: Editor, the Tribune: I’m writing about the Sept. 1 article about the widening of Range Line Street, also known as Highway 763. The proposal by the Missouri Department of Transportation would greatly improve the safety of driving on that road. But due to interference by one person, Mayor Darwin Hindman, the improvement project has been delayed by at least one year. Highway 763 continues to be one of the most dangerous roads to drive on in Columbia. Hindman has an idiotic plan to make the sidewalks huge and the lanes of the highway narrower. If this plan were adopted, it would make the highway more dangerous for the many thousands of drivers who use it every day. But it would make walking along the road safer for the dozen or so people who would use the sidewalks. If he gets his way, Hindman will be personally responsible for the injuries and deaths to drivers by the more dangerous Highway 763 he wants. In addition, the long delay that Hindman has caused by bickering with MoDOT has resulted in a great increase in the cost of the project, requiring the citizens of Columbia to pay more. Mayor Hindman is absolutely wrong in putting the safety of a very small number of pedestrians over the safety of many thousands of drivers. He is doing a great disservice to the citizens of Columbia by continuing to pursue his idiotic and dangerous plan for Highway 763. Tary L. Stift
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The following two published letters attempt to set the record straight:
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Published Tuesday, September 27, 2005: Editor, the Tribune: Tary Stift wrote in the Sept. 14 Tribune that Mayor Darwin Hindman has an "idiotic" plan for improving Range Line Street. I travel to and from work daily on Range Line and know this road as well as anyone in Columbia. Stift and I could not disagree more about its improvement. My primary disagreement is with his assertion that a "dozen or so people" walk along this incredibly busy highway. This is possibly one of the most heavily traveled roadsides by pedestrians in the city, and when talking about Columbia, this is really saying something. Part of the heavy foot traffic is due to a trailer court on the east side of the road, which houses many low-income families who cannot afford automobiles. Not providing adequate sidewalks tacitly invites endangering some of Columbia’s most needy residents. The current situation in which drivers and pedestrians alike must be on alert to narrowly avert a tragic accident is unacceptable, and the Hindman plan sagely addresses this issue. Second, Stift asserts that the plan calls for narrower driving lanes, which will reduce safety. This is also off base. The state has requirements for lane width, which our mayor’s plan will meet, the number of lanes will be doubled and a shoulder will be built. All are noticeable improvements to the current dangerous and inefficient driving environment. Stift’s intentions of improving a poor transportation situation are good, but his assessment of Hindman’s plan is on the wrong side of the road. Brendon Steenbergen
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Published Wednesday, October 5, 2005: Editor, the Tribune: This is in response to the Sept. 14 letter to the editor about Range Line Street, also known as Highway 763. No single person has the power to single-handedly stall such a badly needed project. Both opponents and allies of Mayor Darwin Hindman know he is a fair, effective leader. And Hindman hardly stands alone on this. Residents, property owners and business owners recognize that a well-designed road will enhance quality of life, increase property values, get everybody to their destinations safely and attract new business and new residents. Sidewalks and pedways are not the only issue causing a delay - probably not even the main issue. We must consider the number of access points, right- and left-turn lanes, undergrounding of utilities and, of course, the sidewalks. The design must be fair to both large- and small-property owners along the right of way. Far from fighting, people are cooperating. We’ve spoken with representatives of the Missouri Department of Transportation, the city and property and business interests. They express a spirit of civic pride and responsibility, willingness for meaningful compromise and a vision of a better future. The current situation is terrible. But simply widening from two lanes to four would be twice as terrible. In the 21st century, roads must do more than just move freight and cars efficiently. Columbia is at a crossroads. There are plenty of rotten places to locate your business and your family. People will choose the nicer one. Let’s build it. Chip Cooper and Frederick Schmidt
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As these writers point out, it is very important that Range Line Street - a major artery serving hundreds of new homes in north Columbia - can safely accommodate all modes of travel. That way, car drivers can access Columbia from the north and local residents can walk or cycle safely to jobs and shopping on the Business Loop, downtown, and on campus, for example. Further, Range Line connects the Bear Creek Trail with Blue Ridge Road, where the City of Columbia is building a new pedway, and this pedway will connect with the Garth Avenue pedway and the Bear Creek Trail further west. This means that pedestrian facilities on Range Line will insure all the many neighborhoods being built in this area will have safe and pleasant connections to the Bear Creek Trail and, via the trail, to Oakland and Cosmo Parks. This will become a truly multi-modal transportation node with an east-west trail corridor that will add great value, pleasure and vitality to the surrounding homes.
As more components of the PedNet network are constructed, more nodes and corridors arise, increasing the number of viable journeys and potential usage.