News

The City of Pasco is working on their very first Transportation System Master Plan. The plan (TSMP) will serve as a guide for future transportation planning and investments to align with Pasco City Council Goals and the City's Community Vision. 
Pasco is a rapidly growing city, and your input and feedback on the existing transportation system, and what is necessary to meet their future needs are important.  It is a great opportunity for those of us passionate about non-motorized travel to express our thoughts to a captive audience

Please take your time with the survey and provide as much information as you believe is necessary. A few things to think about while taking the survey:

 
The survey allows for you to be as detailed as possible, and we encourage you to take advantage. 

Your input is appreciated, and please feel free to share with your co-workers, neighborhoods, friends and businesses.
 
Here is the link to the survey:

Transportation Online Open House (Survey)

 

The regularly scheduled BTC board meeting for Wednesday, April 8th will be held virtually.  Please email our board president, Hector Cruz at hector@visittri-cities.com for the meeting link. 

This year's event has been POSTPONED until September 26th, 2020!

Register now for the Inland Empire Century. Routes between 25-100 miles. Traverse the scenic Yakima/Columbia River Valley through vineyards, orchards, wheat fields, and native shrub steppe.

http://www.inlandempirecentury.org

The Washington State Department of Transportation would like to understand how you get where you need to go and your views on different forms of active transportation including cycling. It’s a roughly 10 minute questionnaire that needs to be completed before June 30, 2019. Your answers will help update the State Active Transportation Plan and assist in prioritizing future funding and policy changes designed to improve safe access for cyclists and pedestrians. It asks about improved bike access on busy streets, reduced speeds on secondary streets and a host of issues relevant to safely getting around the Tri-Cities on foot or on a bike.

Check it out here:  https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/WSDOT-ATP-2019-Engl…

Congestion along SR240 is a daily headache not only for Hanford commuters, but for pedestrians and cyclists wanting to cross this busy thoroughfare. The good news is that WSDOT is looking at more than just motor vehicle congestion; they are also considering options to improve bike/pedestrian safety.  Information from WSDOT on this project was presented at a workshop held at the Richland Community Center on March 14th . General information on this project can be found here: https://www.wsdot.wa.gov/projects/sr240/richland-corridor/home  along with details of past survey results. Unfortunately, the only written description we have of possible ‘solutions’ to the bike/ped concerns are the few words identified in each of the table entries, which are followed by comments to be submitted to WSDOT on each of these ‘solutions’ . Information on whom to contact for questions or to submit comments is given on the aforementioned link.

Proposed BTC Comments on SR 240 Corridor Options 

Tri-City pedestrians and cyclists are largely in agreement that one of the most difficult crossings in our community is the cloverleaf going over State Route 240 just north of Columbia Center. Recognizing this, the Washington State Department of Transportation is looking at ways to make this crossing safer for walkers and cyclists. They have a (very) small pot of funding to do this, and are now considering a number of options, all of which were discussed at a March 19th , 2019 workshop held at the WSDOT office in Richland. Dave Beach, Hector Cruz and Carl Berkowitz attended this meeting. We were encouraged by the enthusiasm of traffic engineers from WSDOT, Richland and Kennewick to address safety concerns for non-motorized travelers.
 
A selection of vugraphs illustrating possible modifications to the cloverleaf, as presented by WSDOT Traffic Engineer Ben Hausenbuiller,  can be viewed in the file below. Of special note is that at least one engineer (from Richland) suggested a totally different approach that did not involve any modifications to the cloverleaf; check out Vugraph 3, ‘City of Richland Review Long Term Plans/Options). The red-line shown here would get walkers/cyclists to and from Richland and Kennewick along a new path west of the cloverleaf.. Other options to get pedestrians and cyclists over the cloverleaf involved re-striping, adding crosswalks or flashing beacons.
 
What we, as the riding/walking community, can do is contact our state representatives asking that more funds be made available to our local WSDOT/Richland/Kennewick engineers so they can design and construct a more complete overhaul of this dangerous crossing. Contact information is provided in the first vugraph.

WSDOT Options for Richland Cloverleaf