The Park City Council on Thursday directed municipal staff members to move forward with a project design that will add painted buffered bike lanes and an expanded sidewalk to a portion of Little Kate Road.
The staffers also discussed different traffic calming measures that could be considered for the project including curb extensions, median islands, traffic circles, raised crosswalks, raised intersections and speed tables.
The project — which is part of an effort to provide safe and comfortable walking and bicycling facilities for users of all ages and abilities — stretches approximately three-fourths of a mile from Holiday Ranch Loop to connect with the McPolin Elementary School pathway. Little Kate currently is a two-lane, 20 mph road with conventional bike lanes in both directions and a 5-feet-wide sidewalk on the north side.
The Park City Transportation Department recommended the design after reviewing and refining different options.
“This recommendation reflects community feedback, provides dedicated separated spaces for pedestrians and bicyclists, and lowers the overall impacts compared to the other alternatives,” a staff report says.
The design will include complementary safety enhancements consistent with the City Council direction, according to the report. Those could include green bicycle lane paint, speed feedback signs, high-visibility crosswalk markings and Safe Routes to School program pavement markings.
Little Kate Road is part of the program, which helps students walk or bike safely to school. Staff members are working with the Park City School District to enhance the program, transportation planner Anna Maki said.
The Little Kate project has evolved over the past year through rounds of technical evaluation and City Council discussions. Staff members also collected feedback through open houses, community meetings, one-on-one discussions with property owners, emails, mailers, a survey and a project website.
Maki told the councilors there was not unanimous support from residents for the same design but that they largely agree speeding on Little Kate Road is a problem. Park Meadows residents in particular have been engaged in the process, she said.
The residents would like to see safe access to McPolin Elementary School, keep pedestrians and bicyclists separate and maintain that neighborhood character, Maki said.
Once the design is further along, staff members plan to hold an open house in the Park Meadows neighborhood so residents can review the design, as well as any traffic calming elements that are included, she said.
The Little Kate upgrades have been bundled with a plan by Park City Municipal to redesign and enhance 83 bus stops across the community. The city has secured federal, county and local funding that will cover approximately 85% of the costs, and the improvements include filling key gaps in the pedestrian and bicycle network to make it safer.