TIGER contract in hand, county bike projects to start

In addition to the News-Press article, NBC-2 News did a story on 3/17, which included an interview with BikeWalkLee's Darla Letourneau.  Click here to view.

News-Press 3/16/15: TIGER contract in hand, county bike projects to start
By CRAIG HANDEL, CHANDEL@NEWS-PRESS.COM

When Darla Letourneau and members of BikeWalkLee saw the final signatures completing a contract with the Department of Transportation on a $10.4 million Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery (TIGER) Grant, a couple of thoughts passed through their minds:

 We can actually start doing the work.
And when it’s done, people will be safer.

(Photo: Jack Hardman/The News-Press)

 This summer, construction is expected to start in Lee County on bike paths that will give cyclists pathways — sidewalks, paved shoulders — to keep them away from motorists.

In a little more than a year, 12 cyclists have been killed in Lee and Collier counties. While Lee County had eight cyclists killed in 2014, Collier County ranked seventh among Florida counties in the rate of bike crashes per 100,000 people.

During a news conference in September 2013 to announce Lee County had received a Tiger Grant, U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx called it an investment in safety.

Complete Streets Initiative Project Map

“The big picture is trying to fill in gaps,” metropolitan planning organization staff director Don Scott said. “We have facilities around the county, but they’re not always connected.

“We have higher crash rates than the national average. If cyclists don’t have facilities on both side, people have to cross the road, that’s part of the problem.”

The main work is being done along Colonial Boulevard, Daniels Parkway, Six Mile Cypress, San Carlos Park, Florida Gulf Coast and U.S. 41. Scott thinks the project will take about 18 months. He said projects which are permitted first will be worked on first. He added projects also won’t be worked on during heavily congested times, such as Daniels during Spring Training.

Ben Bishop, who lives just off of Daniels, has tried to get bike paths in his neighborhood nearly 10 years. He said many people don’t ride their bikes “because they fear for their lives.”

Bishop said he’s been hit with ice thrown from a passing vehicle, and motorists have driven dangerously close to him. Besides wearing a helmet, he also has a rear-view mirror.

“I’ve had some close calls,” he said. “Drivers are supposed to be at least 3 feet away but I think that’s not enough. We don’t have much of a shoulder.”

Bishop said when a bike path is installed, he estimates about one-fourth of residents living in the area communities — about 1,300 —will use it.

The DOT has invested in road, rail, transit and port projects that promise to achieve critical national objectives. Since 2009, Congress has dedicated more than $4.1 billion to fund projects that have a significant impact on the nation, a region or a metropolitan area.

Since 2011, BikeWalkLee officials have worked to get Tiger Grant funding. Letourneau said there were many steps, including intricate contracting and bidding processes.

She said it took three tries to get the grant before it was accepted. Letourneau credited local politicians, contractors and Florida Greenway and Trails Foundation*, as well as citizens, for their help.

Of approximately 1,000 cities that applied for the grant around the country, about 40 to 50 were accepted.
“There was a lot of support for this,” Letourneau said. “You not only had to have a good proposal and ready, but be committed to moving in a new direction.

“It also was not about starting something. It was to help you finish something you already had committed to. This wasn’t intended to jump-start something.”

Now that projects will be continuing, Letourneau said she and BikeWalkLee members feel pressure.
“Safety has so many factors in it,” she said. “You never get instant results. It’s building an infrastructure, then marrying it with education and enforcement.”


What is a Tiger Grant?
The Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery, or TIGER Discretionary Grant program, provides a unique opportunity for the Department of Transportation to invest in road, rail, transit and port projects that promise to achieve critical national objectives. Since 2009, Congress has dedicated more than $4.1 billion for six rounds to fund projects that have a significant impact on the nation, a region or a metropolitan area.

*Note: article incorrectly states that Florida Greenway and Trails Foundation was involved in the TIGER grant when they were not...reporter confused this with their involvement in the ROGG project, which was also discussed in interview.

Click here for BikeWalkLee's One-Stop Shop TIGER Complete Streets Project Resource (BWL Blog post 3/13/15)