3-Plus for Russell Street

This post is third in a series: 3-Plus Design, 100-Plus Benefits. In this series, we will focus on an individual aspect of the ‘3-Plus for Russell Street’ Citizens’ Plan, and discuss why the plan is more effective than the city’s preferred alternative.

3-Plus for Russell Street Saves Millions of Dollars of Public Money

On Monday afternoon, I was sitting in the City Council chambers as the Transportation Technical Advisory Committee tossed around a political football. The group was trying to deal out funding for transportation projects for the next Long Range Transportation Plan update — a federally mandated process. Despite attempts at compromise, everybody was uncomfortable with the $65+ million elephant in the room. Not only did we learn that the Russell project just got over $25 million more expensive, but we also learned that it would chew through almost all of the area’s discretionary road work money for 28 years! Needless-to-say, the issue got sent back to subcommittee yet again because nobody could agree on which other projects to axe from their wish lists.

Here’s what I gleaned from meeting: we are getting a project we don’t want crammed down our throats, at a price we can’t afford, to the detriment of every other transportation project this valley has ever dreamed of seeing through to fruition! If it seems like a bum deal, it is. Read on:

The 3-Plus for Russell Street citizens’ alternative could be funded for many millions of dollars less than the city’s preferred alternative. While we don’t have an exact figure, the documents at Monday’s LRTP meeting show the 3-lane South 3rd Street project costing $2 million.

South 3rd and 3-Plus for Russell have a few things in common. The 3-Plus plan fits within the existing right-of-way, and saves millions of dollars in ROW acquisition costs. It also saves money in utility relocation. At, not unsubstantially, it saves nearly $3 million dollars in pavement alone according to my calculations:

Broadway to Wyoming:
0.4 miles - 1 less lane than preferred alt. = 0.4 lane miles
Wyoming to S 7th St:
0.6 miles - 2 less lanes than preferred alt. = 1.2 lane miles
S 7th St to S 11th St:
0.3 miles - 3 less lanes than preferred alt. = 0.9 lane miles
S 11th St to Mount Ave:
0.2 miles - 2 less lanes than preferred alt. = 0.4 lane miles

A grand total of 2.9 lane miles (at ~$1 million/lane mile) less than the preferred alternative!

Some may also assert that funding from the federal government is like ‘free money’ in a way. This is only partially true. First, that ‘free money’ could go to fund many other transportation projects in the area. Second, every fiscally responsible bone in my body scoffs at the notion of building too much road, regardless of the funding source.

All throughout the Long Range Plan process, we’ve heard that there is a shrinking pool of money, and a growing backlog of needs. We can’t afford to build our way out of this problem. Instead we need to look towards innovative solutions like 3-Plus for Russell Street!

This post is second in a series: 3-Plus Design, 100-Plus Benefits. In this series, we will focus on an individual aspect of the ‘3-Plus for Russell Street’ Citizens’ Plan, and discuss why the plan is more effective than the agencies’ preferred alternative.

3-Plus for Russell Street Single Lane Roundabouts Key to Safe, Smooth Flow

Single lane roundabouts are the preferred intersection design for the 3+ plan at Russell and Wyoming, 3rd, 5th, and Mount. Under discussion is either a roundabout or turn pockets at 7th and 11th. Why roundabouts? Well-designed roundabouts have been found to virtually eliminate injury crashes when compared to stop lights. Indeed, we just had another traffic fatality at a stop light 2 weeks ago in Missoula- the 4th one in the last few years. A roundabout prevents T-bones and head-ons- the types of crashes that lead to severe injuries and fatalities.

Why are roundabouts safer? There are three main reasons. First, speeds are low. Crashes seldom happen at low speeds and when they do happen the impacts are minor. Second, people are looking at each other and not staring up at a light. How often do you see someone speeding down the road looking way up at a fixed point down the road? You just know they are racing to catch that green light. The combination of going faster while having the eyes off the road can be deadly. A roundabout solves all that. And, third, a roundabout simplifies turning movements. All turns are right turns. Even if you want to go left, you start by turning right into the roundabout, going around, and then making a right turn out of the roundabout. Think about how complex making a left turn at a stop light can be: not only does a driver have to find/judge gaps in on-coming traffic at various speeds, but they also have to make sure a pedestrian is not crossing with the ‘walk’ light.

Speaking of pedestrians, single lane roundabouts have been shown to be much safer for walking. Federal Highways has a great brochure showing the safety benefits to pedestrians. Likewise, cyclists have a safe and easy crossing. The best practice for cyclists is to end the bike lane 100 feet before the roundabout and give the cylist two options: either ‘take the lane’ and go through the roundabouts just like a motor vehicle (easy to do with cars going about 15mph) or use the ramp onto a widened sidewalk.

Safety is a big benefit of roundabouts for sure. Yet, here are some more benefits: $5,000 savings per year on electricity (all those light bulbs for stop lights take a lot of power!), easy U-turns, no idling for no reason, create sense of place, more green space than asphalt space, a calming effect not only at the intersection but on the approaches too. This last benefit speaks towards the power of a corridor of roundabouts. By maintaining slow and smooth speeds, people can keep moving and save time. Wait, slow speeds equals saving time? How can that be? Simply put, think about how the tortoise beats the hare.

We could go on and on about the benefits of roundabouts, yet there is so much info out on the web already. It must be mentioned though that roundabouts are not the same as east coast rotaries (mainly New Jersey and Boston) and are different from neighborhood traffic circles (roundabouts have splitter islands and are larger). It also must be stressed that the 3+ is proposing _single_ lane roundabouts, not multi-lane roundabouts. Single lane roundabouts are a great way to improve an intersection!

This post is first in a series: 3-Plus Design, 100-Plus Benefits. In this series, we will focus on an individual aspect of the ‘3-Plus for Russell Street’ Citizens’ Plan, and discuss why the plan is more effective than the agencies’ preferred alternative.

3-Plus for Russell Street Will Improve Public Health Along the Corridor

There’s a saying that building bigger roads to solve congestion is like trying to cure obesity by loosening the belt. Indeed there are some correlations between the health of a roadway and the health of its users. There are an awful lot of reasons why small streets are healthier streets, and the 3-Plus for Russell Street plan would be no different. We’ll just touch on physical human health today, not to mention the positive impacts to the health of communities, families, or the environment that 3-Plus for Russell Street would have.

• 3-Plus would cause cyclist and pedestrian activity to increase — This one is self explanatory. When you design a roadway with biking and walking in mind, not coincidentally, people walk and bike. Two great forms of exercise!
• 3-Plus would reduce air pollution in the valley — The 3-Plus plan includes roundabouts, and since traffic never completely stops at a roundabout, there is less congestion, and less idling. This will have the effect of greatly reducing vehicle emissions, keeping the air cleaner for everyone in the valley.
• 3-Plus would reduce noise pollution along the corridor — Stop and go traffic makes streets much more noisy. Erratic acceleration can cause a vehicle to be up to 7 decibels louder than a vehicle moving at a constant speed. Again, roundabouts in the Citizens’ Plan will moderate traffic flow and keep traffic moving at a consistently slower but more comfortable speed. Also, noise pollution from traffic has been directly tied to a number of physiological conditions like hearing loss as well as psychological conditions and high stress.

Please check back soon for more 3+/100+ topics.