APPROVED June 6, 2012

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1 APPROVED June 6, 2012 The Metropolitan Planning Organization for the Baltimore Region ATTENDANCE CITIZENS ADVISORY COMMITTEE Wednesday, May 2, 2012 BMC Conference Room 5:30 P.M. Members/Staff Mary Alexander Citizen, Baltimore City Regina Aris Baltimore Metropolitan Council (BMC) Ray Carrier Citizen, Green Rider, LLC Chris Costello Transportation Association of Maryland Chris Diaczok Citizen, Baltimore County Peter Duvall Citizen, Baltimore City John Eberhard Citizen, Howard County* Gerald Fuss Caring Carroll, Inc. Barbara Glick Citizen, Howard County Monica B. Haines Benkhedda BMC Jennifer Jones Citizen, Baltimore City Steva Komeh Marble Hill Community Association Charles Lattuca Citizen, Baltimore City Stephen Lauria Citizen, Baltimore City Roger Nolan Citizen, Baltimore City Ted Rosenberg (for Michele Rosenberg) Citizen, Baltimore City Ronald Rye Citizen, Harford County Andrew Samuel Citizen, Baltimore City; Loyola University Maryland Greg Shafer Citizen, Howard County Stuart Stainman Citizen, Baltimore County Beth Wiseman Baltimore County Association of Senior Citizens Organizations Chris Yoder Citizen, Baltimore City * Proxy assigned by: Jane Dembner Guests Heather Weir Citizen Nate Evans Baltimore City Department of Transportation Tierra Brown Baltimore City Department of Transportation 1. INTRODUCTIONS AND WELCOME Mr. Steve Lauria, Chair, opened the meeting at 5:35 p.m. He invited new member Rev. Gerald Fuss to share a bit about himself and the reason he volunteered to serve on the CAC. Members then went around to room to introduce themselves Whetstone Way, Suite 300, Baltimore, MD, Phone Facsimile Voting: City of Annapolis, Anne Arundel County, Baltimore City, Baltimore County, Carroll County, Harford County, Howard County, MD Department of Transportation. Non-Voting: MD Department of the Environment, MD Department of Planning, MD Transit Administration

2 Citizens Advisory Committee May 2, 2012 Page No. 2 of 4 2. APPROVAL OF THE APRIL 2012 MINUTES The minutes of the April meeting ( were unanimously approved. 3. PRESENTATION: MAY IS BIKE MONTH AND CLEAN COMMUTE MONTH Mr. Nate Evans, Bicycle & Pedestrian Planner for the City of Baltimore, provided an overview of current initiatives to improve bicycle and pedestrian access throughout the City. Mr. Evans reported that the City is implementing the 2006 Bicycle Master Plan. Since adoption, the City has expanded infrastructure in the following ways: building the first bike boulevard on Guilford Ave, 100 miles of bikeways, added a green bicycle path, bike-friendly speed bumps (these also accommodate emergency vehicles), and bike/bus lanes. There is also a bike box in Wyman Park and they are working on additional phases of the Jones Falls Trail. Baltimore has experienced a 42% increase in bicycle commuters. They are now in the process of updating the master plan for As part of this effort, they are accepting input from residents and individuals who frequent the city. This survey is online at Mr. Evans also reported that the MD Department of Transportation awarded a grant to help launch the City s Bike Share program. Bike sharing allows short-term bicycle rental to replace the need for a car when taking short trips in and around urban areas. With stations established at key locations across the city, users take a bike from one station, pedal to their destination, and return the bike to another station. The City will be working with B- Cycle to implement the Bike Share system. The expected launch is fall He also noted that the City has updated their bicycle map. This will be available beginning May 8 th at Finally, Mr. Evans shared information about Bike Month in May. This year they are promoting 35 events around the city, including Cyclovia from Roland Park to Druid Park and the Kinetic Sculpture Race on Saturday, May 5 th. Also, Bike to Work Day on May 18 th features 11 different pit stops in the city. A full list of events is available at A CAC member asked how the city is working to address bicycle safety amongst youth and also reduce bicycle thefts and improve police response to thefts. Mr. Evans reported that there are a number of efforts underway in this area. In fact, a number of PSA s were made to address bicycle safety issues such as (see youtu.be/jglqlnytm44) and the City Police Department has theft prevention tips online at: You can register your bicycle online at places like or Also, Bike Maryland has a Bike Minded Program which teaches people of all ages how to ride a bicycle safely. Another member asked about driver education and bike/ped safety. He reported that the MD Motor Vehicle Administration is working on updating its driver education curriculum, including educational videos. A CAC member inquired about a previous TIP amendment that included bike/ped provisions. Mr. Evans recalled that Baltimore City is implementing a pedestrian and bicycle network connecting major parks and employment centers in West Baltimore. Efforts for this project include: reconfiguring the Fulton Street Bridge to enhance bicycle and pedestrian

3 Citizens Advisory Committee May 2, 2012 Page No. 3 of 4 accessibility; applying innovative stormwater management practices and landscaping; creating bicycle lanes; and developing traffic and pedestrian safety initiatives between Harlem Park and the University of Maryland Biopark. Next, Ms. Tierra Brown, Marketing Coordinator, from the Baltimore City Department of Transportation shared information about the various alternative transportation initiatives in Baltimore City. These include RideShare, Guaranteed Ride Home, School Pool, VanPool, and the new car-free incentive program. The car-free incentive program will allow residential parking permit holders to relinquish their permits and receive other incentives (for example ZipCar membership, gym membership, etc). Ms. Brown is currently working on a new brand for all of these programs called Ride Baltimore. She will be conducting outreach using a variety of tactics to expand use of these alternative transportation options. For more information, contact Tierra.Brown@Baltimore.Gov. [Presentation: Baltimore City Bike Programs & DOT Marketing] 4. SUBCOMMITTEE REPORTS & ACTION ITEMS The following subcommittee reports and action items were presented: Membership There was no meeting of this subcommittee. Public Involvement Ms. Beth Wiseman reported that the Subcommittee discussed plans for a brown bag lunch. Since MDOT is already planning an event on seniors and transportation for May 16, the group decided to take some time to plan their own event for late summer or early fall. The group is currently looking to host a webinar on health and transportation, followed by a meeting on aging and transportation. Next, the group reviewed BRTB Resolution #12-24 for Title VI Notice and Complaint Procedure. They recommend that complaints also be accepted electronically ( and fax). The next meeting of the Subcommittee is scheduled for Wednesday, June 6, at 4 p.m. Policy and Legislation Mr. Chris Diaczok reported that the Subcommittee reviewed BRTB Resolution #12-24 for Title VI Notice and Complaint Procedure. The group recommended a number of items, including that the BRTB address other protected classes and the creation of a single non-discrimination policy to cover individuals protected under other federal, state, and local statutes. In addition, for public notices outside of BRTB documents, the CAC recommends additional language about what the BRTB is. The CAC also agreed with the Public Involvement subcommittee s recommendation to include electronic submissions. These items were adopted in CAC Resolution #12-9 (with one abstention by Ms. Mary Alexander who submitted comments separately). The next meeting of this Subcommittee is 4:30 p.m. on Wednesday, June REPORT ON RECENT AND UPCOMING BRTB MEETINGS Ms. Regina Aris reported on the April 24 th BRTB meeting. Minutes of this meeting are available online at The next meeting of the BRTB is scheduled for May 24, 2012 at 9 am. Minutes and a calendar of meeting dates for the BRTB and its subcommittees are available on the BMC web site at:

4 Citizens Advisory Committee May 2, 2012 Page No. 4 of 4 6. JUNE AGENDA, OTHER BUSINESS, AND ANNOUNCEMENTS The following announcements were made: The 2012 Federal Certification Review of the BRTB is scheduled for late June. During this time, a public meeting will be held on June 26 at 6 pm and on June 27 a BRTB meeting with elected and appointed officials will be held at 4:30 pm at BMC. The July CAC meeting will be held on Tuesday, June 26 from 4:30 to 5:30 pm. This change was made to coincide with the BRTB Certification Public Meeting (CAC members are asked to attend), as well as the need to reschedule the July meeting due to the Independence Day holiday. Red Line CAC meeting on May 10 at 7:00 pm. Transportation Advocates meeting on May 31st will feature Mr. John Powell, the new administrator for the Howard County Office of Transportation. The BMC operates a speaker s bureau on a variety of transportation and planning topics. Interested members should contact Ms. Haines Benkhedda about scheduling a speaker for a community, organization or business group. The public comment period for the MTA TIP Amendment is open through Friday, May 4, Details can be found at: The meeting adjourned at 7:30 pm. The next meeting is Wednesday, June 6, 2012 at 5:30 pm.

5 Guilford Avenue Bike Boulevard BIKE MONTH! Baltimore s Bicycle Program Bike Month 2012 Annapolis, Maryland Baltimore Regional Transportation Board Citizens Advisory Committee Recent Improvements

6 WHAT S NEXT? Bike Counts Bicycle Master Plan Update Downtown Bicycle Network Bike Lane Improvements Jones Falls Trail, Phase 4 Free Bike Racks! Nate Evans Bicycle & Pedestrian Planner Baltimore Department of Transportation nate.evans@baltimorecity.gov Baltimore Bike Community Blog CHARM CITY BIKESHARE 2 nd EDITION BIKE MAP

7 Tactics Scheduled Events Community Outreach Social Media Gorilla Marketing Contact Me Tierra Brown Marketing Coordinator DOT Planning Division What does the DOT Marketing Coordinator do? Guaranteed Ride Home RideShare SchoolPool Carfree Incentive Vanpool Introducing

8 BRTB CAC Resolution #12 9 A RESOLUTION REGARDING TITLE VI PUBLIC NOTICE AND COMPLAINT PROCEDURE FOR THE BALTIMORE REGIONAL TRANSPORTATION BOARD (BRTB) BY THE CITIZEN ADVISORY COMMITTEE (CAC) OF THE BRTB WHEREAS, the BRTB, the Metropolitan Planning Organization for the Baltimore region responsible for transportation planning and policy making for the Baltimore region, has prepared the proposed Title VI Public Notice and Complaint Procedure; and WHEREAS, the CAC Serves as an advisory body to the BRTB, charged with providing independent, regionoriented citizen advice to the BRTB on issues related to the development of the Baltimore Regional Transportation Plan (BRTP), Unified Planning Work Program (UPWP), Transportation Improvement Program (TIP) and amendments that affect the region s conformity with federal air quality requirements, the public involvement process, regionally significant land use issues, and other regional transportation related issues, as appropriate, promotes public awareness and participation in the regional transportation planning process and promotes equity in the regional transportation planning process; and WHEREAS, the CAC has reviewed and discussed BRTB Resolution #12 24: Title VI Public Notice and Complaint Procedure; THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, the following advisory comments are hereby submitted by the CAC to the BRTB for consideration of incorporation into the proposed Title VI Public Notice and Complaint Procedure: Resolution #12 24: Approval of Title IV Public Notice for the Baltimore Regional Transportation Board Advisory recommendations include: The CAC appreciates and encourages the public notification, as required by the governing federal agency. The CAC requests the Board that it consider: o The exclusion of other federal and state protected classes of citizens besides those specifically mentioned in the Notice; o The exclusion of policies about which a complaint can be made, in addition to incidents; o The inclusion of appropriate state and other federal requirements not included in this Notice, in order to create one non discrimination policy; o The inclusion of as a way complaints can be made; and, o More, specific language on what the BRTB is at the beginning of the Notice. BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that by majority approval, the Notice with associated comments has been approved by the BRTB Citizen Advisory Committee at its meeting of 02 May BE IT FINALLY RESOLVED, the CAC thanks the BRTB for this opportunity to participate through this opportunity to comment. The CAC thanks the BRTB staff for facilitating our participation. Submitted by; Stephen Lauria Chairman, BRTB Citizen Advisory Committee Page 1 2 May 2012

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