Responsible Growth Coalition HomepageResponsible Growth Coalition

Encouraging transportation solutions consistent with safety, environmental, and wildlife core values.

By

RGC comments on Public Review Draft of Integrated Transportation Plan (ITP).

July 24, 2015

TO:
Teton County Board of County Commissioners
Mr. Tyler Sinclair, Teton County Planning Director
Via email to council@townofjackson.com, commissioners@tetonwyo.org, sbirdyshaw@tetonwyo.org and tsinclair@tetonwyo.org

Dear Commissioners and Council Members:

We write on behalf of the Responsible Growth Coalition as a follow-up to the July 6 JIM on the Public Review Draft of the Jackson/Teton Integrated Transportation Plan (ITP). Our organization has secured signatures of at least 330 individuals who share our concerns about the Draft ITP’s prioritization and inclusion of a proposed Tribal Trails Connector (“TTC”).

At the July 6, 2015 JIM, the County Commissioners and the Town Councilors focused on two key transportation challenges they seek to address: (1) increased traffic and congestion at the Y Intersection of US Hwy 89 and WY22; and (2) the need for redundancy to allow emergency vehicles to access South Park and the West Bank in the event of an emergency or a blocking accident at the Y Intersection.

As currently proposed, the TTC is a bypass road that, if built, would dump 13,000 vehicles per day into a quiet rural and residential area and a dense zone of six schools and 15 athletic playfields. As recently as 2010, it was estimated that 2/3 of these vehicles would be non-local traffic. More current information has not been obtained either by the Engineering Staff or the Consultant retained to develop the Draft ITP.

We believe it would be a grave mistake for our County and Town Elected Officials to make any commitment in the ITP to build a TTC. The current prioritization and inclusion of the TTC is based on incomplete and stale data and critical analysis of impacts of the proposed bypass and viable alternatives is missing. Even Engineer O’Malley conceded at the July 6 JIM that he lacked current traffic information on the volume of vehicles (local or non-local) that might use a proposed TTC and had yet to engage in any analysis of safety or environmental implications of a proposed TTC.

At the July 6 JIM, the Board and Council agreed that there must be additional information, data, and critical analysis before the numerous questions surrounding a proposed TTC can be answered. Accordingly, the Elected Officials should direct their staff to obtain and make public the following critical data and analyses before further considering a proposed TTC:

 

  1. Current and accurate information about existing and anticipated traffic on WY 22 and US 89 through the Y, as well as the anticipated volumes of vehicles per day that are expected to use the proposed TTC, South Park Loop Road, and proposed East-West bypass road ;
  2.  A complete analysis of the safety, environmental, and other impacts that a TTC would have on South Park residential neighborhoods and their residents and the children who attend all of the schools on the proposed bypass route;
  3. A full and fair analysis of alternatives to address the two key transportation challenges of increased traffic at the Y and redundancy access options for emergency vehicles, including using the existing one lane pathway for emergency vehicles only between WY22 and South Park Loop Road similar to the new Snake River Bridge.

This critical data can be obtained by the County and Town staff; however, it will take additional time and funding to do so. For that reason, the portion of the Draft ITP relating to a proposed TTC should be removed from the ITP or deferred until such data and analysis is provided and considered.
Our request to defer consideration of a TTC is consistent with the Comprehensive Plan and the many comments voiced by the County and Town Elected Officials, along with their staff, at the July 6 JIM. The Comprehensive Plan requires the Elected Officials to protect the health, safety, and welfare of the County’s residents and preserve the community in which we live. The proposed TTC would involve building multiple new roads in a quiet rural and residential area in which six schools and fifteen athletic fields are located. At the July 6 meeting, Elected Officials and their staff noted:

  1. There should be a redesign and improvement of the Y first (Allen);
  2. We can build our way out of traffic problems with improvements at the Y (O’Malley)
  3. Roundabouts are 2-3 times more efficient at moving traffic than signal lights (O’Malley)
  4. We need to get our hands around safety issues for foot and bike traffic on the TTC (Flitner)
  5. There are too many unanswered questions about the TTC (Allen)
  6. We need more meetings to encourage additional public review and outreach (Vogelheim)
  7. We need to figure out how to make the TTC safe, get it right, and look at alternatives (Rhea)
  8. We should make sure we understand correct data (Flitner)
  9. I’m very much in favor of bringing people in and getting as much comment as possible (Newcomb)
  10. I recommend to staff that they come up with concept drawings of what the TTC would look like (Vogelheim)

We ask you, the Elected Officials, to direct your staff at the next JIM to gather and make public the necessary information and analysis that we request outlined above to allow for an informed decision about how to address these key traffic issues as they relate to the Y Intersection and a proposed TTC. In addition, we ask that additional opportunity for public input be provided once this additional information is obtained and disclosed to the public and prior to inclusion of a proposed TTC in the Draft ITP.

Mr. Sinclair stated at the July 6 JIM that “it is time for you to decide if there are any projects that you would like in or not in the Plan.” Mr. O’Malley previously told you that you would be “married” to the ITP (June 1 JIM) and you were told that it would serve as the staff’s “blueprint and action plan.” (July 6 JIM). Given the level of commitment you are making and the absolute lack of critical information and analyses that are needed for consideration and approval of a proposed TTC, we again respectfully suggest that a proposed TTC be removed from the Draft ITP and any decision related to a proposed TTC be deferred until the above-requested data and information is gathered and analysis is complete and made public. Alternatively, you could request that the Draft ITP be amended to require in-depth exploration of alternatives and design and development of major capital projects, including a proposed TTC, before the Draft ITP is adopted.

Thank you for consideration of this letter and our requests.

Sincerely,
On Behalf of the Executive Committee of the Responsible Growth Coalition
Jason Anderson
Michele Gammer
cc: Nicole Krieger