The University of Wyoming's quest to gather public input for a Transportation and Parking Master Plan continues Thursday, Feb. 21, with two open forum meetings.
The first forum, designed for UW faculty, staff and students, begins at 4
p.m. in Room 133 of the Classroom Building. The second forum, for
Laramie area residents, is set for 7 p.m. at the Laramie High School
cafeteria.
"We are looking forward to the opportunity to discuss future
transportation, parking and mobility solutions with both UW community
members and the City of Laramie," says Mark Collins, UW's associate vice
president for administration. "Our consultant for this project, Stantec
Consulting, has done an excellent job of collecting data, surveying
user groups and examining best practices in the transportation field. I
hope everyone takes the opportunity to join us for this important
dialogue."
Stantec, which was hired in October to head the project -- a joint
effort of the university, the City of Laramie and the Wyoming Department
of Transportation -- has gathered "critical" input at two previous
forum meetings, says Chuck Huffine, project manager for Stantec.
Stantec plans to present its final recommendations to the public at the fourth forum
in March.
The primary purpose of the master plan study is to analyze various
elements related to mobility, transit and parking demands on and around
the UW campus and to provide recommendations for future improvement.
Stantec has studied primary routes near the UW campus, including Grand
Avenue and 15th Street, as well as secondary routes, such as Ivinson
Street and Lewis Street, to determine sets of existing and projected
mobility, safety and parking needs and issues.
In addition to developing a 10-year plan, which could include parking
program changes, parking capital projects, a revised transportation
management system or mobility and safety capital projects, Stantec will
prepare a short-term plan to help mitigate transportation disruptions
around campus.
Stantec will rely on several sets of data, including 24-hour machine
traffic counts, pedestrian and bicycle counts, parking occupancy and
turnover rates, accident statistics and transit routes, schedules and
ridership numbers, to help develop its long- and short-term plans.
Founded in 1954, Stantec provides professional design and consulting
services in planning, engineering, architecture, surveying, economics
and project management. For more information, go to the Web site www.stantec.com.