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DocuSign Envelope ID: 995081 CD-4210-4510-917F-5964CE6776F4 February 12, 2024 Councilperson Kyle Baker Lakewood City Council 12650 Detroit Avenue Lakewood, OH 44107 Dear Councilperson Baker, On behalf of LakewoodAlive, I write regarding the Active Transportation Taskforce and proposed Plan. I have been most appreciative of the opportunity to participate with this taskforce and am thankful to the City's Planning Department for inviting me and LakewoodAlive to have a seat at the table. The proposed Active Transportation Plan has many terrific action items and proposed ideas that I am thrilled to see introduced for discussion, consideration and implementation. Seeking to further bolster pedestrian and cyclist safety is critical in a built -out, historic community such as Lakewood while also emphasizing their ability to traverse the city. I am proud to be part of a community that doesn't over -emphasize vehicles over people as many locales do and encouraged that we are aiming to do more along these lines. Of particular interest is the ability for pedestrians to navigate intersections and street crossings more safely. I applaud the steps to facilitate the flow of pedestrians, especially children in a community where busing is not provided, more easily and safely. Bump -outs and raised crossings will be tremendously helpful and I'd encourage signalization be configured to show the "walk man" at all crossings when appropriate, even if a push button wasn't activated. Necking down the distance to cross will help with pedestrian safety and the amount of time it takes to cross, while in some cases, create an additional on -street parking space with a defined bump -out and curb. The bump -outs are especially important near schools and across Clifton Boulevard as we balance a 7 -lane multi -modal corridor. I am also encouraged with regard to improving our community's cycling infrastructure. Of particular note is a proposed path that runs parallel to the Norfolk Southern train tracks. This east -west corridor would provide the protected cycling path many desire that runs near Detroit Avenue. This provides an opportunity for an incredibly safe way to cross the city as Detroit Avenue, in its current configuration, cannot accommodate parking lanes, two directionals and a center turn lane while also serving as a federal truck route. Per the recommendation from Toole Design, I am happy to help in any way with a volunteer committee or simply suggest we look to existing committees and commission, like the Planning Commission, as a collaborative group to work with the Planning and Public Works Departments for these projects. Thank you for the opportunity to serve on the taskforce and for the opportunity provide feedback. Sincerely, Ian Andrews Executive Director LakewoodAlive