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Study Recommendations
Per the mandates of Ballot Initiative 200, the Northern Colorado Truck Mobility/State Highway (SH) 14 Relocation Study has examined three key issues germane to through truck travel in the City of Fort Collins and northern Larimer County:
- Assessment of non-route based strategies intended to encourage through truck traffic to use the Interstate system (I-25 and I-80) as opposed to the existing SH 14/US 287 route currently favored by the trucking industry
- A comprehensive evaluation of alternate routes for SH 14, located a minimum of 2 miles north of the City of Fort Collins Growth Management Area (GMA)
- Research of funding mechanisms that could be pursued to fund the study recommendations and the issues related to them
Non-route Based Strategy Recommendations
Even with the controversy surrounding this study, there was agreement between all interests that the non-route based strategies provided the best potential for addressing the problem with the least amount of community impact. The non-route based strategy recommendations are less costly to implement than an alternate route, but do not have the same potential of removing the majority of the through trucks off the existing SH 14/US 287 route as an alternate route would. The intent from the start of the study was that a variety of non-route based strategies would be recommended to address the problem from different perspectives. The non-route based strategy recommendations include:
- Marketing committee. Developing a marketing committee to create messages highlighting the benefits of using the Interstate
This recommendation built upon the work of the Triangle Project (see Section 1.2) in the mid 1990's to address truck traffic in the City of Fort Collins. The marketing committee will be responsible for selecting the media that will be used to communicate the message. The media options were prioritized as shown in Figure 9.1 based on input from the trucking industry in terms of their effectiveness of communicating the message.
High Priority
Articles in
publications
Brochures
Map routes
Private trucking
company outreach
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Medium Priority
CDOT website:
Cotrip.org
Highway advisory
radio (HAR)
Internet advertising
Safety meeting
reminders
Variable message
signs (VMS)
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Low Priority
Billboards
Kiosks at truck
stops
Paycheck mailers
Radio ads
Video
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- Downtown truck operation study. Conducting a study to address local and regional truck traffic to reduce congestion in the downtown area
Topics for evaluation include an operational evaluation of how and when local businesses take deliveries. One option is the development of a local task force including local business owners, trucking industry representatives, and City of Fort Collins elected officials. This task force could investigate issues related to downtown truck traffic and work cooperatively to address the problem. This study effort has been suggested for inclusion in a downtown strategic plan to be completed in 2002.onducting a study to address local and regional truck traffic including outreach with local businesses to reduce congestion in the downtown area. Topics for evaluation include an operational evaluation of how and when local businesses take deliveries.
- Incident management study. Conducting an incident management study to address how traffic is handled when US 287, I-25, and/or I-80 are closed during adverse weather conditions or other incidents
The incident management study should be a collaborative effort between Wyoming, Colorado, the City of Laramie, the City of Cheyenne, Wellington, and the City of Fort Collins to investigate where road closures would occur, define a chain of command for notifying different agencies, and establishing proper protocol for handling road closures.
- Compression brake workshop. Conducting a workshop with local law enforcement regarding the existing compression brake law
The workshop would focus on the specifics of the ordinances, the fines assessed, and what to look for in terms of trucks violating the ordinance. Trucking industry participation is also strongly recommended in the workshop.
- Potential future redesignation. Assessing the potential for future redesignation of SH 14 if a reasonable new alternate route is constructed
If a new alternate route is built, a request can be made to the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) and the Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT) to revise the designation of the existing SH 14 portion of the route. The existing SH 14 portion of the route would ultimately become the responsibility of the City of Fort Collins for maintenance.
- Continued regulatory enforcement. Continuing enforcement of speed limits, random mobile weigh station inspections, and enforcement of the five-mile radius requirement for trucks to clear the Port of Entry (POE)
Although it does not specifically discourage use of the existing route, continued or even increased enforcement of these existing regulations help ensure safer roadways. Increased inspections would require coordination with the Colorado State Patrol (CSP), Federal Motor Carrier safety representatives, and the Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance to ensure compliance with recognized inspection standards. Any inspections conducted by local agencies should be completed by a certified inspector working closely with other commercial vehicle regulatory agencies.
- Measure of effectiveness. Establishing a mechanism to measure the effects that the non-route based strategies have on moving truck traffic to the Interstate
Using the information from the Truck Origin and Destination Study (see Section 4.0) as a benchmark, a process to measure the effectiveness of the non-route based strategies, if implemented, would help decision-makers decide if they want to continue funding the effort.
Alternate Routes
Alternate Route Considerations
Based on the results of the screening analysis and funding investigation, there are some specific considerations that are included with the alternate route recommendations. A comprehensive analysis of potential alternate routes north of County Road (CR) 58 has been completed. There is a need for more detailed analysis to assess the potential benefits and impacts of the remaining alternate routes. The more detailed level of analysis necessary is an environmental analysis based on the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). This level of analysis is required based on the need for federal funding or state funding that has federal sources. Under the NEPA analysis, all reasonable alternatives must be considered including a no-action alternative and potential routes south of the CR 58 boundary requirements of the Northern Colorado Truck Mobility/SH 14 Relocation Study. There is an existing conflict between the language of Ballot Initiative 200 and the requirements of NEPA that would need to be addressed by the City of Fort Collins and Larimer County. Moving forward toward an alternate route solution requires full cooperation of CDOT, Larimer County, and Fort Collins.
CDOT Position
- The City of Fort Collins and Larimer County must agree on a preferred solution and its priority to move forward
- A NEPA study must be conducted including all reasonable alternatives
- CDOT's policy regarding new and improved interchanges including desirable and minimum spacing must be followed
- The potential for additional lane miles must be considered including additional cost to either Larimer County or the City of Fort Collins to take on additional miles of the alternate route over the existing route
Larimer County Position
- IT is not appropriate to express a preference of any alternate routes
- Concerned that not all potentially feasible routes have been considered because of the limitations of the ballot initiative
- At this time, do not support the relocation of SH 14
Joint submission of the project to Upper Front Range and North Front Range by Larimer County and Fort Collins would be a likely first step to move an alternate route forward. To solidify support for the pursuit of an alternate route, CDOT's Project Priority Planning Process should be used including establishing the project as a high priority in both Upper Front Range and North Front Range Transportation Planning Regions.
Alternate Route Recommendations
Numerous issues need to be addressed to pursue an alternate route selection including identifying a funding source, establishing regional priorities for the project, developing a shared commitment from the City of Fort Collins, Larimer County, and CDOT, and conducting a NEPA study to address all of the potential issues to solve the problem. Based on these issues and the results of the analysis completed as part of this study, if a NEPA study is convened, the following corridors should be considered among the full range of alternatives:
- County Road 70 and 70/72 corridor
- County Road 66 corridor
- County Road 58 corridor
These corridors are shown in below:
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