Routes around South Tahoe Middle School may soon be safer

If you've ever driven by South Tahoe Middle School just as the kids get to school, or as they depart, you know what an unsafe area it can be for students on bikes and on foot. Because of this, the Lake Tahoe Unified School District secured a $154,000 grant from the TRPA On Our Way program to work with the Lake Tahoe Sustainability Collaborative to conduct outreach and develop a connectivity and mobility plan for the area.

The plan to improve connectivity, safety,and economic vitality for students, families, and the rest of the community is now prepared and will be presented to the South Lake Tahoe City Council on Tuesday, May 5.

The Lake Tahoe Sustainability Collaborative Community Mobility work group has spent the last year conducting surveys, holding workshops, providing outreach and collaboration with other agencies to come up with a project concept. The community member who have participated helped them come up with a concept that includes significant safety improvements, a new Class 1 bike and multi-base part adjacent to the Middle School, Class II bike lanes on both sides of Al Tahoe, new sidewalk infrastructure, and intersection improvements at Al Tahoe and Highway 50, and Al Tahoe at Johnson Boulevard.

The mobility enhancements will help link a number of existing trail facilities, recreational amenities, and planning future improvements, including a comprehensive trail network envisioned for the Lake Tahoe Community College campus and the South Shore Greenway multi-use path. It will improve the safety of access for South Tahoe Middle School students and the scenic and functional design of access to the businesses and services at the Tahoe Center.

At Tuesday's City Council meeting the work group will be making a presentation on the concept plan and ask that the City apply for, and accept, the State of California Active Transportation Program (ATP) Grant funding for the design and implementation of the Middle School Connectivity Plan. The next ATP grant is available isn't until 2017 and this year's grant is different than in years past because it does not require any matching funds. The Public Works department as well as the City Manager both signed a letter to City Council in support of the City's application for the grant.

The grant is worth $2,161,000, and, if awarded, would fund the plans, specifications, engineering, and construction of the project. It would require an estimated in-kind City staff match of approximately $83,000 and an annual bike path operations and maintenance cost of $5,650 that Measure S funds could cover.

At this time the mobility project is not included in the City's five year Capital Improvement Plan but if the grant is awarded, it will be.