Designing Delaware Intersections for People
Rethinking Eight Delaware Intersections
On November 19 some of the smartest and most experienced national and international transportation experts (see below) will bring their best design ideas to improve intersections to Delaware.
Of 50 intersections nominated by people all across Delaware, each of these experts chose one for an entire conference session to focus on.
Thank you!
Thank you for attending Bike Delaware’s 2020 Virtual Conference. Links to the recordings of each session are available below.
Please note: The 2021 conference website is available at https://intersections2021.bikede.org.
Sessions:
Welcome
9:00am – 9:30am (EST)
Q. What is the most challenging obstacle to creating safer streets for people cycling and walking in Delaware communities?
A. Intersections
Making intersections safe for people when intersections are also being used by vehicles is a challenge for even the most motivated engineers.
George Meldrum President, AARP Delaware
George Meldrum is AARP Delaware’s State President, their top volunteer role in Delaware. Mr. Meldrum has an extensive background in advocacy, administration and health policy development. He had a long career as a lobbyist with the Nemours Children’s Health System. He also has held leadership roles at the Delaware Council on Gambling, the Department of Services for Children Youth and their Families, and the Delaware Division of Mental Health. Earlier in his career, he was a Social Worker for Delaware Child Protective Services. He has also served on numerous high-level committees such as the Governor’s Advisory Council on Substance Abuse and Mental Health as well as numerous local non-profit boards. He was awarded the AARP Andrus Award for his volunteer leadership in the community.
Mark Luszcz Deputy Director (Design), Delaware Department of Transportation
Mark Luszcz is a Deputy Director for the Delaware Department of Transportation (DelDOT). He supervises the primary design sections of DelDOT, including the Pavement Management, Project Development, Bridge/Structures, and Traffic Engineering Sections with over $600 million in capital projects annually. He has been a leader in several of DelDOT’s most significant non-motorized transportation initiatives, including the Delaware Avenue Separated Bikeway project, color-unique bicycle wayfinding signage and the US 13, US 40 to Memorial Drive Pedestrian Improvements project.
The Dutch Return to “New Amstel” (aka New Castle)
9:40am – 11:15am (EST)
Chestnut Street (SR273) & E. 6th Street
Dick van Veen Senior Designer, Dickvanveen Street Design Public Space
Dick van Veen is an urban designer and engineer with over 15 years of experiences designing safe and vibrant streets and places.
Delaware Street (SR273) & Basin Road (SR141)
Lennart Nout Planner and Urban Designer, Mobycon
Lennart Nout is a planner and urban designer at Mobycon, an independent research and consulting company focused on traffic, transport and mobility.
Frenchtown Road (SR273) & Dupont Highway (US13)
Maurits Lopes Cardozo Principal Designer and Founder, Bike-minded
Maurits Lopes Cardozo is principal designer and founder of Bike-minded: a Dutch innovation studio specializing in design and innovation for bicycle mobility offering creative design and engineering expertise to help cities transition to bicycle friendly, safe, attractive and sustainable transportation.
Centre Road & Faulkland Road (just west of Wilmington)
11:25am – 12:15pm (EST)
This session will apply the ’20 Flag Method’ for pedestrian and bicyclist safety at intersections developed under NCHRP 07-25 (Download PDF, 2MB) to an intersection near Wilmington. The method systematically assesses twenty common safety concerns for all pedestrian and bicyclist movements, and identifies ‘yellow flags’ and ‘red flags’ in the design. Yellow flags are those tied to concern for comfort and quality of service for pedestrians and bicyclists, while red flags are those tied to specific safety concerns for non-motorized users. The session will also offer two design alternatives for the intersections, including one focused on low cost countermeasures and one focused on overall re-design of the intersection.
Bastian Schroeder Principal Engineer, Kittelson & Associates
Bastian Schroeder is a principal engineer at Kittelson & Associates, specializing in multimodal safety, design, and operations, and was the lead investigator for NCHRP 07-25 on Pedestrian and Bicycle Safety at Alternative Intersections and Interchanges.
Shannon Warchol Senior Engineer, Kittelson & Associates
Shannon Warchol is a senior engineer at Kittelson & Associates based in Pittsburgh, PA, who works with local, state, and federal clients to develop solutions in safety and operations for all modes at intersections and interchanges, with a special focus on alternative and innovative designs.
Savannah Road & Gills Neck Road (Lewes)
1:00pm – 1:40pm (EST)
Bike lanes or left turn lanes? While Savannah Road in Lewes is wide enough to have bike lanes, it looks like there’s no space for bike lanes at the intersection because of the need for left turn lanes.
Learn about a solution called an "informal flare" that would allow continuous bike lanes while preserving the functionality of left turn lanes. This treatment can be the key to bicycle safety at intersections involving streets 30 to 40 feet wide.
Peter Furth Professor of Civil Engineering, Northeastern University
Peter Furth is a professor of civil engineering at Northeastern University who has taught bicycle infrastructure design to engineering students in courses and workshops since 2007.
Orange Street Protected Intersections (Wilmington)
1:50pm – 2:30pm (EST)
In Wilmington, the Riverfront Development Corporation decided to make a bold move and provide bike lanes with protected intersections along a brand new street – Orange Street – which will be built with the South Market Street improvements project and which will create a safe route for people using bicycles away from the heavy vehicle traffic of nearby Market Street. This session will highlight design considerations of several protected intersections along Orange Street, with particular attention to the intersection at Howard Street and the Central Green.
Nathan George Bicycle and Pedestrian Practice Lead, RK&K
Nathan George leads RK&K’s Bicycle and Pedestrian Practice, developing plans for low-stress bicycle facilities, ADA compliant and multimodal intersection improvements and supporting Vision Zero efforts throughout the mid-Atlantic region.
Library Avenue (SR72) & Wyoming Road (Newark)
2:40pm – 3:30pm (EST)
“Protected Intersection”? or Roundabout? Learn step-by-step procedures for applying these design concepts. This intersection, near the U. Delaware campus, doesn’t really need channelized right turn lanes with pork chop islands.
It could be a lot safer and more attractive for pedestrians and cyclists if reconfigured as either a “protected intersection” or single-lane roundabout, using design practices perfected in the Netherlands over many decades. The step-by-step procedures for applying these design concepts will apply the intersection of any pair of two-lane roads, including roads with moderately high traffic volumes.
Peter Furth Professor of Civil Engineering, Northeastern University
Peter Furth is a professor of civil engineering at Northeastern University who has taught bicycle infrastructure design to engineering students in courses and workshops since 2007.
East Cleveland Avenue & Paper Mill Road (Newark)
3:40pm – 4:25pm (EST)
The five-leg intersection of Cleveland Avenue, Paper Mill Road, Chapel Street, and Margaret Street in Newark has been an issue in terms of multimodal access and congestion for at least 30 years. The opening of the Pomeroy Trail in 2012 - which passes directly through this intersection and is one of the most popular paved pathways in the entire state of Delaware - only intensified this intersection's complexity. In this session, Jeff Riegner will review the unique constraints at this intersection and offer design suggestions for discussion by attendees.
Jeff Riegner Vice President, Whitman Requardt & Associates
Jeff Riegner is a vice president at Whitman, Requardt & Associates, a member of the ITE International Board of Direction, past chair of the organization’s Pedestrian and Bicycle Council, and a member of the National Complete Streets Coalition steering committee.