SB Makes Williston Rd Complete Street Permanent!

   From Local Motion

On August 20, the South Burlington City Council took the courageous step of unanimously approving the 3-lane complete street design for a 1.5 mile stretch of Williston Road! After a two month trial on Williston Road between Hinesburg Road and Kennedy Drive, South Burlington residents, the Public Works Director and the City Council all praised the process and collectively took a bold step forward to not only make this complete street trial permanent, but the Council also voted to extend the complete street eastward to near Earl's Cyclery! Former SB City Councilor Meaghan Emery, who had previously expressed concern about the complete street demonstration, said it well: "[Williston Road] feels more residential now. It doesn't feel like a highway anymore. My fears have been put to rest." We also want to give a special shout out to Local Motion member Rick Hubbard who led the SB resident advocacy effort.  Well done Rick!   Unfortunately, the news media has stirred up some negative remarks after the decision.  We need your help to keep it positive and moving forward.  Please take a moment to email SB Public Works Director Justin Rabidoux and SB City Council Chair Rosanne Greco and thank them for their forward-thinking decision and their continued support. Thank you to all the Local Motion supporters who emailed the City last month before the vote.  It made a huge difference.  The City receieved almost 170 unique comments: 92 people wrote in favor of the complete streets demonstration 75 people wrote in opposition to the demonstration 2 people were neutral in their comments Your comments make the difference!  See more pictures here. Many South Burlington residents turned out to support the complete streets design for Williston Road.  They waited for two hours for the item to come up on the agenda. Local Motion Executive Director Chapin Spencer celebrates with SB Rec Path Committee member David Jacobowitz and former Local Motion Board Members John Dinklage and Paul Briody (both from South Burlington). South Burlington resident Sarah Dopp attended the meeting and said her reason for supporting the complete street redesign was personal. "My father was stuck by a car [trying to cross Williston Road] at Davis Parkway because there was no crosswalk anywhere between Hinesburg and Kennedy. [With the new design] it is no longer a raceway. Because cars are going slower…I’ve seen much more civility and more people waving other people on."During the public forum, 6 people spoke in support of the complete street design and one spoke against it.  For more info, contact Chapin Spencer, 802-861-2700x105. Thanks to your support, the top paving coat and the permanent striping will be completed this fall. Local Motion wants to give a special thank you to SB Public Works Director Justin Rabidouxwho coordinated the city's complete streets demonstration, VTrans for being willing to undertake the demonstration during a routine paving project, the CCRPC for supporting South Burlington in the data collection and planning end of this demonstration and the South Burlington Rec Path Committee for collecting traffic counts before and after the demonstration. Check out Local Motion's original article on the demonstration here. Learn more about complete streets here.