BROWN-GIERGA Bill
This message is going out to OBRA Chat, and to the Willamette Valley Tandem
Club members, but please, consider forwarding this to any cyclist you know
with email, and tell any other cyclists without email about it. I don't
have an email list for GEARS or any other cycling group. If anybody does,
please consider forwarding this to them.
Chip Seal update, Thursday June 15th:
Jay Bozievich and I, have been emailing with the Lane County Commissioners,
trying to urge them to alter Public Works' new chip seal formula that they
started using last year. We are also working with the Convention and
Visitors Association of Lane County, to enlist any support they can give in
lobbying the Lane County Board, as we feel this effects tourism as well.
Eugene and Lane County, are major cycling vacation destinations.
Yesterday, at the public portion of the LC board meeting, the Commissioners
agreed to take input from the Lane County Roads Advisory Committee. This
Committee has been in place for some time. It was set up by the LC Board.
I don't know all the members, but I do know it has at least one LC
Commissioner on it, and at least one "pro cycling" citizen is on it. I
would suspect it also has someone from Public Works on it. The Roads
Advisory Committee (RAC) reports / makes recommendations to, the LC Board.
The public is allowed to bring issues to the RAC. The next RAC meeting is
on June 28th. Our hope is to persuade the RAC to consider cyclists in their
recommendations, and to work with us to minimize the impact. Anyone is
welcome to attend.
So... several commissioners expressed interest in helping the cycling
community. They have chosen the RAC as the arena and vehicle for this.
That's the good news....
The bad news is.... Lane County Public Works has already purchased and taken
delivery on the rock to be used for this years chip sealing, and, this
construction begins on July 11th. They will be doing 90 miles of chip seal,
using the new, significantly rougher mix, in the Veneta and Junction City
areas mostly.
The best the RAC debates can do is to alter policy in future years. Jay and
I are asking the LC Board to make an agenda item and hopefully then, vote to
approve that discussions be opened immediately to determine an alternate
list of roads to be chip sealed for this summer. The West Eugene area had
90 miles of new chip seal mix done last year. In my humble opinion, ruining
6 of the finest roads out there. Roads that were not previously chip
sealed. They were traditional full pavement. Now they're preparing to chip
seal another 90 miles in the SAME area. This is the most heavily used
cycling roadway system in the Eugene metro and immediate rural areas, both
for people who ride, train, and race here, and for visiting cyclists.
More bad news; In an email, Monday, from the LC Public Works engineer, to
the LC Board, he confirms something which I feared to be the worst outcome.
He confirmed that Public Works intends to eventually chip seal ALL of the
county roads. He states that, "it used to be that if a road needed
resurfacing, and that road already had pavement in the past, that we would
overlay the road (PW talk for tradition full re-paving), but that has all
changed now". He goes on to say that they now plan on chip sealing ALL
roads, even if they have never recieved chip seal in the past! And... they
are excellerating their chip seal schedule of paved roads. So, for example;
Shefler, Knight, and Poodle Creek road were all repaved just three or four
years ago. Tip top, baby bottom smooth pavement. Not a thing wrong with
it. Last year they chip sealed Knight and Shefler. They even recieved
complaints from the folks who live on these roads. Where is the sense in
this? Using cost as a justification to chip seal, but then spending tax
payers money to chip seal a brand new road that wouldn't need resurfacing
for another 15 years. And now it's looking like Poodle Creek will be done
this year. These are very popular training and racing courses.
And still more bad news; In another email, Wednesday, from the LC Public
Works Road Supervisor, to the LC Board, he states that this new chip seal
mix, and the idea of expanding chip sealing to all roads, came out of a
regional meeting of counties. And that at least four (4) other counties in
Oregon are going to this chip seal policy. He did not name the counties.
He stated that at least one of those counties was going to even LARGER rock.
He also stated that ODOT (State of Oregon) will be adopting this plan (many
roads through your cycling areas could actually be state funded roads. For
example Loraine Hwy in Eugene). This isn't just effecting Lane County, and,
we're going to see this spreading very quickly throughout the state.
It's not too late to email your commissioner. If you haven't emailed them
about asking them to return to the old chip seal formula or full re-paving,
then please consider it. And then there's the immediate problem of Veneta
and Junction City. Please consider emailing your commissioner, and asking
them to not chip seal the local cycling roads. Not the same road region
again. There are hundreds of miles of back county roads, that have been
chip sealed before, that need attention. Just because it's too late this
year, that they've already bought the larger rock, there is no reason to
target the most popular cycling areas again. Any of them. Not just Veneta
and JC.
Last note; Your emails to the Commissioners are working. They all noted
that they are recieving quite a few. Public comment works. And they are
listening. Just a few years ago, this would have been more inconvenient
(contacting your Commissioner by sending in a letter). Email has spread so
much in recent years. It easy to take a moment and send them an email.
They're reading them. Thanks.
Thanks for your support. :-)
Bill Brown-Gierga
BBrown--@HACSA.Lane.OR.US
(541) 682-2510