Southeast Washington School Walk Route Study Data Collection and Analysis Project Leonard Jennings Elementary School Fast Facts Travel Mode: <10% of the student body is estimated to walk or bike to school Student Population: 325 City of Colfax Population: 2,805 (2010 US Census) north side of the high school. During peak school hours, the school gates off the section of N Morton Street in front of the school. This policy improves traffic circulation around the school during pick up/dropoff times. The entrance to the school is served by marked pedestrian crossings and complete sidewalks. Bike racks are located between the high school and elementary school in the area behind the home baseball dugout Plans Leonard Jennings Elementary School does not have an existing safe routes to school plan or a safe walking route map for students. School adminstrators have been actively pursuing safety projects related to walking to school. Intersections and Crossing Guard Locations There is not a crossing guard program in place for Leonard Jennings students. N Morton is closed during school drop off hours to improve access and circulation around the school during this busy period. The recent installation of a signalized high visibilty crossing at the intersection of N Main Street and E Tyler Street also provides a vital connection for students that must cross N Main Street. School Route Conditions Most routes to school are characterized by a complete sidewalk network, marked crosswalks, and accompanying school route warning signs. In addition, an existing trail along the Palouse River provides quality access to the schoolgrounds for students living northwest of the school. However, some students within walking distance to the school are bussed in due to traffic safety concerns. Existing Conditions Siting Leonard Jennings Elementary School is located between N Morton Street and E 4th Street (east and west) and E 6th Street to the north. The main entrance to the school is on Parkview Drive. The student bus drop off for all but the special education bus is on the north side of the elementary school. Drop off location for parents is in front of the elementary school and on the Appendix: School Site Evaluations and Recommendations page 94 The new signalized crossing at N Main Street and E Tyler Street significantly improves pedestrian access across Hwy 195 A well-worn path cutting through a local rail yard is a school access safety concern Southeast Washington School Walk Route Study Data Collection and Analysis Project Southeast Washington School Walk Route Study Data Collection and Analysis Project Engineering Recommendations Crossings As the standard marked crosswalks at school crossings degrade over time these should be upgraded to high visibility crosswalks. New high visibility crossings should be provided at the intersections of Clay Street/3rd Street, 2nd Street/Sumner Street, and E 1st Street/N Morton Street. This latter intersection would also benefit from a reduction in curb radii, via a curb extension, on the northwest corner of the intersection. Speed feedback displays are also recommended in two locations near the school—at E 3rd Street and N Morton Street and at E 6th Street and N Morton Street. Sidewalks A significant sidewalk gap on Parkview Drive should be filled in from the intersection with 4th Street to where the sidewalk begins near the entrance to the school. There is also an opportunity to connect the neighborhood adjacent to Hauser Avenue via a trail alignment heading north and west to N Park Street. The existing utility corridor can be taken advantage of to acquire the necessary right-of-way for this trail connection. Bikeways There are no existing bikeways in Colfax. However, given the dense network of local lower volume/speed streets on designated school routes, there are opportunities to optimize bicycle travel. This may be accomplished using low impact/low cost bikeway solutions, such as wayfinding, bicycle shared lane markings (SLMs), and traffic calming as required. Streets that have been optimized for pedestrian and bicycle travel in this way are often referred to as “neighborhood greenways” or “family-friendly routes.” Streets near Leonard Jennings ES that have been identified for these types of low impact treatments include: • N Morton Street • Parkview Drive • N/S Mill Street (a high visibility crossing will be required at the intersection with SR272) • Harrison/N Clay Street • E 3rd Street 96 Leonard Jennings Elementary School £ ¤ 195 £ ¤ 195 U V 26 12Th Cedar Oak Clay Park A Morton 6Th Mill B Riverside T W Walters 9Th 3Rd Perkins 8Th Palouse Sumner 1St 10Th 11Th 2Nd 4Th Green Hollow Railroad Tyler 7Th Summer Harrison Parkview 1St Mill Park Palouse 1St WSDOT, GIS and Roadway Data Office, Source: Esri, DigitalGlobe, GeoEye, i- cubed, USDA, USGS, AEX, Getmapping, Aerogrid, IGN, IGP, swisstopo, and the GIS User Community Leonard Jennings Elementary School Engineering Recommendations 0 1,000 500 Feet F Southeast Washington Walking Study Data Collection and Analysis Project Date: June 2013 LEGEND Half-mile distance Proposed Facilities Crossing Guard Location Æ ý High visibility crossing 8 9 : L M N O Ped actuated signal Å Æ Ç School sign Í Î School zone beacon 1 2 3 | Speed sign Recommended Facilities Proposed Sidewalk Proposed Bike Lane Proposed Shared Lane Markings Proposed, Shared Use Path, å Schools Æ c Library Active Rail Line Southeast Washington School Walk Route Study Data Collection and Analysis Project Southeast Washington School Walk Route Study Data Collection and Analysis Project Non-Infrastructure Recommendations Leonard Jennings Elementary does not currently offer any walking and biking specific programs or education. Details about individual education and encouragement programs are found in Chapter Two. To further increase safe student walking and biking activity in Colfax, the following are recommended as possible next steps: • Walk/Bike to School Day/Week/Month (annually) • Back-to-School Blitz • Pedestrian and Bicycle Safety Education Course and/or Curriculum with a specific focus on crossing railroad tracks Procedural Recommendations The Washington Administrative Code (WAC) 392-151 mandates the preparation of “suggested route plans” and the distribution of a recommended school route to all elementary students. The code also provides the details of organizing and training safety patrols. The suggested route plan for Asotin is shown at right. This plan is recommended based on considerations of traffic patterns existing traffic controls, and other crossing protection aids such as school patrols. These route plans limit the number of school crossings so that students move through the crossings in groups, allowing only one entrance-exit from each block to and from school. To further increase the use of the suggested route plans, the following are recommended as next steps for the school: • Distribute the suggested route plans to all students with instructions that it be taken home and discussed with parents • Consider locations along the suggested routes where school safety patrols would be beneficial • Form a Safety Advisory Committee consisting of school administration, law enforcement, traffic engineering professionals, and the school-parent association. • Consider using Student Transportation Allocation funding as matching funds for the construction of recommended engineering improvements 98 å Leonard Jennings Elementary School £ ¤ 195 £ ¤ 195 U V 272 U V 26 Mill 12Th Cedar Oak Hilty Clay Green Hollow Palouse West Park Summit Golgotha A Morton T W Walters Deanway 6Th B Riverside River Moller Smith 9Th 3Rd Hauser Lower A Perkins Cherry Lake 8Th Upper A Last Island Ann Sumner North 1St Palouse River Edison Cromwell Wall 11Th Orchard 4Th Upton Spring Railroad Tyler 7Th Stevens Summer Rock Pells Harrison Mill Park Palouse Smith WSDOT, GIS and Roadway Data Office Leonard Jennings Elementary School Walk Route Map 0 2,000 1,000 Feet F Southeast Washington Walking Study Data Collection and Analysis Project Date: May 2013 LEGEND å Schools Crossing Guard Location Æ ý High visibility crossing Æ ý Marked crossing 8 9 : L M N O Ped actuated signal Å Æ Ç School sign Í Î School zone beacon 1 2 3 | Speed sign ! Ô Shared Use Path U Bus stop Æ c Library Existing School Route 1-mile Buffer Rail Lines of Washingtion State å £ ¤ 195 Morton 6Th 12Th Clay 3Rd Cedar Palouse Riverside Park Sumner 4Th 7Th Park 1/4 mile distance from school