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September 28th, 2005

Groups believe they can come up with better Arthur Avenue plan

By BETSY COHEN of the Missoulian

Congestion, bicycle and pedestrian safety, and creating a harmonious link between the University of Montana and the neighborhood surrounding it were among the concerns Tuesday night at a discussion of a preliminary plan to realign U.S. Highway 12 and widen Arthur Avenue near campus.

The informational meeting was hosted by the student-sponsored group ASUM Transportation and Missoula Advocates for Sustainable Transportation and was not attended by the partners in the transportation plan, which include the Montana Department of Transportation, the city of Missoula and UM.

The meeting was "not to tell people how to think, but just to get the information out there," said Kimberly Pappas, a member of ASUM Transportation.

Organizers of the meeting said they were concerned few people in Missoula and the campus community didn't know about the plan because the public has been largely left out of the planning process.

"I don't think this is a very good process," said Alex Taft, a university area homeowner and a member of MAST.

Calling it a "bad process" with a "bad product," Taft said he believes current planning needs to be stopped and reassessed by all parties involved, and the whole project should start over with more community involvement.

Millions of dollars shouldn't be wasted on the current plan, Taft said, "when it doesn't benefit the neighborhood."

If the $2.5 million preliminary plan goes forward, Arthur Avenue between Fifth Street and the foot of the Madison Street Bridge will be widened from 40 feet to 90 feet. Three UM-owned homes and a large swath of Jeannette Rankin Park would be paved over to create two additional lanes that would allow Sixth Street traffic to drive north on Arthur to access the bridge. The plan also calls for the addition of several new street lights.

Everyone at the meeting - about 24 people, most of whom were affiliated with the two organizing groups - agreed the area is a navigational headache and needs improvement.

They also agreed that the Missoula community and its concerned citizens could come up with a better plan than the one currently being discussed by state, city and UM officials.

"It's hard to tell the size of the project," said Benjamin Courteau, a member of ASUM Transportation. "It's kind of a Reserve Street size, and that has a lot of us concerned."

The area near the bridge has a lot of foot and bike traffic, and Courteau is worried a wider road will allow more vehicles that will likely move faster, making it even more difficult for people to cross.

Bob Giordano, director of Missoula Institute for Sustainable Transportation, offered an alternative plan.

Highlights of his plan, titled the "Citizens Plan," advocates the use of roundabouts, not traffic lights, at the intersections of Fifth and Arthur and Sixth Street and Arthur. The plan also calls for turning Madison Street Bridge into a two-lane bridge and converting the current northbound lanes over the bridge into a greenway.

The roundabouts would likely be more efficient, audience members suggested, if semi-trailers and other large vehicles could access Interstate 90 via Reserve Street instead of driving through the university neighborhood.

Rerouting traffic prompted many questions from the audience, to which answers were not readily available.

Among them, why does Highway 12 go through the university area? Why aren't large trucks routed onto Reserve Street? How does the project benefit the neighborhood and the city? And how can this plan be improved?

Reporter Betsy Cohen can be reached at 523-5253 or at bcohen@missoulian.com

Arthur Avenue update

ASUM Transportation will host a second informational meeting to talk about a Montana Department of Transportation project to widen Arthur Avenue as part of its U.S. Highway 12 realignment project. The meeting is 5 p.m. Sunday in Room 330 of the University of Montana's University Center.

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