SEPTEMBER 2015

SCOPE OF WORK

MONTGOMERY COUNTY PLANNING DEPARTMENT

M-NCPPC

MontgomeryPlanning.org

table of contents

table of contents ........................................................................................................................................... 1

introduction .................................................................................................................................................. 2
planning context ........................................................................................................................................... 2
purpose of master plan ................................................................................................................................. 4
focus on life sciences center area ................................................................................................................. 4
issues addressed in master plan ................................................................................................................... 5
community outreach..................................................................................................................................... 6
schedule ........................................................................................................................................................ 8
timeline ....................................................................................................................................................... 11

bicycle master plan SCOPE OF WORK

introduction
Bicycling is gaining popularity as a mode of transportation, especially in urbanized areas. Driven by
changing travel patterns, investments in low-stress bicycling infrastructure and increasing popularity of
bikeshare programs, the share of trips by bicycling has grown steadily throughout the United States over
the past 15 years. Montgomery County continues to make substantial investments in bicycling
infrastructure and is well-positioned to emerge as a leader in bicycling among suburban jurisdictions.
This Scope of Work defines the context, purpose and major issues to resolve for the Countys new
Bicycle Master Plan and highlights the process and time line proposed by Planning Department staff to
develop the Plan.
Stress Levels for Cyclists
When cyclists travel along roadways, they face
varying levels of stress from traffic. A quiet
residential street with a 25-mile-per-hour speed
limit presents a lower-stress setting for cyclists,
but a six-lane highway with a 40-mile-per-hour
speed limit creates a higher-stress environment
for cyclists who must share the roadway with
traffic.
Stress from traffic is affected by variables such
as traffic speed, traffic volume, the number of
traffic lanes, frequency of on-street parking
turnover and the ease of crossing intersections,
among other factors. People are more likely to
bicycle in low-stress environments, so
improving bicycling in Montgomery County
requires developing low-stress connections
between activity centers, transit facilities and
neighborhoods.

Rockville Pike is a high-stress setting.

The North Bethesda Trail is a low-stress setting.

planning context
The 1978 Master Plan of Bikeways was Montgomery Countys first countywide functional master plan
that focused solely on creating a bicycling network. Numerous master plans, sector plans and functional
plans have amended the Countys bicycle network over the past 35 years. The first major change to the
1978 plan came in the mid-1990s when the Planning Board requested that staff separate bikeways from
park trails. This differentiation led to the 1998 Countywide Park Trails Plan and the 2005 Countywide
Bikeways Functional Master Plan.
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bicycle master plan SCOPE OF WORK

Major innovations of the 2005 plan were the creation of dual bikeways to address different user
groups through on-road and off-road bikeways along the same roadway, and categorizing each bikeway
as a countywide or a local bikeway. The 2005 plan is now ripe for revision due to bicyclings resurgence,
increased emphasis placed on bicycle travel as a means of transportation and new approaches to multimodal transportation analysis.
The plan will develop a bicycling network, including bikeways and bicycle parking, for all of Montgomery
County except the City of Rockville and streets owned by the City of Gaithersburg. Planning efforts will
be coordinated with the cities to ensure that transitional areas at their borders are evaluated.

The Bicycle Master Plan will make recommendations for the entire County, except the City of Rockville
and roads owned by the City of Gaithersburg.
This plan will be coordinated with master plans that are currently underway or that will begin prior to
the Working Draft Bicycle Master Plan. These ongoing plans include the Greater Lyttonsville Sector Plan,
Westbard Sector Plan, Bethesda Downtown Plan, Montgomery Village Master Plan, Master Plan of
Highways and Transitways, White Flint II Sector Plan, Rock Spring Master Plan, MARC Rail Stations Plan,
Aspen Hill and Vicinity Plan, Montgomery Hills and Forest Glen Master Plan, Shady Grove Minor Master
Plan and Gaithersburg East Master Plan.

bicycle master plan SCOPE OF WORK

purpose of master plan

The purpose of this plan is to develop a low-stress bicycle network that can make cycling a mainstream
choice for the majority of the Countys residents and employees. It will bring bicycle recommendations
in line with industry best practices and consolidate all non-park trail bicycle recommendations into a
single plan for the first time since 1978. An emphasis will be placed on evaluating facilities that are new
to Montgomery County, such as separated bike lanes, buffered bike lanes and bicycle boulevards, as
well as secure, long-term bicycle storage facilities.
The plan will be developed using the best practices in data analysis and performance measures. It will
reflect existing and anticipated future bicycle travel patterns, especially with respect to emerging
activity centers and transit facilities, such as the planned Purple Line, Corridor Cities Transitway and
Countys bus rapid transit system.

Separated bike lanes were recently installed on Woodglen Drive in White Flint.

focus on life sciences center area

At the request of the Great Seneca Science Corridor Implementation Advisory Committee, the Planning
Department began working on a subset of the Bicycle Master Plan in April 2015 that focused on the Life
Sciences Center area. This effort is intended to facilitate access from the surrounding communities to
the Life Sciences Center and future Corridor Cities Transitway (CCT) stations, and to ensure coordination
and compatibility with the Life Science Center Loop (an off-road loop trail currently under design by the
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bicycle master plan SCOPE OF WORK

Planning Department) and development projects. A kickoff meeting was held on April 20, 2015 at the
Johns Hopkins Montgomery County Campus and was attended by approximately 40 people.

issues addressed in master plan

The Bicycle Master Plan will address the following issues:

What is the state of the practice in using data and performance metrics to develop a bicycling
network?
What are acceptable levels of traffic stress for current and potential cyclists?
What are best practices in bicycle parking at residential and commercial locations?
Where are long-term bicycle storage facilities needed and how much space do they require for
bicycle parking and other bicycle-supportive elements (such as showers, lockers, repair facilities
and changing rooms)?
How should the plan classify
bikeway recommendations,
including bikeway type (such as
bike lanes, shared use path,
separated bike lane, etc.) and
hierarchy (such as countywide
bikeways and local bikeways)?
If separated bikeways are needed
to create a low-stress bicycling
environment, when should they be
implemented as separated bike
lanes (a bike-only facility) or sharedCapital Bikeshare Was Launched in Montgomery
use paths (a facility shared with
County in September 2013
pedestrians)?
In what conditions are separated bike lanes a replacement for dual bikeways?
What is the value of signed shared roadways in master plans?
What are the best practices in developing signed bike routes?
In what contexts are bike boulevards appropriate and what are the best practices for design
elements?
How can Montgomery County maintain a living Bicycle Master Plan that displays all current
master plan recommendations in one location?
How can Montgomery County implement on-road bikeways incrementally through a
combination of private development and County-funded projects?
Are there any hard surface park trails that should be designated as bikeways and, if so, what
does that designation mean for the design, operation and maintenance of the trails?
How can space be provided for bicyclists while maintaining and enhancing a safe, active
pedestrian and urban environment?

bicycle master plan SCOPE OF WORK

community outreach
The intent of the outreach plan is to make it as easy as possible for the public to communicate with the
project team, using both traditional and social media approaches.

Kickoff meetings: Staff will conduct a series of public meetings throughout the County to discuss
the approach to the Bicycle Master Plan and receive feedback from the community. It is
envisioned that kickoff meetings will be conducted in Silver Spring, Bethesda, Wheaton,
Rockville/Shady Grove, Germantown and East County.
Technical Working Group: Staff will conduct meetings with a technical working group comprising
municipal and agency representatives. Additional meetings will be scheduled with neighboring
jurisdictions (District of Columbia, Prince Georges County, Howard County, Frederick County) at
key points during the planning process.
Advisory Group: An advisory group will be established with approximately 20 members.
Organizations that will be invited to participate in the advisory group include the Washington
Area Bicyclist Association (WABA), Montgomery Bicycle Advocates (MoBike), Pedestrian Bicycle
Traffic Safety Advisory Committee (PBTSAC), Montgomery County Civic Federation, CASA de
Maryland, Potomac Pedalers, Mid-Atlantic Off-Road Enthusiasts (MORE), Action Committee for
Transit, African American Advisory Group, Montgomery County Chamber of Commerce, Hispanic
Chamber of Commerce of Montgomery County, African American Chamber of Commerce,
Bethesda Transportation Solutions, Silver Spring Community Advisory Group. An additional eight
members will be selected through an application process. These members will be selected to
represent a variety of user groups and geographic areas of the County.
Community meetings: As available, the planning team will meet with neighborhood groups and
others on request to discuss the Bicycle Master Plan.

The 2nd Great MoCo Bike Summit held on June 6, 2015 in Silver Spring.
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bicycle master plan SCOPE OF WORK

Project website: A website will be maintained for the project. This site will include meeting
materials and opportunities for the public to comment.
Feedback Maps: The team will develop at least two interactive feedback maps for soliciting and
displaying comments from the public. One map will request public feedback on cycling issues in
Montgomery County. A second map will request feedback on draft recommendations.
Email newsletter: The staff will provide periodic updates to the public on the development of
the plan through an email newsletter.
Social media: The project team maintains a Twitter account (@MCBikePlan) that provides
updates to the community on the status of the master plan, as well as other bicycle news.

The Twitter Account for the Bicycle Master Plan

Draft Recommendations meetings: Staff will conduct a series of public meetings throughout the
County to review the draft Bicycle Master Plan recommendations and solicit feedback from the
community. The meetings will review the overall recommendations in the plan, with a focus on
the area surrounding the meeting location. It is envisioned that meetings will be conducted in
Silver Spring, Bethesda, Wheaton, Rockville/Shady Grove, Germantown and East County.
Planning Board Public Hearing: The public will have the opportunity to testify on the Public
Hearing Draft Plan and submit comments for a period after the public hearing.

bicycle master plan SCOPE OF WORK

schedule
The Bicycle Master Plan will be divided into seven tasks.

Task 1: Planning Board Scope of Work

The Planning Board will review and approve a Scope of Work.

Anticipated completion: September 2015.

Task 2: State of Bicycling Report

Staff will prepare a report that includes a glossary of bicycle terms and reports the lengths of
existing and master-planned bikeways and ridership data, among other facts.
Anticipated completion: September 2015.
Product: State of Bicycling Report.

Task 3: Life Sciences Center Focus

Specific recommendations will include bikeways and Corridor Cities Transitway station parking
requirements.
The Planning Board will review the draft Life Sciences Center recommendations.
Anticipated completion: Fall 2015.
Product: Draft Bikeway and Bicycle Parking Recommendations for the Life Sciences Center Area.

Task 4: Methodology Report

Staff will prepare a methodology report that will outline the approach to the Bicycle Master
Plan, with a discussion of the issues identified above.
The Planning Board will review and approved the Methodology Report.
Anticipated completion: March 2016.
Product: Methodology Report.

Task 5: Working Draft Plan

Prepare the Working Draft Plan
Specific recommendations will include goals/objectives/performance metrics, bikeway types,
bicycle storage facilities, bicycle parking guidelines, required master planned right-of-ways,
reduction in master-planned travel lanes, intersection treatments, typical sections, prioritization
and bikeway hierarchy.
Staff will provide one or two briefings to the Planning Board during the preparation of the
Working Draft Plan.
Staff will present the Working Draft Plan to the Planning Board.
Anticipated completion: November 2016.
Product: Working Draft Plan.

bicycle master plan SCOPE OF WORK

Prepare Public Hearing Draft Plan

Staff will prepare the Public Hearing Draft Plan based on feedback and direction from the
Planning Board.
Anticipated completion: December 2016.
Product: Public Hearing Draft Plan.

Task 6: Planning Board Draft Plan

Planning Board Public Hearing

Staff will schedule and advertise the public hearing and distribute the Public Hearing Draft Plan.
The Planning Board will hold a public hearing and receive testimony on the Draft Plan.
Anticipated completion: January 2017.
Product: Planning Board Draft Plan.

Conduct Planning Board Work Sessions

Staff will prepare responses to the issues identified during the public comment period for the
Planning Board work sessions.
Anticipated completion: March 2017.
Product: A matrix of issues and responses.

Planning Board Draft Plan

Staff will prepare the Planning Board Draft Plan and seek Planning Board approval to transmit it
to the County Council and County Executive.
Anticipated completion: April 2017.
Product: Planning Board Draft Plan submitted to the County Council and County Executive.

A decorative bike rack on the North Bethesda Trail.

bicycle master plan SCOPE OF WORK

Task 7: Outreach
Kickoff meetings:

Anticipated completion: October 2015.

Technical Working Group:

Anticipated completion: November 2016.

Advisory Group:

Anticipated completion: November 2016.

Draft Recommendations meetings:

Anticipated completion: September 2016.

Planning Board Public Hearing:

Anticipated completion: January 2017.

Project website:

Ongoing, started April 2015.

Email newsletter:

Ongoing, started April 2015.

Social media:

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Ongoing, started April 2015.

bicycle master plan SCOPE OF WORK

timeline

bicycle master plan SCOPE OF WORK

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For more information, contact:

David Anspacher, Planner/Coordinator
Telephone. 301.495.2191
Email. david.anspacher@montgomeryplanning.org
montgomeryplanning.org/bikeplan
@MCBikePlan

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bicycle master plan SCOPE OF WORK