MDOT is soliciting comments on the State Rail Plan.

Here’s a comment made by MTGA:

We would like to see roll-on bicycle service for all Michigan passenger rail lines. We need to make it much more convenient for rail passengers to bring their bicycles on the train without having to disassemble and box them. Roll-on service would complement the non-motorized transportation efforts underway in the city of Detroit. It would also complement Detroit’s light rail plans, as those trains are expected to have roll-on bicycle service from the start.

Currently, in order to bring your bike on a Michigan AMTRAK train, you must disassemble it and put it in a box. This is obviously not convenient.

Imagine catching a train in the New Center Area and heading to cycling cities like Chicago!

We’ve been told the reason the Michigan trains don’t have roll-on service is because the trains don’t have baggage cars. Apparently there are some baggage cars available but they would require some refurbishment before they could be used.

That said, it seems that other rail lines have installed bike racks in their coaches. That may require removing some seating, which certainly would generate some push back.

Either way, we encourage all cyclists to submit comments to MDOT about making our state train service more bike friendly.

DDOT and the Federal Transit Authority are hosting the initial public meeting for the Woodward Light Rail project this Saturday. The meeting purpose is “discuss the Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the Woodward Avenue (M-1) Light Rail Project from Downtown Detroit to Eight Mile Road (M-102).”

The EIS will consider impacts to bicyclists using Woodward — which is key. Light rail tracks along the curb are not always the best choice for bicyclists.

Earlier discussions were to not have biking on Woodward, at least below Grand Boulevard. It was suggested cyclists could use some streets paralleling Woodward. That overlooks the fact that people want to ?ride to destinations on Woodward.

Not accommodating bicycles on Woodward might just give Detroit’s Critical Mass something to protest.

Meeting Details

When: Saturday, August 14, 2010. Attend from 11am to 1pm or 5pm to 7pm.

Where: Considine Light Rock Family Life Center Auditorium (8904 Woodward Avenue, Detroit)

A couple recent items popped up on the July 27th Detroit City Council agenda that area cyclists might be interested in. Though we’re not certain that they passed, it’s likely they did since they were successfully reported out of committee.

First, a contact to purchase bus bike racks was before council.

Brown, reso. autho. Contract No. 2824443 - 20% State Funding; 80% Federal Funding – To Provide Bus Bicycle Racks, Spare Parts and Associated Hardware – RFQ #33730 Sportworks Northwest, Inc., 15540 Wood-Red Road N.E., Bldg #A-200, Woodinville, WA 98072 – Contract Period: August 1, 2010 through July 31, 2013, with Two (2), One (1) Year Renewal Options – Items (2) Unit Price: $38.00/each to $546.00/each. Lowest Total Bid – Estimated Cost: $353,999.36/Three Years – TRANSPORTATION

DDOT has said they would get bus bike racks on their existing fleet. They’re new buses already have them.

Second, and we’ve mentioned this already, but a grant application for extending the Dequindre Cut was approved by council committee.

Brown, reso. autho. Endorsing the Application to MDNRE Right of Way Acquisition. (DPW intends to submit an application to MDNRE for an amount of $500,000.00 to acquire the Right-of-Way (ROW) needed for the construction of Dequindre Cut, Phase II Project.) (REPORTED OUT OF PUBLIC HEALTH AND SAFETY STANDING COMMITTEE 07-26-10) WAIVER OF RECONSIDERATION

This grant request would be for the Michigan Natural Resources Trust Fund, which this year is flush with money. That means it’s very likely the Dequindre Cut grant will be approved. This grant is only to acquire the right-of-way. Additional funds will be required to improve existing bridges over the Cut and to build the trail itself.

Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood was in Detroit this morning to announce the federal governments support of the M1 Rail project on Woodward. Crain’s Detroit covered the announcement.

As expected, U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood announced this morning that the $400 million to $500 million Woodward Avenue light rail project is launching the required environment study process needed to qualify the effort for federal funding.

This study process will include discussions on how rail and bicycles will co-exist on Woodward. Mixing the two can be challenge. It would be best addressing those challenges from the start.

And biking can greatly improve access and use of the M1 Rail. Someone might walk a half-mile to use the train, but they might bike three times that, especially if the trains can carry bikes.

Secretary LaHood didn’t just talk about M1 Rail. He mentioned livability and the importance of biking and walking opportunities.

Also, the city of Detroit applied and received $25 million in TIGER funding from the U.S. DOT last year. That funding is going towards the initial development of the M1 Rail line. TIGER II grant applications are due this month and the city is applying again. This time for a major non-motorized project that will tie into the M1 project.

Stay tuned!

Forbes loves publishing lists of dubious quality that are often based on census data. However, they recently named Metro Detroit as having the second worst commute in the U.S., which might be justifiable.

There are a few elements that easy-commuting cities have in common. In those places, more workers take advantage of public transportation, walk or bike; sprawl is minimal so workers tend to live closer to their offices; and the incidence of travel delays is low. To find the best and worst cities for commuters, we took the 60 largest metro areas and ranked each on three measures: The length of traffic delays at rush hour, the percentage of commuters who get to work by carpooling, biking, walking or taking public transportation (the “Green Commuter” rank); and the percentage of commuters that spend an hour or more getting to work. Click here for more details on the methodology.

Where Detroit scored most poorly was in the Green Commuting rank — we were last.

Then there’s Detroit. The city that comes in next to last was once at the forefront of transportation planning–the first urban freeways were built there. But its well-documented urban blight and population drain have wreaked havoc on the city’s infrastructure, and the once ubiquitous presence of the auto industry decimated what was a thriving public transportation system. Now, what would normally be a 45-minute drive takes an hour at peak times, and only 12% of commuters carpool, walk, bike or use public transportation–the lowest percentage of all the cities we tracked.

Detroit New’s columnist Tom Greenwood takes exception and makes the same mistake that transportation planners have made in Detroit for the past 50 years. They assume the word “commuting” means “driving.”

He adds, “I’ve driven in all those other cities, and I would rather have a tooth pulled than commute in any other big city compared to Detroit.”

It’s time to try that commute on a bike or by bus, Tom.?Detroit commuting looks a little different outside of the car.