On December 3rd, we launched Connections 2040, a plan for how we’ll grow and invest transportation dollars over a 25-year period. People from all around the Cedar Rapids region came together to launch a conversation about how we grow and plan for our future mobility.
We discussed where new growth should occur and at what density. We explored how to balance investments in roadways, transit, sidewalks and bikeways. Some people advocated for growth that is less spread out to reduce the cost of new infrastructure. Others planned single family housing in each of the communities near Cedar Rapids. In the afternoon and evening sessions, nine tables of about eight people each discussed how to be strategic with limited resources and mapped their ideas for future growth and transportation connections.
The forums started with a Mobility Report Card for the region and information about trends in the region. The various transportation modes serving the Corridor MPO were evaluated using a very simple thumb up and down technique. Review the chart to see how tranportation is currently serving the region and think about what is most important to change.
In the next 30 years, the Cedar Rapids region is projected to grow by 94,000 people
As development occurs in outlying areas, traffic congestion will increase. The existing and currently funded street network will not keep up with forecast demand.
The cost of providing infrastructure decreases with population density.
To make transit viable, people need to live closer together. For a bus to stop every 30 minutes requires 7 dwellings per acre which is more dense than most of our region.
The aging of our population will affect housing and transportation choices.
Although we have some multi-use trails, we lack a connected bicycle network.
Outside the urban core, there aren’t many sidewalks on regional arterials. Missing sidewalks make it hard for people to safely access the bus stops along these roads.
Federal and state funding is declining. The fuel tax hasn’t increased in several decades and because it is a fixed amount per gallon of gas, the net effect of improved fuel efficiency is that there is less money than there was in the past for road improvements. We’re driving more miles but paying less in taxes.
Connections Workshop Exercise
We then worked in small groups of 8 to create our future plans. We started with where people will live, work and shop. Our task was to locate 40,000 new dwelling units and then plan commercial, industrial and mixed use development to support the new population.
We then created transportation facilities to support the future growth. Our budget was more than $2 billion dollars but it had to pay for road maintenance, new or upgraded roadways, and transit, bicycle and pedestrian improvements for 25 years.
A summary of the ideas discussed at the visioning forums will be out soon…but in the meantime, here’s a glimpse of some of the insights the different groups shared.
One group added a lot of medium density and mixed use development to downtown.
Another group put new development in the outlying communities.
Several groups included some type of extension on Highway 100. One group that didn’t include the extension focused on transit improvements instead.
Another group focused on the need to create a viable bicycle and pedestrian network
What’s Next?
The Corridor MPO will use the maps created at the forum and additional information and comments collected online to create some alternatives for the future. Each alternative will be based on different ideas for how the region should grow and how to provide future mobility. We’ll study how each affects our region in terms of travel times, travel choices, environmental impacts, costs, etc. We’ll discuss the alternatives and their implications for our future at the next round of public forums in February.
How you can join the conversation
There are many ways to be involved in Connections 2040. You can:
