Comments for “2014 Billings Urban Area Long Range Transportation Plan - DRAFT Recommended Projects”
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The existing storm water drainage along Zimmerman is totally absurd. The water that normally drained into the valley bottom should be allowed to drain into the historic water course and not be concentrated along the west side of Zimmerman Trail where it does not belong.
There needs to be some common sense annual maintenance of the rock cut into the Eagle Sandstone above the road cut. Run-on should not be allowed to guide water into the rock fissures above the road cut that allows freeze thaw cycles to pry the rocks from the cliff. The likely hood of failure that occurred this year was readily apparent to those of us who used the road daily. Only cleaning the rock after it falls on the road is irresponsible.
Zimmerman cannot cope with the increased traffic from the Heights. The Molt road connector needs to be seriously considered because it will provide an additional faster route to the west end and I-90. With two corridors, the traffic density will be shared, and the traffic delays and hassels will be minimized. -
This proposed route looks better suited to handle traffic from the Heights and Highway 3 into the west end and onto I-90 than Zimmerman Trail.
Zimmerman should also be upgraded to properly manage storm water run-off, and to back slope some of the unstable Eagle Sandstone. -
Inner Belt Loop
The inner belt loop needs to connect further west than Zimmerman. Perhaps closer to 64th for future development.
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The Rimrock Neighborhoods Task Force met on April 16, 2014 with 45 attendees and staff from the Montana Dept. of Transportation and the City of Billings Planning Dept. The closure of Zimmerman Trail due to a large rock slide and having no alternate route off the Rimrocks to West Billings was of great concern to those attending. Staff from the MDT gave information on the future rock removal and reconstruction projects. Many in attendance voiced their view that another road off the Rimrocks connecting Hwy 3 and Molt Rd. or a similar route should be planned and constructed and should be on the 2014 Billings Urban Area Long Range Transportation Plan. Specifically, the HKM Molt Rd./Hwy 3 Collector Road Engineering Study done in 2003 should be looked at again as a possible solution to the problem of access to the west end of Billings when Zimmerman Trail is closed. Also an additional road off the Rimrocks would reduce the current and future stress on Zimmerman Trail which is prone to accidents, rock slides, road and guard rail damage, weather related closures and a less than acceptable interface of foot/bicycle/ car/large truck traffic on this steep curvy road. Additionally, a second road off the Rimrocks west of Zimmerman Trail would continue to provide reliable transportation access for continued steady growth for west and northwest Billings.
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My wife and I live right next to Zimmerman Trail.The noise is very loud, and we don't think big trucks are safe in a neighborhood environment. We would like to see the traffic diverted west over the rims.
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The Heights Community Development Task Force voted to request a plan to take a look at the Molt Rd Hwy connector as a viable route for traffic from the Heights to the West End when Zimmerman Trail is shut down.
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in the past few weeks it is amazing to see so many people, walking, riding bicycles, jogging - just plain enjoying Zimmerman Trail because of no traffic. People need to understand the rims are made of sandstone, and no amount of drilling, blasting, repair work is going to be reliable - it will all return to its original state. Let's work to getting heavy trucks and equipment off of it - turn it back into an enforced 25 mph traffic area for cars - and find an alternate route more westerly. Shiloh was an expensive fix that does not work for heavy traffic and any bandaid approach to fixing Zimmerman will be just that - a bandaid, that gets wet and keeps falling off - Put your heads on people - think before you act - don't react to a situation that is not going to be solved by the solutions you have offered and you know will not work.
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Zimmerman Trail
Adding additional traffic to Zimmerman Tl with the proposed bypass is not feasible. Even if improvements are made the bypass traffic would feed into an already heavily congested area. (Intersections of Rimrock, Poly & then the single lane traffic between poly & grand can be a nightmare. I would agree with the comment about an access point from HY3 that would connect to Molt road and draw traffic around to the Shiloh corridor. Let's do it right & construct a roadway that will be able to be open year round & be capable of handling the ever increasing traffic flow.
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Must look at building another access route off the rims down to the Molt Road. Zimmerman will always be costly to maintain and is unreliable in bad weather. In fact maybe close it, and keep it only as a pedestrian/bike route instead of a vehicle route. Should look at the big picture too like paving the rest of Alkali Creek Road all the way to Highway 3. Why wasn't a right turn lane built going south bound at the intersection of Zimmerman and Rimrock when Rimrock was rebuilt? It would make it easier and more inviting to get traffic steered towards Shiloh which was designed to handle heavy traffic. Final comment: Billings should never have bowed to good old boy pressure to leapfrog annexing of areas like Ironwood, Briarwood, and Rehberg Ranch. The cost of infrastructure has and will hurt taxpayers in a huge way. There should have been some huge impact fees levied. Absolute insanity by the city in their quest to become just like Denver.
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Zimmerman Trail
A new, alternate route to Zimmerman Trail needs to be seriously revisited. A number of years ago a common sense alternative was considered which would connect Highway 3 with Molt road near 62nd. Imagine the possibilities this new route would give the new subdivisions in this area (Ironwood, those near 62nd & Rimrock). Alternately this would help guide traffic more directly from Highway 3 to I-90 through the Shiloh corridor. Adding capacity to Zimmerman Trail is really not feasible. Zimmerman between Rimrock and Poly is already too congested. By design, Zimmerman (from the rims to King Ave) does not support being a primary road (single lane traffic) much less trying to handle more traffic once the northern by-pass is completed.
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Billings needs an alternate route off the rims to the west end of Billings from Highway 3 similar to Zimmerman Trail. Thanks for the consideration.
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Another route off the rims west of Zimmerman Trail, should be considered. Zimmerman is already extremely busy and the addition of the inner belt loop will only add to the level of traffic. For safety and accessibility reasons, another route should be considered.
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Zimmerman Trail cannot handle any more traffic! The traffic should be diverted west of Zimmerman with a new road off the rims.
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With all of the traffic that has been diverted to Zimmerman Trail and now even Alkali Creek project to bring more traffice to that part of Highway 3, it is time to consider an alternative route on the westend from the city to Highway 3.
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BL37
In the past year or so, the city has been fast to close Zimmerman (damaged guard rail, fallen rock) for extended periods. Undoubtedly the reasons are twofold: 1) create an atmosphere conducive to building an additional road or revamping Zimmerman, and 2) limit perceived potential liability. Concerning the liability issue, by diverting all traffic to airport road, the city creates a situation equally hazardous. Some thought should be given to making the Rimrock Airport Rd intersection a little more functional such as diverting non-turning traffic going up airport road to the far right lane. This would enable quicker and safer turns from Rimrock onto airport road.
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Please consider another connector from Hwy 3 to west Billings (Molt Road). Zimmerman is heavily used and will be inadequate even more so when the inner belt loop from the Heights is finished and tied in at Zimmerman. This additional traffic will congest Zimmerman and 32nd Street much more than it already is. Zimmerman is also very prone to closure due to weather, accidents, rock slides, guardrail damage, etc. Another route must be considered for the future since Zimmerman is already inadequate and traffic numbers will increase dramatically as Billings continues to grow.
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M23
The inner belt loop project needs serious reconsideration before diverting all this excess traffic down Zimmerman. Specifically, a plan needs to be developed to connect traffic further west I.e. Shiloh or 54th St. West. Even with major overhauls to Zimmerman trail it is not adequate to accept a large amount of traffic coming from the heights.
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Zimmerman Trail was never meant to be a major thoroughfare or truck route. The recent dangers uncovered by the recent rockslide should be a wake-up call. Personally, having the road closed indefinitely has been the best thing for everyone involved. Permanent closure should be considered. If not permanent closure, then major renovation, which would include proper drainage, protection from noise to the affected residential areas and proper traffic control. None of these are currently in place. This route is a disaster in my humble opinion. Renovation would likely be an astronomical price tag, but what road construction project isn't? Closing this route and moving access to Highway 3 further west may be the most attractive option of all.
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Zimmerman Trail
Some serious thought and planning needs to go into the reconstruciton of this road. It should NOT be built to be a truck route and needs to be shorn up in a way that prevents further erosion. The drainage along this road is terrible and has flooded the neighborhood to the west on many occasions. There has only been band-aid approaches to fixing the issues and the repair work that was done or authorized by FEMA several years ago only made the problem worse.
If this road is going to be used as a main thoroughfare, it should be walled off from the neighborhoods. That is the only way to lessen the effects of the noise of the traffic on sleeping residents. In most major cities that is how major thoroughfares are built. They are not meant to integrate into residential neighborhoods. They need to be walled off
Regardless of how much reconstruction or construction is done, the drainage needs to be totally revamped. IT DOES NOT WORK and someone needs to admit that and accept responsibiltiy to remedy the situation. We cannot keep blaming the issue on the "100 year flood". We have one every few years and that is a flimsy excuse. -
Poly from 32 to 38th needs to be completed. I appreciate all of the work that has been done on Poly to make it handicapped accessible, safer for bikes and people walking, however, now it needs to be finished from 32nd to 38th. That section is in very bad shape and is used daily by children walking to Arrowhead School, people biking from the finished bike path earlier on Poly and just general car traffic. Also this section is plagued by flooding and potholes.
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Zimmerman Trail is closed and it is apparent an alternate route is needed. Years ago there was a project to connect Highway 3 and Molt Road along the railroad. This attempt failed as residents of Ironwood subdivision wouldn't stand for their peace and quiet be interrupted any further than the less than twice daily average of train traffic.
at that time. Since that train traffic is now reported at an average of ten per day and raising, can this old plan be reintroduced to alivate the congestion on Zimmerman and provide an alternate route when Zimmerman is closed? -
6th Avenue N/Bench Blvd
There are no Bus Stops on Bench from Hilltop to Wicks.
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BR14 Rimrock Rd to Poly D. Helpful route, but only if it continues to Grand/Lewis Avenues BL32. The streets should be wide enough to accommodate two vehicle lanes, parking on both sides and bike lanes on both sides.
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BL33 bike lanes on Sugar Avenue to King Avenue S is really the only practical route to the river system trails, but should go over I90 on Sugar to Garden Avenue. Ownership is complicated as I understand it; the east side of a Sugar is in the County and the west side-the sugar factory side is in the city. The roadway is narrow and the overpass is also, but does have ped lanes on both sides (usually dirty and unkept-I would not like to bike on it).
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BL8
This trail should be just a matter of painting lane stripes, as Colton should be wide enough for two lanes of vehicles and two lanes of bike/ped trails, with parking against the curbs on both sides of the street.