[Unopposed in primary]
Members of Bloomington Transportation Operations for People,
My answers to your transportation survey are included below. Please feel free to contact me at kc@bakerforbloomington.com or at (317) 626-0241 if you have follow-up questions, or if you or your membership would like me to elaborate!
Best regards,
Kristopher “KC” Baker
District One Candidate for Bloomington City Council
1. What do you think is the most important transportation change Bloomington/Ellettsville can make over the coming decade? Why?
I think that Bloomington and Elletsville, working with the county, need to develop a comprehensive transportation plan. The plan needs to take into account community growth, existing transportation patterns, and the need for increasing access to alternative modes of transportation. Transportation and infrastructure projects need to be evaluated as to how they fit into the plan, and the plan needs to be revisited regularly, a “living document” that responds to the changing nature of our city and county.
More specifically, I support a “complete streets” approach that makes the existing transportation infrastructure safely available for a wide variety of uses and use types. Put simply, let’s make the roads we have work better for the people of our community. This requires a smart look a traffic flow for all types of users – buses, bicycles, cars, delivery trucks, and last but not least, pedestrians.
2. To this end, what are the concrete actions you will take during your term, if elected?
As a city council member, I would take the lead on developing a comprehensive transportation plan. I would call for the establishment of a working group – made up of residents and officials from Ellettsville, from Bloomington, and from the county – to undertake a study of our existing transportation system, the ways in which that systems meets and fails to meet the needs of residents and visitors, and how we can bridge the gap. I would require transportation projects subject to city review to include an assessment of how they fit into such a plan, once developed.
3. For several years, a proposal to consolidate Bloomington Transit (BT) and IU Campus Bus has been discussed in our community. This move has the potential to bring additional funding on the order of approximately $2 million per year to our community for transit. Do you think Bloomington should actively encourage the bus merger, and if so, what would you do to move it forward?
The prospect of additional transit funding is encouraging, and I would welcome any proposal that brings more money for transportation into our community. However, the history and nature of these two organizations means that the issue of a merger is a complicated one. If nothing else, the value of two competing organizations acting as models for one another may have benefits that outweigh consolidation. Additionally, it is possible that two organizations lobbying the state for funding can command a larger total pie than one organization. As a member of the Bloomington City Council – and as a candidate – I will study this issue, trying to understand the reasons for consolidation and the reason why the two organizations have not merged in the past.
4. How can we accelerate implementation of alternative transportation projects that have been proposed but not moved forward?
The best argument for alternative transportation is that alternatives can be a “win” for everyone, car drivers as well as those who use alternative transportation means. Where alternative transportation projects make sense, they should be implemented. I view my role as a member of the city council as requiring me to examine a variety of ideas and viewpoints, and to champion those ideas that provide the best quality of life in the fairest way for all of our citizens. I think one of the failings of the existing city council is their unwillingness to look at alternative viewpoints, and that includes the adoption of novel ideas in transportation. I certainly welcome the opportunity to look at those ideas, and to use my position on the Council to advocate for novel ideas that benefit us all – and that includes alternative transportation.
5. What’s the next step to encourage bicycle use on a daily basis?
In terms of what city government can do, I think that the key issues with regard to bicycle use are safety and accessibility. Both can be addressed by developing a common-sense bicycle route system that actually gets bicyclists from where they are to where they need to be. These routes can use secondary streets so as not to impede existing traffic flows, but where primary streets make the most sense for dual-use, bicycle lane striping, lower speed limits, and clear signage – particularly at intersections – for motorists and bicyclists will help to make cycling more accessible and more safe.
6. What mode(s) of transportation do you use for your daily or weekly routine? How often do you use modes other than a car?
I am an avid bicyclist. As a graduate student at IU, I’m required to be on campus four or five days a week, and I commute almost exclusively by bicycle, including through the winter and on bad-weather days. My route is approximately ten miles round-trip, primarily on Rogers Street between Second Street and Rockport Road to the southwest side, where I live. Rogers is a perfect example of my bicycle route proposal outlined above: it has an excellent bicycle path between Rockport and Patterson/Grimes, but no marked lanes or paths to the north or south, despite the fact that it is the only true north/south corridor west of College/Walnut and a necessary route for bicyclists from my part of town.
