Give Now  »

Noon Edition

The Future Of Transportation In Bloomington

View from the southwest of the Bloomington central bus terminal in Bloomington, Indiana.

Noon Edition airs on Fridays at noon on WFIU.

Bloomington residents have seen the transportation landscape change over the years, with the building of a downtown transit hub and the addition of scooters, but now the focus of many residents and policymakers is on the future.

There are multiple plans to take on Bloomington's transportation needs, both near and short term.

The Transportation Improvement Plan is an effort by the City and Monroe County to map out a list of transportation projects in line for federal funding for fiscal years 2020 to 2024. The city is now asking for feedback from the public.

To be approved, the TIP must be in line with the City of Bloomington's larger comprehensive Transportation Plan, which will guide development of the City's transportation infrastructure for the next two decades.

Join us this week on Noon Edition as we discuss the plans for the future of Bloomington transportation.

You can follow us on Twitter @NoonEdition or join us on the air by calling in at 812-855-0811 or toll-free at 1-877-285-9348. You can also send us questions for the show at news@indianapublicmedia.org.

Guests

Patrick Martin, Senior Transportation Planner with the City of Bloomington

Mallory Rickbeil, Bicycle & Pedestrian Coordinator for the City of Bloomington

Stephen Volan, Bloomington City Councilman

Conversation

Mallory Rickbeil is tasked with making Bloomington more friendly to cyclists.

"Where are the roads in Bloomington, how are they and how are they not meeting the needs of people who want to bike?" Rickbeil says. "There are people who aren't fearless on the road, people who'd like to pay less for gasoline, and not pay for parking, and be able to get more exercise, but for whatever reason feel that doing so would cause them injury."

Steve Volan says that a big reason the city is pursuing more comprehensive plans is to consolidate and streamline transportation planning.

"I think that one thing we're trying to do is fuse them into one big plan because they're all part of the same thing, they're all about mobility and about how people can move through the city," Volan says. "The City Council will approve that transportation plan and it will be considered a part of the overall, comprehensive plan for the City."

Patrick Martin sheds some light on the distinction between the Transportation Improvement Program and Bloomington's Transportation Plan.

"The Transportation Improvement Program is a federally funded program," Martin says. "This is what funds Bloomington Transit, Rural Transit, all of the major capital improvements by the City of Bloomington and Monroe County. It's distinctly different from the City of Bloomington's plan in that ours is a federally mandated process that we're required to follow."

Support For Indiana Public Media Comes From

About