Background
For more than 20 years, the City of Missoula has been considering how to transform Brooks Street from a highway commercial strip that emphasizes vehicular traffic to a multi-modal transportation route that is also friendly to buses, pedestrians, and cyclists.
In 2016 the City and other Missoula entities worked with urban planners to complete the Brooks Street Corridor Study. This study, which was conducted through a robust public engagement process, confirmed a community-wide desire to focus on transit-oriented development (TOD) on Brooks Street, between Reserve Street and Mount Avenue.
A concept for a dedicated bus lane in the center of the street evolved as an intriguing multi-modal transportation strategy in a subsequent study completed in 2020 – The Brooks Corridor TOD Infrastructure Study. This concept for center-running bus rapid transit (BRT) is intriguing for several reasons.
• A dedicated bus lane would ensure that the bus could run every 15 minutes;
• Bus stops in the center of the street could also serve as pedestrian refuge, making it safer and more comfortable for pedestrians to cross Brooks Street;
• Dedicated left turn lanes for vehicles on Brooks Street would reduce the number of rear-end and side-swipe crashes, and improve traffic flow;
• New adequate sidewalks and bicycle facilities on Brooks Street, along with street trees, pedestrian lighting and other amenities, would create an attractive streetscape and foster new residential, commercial, business, and recreational opportunities;
• Treating all modes of transportation equally would give people plenty of transportation alternatives, so they would not have to rely only on cars.
RAISE Planning Grant
In November 2021, the City, in partnership with the Missoula Urban Transportation District (MUTD/Mountain Line), was awarded an $847,000 grant through the U.S. Department of Transportation's Rebuilding American Infrastructure with Sustainability and Equity (RAISE) program. This grant will be used to dig into the details and determine what will be necessary to make BRT successful on Brooks Street.
Current Status
February 23, 2023:
The MRA Board and Mountain Line Board met in a join board meeting to approve the staff request to enter into a three-party Professional Services Agreement with HDR. The video of the meeting is below.
The motion was approved: I move to approve the staff request to enter into a three-party Professional Services Agreement – with MRA and Mountain Line as co-clients and HDR as the consultant - in an amount of $887,750, not to exceed $927,000, to conduct the Brooks Street BRT/TOD RAISE Grant Planning Study, pending approval by the Mountain Line Board, and authorize the Board Chair to sign the agreement.