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Richardson is making it better for people of all ages and abilities to walk, bike, and roll along neighborhood streets by implementing Neighborhood Byways.

What is a neighborhood byway?

Neighborhood byways, also known as Bike Boulevard, are minor streets where motor vehicle traffic speeds and volumes are kept low to make it safer and more comfortable to bicycle, walk, and play. “Neighborhood byways” is a term recognizing that these corridors create a network for both people walking and riding bicycles. Neighborhood byways are designed to provide calm, low-stress bikeway connections within Richardson’s expanding All Ages and Abilities (AAA) active transportation network as defined in the Active Transportation Plan (ATP).

Street characteristics that make an ideal neighborhood byway:

• Low vehicle traffic volumes
• Low speeds – narrow streets and other characteristics that make driving fast feel uncomfortable
• Direct connections between neighborhood destinations
• Greening along the route – for example, street trees that provide shade

Improvements that make a street a neighborhood byway include bicycle and pedestrian crossing improvements (signals, crosswalks, curb extensions, curb ramps, signage, and street markings), traffic calming, wayfinding signage, and connectivity enhancements to existing bicycle and pedestrian routes.

Why are neighborhood byways proposed instead of bike lanes?

The Active Transportation Plan (ATP) considers many factors when determining whether to propose a neighborhood byway or bike lane on streets that make up the active transportation network. Streets where neighborhood byways are considered usually have some of the following characteristics OR could have these characteristics if speed management tools, wayfinding features, and/or crossing improvements are installed:

• Fewer than 1,500 motor vehicle trips a day
• Vehicle speeds at or below 30 mph
• Narrow street widths
• On-street parking

What features are added to streets that are denoted as neighborhood byways?

Few changes are needed on the streets themselves. The network is realized by providing safe crossings at the major barrier streets and calming traffic along the route to make walking and biking safer and more enjoyable.

Added features to neighborhood byways can include:

• Pavement markings to alert motorists to expect people bicycling in the street and help guide people along the bikeway route
• Speed management tools such as bicycle-friendly speed humps, bicycle-friendly speed cushions, on-street parking and curb extensions
• Volume management tools such as traffic diverters
• Wayfinding features such as pavement markings and signage to help navigate the bikeway route
• Crossing improvements such pedestrian and/or bicycle signals, crossing islands, and crosswalks
• Wayfinding signage to guide people to local and regional destinations

Project Timeline:

Phase 1 - expected late April 
Phase 2 - expected in June