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Feasibility Report Page 11 Snelling Avenue North and County Road E - Street and Utility Improvements City Project Number PW 20-0100 DRAFT 3. PROPOSED IMPROVEMENTS 3.1 Street Improvements: Area 1 – Snelling Avenue North Two alternatives for roadway improvements along Snelling Avenue North from County Road E to Highway 51 were investigated as part of this study. Alternative 1 - Full Reconstruction Plus Trail: This alternative includes the full depth reconstruction of the roadway and the addition of an 8 to 10 foot wide multiuse pedestrian/bicycle trail extending from County Road E to Highway 51. The potential trail was considered based on the City’s 2040 comprehensive plan which identifies a proposed regional bicycle transportation network trail extending along Snelling Avenue North from Hamline Avenue at Highway 51 to Lake Valentine Road. A schematic layout of the proposed roadway and trail improvements for Alternative 1 is provided in Appendix G. The proposed road section and trail alignment were identified due to several challenges along the corridor. While the road is located in a wide right of way, there are sections of steep grades along several sections, with side slopes adjacent to the road in excess of 1:3 and grade differentials of 25 feet or more at certain locations, in addition to delineated wetland boundaries along the corridor. Alternative 1 proposes to narrow the roadway from 40 feet to a width of 28 to 34 feet within the center section, install curb and storm sewer, and set the trail alignment directly adjacent to the west curb line in an attempt to minimize substantial tree removal, minimize large volumes of cut and fill grading, and avoid impacts to delineated wetlands. A similar trail alignment was used along Snelling Avenue to the north of County Road E. The advantages of Alternate 1 include completion of a segment of regional trail and providing a dedicated facility for pedestrian and bicycles along the road corridor currently posted at 40 mph. Pedestrians currently walk along the 8 -foot wide paved shoulder. The disadvantages of Alternate 1 include a substantial increase in project costs, increased scope and construction timeline for installation of curb and storm sewer, increased risk of encountering areas of soil contamination during storm sewer installation, use of limited city funds compared to higher priority trail segments to the north of County Road E, and creation of a paved trail segment that terminates at Highway 51 with no safety improvements to cross the highway at Hamline Avenue. Alternative 2 - FDR Pavement Replacement (no trail): This alternative consists of reclaiming the existing pavement by milling the bituminous pavement material and blending it with the upper portion of the underlying aggregate base, commonly referred to as full depth reclamation (FDR). Approximately 4-inches of reclaimed material would then be removed to maintain the existing vertical profile of the road, and a new 4-inch thick bituminous pavement section would be placed to the existing 40-feet road width, including two 12-foot