The Billings Area Bikeway & Trail Master Plan is being presented to the City Council for review and recommendation of adoption by the Policy Coordinating Committee. Federal regulations require that local bike and pedestrian plans which use federal dollars must be updated periodically. This update of the existing Heritage Trail Plan is needed to fulfill that requirement. This plan update has been renamed the Billings Area Bikeway & Trail Master Plan and will stand on the shoulders of the previous plan.  It places added emphasis on on-street facilities to connect not only trails, but also all destinations that residents may wish to access within the Billings Area. The purpose of this plan update is to:

• Prioritize on-street bikeways
• Prioritize key trail connections to add value, not just mileage to the trail network
• Set guidelines to evaluate the plan after adoption
• Increase integration with MET Transit
• Set standards and funding for the maintenance of existing facilities
• Provide recommendations for educating and encouraging bikeway and trail users
• Maintain and increase bikeway and trail law enforcement
• Promote the system as a healthy, safe mode of transportation

The plan update process was guided by a steering committee made up of City and County officials and staff, Billings Bicycle Advisory Committee (BPAC) members, a representative from BikeNet, and the Billings Chamber of Commerce that have met regularly since last summer. All of the steering committee meetings have been open to the public and people from the community attended some of the meetings during the process.

As part of the plan update and drafting process, there have been two public workshops held, a website established at www.billingstrails.com, and a public hearing held as part of the Planning Board meeting on February 22, 2011. A 45 day public comment period, as per Federal requirements, was also established in January 2011 and completed on February 18.

The BPAC, Technical Advisory Committee (TAC), and Planning Board have all given positive recommendations for approval of the updated plan. The remaining adoption schedule is as follows:

*City Council Work Session - March 7th
*Board of County Commission Action - March 11th
*City Council Regular Meeting - March 14th
*Policy Coordinating Committee - March 15th

 The City Council may:
1. Recommend approval of the plan to the Policy Coordinating Committee.
2. Recommend denial of the plan to the Policy Coordinating Committee.

 There should be no direct financial impact from the adoption of this plan. The plan will assist with bike and pedestrian planning and the identification of projects throughout the Billings Urban Area.  Funding sources for those projects will be identified and approved in the future.

Staff recommends that the City Council approve the Billings Area Bikeway & Trail Master Plan, and forward a recommendation of adoption to the Policy Coordinating Committee for its meeting on March 15.