In December, Cary held a kick-off meeting to begin planning the extension of Higgins Greenway into downtown Cary. This project will start at Kildaire Farm Road, continue north past Cary Elementary School, and end at Downtown Cary Park. Attendees included the design consultant Exult, Wake County Public Schools, and Cary staff. Discussions focused on project goals, existing conditions, and downtown development. 

VHB Engineering of NC hosted a meeting in November to start a town-wide speed analysis. This study uses publicly available data to determine average travel speeds on streets. The purpose of the study is to create a first-of-its-kind proactive traffic calming program that identifies streets that need traffic calming without relying solely on direct requests from citizens. VHB will be delivering results through dashboards that staff will use to determine future projects.   

Transit staff partnered with the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) to complete a review of GoCary services. This review establishes a baseline for internal safety and security processes and procedures and provides access to a national network of resources and alerts to enhance overall emergency preparedness. GoCary scored ”above average” in 15 of 17 categories. The two categories where Cary scored below average relate to tabletop exercises used to test emergency operations and response plans. Staff will continue working with TSA inspectors to conduct security enhancement exercises with a goal of achieving a gold standard review later this year.

Cary, alongside partner Toole Design, kicked off planning for the development of its Cary Bike and Micromobility Plan. The plan will build upon and reimagine past planning efforts, create a vision for a comprehensive multi-modal network, identify priority corridors, and fill gaps in Cary’s existing bike and micromobility system. The plan will serve as a guide toward strategic and effective investment in bicycle and micromobility infrastructure that is safe and convenient, connecting nodes of development as well as allowing residents and visitors of all ages and abilities to freely move throughout the community.

Initial public outreach and engagement will begin in the spring and extend into the fall. The objective with the engagement is to build consensus, facilitate dialogue, and create trust between the project team and the community. The process will be data-driven, inclusive, and ongoing. In addition to working with staff, stakeholder groups, Council, and boards and committees, the engagement will include in-person outreach, online surveys, and interactive mapping opportunities.  

In an effort to activate Cary’s greenways, Cary developed greenway programming events for FY 2023. At the inaugural event, a Greenway Bike & Wine in October, about 35 participants learned about the greenways as well as conservation efforts along White Oak Creek. After a 10-mile bike ride on the greenways led by staff and members of the Cary Greenway Committee, attendees enjoyed music, hors d’oeuvres, and wine. These events provide many benefits, including educating citizens about greenways and open space, introducing local businesses that provide goods and services for the event, and encouraging the community to further explore and curate their own experiences around Cary greenways. A spring Greenway Bike & Bubbly will be held May 7. 

On Nov. 15, Cary hosted personnel from the N.C. Department of Transportation district engineer’s office for a meet and greet at Cary Town Hall. Cary has a long-established successful relationship with the office, but NCDOT turnover in 2022 provided Cary the opportunity to proactively establish new connections. Staff plan to take a similar approach with additional NCDOT offices in 2023.