Work on improvements for pedestrians and bicyclists is underway on and along thoroughfares in the vicinity of Lindberg Park as the result of a $178,000 Pennsylvania Department of Transportation grant.

Residents in the area of the Trident Swim and Tennis Club, 1060 Flexer Ave., were to begin being notified of the work Dec. 8, according to Salisbury Township Manager Randy Soriano, who updated commissioners about the project at the Dec. 8 township meeting.

The goal is to better link Lindberg Park and Green Acres Park. However, a dedicated bicycle lane along Lindberg Avenue was dropped because of concerns about parking for sports activities in Lindberg Park and traffic flow along Lindberg Avenue.

Baseline Engineering was contracted by PennDOT, which is administering the project, to do the work, which includes bicycle share-the-road symbols on the road surface of Lindberg Avenue, adding sidewalks along Flexer Avenue in sections where none exist and installing an Americans With Disabilities Act compliant crosswalk at the Lindberg and Flexer intersection.

“They will be on site [Dec. 9], introducing themselves to residents in the area,” Soriano said of the engineering firm.

A Transportation Alternatives Program grant from PennDOT is funding the project.

Bicycle lanes along Lindberg Avenue were originally part of the plan. Those plans were abandoned after an Oct. 8, 2015, township workshop.

Salisbury officials were concerned about the impact on the parking of vehicles along Lindberg Avenue during sports competitions in Lindberg Park if bicycle lanes were added along Lindberg Avenue.

About 10 feet was to have been taken from the street width and allocated for bicycles for a distance of about 1.5 miles from Lindberg Park to Green Acres Park.

The bicycle lanes were seen as part of “traffic calming” along Lindberg Avenue, where the township police department has stepped up speed limit enforcement. Nearby residents have complained to township officials about the excessive speed of vehicles on Lindberg Avenue.

Speed limits on Lindberg Avenue were reduced to 25 mph by a 4-0 vote at the Dec. 18, 2014, commissioners’ meeting.

Parking along both sides of Lindberg Avenue occurs when the parking lot in the park fills up during sports events in Lindberg Park.

The bicycle lanes were part of the Lindberg Park Master Plan, which has 11 phases. Total cost of the Lindberg Park improvements is estimated at $3 million.

Work on the Lindberg Park Master Plan began in 2011, based on the township Parks, Recreation and Open Space Plan. Public hearings on the Lindberg Park Master Plan were held during 2012.

Consultant for the Lindberg Park Master Plan is Urban Research & Development Corp.

The Lindberg Park Master Plan has 12 phases.

Phase One was construction of the approximate three-quarter-mile perimeter walking path.

Phase Two was construction of the interior pathway.

Phase Three is a new pavilion and storage shed.

Phase Four includes improving swales.

Phases Six and Seven involve Lindberg Avenue traffic calming and playground improvements.

Phases Eight and Nine include improved Lindberg parking lots, drop-off areas and signs.

Phase 10 has to do with establishing a Tranquility Garden.

The order of the phases is flexible.

As part of Phase Three, commissioners voted 5-0 April 28, to approve a bid of $17,500 by Alloy5 LLC Architecture to design a new pavilion in Lindberg, which will include an Americans With Disabilities compliant bathroom. The pavilion in use does not meet ADA requirements.

The new pavilion is to be built in 2017. A storage facility will also be constructed.