FLCC> Bike lane for uphill state st?
William Lodico
wlodico at stny.rr.com
Fri Sep 14 14:27:03 EDT 2007
Is a bike lane on the State Street Hill such great news?
A five foot wide bike lane isn't very wide, especially for riders
struggling to go uphill.
I occupy about two feet, elbow to elbow, on my bike. If there's a
bike lane I'm expected to stay in the bike lane. I should be aiming
at keeping my tire on a line about 3 feet from the right curb, to
give myself wobble room and a chance to avoid hazards by going to the
right without hitting the curb, since if I go the left, I'll be
suddenly in motor traffic that is expecting me to stay in the bike
lane. Even without the inevitable going-slow-uphill-side-to-side-
wandering this gives me only about one foot between my right elbow
and a vertical drawn from the bike lane stripe (as long as nothing
forces me farther left). Everything to the left of the bike lane is
for cars only.
I haven't ridden up State Street in a long time, but the last time
was about midway through a 400k, and I was going about 5 mph, if
that. Without bike the lane, I was able to claim my space, make sure
traffic accommodated my interest in having it pass me slowly giving
me wide berth. With the bike lane, traffic will feel free to pass me
at 35 mph (a 30 mph differential), without worrying about how close
they are, as long as they are not in the bike lane. Many motorists
will probably consider themselves to the left of the bike lane if
their right tires are to the left of it, which will put fenders, door
handles within inches of my left elbow, and mirrors possibly into my
left shoulder. I can have my tire to the right of the bike lane
stripe and not be clear of traffic to the left of it.
Is the City of Ithaca committed to daily sweepings of the bike lane?
Is it committed to removing all potential hazards, including manhole
covers? Is it committed to maintaining the bike lane above standards
for the rest of the road, so there are NO pot holes, cracks, broken
glass, stones, loose bits of pavement and other debris, that will
force cyclists out of the bike lane when traffic is expecting them to
stay in it? I'll bet the answer is no, no, and no again.
And is there going to be appropriate and effective signage telling
motorists they have to give room to cyclists making left turns,
avoiding hazards in the bike lane, etc? Throw in another no.
Remember, they've been forced to give up five feet of otherwise
available roadway.
The real effect of bike lanes (and maybe their real purpose) is not
to help cyclists. It's to confine them to what is often the most
dangerous and hazard ridden part of the road. It might also be to
"promote" cycling by making cyclists feel safer because there's a
quarter of a millimeter of paint on the road that's supposed to keep
cars from hitting them. Actually, bike lanes make it harder for
motorists to accommodate bicyclists and vice versa, since both have
lost accessibility to sizable chunks of roadway.
It's just way better to try to get motorists to learn to accommodate
cyclists, to give them room, to see them as equally entitled users of
the roadway -- and to get cyclists to learn how to ride in traffic --
than to start cutting up the roadway into little pieces that
ultimately everyone is going to fight over anyway.
I'm doing my best to kill bike lanes in Chemung/Schuyler/Steuben.
It's up to you-all to kill the bike lanes in Tompkins.
Bill Lodico
On Sep 14, 2007, at 12:57 PM, Wayne Gottlieb wrote:
This is great news! Thanks for sharing. Now there's
no excuse not to bike up that hill. I'm sure after
they put the new lane in people will be abandoning
their car in droves. But, seriously, I've often chosen
to go up Buffalo or Court instead because it's so hard
to turn left onto 366 . I wonder how they're going to
solve that problem. Wayne
--- Amanda and Mark Shenstone <gardens at lightlink.com>
wrote:
> This just in from Ithaca Journal:
>
>
> Part of the State Street hill may become more
> bike-friendly
>
> The Ithaca city Board of Public Works is
> considering making bicycle-friendly improvements
> to the part of State Street from the vicinity of
> the Commons to Mitchell Street. Among improvements
> being considered is an uphill bike lane.
>
> The city Board of Public Works is
> considering a plan that includes five-foot-wide
> uphill bicycle lane for the street, also known as
> state Route 79, from the Tuning Fork area, where
> State Street, Green Street and Seneca Way come
> together, to Mitchell Street, which at that point
> is also Route 366.
>
>
>
> This segment of State Street has been
> identified as a good place for improvement because
> it has a lot of traffic, is a link to key
> destinations, and has a relatively gentle slope.
>
> According to the city engineering office,
> the proposal before the Board of Public Works
> includes:
>
> A 5-foot wide uphill (eastbound) bicycle
> lane to allow bicyclists to ride at their own pace
> without obstructing motor vehicle traffic or
> feeling like they are obstructing motor vehicle
> traffic.
>
> . Relocation of centerline striping to
> create a wide downhill (westbound) travel lane
> that allows motorists and bicyclists to have
> adequate shared maneuvering space.
>
> . Consolidation of parking on the south side
> of the street and revision of on-street parking
> regulations.
>
> . Installation of bicycle-related signage
> and crosswalks.
>
> The Board of Public Works is taking public
> comment through the end of September and may vote
> on the project on Oct. 10. Comments and feedback
> can be directed to Tim Logue as above or at
> timlo at cityofithaca.org.
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> --------------------------------------------------
> Amanda and Mark Shenstone
> Graceful Gardens
> PO Box 100
> Mecklenburg, NY 14886
> 607.387.5529
> http://www.gracefulgardens.com
>> _______________________________________________
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>
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