Quote:
Originally Posted by IanWatson
Almon Street has a fair bit of pedestrian traffic, and will certainly have more as the Young and Robie node develops. I also find that vehicle speeds can get high west of Robie.
Looking at the drawings, I would also say the bump outs on Almon are servicing additional purposes: - Providing a graceful way for the bike lane to transition from separated to on-street
- Providing a place for pedestrians to stand so that they don't have to worry about crossing bike traffic and car traffic at the same time.
|
Your first point makes a lot of sense for the flow of bike traffic.
The only reason I brought up them up (and apparently caused some angst) is the second point. Do they actually put pedestrians in a safer position? In one sense I can see that they do if drivers are attentive and obeying the rules of the road. On the other hand, I see the potential of giving a pedestrian a false sense of security, putting them in harm’s way in the case of an inattentive, aggressive, or speeding driver, essentially making them a sitting duck.
I also wonder if it puts pedestrians in a bad position in the case of a long truck making a right turn. I would suspect that the bump outs make truck drivers’ lives more difficult and increase the potential of a poorly negotiated turn whereby the rear wheels come up over the curb increasing the potential of running over a pedestrian standing there.
Then there’s the inclement weather/poor visibility thing that might make it more difficult to see them, especially for a driver who is not familiar with the area.
Those were my thoughts, and that a pedestrian may be protected as well or better by a longer time on the walk signal, while using the funds for the bump outs to put towards better bike lane improvements.
Just my thoughts… sorry if I offended anybody.
Threaded Mode