Quote:
Originally Posted by jollyburger
I mean opening up a Canada Line station next to you can have a massive impact, all those bike lane studies seem more about messaging/theory shaping the data.
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Yeah, road lane uses are fairly academic when you've got a building next door that magically adds 20,000+ pedestrians to the street every day.
Quote:
Originally Posted by FarmerHaight
... I am totally comfortable riding on almost any street in mixed traffic. Protected bike lanes on Broadway would not be for me. They would be for people who are uncomfortable using even designated bikeways like 10th or painted bike lanes like West Georgia. A lot of adults want to bike more and a lot of kids aren't allowed to ride bikes on main streets. Protected bike lanes could fix that.
Also, as previously discussed, 10th sucks as a bikeway for reasons other than riding two extra blocks to go up and back to Broadway. The road is super narrow with parking on both sides. If you want to avoid getting "doored", you need to ride right down the middle of the street, making it difficult to pass oncoming vehicles or bikes. There are also stop lights or stop signs every block or two.
And finally, I don't think the bike lanes should take away from pedestrians. I do think taking a lane away from cars is no big deal. I don't have any studies to cite or quotes (I think downtown businesses have made a 180 on bike lanes because of their positive impact), but I seem to recall that businesses with proper bike lanes in front perform better and see more traffic than the same businesses before that infrastructure was built. This makes sense, as I imagine a lot of cars on Broadway are using it as a thoroughfare and not as a destination.
Making Broadway two vehicle lanes (busses only?) + bike lanes + wider sidewalks would change the street significantly. Maybe 4th, 12th, King Edward, etc. could absorb this traffic, maybe people would use transit instead, or maybe it would be a disaster. But it cannot be denied that Broadway would be a much more pleasant atmosphere for patios and walking and sitting on a bench if the vehicle traffic was directed elsewhere for the sake of bikes and busses.
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I'm hearing the opposite: that casual bikers prefer the less-urban side streets. And in that regard, many people would support less parking and upgrading 10th to a triple-A protected lane (assuming the ambulances are fine with it, because that was a big sticking point way back when).
Agreed, the foot traffic thing can be interpreted any number of ways depending on what side of the argument you're on; most businesses will likely be fine no matter what, especially with the subway. But two problems remain: first, whether it's a breakdown, accident, or even just an empty stop, buses sometimes need to pass each other; if emergency vehicles, taxis and rideshare vehicles are still allowed on Broadway too, doubly so. The planned turning lane and concrete median would prohibit using the opposite lane like on Granville, so that would seemingly require either four lanes, or two lanes plus bus bays, either of which would negate two continuous bike lanes.
Second, Broadway's roadspace services the entire West Side, not just the corridor. The pragmatic solution would be to wait until the M-Line makes it all the way to UBC, and then we can talk about as many bike lanes as we want; in the meantime, a four-lane road and double the sidewalk space would make Broadway fairly pleasant for patios and benches already.
Quote:
Originally Posted by jlousa
Yes I'm sure they don't know their base, I usually take my new kayak, bike carrier and tent home on the bus.
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Who brings a kayak home themselves, in this day and age? Pretty sure most people (especially MEC's new target audience) would prefer a home delivery. Big box stores may indeed take a hit, but seeing as there aren't many of them on Broadway anymore, they'd be more of an edge case.
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