Urban Cycling Developments

[mrnyc]

40 more miles in 6 paths of dedicated bike trails mostly around the waterfront are on the way —



NYC greenway expansion: 10-mile bike path envisioned for Staten Island, connecting Verrazzano and Goethals

Published: Oct. 12, 2023


Overall, the Adams administration envisions 40 miles of new protected bike infrastructure, with two new paths coming to Queens and one each in the Bronx and Brooklyn along with the Staten Island plan. An additional Bronx greenway along the Harlem River is already in development.


more:
https://www.silive.com/entertainment...t-we-know.html

[mrnyc]

watch me
watch me
i got it —


https://www.instagram.com/reel/Cx1Qd...RlODBiNWFlZA==

[Busy Bee]

Guy's on something.

[M II A II R II K]

Boulder Installs Protected Bike Lane Infrastructure New to the U.S.

https://bouldercolorado.gov/news/bou...ructure-new-us

.....

- In direct response to the community's desire for safer, more comfortable and convenient travel, Boulder will be the first city to bring concrete tall curbs to the United States. Tall curbs separate the bike lane and vehicle travel lane, serving as a form of physical bike lane protection in other North American cities, such as Toronto.

.....

[Swede]

Concrete barriers are real nice for that. Makes it feel actually safe.
I can only really think of one place in Stockholm with such, of the top of my head. But it is really nice for creating a safe space.

https://www.google.com/maps/@59.3062...8192?entry=ttu

[shivtim]

Are "concrete tall curbs" a specific thing? Those can't be the first in the US. Just for example we have them in Atlanta. From a quick google search the first thing that showed up is in NYC. There's also concrete planters in some places here in Atlanta, which are similar (and in my opinion better):

[dchan]

The "concrete tall curbs" are basically jersey barriers. They're essentially the same ones that are used as temporary barriers on highways during construction. In this case, the ends are tapered for safety reasons so that cars that run into it ride up on top instead of smashing into a flat & pointed surface.

The second example is a more permanent design solution, but municipalities don't love putting them in unless they have major political support from constituents. With painted markings and jersey barriers, if there is enough political backlash against them, the city can just remove them.

[shivtim]

Originally Posted by dchan

The "concrete tall curbs" are basically jersey barriers. They're essentially the same ones that are used as temporary barriers on highways during construction. In this case, the ends are tapered for safety reasons so that cars that run into it ride up on top instead of smashing into a flat & pointed surface.

The second example is a more permanent design solution, but municipalities don't love putting them in unless they have major political support from constituents. With painted markings and jersey barriers, if there is enough political backlash against them, the city can just remove them.

Excellent for Boulder, but bizarre they would say they're the first city to do it. As I mentioned, even here in Atlanta (which is not particularly well known as a biking city) we have bike lanes with permanent concrete tall curbs with tapered ends.

[mrnyc]

new east river bike path is wow —


https://www.instagram.com/reel/CvszQ...RlODBiNWFlZA==

[dchan]

Originally Posted by shivtim

Excellent for Boulder, but bizarre they would say they're the first city to do it. As I mentioned, even here in Atlanta (which is not particularly well known as a biking city) we have bike lanes with permanent concrete tall curbs with tapered ends.

Again, those jersey barriers from the Atlanta streetview that you linked are technically temporary. They can be picked up by a forklift at any time and removed on a flatbed truck if the city changes its mind about a protected bike lane.

I'm being pedantic here, but your previous picture of the concrete islands with planters is what I would consider "permanent". It is created by cutting into the existing road down to a certain depth and installing the concrete island infrastructure (gravel bed, reinforcement) down into that depth to build it up to its final height.

I consider the latter "permanent" because while it is very possible to remove the islands and planters, it is a fairly time consuming, destructive (lots of dust), and resource intensive job. Whereas getting a forklift and some flatbed trucks to remove jersey barriers can be done in a few hours or less.

Not to say that the jersey barriers are bad. They are a very good way to protect bike lanes from vehicles travelling in the adjacent lanes, and definitely better than using flexible delineators. But they are in no way or shape "permanent".

[jmecklenborg]

Did anyone go to this? Looks like fun. When I was a kid, we rode our BMX bikes on the interstate as a dare.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QQdD_KDRnIM

[shivtim]

^^Sorry, but I'm really not following. Here's a picture Boulder uses of what they will install, an example from Toronto. And this that I believe is already installed. They're just jersey barriers, and equally as removable as anything else that's not built into the street itself. Again, great for Boulder, but it doesn't look like they're doing anything new or different. Am I misunderstanding? NYC example, where the barriers are bolted together with metal fences - certainly seems permanent. And Queens Blvd in NYC, and in 66 Parallel in Virginia.

[dchan]

^ If I am to be very pedantic, I would consider nothing to be permanent. Everything has the possibility to be destroyed, either by mankind or through the forces of nature over time (erosion, natural disasters, etc).

But my definition of "permanent" in this case is when the concrete is embedded into and below the ground, like in this section detail:



Once the existing pavement is excavated and the concrete is installed, it is fairly resource and time consuming to rip out the concrete infrastructure and repave the road (the latter is less resource & time intensive - repaving, of course, is done all the time).

Most of your example links are of pre-cast concrete barriers that are shipped to the site by flatbed truck. Some are just dropped into place with no anchors. Others require an anchor hole to be drilled into the pavement so that the barrier can be bolted to the road (usually done for lighter barriers that can be easily pushed, or ones that are at risk of toppling over if they are not anchored). But in either case, removal of these barriers is relatively easy and can be done within a few hours or less.

This is why I consider these barriers to be "temporary", even if they continue to remain installed in-place for many years, if not decades. An example is your link for the "NYC example" with metal fence - I've personally used this center-running bike lane 9 years ago 3-5 days a week.

The only "permanent" installation from your links is for the 66 Parallel in VA. This is an engineered wall next to a high-speed freeway that was most likely poured in-place and embedded fairly deep below ground level. Bike lanes adjacent to freeways require such "permanent" installations due to the risk of high speed crashes pushing this wall into any cyclists or e-mobility users.

[shivtim]

Oh I'm totally on board with you on the need for high-quality, permanent bicycle infrastructure. But Boulder appears to be putting concrete blocks in place, that by your definition are not permanent. They said they're doing what Toronto has. And those are just concrete barriers placed on a road. Am I misunderstanding, and Boulder is doing what you've shown in the diagram? Either way, again, great for Boulder, I just don't understand how they claim they're the first US city to do this.

[dchan]

Originally Posted by shivtim

^But that's not what Boulder is doing, unless they really botched the press release. They said they're doing what Toronto has. And those are just concrete barriers placed on a road. Am I misunderstanding, and Boulder is doing what you've shown in the diagram?

Yes, they're just putting jersey barriers down and having local artists paint them so they add some vibrancy. We do that here in NYC also on occasion with our barrier-protected bike lanes. They are better than the previous separation (buffer markings and flexible posts) at keeping out cars, but I do not consider them "permanent", even if they remain in service for decades. As noted (for a 3rd time by me), they can easily be removed overnight without any muss or fuss.

I'm honestly not sure what your confusion is about here. Can you explain?

EDIT: Oh, I see what your confusion is about. No, Boulder's official website is bullsh*tting. Many, many cities in the US have installed jersey barriers as bike lane protection before Boulder has. Maybe what Boulder means is that they are using this specific type of concrete barrier and referring to it as "tall curbs" (it seems to have a shorter height than other jersey barriers). Sorry for being pedantic in earlier posts.

[sopas ej]

Originally Posted by jmecklenborg

Did anyone go to this? Looks like fun. When I was a kid, we rode our BMX bikes on the interstate as a dare.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QQdD_KDRnIM

Yes, I did, but I walked, a total of 4 miles plus (2 miles one way and 2 miles back).

I took pictures, which are in my "My Los Ángeles" photo thread in My City Photos: https://skyscraperpage.com/forum/sho...&postcount=489

There have only been two ArroyoFests, and they were 20 years apart.

The city of Los Angeles regularly has CicLAvia events in different areas of the city, and the SGV has something called 626 Golden Streets, which is similar to CicLAvia (they close off miles of certain streets to automobile traffic and let cyclists/walkers/runners/etc. rule the streets).

[shivtim]

New segment of the Atlanta Beltline, the Northeast Trail, opens.






Now stretching for 1.2 miles, the Northeast Trail’s first two segments improve or unlock off-street mobility for several intown neighborhoods, linking the northern edge of Piedmont Park to the Armour district near SweetWater Brewing Company’s longtime home.

Along the way the trail passes Ansley Mall and Ansley Golf Course, bridges over the Buford-Spring Connector (with tall new protective fencing installed), and swoops under 10 lanes of Interstate 85 before ending, for now, at Mayson Street.

[mrnyc]

amsterdam bike canals —


https://www.instagram.com/reel/CwAIO...htbXEwYTl1cXcx

[jmecklenborg]

Cincinnati's Straight St. Hill Climb race was this morning. This event started in the 1970s as a running race and bicycling was only added in the last few years. The "course" is .36 miles long and about 280 vertical feet with an average grade of about 12%. This isn't close to the highest (over 400 vertical feet) or steepest hill (about 30%) in the city but it's probably the best-known since it is right next to UC.

A dramatic fog filled the valley until the exact moment that the running race began at 9am. The bicycle race followed at 9:30am.


The fog at approximately 8:45am:




Spectators at the top:




The winner of the running race:




The pack:




Bikers getting ready:




About five minutes before the race:




The bicycling results:

[mrnyc]

nyc dot celebrates completion of major manhattan third avenue 'complete streets' improvements --




ABOUT DOT
Press Releases
IMMEDIATE RELEASE
December 7, 2023
Contact: (212) 839-4850, press@dot.nyc.gov

NYC DOT Celebrates Completion of Major Safety Project on Manhattan's Third Avenue

Transformative project redesigned dangerous intersections, reduces speeding, and added 1.9 miles of bike and bus lanes in corridor that has seen a high number of severe injuries and fatalities

New design features wider bike lanes to better accommodate record-breaking bike ridership and creates a more welcoming, comfortable cycling experience.


New York – New York City Department of Transportation (NYC DOT) Commissioner Ydanis Rodriguez today celebrated the completion of a major street safety project on Third Avenue in Midtown and the Upper East Side. The completed project spans nearly 40 blocks from East 59th to East 96th streets, a stretch of Third Avenue that has seen 37 severe injuries and seven traffic fatalities between 2016 and 2022. The project includes a redesign of every intersection, traffic calming measures to reduce speeding, a new offset bus lane, and a parking-protected bicycle lane. The "Complete Street" project, which better accommodates all road users, will also deliver faster, more reliable bus service for 50,000 daily riders along the corridor. With the completion of the Third Avenue redesign, NYC DOT expects to deliver a record high number of protected bike lanes this year.


more:
https://www.nyc.gov/html/dot/html/pr...hird-ave.shtml


As part of the "Complete Street" redesign of Third Avenue in Midtown and the Upper East Side, NYC DOT has added 11-foot bike lanes along two uphill segments of Third Avenue to create passing lanes where faster e-mobility users can safely pass pedal cyclists.