Originally Posted by
dynodonn
Looking at the Goodpasture crossing, with peds and cyclists only having to cross one lane at a time, it is nothing to the 3 lane arterials that many pedestrians and cyclists have to cross in our locale on a daily basis. Maybe having a radar speed sign next to the 40mph speed limit sign that's located at the crossing might be a helpful start, along with a push button activated crossing lights to alert drivers would be another useful addition.
Added: Just today, a young woman was seriously injured in crossing one of our local 3 lane arterials.
Sure, it's doable and definitely isn't on anyone's top 100 list of dangerous crossings, but would you let your eight-year-old do it? If a hundred foot long bridge is going to be built to connect a neighborhood to the riverfront, it seems silly and wasteful to not construct the last thirty feet so that it actually makes the connection.
And I guess that brings us back to the topic: connections or lack thereof. Wouldn't it be lovely if bike infrastructure was constructed with connectivity in mind? Locally, our traffic planners have rigged the game so that there is only one discussion per decade (so-call TransPlan) on regional connectivity, and that committee is stacked with motoring interests. In the intervening years it is impossible to change policy towards sane, safe connections with the possible exception of the periodic reports from a city-only pedestrian and cycling advisory committee.