Slow bike traffic on pedestrian path?
I'm with the campus police at Washington University here in St. Louis. We have a slight problem arising over a bike/pedestrian path.
The local Metrolink expansion has built a bike/pedestrian "ramp" from the main footpath up into the residential area North of the university. Lots of kids commute via this route to campus each day. The ramp is a crossover for the busy Forest Park Parkway.
Here's the problem: The ramp is a fairly steep little pitch, and the kids on bikes are motivated to just stand on the pedals and shoot up same as fast as possible, since almost none of them bother to shift gears. This results in high-speed encounters between the bicyclists and pedestrians. A number of students have complained of near-collisions, getting "buzzed", etc.
We have installed signs at the ends of the structure encouraging riders to dismount and walk up the hill; you can imagine how much compliance we're getting.
Any suggestions here? The ramp/path is too narrow for a dedicated bike lane, and we don't want to install any sort of structure that would be dangerous to riders.