Go Back  Bike Forums > Bike Forums > Advocacy & Safety
Reload this Page >

MUP engineers gone wild!

Notices
Advocacy & Safety Cyclists should expect and demand safe accommodation on every public road, just as do all other users. Discuss your bicycle advocacy and safety concerns here.

MUP engineers gone wild!

Old 01-19-06, 07:06 AM
  #1  
Cyclist0094
Banned.
Thread Starter
 
Join Date: Nov 2003
Location: ny
Posts: 1,764
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 36 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 0 Times in 0 Posts
MUP engineers gone wild!

This is a unique way to bring a path up a hill. It is part of New York's Erie Canal Trailway which when finished will be 340+ miles long from Buffalo to Albany. It is just over half complete now. NY has for the most part done an excellent job on the trailway. The ramp is at Erie Canal lock 17 near Little Falls NY



I rode up and down on my touring bike, it is a bit tight with panniers on. I can't wait to try it on my tandem. There is a through option ( at the right of the picture)which is a steep ramp connecting each of the switchbacks.
Cyclist0094 is offline  
Old 01-19-06, 07:21 AM
  #2  
Juha
Formerly Known as Newbie
 
Juha's Avatar
 
Join Date: Mar 2002
Location: Helsinki, Finland
Posts: 6,250
Mentioned: 1 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 2 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 4 Times in 3 Posts
Originally Posted by velonomad
I can't wait to try it on my tandem.


--J
__________________
To err is human. To moo is bovine.

Who is this General Failure anyway, and why is he reading my drive?


Become a Registered Member in Bike Forums
Community guidelines
Juha is offline  
Old 01-19-06, 07:38 AM
  #3  
librarian
Senior Member
 
librarian's Avatar
 
Join Date: Nov 2004
Location: Ocean City, NJ
Posts: 244

Bikes: Giant OCR Touring, Raleigh Sport Comfort, Cannondale ST400, Cannondale Road Bike

Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 0 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 0 Times in 0 Posts
I'd be willing to bet that it was built that way to be ADA complient. They may not have gotten funded otherwise.
__________________
librarian is offline  
Old 01-19-06, 07:49 AM
  #4  
slvoid
2-Cyl, 1/2 HP @ 90 RPM
 
slvoid's Avatar
 
Join Date: Oct 2003
Location: NYC
Posts: 15,762

Bikes: 04' Specialized Hardrock Sport, 03' Giant OCR2 (SOLD!), 04' Litespeed Firenze, 04' Giant OCR Touring, 07' Specialized Langster Comp

Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 4 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 4 Times in 4 Posts
That'll be cool if they extended the trail from albany to near NYC.

At least they added the option of the straight path through that mess for us normal people who can walk under our own power.
slvoid is offline  
Old 01-19-06, 08:26 AM
  #5  
mexredknee
Member
 
Join Date: Nov 2005
Location: upstate NY
Posts: 32

Bikes: Trek 7100 Hybrid

Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 0 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 0 Times in 0 Posts
Thanks Velo for the info.
I would like the ride the along the canal sometime but I can't see riding that, especially if others are using it.
I noticed the road at the bottom. Where does that lead? I might be inclined to use the road instead if it comes out at the same place.
mexredknee is offline  
Old 01-19-06, 09:04 AM
  #6  
LittleBigMan
Sumanitu taka owaci
 
LittleBigMan's Avatar
 
Join Date: Mar 2001
Posts: 8,945
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 1 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 1 Time in 1 Post
Insanity is doing the same thing over and over, expecting different results.
__________________
No worries
LittleBigMan is offline  
Old 01-19-06, 09:34 AM
  #7  
lyledriver
Electrical Hazard
 
Join Date: Oct 2005
Location: Manhattan / Vancouver
Posts: 974

Bikes: a bunch.

Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 0 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 0 Times in 0 Posts
I'd be manualling all the way down the right side of that.
lyledriver is offline  
Old 01-19-06, 11:12 AM
  #8  
Brian Ratliff
Senior Member
 
Brian Ratliff's Avatar
 
Join Date: May 2002
Location: Near Portland, OR
Posts: 10,123

Bikes: Three road bikes. Two track bikes.

Mentioned: 2 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 47 Post(s)
Liked 4 Times in 4 Posts
The only reason they would make a path that way is to make it wheelchair accessible. Also, if it were only for recreational use, they wouldn't have put the hand rails.

Imagine if they made the path straight up the hill and having to manually wheel a wheelchair up the slope. It would get pretty tiring, I would think.
__________________
Cat 2 Track, Cat 3 Road.
"If you’re new enough [to racing] that you would ask such question, then i would hazard a guess that if you just made up a workout that sounded hard to do, and did it, you’d probably get faster." --the tiniest sprinter
Brian Ratliff is offline  
Old 01-19-06, 11:21 AM
  #9  
cc_rider
Calamari to go
 
cc_rider's Avatar
 
Join Date: May 2005
Location: Falls Church, VA
Posts: 3,113

Bikes: Trek 750

Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 3 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 0 Times in 0 Posts
Originally Posted by librarian
I'd be willing to bet that it was built that way to be ADA complient. They may not have gotten funded otherwise.
Yep. That's an accessible ramp. ADA and ANSI A117.1 compliant, and there may be local codes too.
Nothing to do with funding. It's in the builiding code and in the Federal law.
cc_rider is offline  
Old 01-19-06, 12:00 PM
  #10  
Cyclist0094
Banned.
Thread Starter
 
Join Date: Nov 2003
Location: ny
Posts: 1,764
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 36 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 0 Times in 0 Posts
Yes it was designed to be ADA accessable. The through option is funky because you have these short steep ramps between the flat portion of the switchbacks that could possibly endo an unskilled rider.

This isn't the main trail just an access from the railtrail. There is an option to use the road you see under the bridge. You have to ride about 3/4 mile past to reach the road and then 3/4 of a mile back on the road to reach the kiosk at the bottom of the hill. I wrote the canal authority and suggested signage to alert riders to the road option. Lock 17 is the highest lock on the erie canal and is worth stopping to see.

Here is what the trail usually looks like

Cyclist0094 is offline  
Old 01-19-06, 12:20 PM
  #11  
noisebeam
Arizona Dessert
 
noisebeam's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2004
Location: AZ
Posts: 15,030

Bikes: Cannondale SuperSix, Lemond Poprad. Retired: Jamis Sputnik, Centurion LeMans Fixed, Diamond Back ascent ex

Mentioned: 76 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 5345 Post(s)
Liked 2,169 Times in 1,288 Posts
Originally Posted by velonomad
Here is what the trail usually looks like
[beautiful trails pics deleted]
If I had paths like that to work I'd never make it to work, I'd just keep riding and riding...

Al
noisebeam is offline  
Old 01-19-06, 12:29 PM
  #12  
Cyclist0094
Banned.
Thread Starter
 
Join Date: Nov 2003
Location: ny
Posts: 1,764
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 36 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 0 Times in 0 Posts
Originally Posted by slvoid
That'll be cool if they extended the trail from albany to near NYC.
That might happen eventually. The Harlem Valley Railtrail when complete is suppose to go as far as Chatham. I am told there is a couple of old railroad grades that could be used to build a trail from Chatham to Rennselaer(across the river from Albany). Currently the state and some paddling groups are developing a 160 mile "water trail" for canoes and kayaks from Waterford to Pier 40 in NYC
Cyclist0094 is offline  
Old 01-19-06, 12:34 PM
  #13  
ItsJustMe
Señior Member
 
ItsJustMe's Avatar
 
Join Date: Sep 2005
Location: Michigan
Posts: 13,749

Bikes: Windsor Fens, Giant Seek 0 (2014, Alfine 8 + discs)

Mentioned: 13 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 446 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 8 Times in 7 Posts
Originally Posted by noisebeam
If I had paths like that to work I'd never make it to work, I'd just keep riding and riding...
Same here. That's beautiful.
ItsJustMe is offline  
Old 01-19-06, 01:16 PM
  #14  
o-dog
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Oct 2005
Location: College Park, MD
Posts: 535
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 0 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 0 Times in 0 Posts
the pedestrian/bike access bridge connecting the Berwyn and Berwyn Heights neighborhoods in College Park has something similar to that on each side (except more fenced in) as a "stairway" going up to the bridge

I'll post a picture if I can find one
o-dog is offline  
Old 01-19-06, 02:01 PM
  #15  
I-Like-To-Bike
Been Around Awhile
 
I-Like-To-Bike's Avatar
 
Join Date: Oct 2004
Location: Burlington Iowa
Posts: 29,951

Bikes: Vaterland and Ragazzi

Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 12 Post(s)
Liked 1,517 Times in 1,031 Posts
Originally Posted by velonomad
Here is what the trail usually looks like
Reminds me very much of the Fahrrad Weg I rode for 5 years to and from Heidelberg for work. About 10 kms of the 17.5 km commute route was similiar except that the path surface was hardpacked dirt with very good drainage so that the surface was always good. It was part of the bike route from Heidelberg to Speyer as well farther south to the Black Forest. Went right by my house.
I-Like-To-Bike is offline  
Old 01-19-06, 03:54 PM
  #16  
Cyclist0094
Banned.
Thread Starter
 
Join Date: Nov 2003
Location: ny
Posts: 1,764
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 36 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 0 Times in 0 Posts
the dual track picture is part of a 10 miles section between Utica and Rome NY. The picture of the trail along side the canal is part of a continous 45 mile section from Little Falls NY to Amsterdam NY that was just completed. When New York builds the 6 mile section between Amsterdam and Rotterdam NY ( supposedly next year) connecting it to the Hudson Mohawk trail there will be over 90 miles of nearly continous rail trail.
Cyclist0094 is offline  

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off


Thread Tools
Search this Thread

Contact Us - Archive - Advertising - Cookie Policy - Privacy Statement - Terms of Service -

Copyright © 2024 MH Sub I, LLC dba Internet Brands. All rights reserved. Use of this site indicates your consent to the Terms of Use.