Time to rethink?
08-25-19, 01:40 PM
#26
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One other thing. Drivers in large vehicles don't like narrow lanes without shoulders.
A bike lane with low bike use can provide an additional buffer for traffic. Road Shoulder?
There is one road in Springfield. 2 lanes + center lane (1+1+1). No shoulders or bike lanes. Moderate traffic. It isn't my favorite bike route (although I do hold the KOM on it).
Anyway, I've noted that with the center turn lane, it is very easy for cars to get around me.
I do think that the traffic flow on that street is better having the turn lane and not having bike lanes.
A bike lane with low bike use can provide an additional buffer for traffic. Road Shoulder?
There is one road in Springfield. 2 lanes + center lane (1+1+1). No shoulders or bike lanes. Moderate traffic. It isn't my favorite bike route (although I do hold the KOM on it).
Anyway, I've noted that with the center turn lane, it is very easy for cars to get around me.
I do think that the traffic flow on that street is better having the turn lane and not having bike lanes.
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08-27-19, 11:36 AM
#27
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A number of issues...
We have a road here in Eugene that was put on a "Road Diet".
2x2 (4 lane) road converted to Bike + 1 + Center + 1 + Bike.
At first I thought that it was absolutely preposterous. How could the city possibly think that a 4-lane road could be effectively replaced by a 2-lane road?
However, the reality is that people who made left turns effectively snarled traffic, so it never was truly 4 lanes of flowing traffic. There is at least 1 major shopping center interchange along that section of road which was always a mess. By reducing it to one lane of flowing traffic + a center turn lane / merge lane (merging is legal in Oregon), it may actually make it easier to get in and out of driveways, and the overall traffic flow might be better, or at least not any worse.
We have a road here in Eugene that was put on a "Road Diet".
2x2 (4 lane) road converted to Bike + 1 + Center + 1 + Bike.
At first I thought that it was absolutely preposterous. How could the city possibly think that a 4-lane road could be effectively replaced by a 2-lane road?
However, the reality is that people who made left turns effectively snarled traffic, so it never was truly 4 lanes of flowing traffic. There is at least 1 major shopping center interchange along that section of road which was always a mess. By reducing it to one lane of flowing traffic + a center turn lane / merge lane (merging is legal in Oregon), it may actually make it easier to get in and out of driveways, and the overall traffic flow might be better, or at least not any worse.
Like in other cities, there was initially a great reluctance to do this (and still is from the 'car only' mentality), but after the city experimented with about half a dozen key streets, the studies showed that overall traffic improved, and they proceeded to do the same to a lot more roads.
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08-27-19, 12:03 PM
#28
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The road that they put on the "road diet" was the "Gut" or "Drag", where kids would slowly drive their fancy cars back and forth on Friday or Saturday nights.
https://www.friendlyareaneighbors.or...osed-eugene-or
The City effectively put a stop to that 20 or 30 years ago by legislating that one couldn't drive back and forth more than once or twice.
However, I wonder if the road diet would have been an easier way to eliminate the cruising. Simply separate the two lanes with the center turn lane. Or, perhaps kids would have used that center lane as a cherished parking lot.
https://www.friendlyareaneighbors.or...osed-eugene-or
The City effectively put a stop to that 20 or 30 years ago by legislating that one couldn't drive back and forth more than once or twice.
However, I wonder if the road diet would have been an easier way to eliminate the cruising. Simply separate the two lanes with the center turn lane. Or, perhaps kids would have used that center lane as a cherished parking lot.
