Are bikes getting squeezed out of the Humboldt Park road diet? on VWYF
http://votewithyourfeetchicago.blogspot.com/2010/10/tale-of-two-roa...
This week Vote With Your Feet looks at two of the city's upcoming "road diet"
projects which aim to beef up safety by slimming down streets. A streetscape project
in Lincoln Square serves up a nice slice of the roadway for bicyclists, but will cyclists
in Humboldt Park get their piece of the pie?
Keep on biking, walking and transit-ing,
John Greenfield
A Tale of Two Road Diets
New “road diets” aim to beef up safety by slimming down streets, but will bicyclists get their piece of the pie?
by John Greenfield
[This article also appears in Time Out Chicago magazine, www.timeoutchicago.com.]
Cities across the country are seeking to improve safety through the so-called road diet—narrowing or removing street lanes to calm traffic and create more space for pedestrians and bicyclists. “A major benefit is reducing vehicle speeds and focusing attention on the other public-way uses,” says Chicago Department of Transportation (CDOT) spokesman Brian Steele.
Now the city is planning to give Lawrence Avenue in Lincoln Square and Humboldt Drive through Humboldt Park a traffic tummy tuck. “It’s a shift in the way [the city is] thinking about streets,” says Active Transportation Alliance’s Adolfo Hernandez. “The aldermen for both projects have been very supportive. Taking away a lane of traffic is not easy to do—it takes political will.”
The $12 million Lawrence streetscape project, tentatively scheduled to start next year, stretches between Western and Ashland Avenues and will slim the avenue from its current four travel lanes to one lane in each direction with a center turn lane, Steele says. This “four-to-three conversion” will provide space for wider sidewalks, curb bump-outs, pedestrian refuge islands and new bike lanes.
The streetscape also will provide more space for sidewalk cafés and make it easier to pedal to the lake, says Dan Luna, 47th Ward chief of staff. “Lots of people have been contacting our offices requesting safer bike routes,” he says.
Eric Holm, manager of On the Route Bicycles (2338 W Lawrence Ave), applauds the change. “Lawrence is pretty intimidating for beginning riders,” he says. “Adding bike lanes means more people will be riding past our store and shopping here.”
The Humboldt Park road diet is proving to be a bit more controversial. Since August 23, CDOT has been working on Humboldt Drive from North Avenue to Division Street, the high-speed roadway dividing Humboldt Park. It temporarily changes the four-lane street into two travel lanes with a center lane used as a combination left-turn lane and pedestrian refuge area, using orange traffic barrels to keep moving cars out of the center lane. After CDOT analyzes the effects on traffic speed and behavior, Steele says, the changes may become permanent next year.
Roberto Maldonado, 26th Ward alderman, helped push for the project after his office received many complaints about speeding traffic and difficulty crossing the street, says Maldonado’s chief of staff, Kathleen Oskandy. “A lot of them were from young moms with baby strollers,” she says. Although residents proposed adding stoplights, stop signs and speed humps, Oskandy says federal constraints on the historic boulevard limited those options.
Not everyone is enthusiastic about the experimental setup, which, unlike the Lawrence road diet, does not include the addition of bike lanes. Oskandy says there was initial talk of including them, “but the first plan of attack was to slow down the traffic, so bike lanes might have added to the confusion.”
Drivers we talked to felt comfortable with the new configuration, but cyclists didn’t. During a half-hour period on a recent Tuesday afternoon, a handful pedaled on the asphalt paths that run parallel to Humboldt Drive, but no one attempted to ride in the newly slimmed street. “I’m a little afraid to bike in the street now,” said Jim Stablein, 58. “Cars can’t squeeze by you.”
Although the city-issued Chicago Bike Map designated this segment of Humboldt Drive for years as a cycling-friendly street, CDOT removed it from this year’s edition, recommending a stretch of nearby Kedzie Avenue as the safer route. As a result, the two-mile stretch of Humboldt (called Sacramento Boulevard south of the park) between Armitage Avenue and Franklin Boulevard is virtually the only segment of Chicago's 28-mile historic boulevard system that is not recommended as a bike route. Since Humbolt is no longer a recommended route, it's not under consideration for bike lanes, says CDOT bikeways engineer David Gleason.
That’s unfortunate, says Todd Gee, president of the nonprofit alt-transportation org Break the Gridlock. “The new travel lanes aren’t wide enough for cars to safely pass bicyclists. It’s fantastic they’re doing something about speeding and making it more pedestrian friendly, but it’s disappointing that they’re not accommodating bikes.”
Ash Lottes, who takes her son to pre-school by bike via the park, says she met with Maldonado on September 21 to discuss the possibility of adding bike lanes and sidewalks along Humboldt. She provided the alderman with blueprints for alternate street configurations that would include bike lanes.
“He told me that he has no intention of adding a bicycle lane or any other accouterments on that stretch because ‘the road is too dangerous for pedestrians,’” she says. Lottes recently posted on the local bike website thechainlink.org, asking members to lobby Maldonado for bike lanes on Humboldt. “To me the road seems too dangerous for pedestrians because there are no sidewalks, crosswalks or bike lanes.”
This week Vote With Your Feet looks at two of the city's upcoming "road diet"
projects which aim to beef up safety by slimming down streets. A streetscape project
in Lincoln Square serves up a nice slice of the roadway for bicyclists, but will cyclists
in Humboldt Park get their piece of the pie?
Keep on biking, walking and transit-ing,
John Greenfield
A Tale of Two Road Diets
New “road diets” aim to beef up safety by slimming down streets, but will bicyclists get their piece of the pie?
by John Greenfield
[This article also appears in Time Out Chicago magazine, www.timeoutchicago.com.]
Cities across the country are seeking to improve safety through the so-called road diet—narrowing or removing street lanes to calm traffic and create more space for pedestrians and bicyclists. “A major benefit is reducing vehicle speeds and focusing attention on the other public-way uses,” says Chicago Department of Transportation (CDOT) spokesman Brian Steele.
Now the city is planning to give Lawrence Avenue in Lincoln Square and Humboldt Drive through Humboldt Park a traffic tummy tuck. “It’s a shift in the way [the city is] thinking about streets,” says Active Transportation Alliance’s Adolfo Hernandez. “The aldermen for both projects have been very supportive. Taking away a lane of traffic is not easy to do—it takes political will.”
The $12 million Lawrence streetscape project, tentatively scheduled to start next year, stretches between Western and Ashland Avenues and will slim the avenue from its current four travel lanes to one lane in each direction with a center turn lane, Steele says. This “four-to-three conversion” will provide space for wider sidewalks, curb bump-outs, pedestrian refuge islands and new bike lanes.
The streetscape also will provide more space for sidewalk cafés and make it easier to pedal to the lake, says Dan Luna, 47th Ward chief of staff. “Lots of people have been contacting our offices requesting safer bike routes,” he says.
Eric Holm, manager of On the Route Bicycles (2338 W Lawrence Ave), applauds the change. “Lawrence is pretty intimidating for beginning riders,” he says. “Adding bike lanes means more people will be riding past our store and shopping here.”
The Humboldt Park road diet is proving to be a bit more controversial. Since August 23, CDOT has been working on Humboldt Drive from North Avenue to Division Street, the high-speed roadway dividing Humboldt Park. It temporarily changes the four-lane street into two travel lanes with a center lane used as a combination left-turn lane and pedestrian refuge area, using orange traffic barrels to keep moving cars out of the center lane. After CDOT analyzes the effects on traffic speed and behavior, Steele says, the changes may become permanent next year.
Roberto Maldonado, 26th Ward alderman, helped push for the project after his office received many complaints about speeding traffic and difficulty crossing the street, says Maldonado’s chief of staff, Kathleen Oskandy. “A lot of them were from young moms with baby strollers,” she says. Although residents proposed adding stoplights, stop signs and speed humps, Oskandy says federal constraints on the historic boulevard limited those options.
Not everyone is enthusiastic about the experimental setup, which, unlike the Lawrence road diet, does not include the addition of bike lanes. Oskandy says there was initial talk of including them, “but the first plan of attack was to slow down the traffic, so bike lanes might have added to the confusion.”
Drivers we talked to felt comfortable with the new configuration, but cyclists didn’t. During a half-hour period on a recent Tuesday afternoon, a handful pedaled on the asphalt paths that run parallel to Humboldt Drive, but no one attempted to ride in the newly slimmed street. “I’m a little afraid to bike in the street now,” said Jim Stablein, 58. “Cars can’t squeeze by you.”
Although the city-issued Chicago Bike Map designated this segment of Humboldt Drive for years as a cycling-friendly street, CDOT removed it from this year’s edition, recommending a stretch of nearby Kedzie Avenue as the safer route. As a result, the two-mile stretch of Humboldt (called Sacramento Boulevard south of the park) between Armitage Avenue and Franklin Boulevard is virtually the only segment of Chicago's 28-mile historic boulevard system that is not recommended as a bike route. Since Humbolt is no longer a recommended route, it's not under consideration for bike lanes, says CDOT bikeways engineer David Gleason.
That’s unfortunate, says Todd Gee, president of the nonprofit alt-transportation org Break the Gridlock. “The new travel lanes aren’t wide enough for cars to safely pass bicyclists. It’s fantastic they’re doing something about speeding and making it more pedestrian friendly, but it’s disappointing that they’re not accommodating bikes.”
Ash Lottes, who takes her son to pre-school by bike via the park, says she met with Maldonado on September 21 to discuss the possibility of adding bike lanes and sidewalks along Humboldt. She provided the alderman with blueprints for alternate street configurations that would include bike lanes.
“He told me that he has no intention of adding a bicycle lane or any other accouterments on that stretch because ‘the road is too dangerous for pedestrians,’” she says. Lottes recently posted on the local bike website thechainlink.org, asking members to lobby Maldonado for bike lanes on Humboldt. “To me the road seems too dangerous for pedestrians because there are no sidewalks, crosswalks or bike lanes.”
Views: 158
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Brendan Kevenides on
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Interesting story. I've thought for some time now that Humboldt Drive is one of the most dangerous roads in the city on which to ride a bike: http://www.mybikeadvocate.com/2010/09/path-to-safety-in-chicago.html
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Permalink Reply by John Greenfield on
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Great blog post Brendan, which predicted the current Humboldt issue back when you posted it
on September 1, although you seem to have a different perspective than the three cyclists I
quoted in my article. Even though the (somewhat circuitous) side paths exist, they would like to be able to ride safely in the street.
Thanks,
John Greenfield
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Permalink Reply by Gin on
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Thanks, John, for covering this issue. I am shaking my head at the circular logic around the bike lanes. The segment was deemed not suitable for a bike route so now that there are plans to improve the segment, it is no longer eligible for a bike lane???
I think some more organizing might be in order--maybe emailing the city* and the ward office and working with active trans and West Town bikes to let other cyclists in the area know about the project and lobby for improvements.
It's funny, WTTW is doing a whole show on biking the boulevards and yet here we are talking about a key missing link in the "emerald necklace." I don't want to berate the alderman--he is trying to do something positive--just show him that we *can* improve that stretch for pedestrians and cyclists traveling along and across Humboldt. Invite him on a bike ride?? Send postcards?? Swarm the ward office on ward night (mondays. 4-7, I think)? Again, I think it's key to lead with the positive: "Thanks for tackling this problem; here are some ideas that might help improve the solution."
I did stop by the office a few weeks ago, and left my comments about the situation, but it does not seem like enough.
Thoughts?
*In response to my question about how to provide feedback to the city on the project, Steven Vance suggested:
You can email CDOT.
cdotnews@cityofchicago.org - Public Information Office
Or, Bobby L. Ware, Commissioner:
bobby.ware@cityofchicago.org
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Permalink Reply by dan brown on
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thanks Gin. I, like you and many others; live right by humboldt blvd. and refuse to ride there. I take
california or kedzie as alternates. additionally - the condition of humboldt blvd. isn't the greatest - and this results in having to move away from the curb often closer in to traffic : which makes an already
dangerous situation worse.
Dan
p.s. FWIW dept. : Alerman Moldanado came to a block party on my street (Richmond) this summer and
he actually had a (fat tire cruiser) bike from New Belgium brewing. kind of ironic.
Gin said:Thanks, John, for covering this issue. I am shaking my head at the circular logic around the bike lanes. The segment was deemed not suitable for a bike route so now that there are plans to improve the segment, it is no longer eligible for a bike lane???
I think some more organizing might be in order--maybe emailing the city* and the ward office and working with active trans and West Town bikes to let other cyclists in the area know about the project and lobby for improvements.
It's funny, WTTW is doing a whole show on biking the boulevards and yet here we are talking about a key missing link in the "emerald necklace." I don't want to berate the alderman--he is trying to do something positive--just show him that we *can* improve that stretch for pedestrians and cyclists traveling along and across Humboldt. Invite him on a bike ride?? Send postcards?? Swarm the ward office on ward night (mondays. 4-7, I think)? Again, I think it's key to lead with the positive: "Thanks for tackling this problem; here are some ideas that might help improve the solution."
I did stop by the office a few weeks ago, and left my comments about the situation, but it does not seem like enough.
Thoughts?
*In response to my question about how to provide feedback to the city on the project, Steven Vance suggested:
You can email CDOT.
cdotnews@cityofchicago.org - Public Information Office
Or, Bobby L. Ware, Commissioner:
bobby.ware@cityofchicago.org
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Dan--
Love the image of the fat tires. Would you support efforts to urge Humboldt being made safer for cyclists? I know Kedzie and California are alternates, but that can be an annoying detour depending on where you need to go. I don't like the idea of giving up on roads, esp ones that go through and across a key park.
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Dan,
Humboldt would be resurfaced before the lanes are re-striped,
so there would be smooth pavement for cycling.
John Greenfield
dan brown said:thanks Gin. I, like you and many others; live right by humboldt blvd. and refuse to ride there. I take
california or kedzie as alternates. additionally - the condition of humboldt blvd. isn't the greatest - and this results in having to move away from the curb often closer in to traffic : which makes an already
dangerous situation worse.
Dan
p.s. FWIW dept. : Alerman Moldanado came to a block party on my street (Richmond) this summer and
he actually had a (fat tire cruiser) bike from New Belgium brewing. kind of ironic.
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Permalink Reply by Allen Wrench on
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Could this be an opportunity for a fully separated section of bike lane parallelling the road? (instead of a wider traffic lane with a painted bike lane?) I haven't ridden there in months so my recollection is vague, but isn't there space on the west side of the road where a bike lane could go, separate from the road and sidewalk? If it's wide enough it could even be 2-directional for a short space. By making a separated bike lane, CDOT could achieve the automotive traffic goals they have without the bikes getting in the way. It is irritating that by defining the street as non-recommended for bikes they think they can give up on us.
An alternative for cyclists with the current system is to take the whole lane and act like a car (vehicular cycling) but that isn't a stretch of road I'd be enthusiastic about trying that.
In my experience Alderman Maldonado is responsive to voters' requests, especially if there is evidence that there is popular support for the request. I agree that it can't hurt to write him and add to that support, and mention if you live in his district.
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Good point Allen. The Humboldt road diet might be an opportunity to try out that idea or other separated
bikeway techniques that haven't been tried yet in Chicago.
For example, Chapter 3 of the city's Bike 2015 Plan calls for piloting raised bikeways:
3.7 Install raised bike lanes at appropriate locations. Raised bike lanes have a slightly raised edge to prevent motorists from driving in the lane, protecting bicyclists from fast-moving traffic. If successful, expand initiative.
Objective 3.7: Raised Bike Lanes
3.7.1 Performance Measures: Identify 3 – 5 potential locations in 2006. Test 2 – 3 locations by
2010.
3.7.2 Best Practices: Eugene, OR; Bend, OR; Geneva, Switzerland
The raised bikeway strategy might be appropriate on Humboldt through the park,
since there aren't a lot of intersections and the raised lane would help protect cyclists
from speeding cars.
John Greenfield
Allen Wrench said:Could this be an opportunity for a fully separated section of bike lane parallelling the road? (instead of a wider traffic lane with a painted bike lane?) I haven't ridden there in months so my recollection is vague, but isn't there space on the west side of the road where a bike lane could go, separate from the road and sidewalk? If it's wide enough it could even be 2-directional for a short space. By making a separated bike lane, CDOT could achieve the automotive traffic goals they have without the bikes getting in the way. It is irritating that by defining the street as non-recommended for bikes they think they can give up on us.
An alternative for cyclists with the current system is to take the whole lane and act like a car (vehicular cycling) but that isn't a stretch of road I'd be enthusiastic about trying that.
In my experience Alderman Maldonado is responsive to voters' requests, especially if there is evidence that there is popular support for the request. I agree that it can't hurt to write him and add to that support, and mention if you live in his district.
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Here is the letter I have drafted for the alderman. I had to call his office for his email; I am not confident that email is the way to go. I might drop off a hard copy today. My letter also includes some pics of the area, and our wedding bike parade along Humboldt. Feel free to borrow/modify for your own correspondence.
October 15, 2010
26th Ward Office
2434 W. Division St.
Chicago, IL 60622
roberto.maldonado@cityofchicago.org
Dear Alderman Maldonado,
I was thrilled to learn that you are taking a lead in making Humboldt Avenue a better place for pedestrians. Getting across the road, whether I am on foot or bike, is a major challenge—especially when I am with my four year old son, Miguel. I am writing to ask that, in addition to promoting traffic calming for pedestrians, you work with CDOT to ensure that any improvements to the boulevard take into consideration the needs of cyclists who commute along and/or across Humboldt/Sacramento. It seems like a perfect candidate for a road diet, with bike lanes, two travel lanes, and a center turn lane with pedestrian refuge areas for crossings.
I have been living, working and playing in the 26th ward for ten years, with Humboldt Park being an important part of my family’s life. We are a car-free family, using bikes as our primary form of transportation. My husband and I got married in the park in 2002, and had a bike parade along Humboldt Blvd. to get to our wedding reception at the Logan Auditorium. We run and bike-commute through the park, and bring Miguel to its many playgrounds. Now that he is in PreK at Mitchell School (also in the 26th ward), we ride our bikes with him in a bike seat or trailer everyday through the park.
Humboldt Park is a destination, but it is also a bit of a barrier--a beautiful barrier--for travel through the area. Cyclists who need to go north/south in that area have few options: Kedzie, Humboldt and California, and the service roads in the park which usually will require a crossing of Humboldt and are not as direct. We need a viable *direct* north/south alternative through the park, and Humboldt should be it. Drivers should not be the only ones to enjoy a green thoroughfare on their commute.
Also, it goes without saying that crossing Humboldt is horrible. We should not tolerate a speedway through a park where people of all ages play, stroll and socialize. The non-crossing in front of the garden is a perfect example. We use that crossing everyday to get Miguel to and from school. The path just stops, without a curb cut, at the Blvd. The test design put high speed traffic right next to the curb. I think the buffer of a bike lane on either side would be better for everyone. I hope that any improvements allow for multiple crossing opportunities, with curb cuts.
I visited your office a few weeks back to share these thoughts, and was inspired to reach out again by the recent TimeOut article on road diets: http://chicago.timeout.com/articles/museums-culture/89891/road-diets. It was disappointing to read that this section of the boulevard has been taken out of the city’s bike map. The logic seems circular; since the segment was deemed not suitable for a bike route, it was removed from the network. Now that it is not part of the network, it is no longer under consideration for a bike lane? WTTW is doing a show on biking the boulevards and yet here we are talking about a key missing link in the "emerald necklace." Also, given all the Complete Streets legislation and policy efforts in the last few years, I am surprised that we are still struggling for basic accommodations for cyclists. The question should not be if we improve conditions for cyclists but rather, how and when?
I and many other area cyclists are happy to work with you and CDOT to turn Humboldt into a wonderful corridor for pedestrians, cyclists and drivers alike. Miguel and I hope to visit you at your next ward night, to talk to you about these issues as well as invite you to the next Kidical Mass, November 13, meeting in Palmer Square at 10:30, riding at 11am. Families with children bike around the neighborhood for about 45 minutes, taking the streets. We end at a park for the kids to play. Perhaps November’s route can include a tour of Humboldt Park to look more closely at the opportunities and problem spots.
Thank you again for your efforts to improve Humboldt Boulevard!
Kind Regards,
Gin Kilgore
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Permalink Reply by milesperhour on
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I'm just curious here, what is wrong with using Kedzie or California for biking? We're talking about 1/4 mile in either direction, which I would hardly consider going out of one's way. In fact, I consider both of those streets must safer because traffic is forced to go slower due to the many stop lights and stop signs. According to the articles that have been posted, federal constraints prohibit stop lights, stop signs, and speed bumps in the park. So even if they reduce the lanes, the park will still be a speedway, but now 2 lanes instead of 4. Further, if they reduce lanes through the park, I would expect traffic to increase on California and Kedzie, where pedestrians are traveling from to get to the park.
I know it's not an easy answer, but I don't think anything is really being solved here. Cars will still speed and we're increasing traffic on the outskirts of the park, where kids are crossing. As for the bike lanes, I'll take California any day. If they put bike lanes in the park, traffic will resume being just as bad to the south and north of Humboldt Park.
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Great question. Sometimes detouring really does not make much sense, depending on your start/stop point. To me it goes back to the park being both a destination and a barrier. If anything, the fact that we have fewer n/s options in the area makes Humboldt even more important. Also, I want to be able to ride through the park. It is purty and there are destinations within that I visit with my son.
I am not so knowledgeable about the federal constraints. But to repeat what I said in the letter: Given all the Complete Streets legislation and policy efforts in the last few years, I am surprised that we are still struggling for basic accommodations for cyclists. The question should not be if we improve conditions for cyclists but rather, how and when?
It just does not make sense to me to "give up" on a corridor. This does not mean I am wedded to the idea of bike lanes. I could maybe support a *continuous* path that made logical connections to the street network to the north and south, and that did not require using the weird, duck your head, remember to downshift, clover leaf underpass.
But, more broadly, I would love to see Humboldt looked at in terms of overall transportation/circulation needs in the area. I bike through and around the park all the time, seeking out pleasant routes. But once I get on a path or service road it seems I enter the realm of non-transportation. Paths stop abruptly, curb cuts are missing. It's as though there is no expectation that someone might be commuting around there via bicycle.
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Well said, Cameron! The fact that we have a high speed, hard to cross road bisecting the park is the biggest problem to tackle. In all fairness, I think that is also where the alderman was coming from. In fact, if the road was easier to cross, and the paths had curb cuts and were more logically connected to provide movement through the park, I would be slightly less up in arms about the bike friendliness of Humboldt. But I still think Humboldt is an important option, esp in winter when the park is dark and/or the paths are snowed under.
Cameron Puetz said:Instead of asking “Why don’t cyclists just go around so that motorists can speed through a park?” why not ask “Why don’t motorists travel at a safe speed through a park, so that cyclists don’t have to go around?” That point aside the reasons I see for not wanting to go around are that the side routes still aren’t great and the detour involves North Ave which is also not great.
While I certainly would like to see cycling on Humboldt Drive improved, the main issue for me is calming traffic to the point that the park is no longer cut in half. There is no reason to reduce the usability of an otherwise great park so that motorists can drive faster for a half mile. Remember it’s only a half mile; we’re talking about seconds of travel time being added by slowing down.
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