At least they have a pretty good plan for adding bike lanes to Sullivan Sq. If they haven't striped them yet post repaving, they should be doing it in the next few weeks.
Biking in Boston
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At least they have a pretty good plan for adding bike lanes to Sullivan Sq. If they haven't striped them yet post repaving, they should be doing it in the next few weeks.
Interesting other nuggets in that Boston Cyclist Union piece. Thanks for drawing attention to it for us:
The Boston Transportation Department has long-term plan as well. An award winning redesign is sitting on the shelf that would fully reconstruct the area into a group of regular intersections, help organize traffic, and add better bikeways, including a shared use path alongside Rutherford Ave.
As of yet that project is not fully funded, and it may be altered to account for potential impacts from the Wynn Resorts Casino proposal in nearby Everett. The added traffic from the casino could degrade conditions for cyclists and pedestrians by influencing the city to keep an underpass on Rutherford Avenue at Austin Street, though many in the neighborhood would oppose such a change.
The Boston Transportation Department has long-term plan as well. An award winning redesign is sitting on the shelf that would fully reconstruct the area into a group of regular intersections, help organize traffic, and add better bikeways, including a shared use path alongside Rutherford Ave.
As of yet that project is not fully funded, and it may be altered to account for potential impacts from the Wynn Resorts Casino proposal in nearby Everett. The added traffic from the casino could degrade conditions for cyclists and pedestrians by influencing the city to keep an underpass on Rutherford Avenue at Austin Street, though many in the neighborhood would oppose such a change.
rinserepeat
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I blew by a bunch of brookline bike cops the other day. there's something really satisfying about coming up on a bunch of cops and saying "on your left."
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Is it a regional thing that fenders seem so out of favor on bikes around here? Do folks consider fenders such a hassle that its worth risking the ol' skunk stripe?
Or is it that Bostonians think of themselves as only bike on dry days? (or changing clothes when they get to work?)
Or is it that Bostonians think of themselves as only bike on dry days? (or changing clothes when they get to work?)
Randomgear
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I think that many of the people biking now are fair weather riders so they don't see much need for fenders.
All of the all weather, year 'round commuters I know in Roslindale have fenders on their commuter bikes. In fact, all of my five bikes have fenders, even though two of them are fair weather only vintage rust buckets.
All of the all weather, year 'round commuters I know in Roslindale have fenders on their commuter bikes. In fact, all of my five bikes have fenders, even though two of them are fair weather only vintage rust buckets.
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rinserepeat
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I feel like Roslindale has a lot of year-round bike commuters...
Yup lots of fair-weather riders. Whenever there is even a chance of a drop of rain, the number of bicycles parked in the garage at my office drops significantly. I ride in all weather year-round and all my bikes have always had fenders. One thing that always surprises me is how many bikes are not sold with fenders already installed or part of the design. They're almost always 3rd party add-ons.
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That sounds right. I won't think of it as a widespread failure of fender-marketing so much as a widespread success of people taking the fair weather option (from the looks of it, on a bike they used "back in school")
I think a fundamental problem is that the average commuter-type cyclist must be significantly less profitable a customer than the average roadie-type cyclist. I'd bet there's a lot more money to be made selling higher-end road bikes and all the gadgets that are associated with it than there is to a frugal, utilitarian-minded cyclist who will buy a full-featured bike and never be heard from again.
Final work is underway on Somerville's Mystic River underpass at Rt 28. A raised crossing is going in at the base of Temple Street.
One thought for the thread: When is a bike path not a bike path?
Google's occasionally stingy with its definition of a bike path. At this particular exchange in Ten Hills it considers the Mystic paths up the river as "bike path" and the new underpass as "bike path." However, where the path meets the road it narrows to about 6' and has some obstacles in the path (signs etc.). The bike overlay on Google maps doesn't consider this to be real path.
https://www.google.com/maps/@42.3995808,-71.0871136,17z/data=!5m1!1e3
What separates path from sidewalk? Obstacles and width? Pavement vs concrete? Separation from the road by more than a granite curb?
One thought for the thread: When is a bike path not a bike path?
Google's occasionally stingy with its definition of a bike path. At this particular exchange in Ten Hills it considers the Mystic paths up the river as "bike path" and the new underpass as "bike path." However, where the path meets the road it narrows to about 6' and has some obstacles in the path (signs etc.). The bike overlay on Google maps doesn't consider this to be real path.
https://www.google.com/maps/@42.3995808,-71.0871136,17z/data=!5m1!1e3
What separates path from sidewalk? Obstacles and width? Pavement vs concrete? Separation from the road by more than a granite curb?
Ron Newman
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I'd call it a sidewalk, not a bike path, where it's right next to Shore Drive. There's no reason to ride a bike on it once the raised crosswalk is open.
paperless paul
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Drivers and rotaries. Harrumph.
Why are drivers in such a hurry? Does slowing down for less than 2 seconds to ensure that you don't have an accident with a bike really inconvenience you that much?
Why do drivers in 3000 pound cars honk at bikes? What are you trying to communicate? That you are a jerk?
Here's the deal.
I will scrupulously obey the traffic laws that were designed for you and not me, if you
1) Scrupulously obey the speed limits
2) Scrupulously obey the traffic laws
3) Stop parking every where you darn please
4) Stop talking on the phone while driving - or at least use hands free
5) Stop whining about people using bikes who only benefit you by not contributing to traffic
Why are drivers in such a hurry? Does slowing down for less than 2 seconds to ensure that you don't have an accident with a bike really inconvenience you that much?
Why do drivers in 3000 pound cars honk at bikes? What are you trying to communicate? That you are a jerk?
Here's the deal.
I will scrupulously obey the traffic laws that were designed for you and not me, if you
1) Scrupulously obey the speed limits
2) Scrupulously obey the traffic laws
3) Stop parking every where you darn please
4) Stop talking on the phone while driving - or at least use hands free
5) Stop whining about people using bikes who only benefit you by not contributing to traffic
^ If I may add to that:
6) Stop making a left when a cyclist (with lights, in the left lane, going downhill +25MPH) has the right of way to proceed straight, forcing said cyclist to smoke a brand new tyre and hit the side of your car.
(Happened ~8 months ago, it finally gave out today... when I was all the way downtown.)
Same EXACT thing wrecked my vintage Ross cruiser when I first started riding, wrapped the fork around the frame, and me over the hood.
6) Stop making a left when a cyclist (with lights, in the left lane, going downhill +25MPH) has the right of way to proceed straight, forcing said cyclist to smoke a brand new tyre and hit the side of your car.
(Happened ~8 months ago, it finally gave out today... when I was all the way downtown.)
Same EXACT thing wrecked my vintage Ross cruiser when I first started riding, wrapped the fork around the frame, and me over the hood.
paperless paul
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I forgot:
7) Stop dangerously tailgating other cars, bikes etc.
Does anyone else have a view on this situation.
Take those old school ginormous rotaries on the Dedham / JP 'parkways' (like this).
Apparently the generic rule is to move safely to the inside lane until you get close to your exit, then safely move over to the outside lane, then signal for exit from the rotary.
In this example we have possibly four, or at least 3 travel lanes, none of which are indicated. But not nearly enough time to be on the inside lane for the first exit and then switch to the outside lane for the second exit.
Anyway, on a bike I would never try to travel all the way on the inside lane to go more than one exit. I generally stick to the outside lane, trying to be as careful as possible and trying to take the whole lane and then rely on drivers giving me room at each exit.
In this case driver number #1 came from the inside lane, crossed in front of me across all the lanes to the exit, at fairly high speed. And did not see me at all.
After I slammed on the brakes, the woman behind me had to stop suddenly as well, and was then upset that I had stopped in my lane to prevent my own death. Think about how I felt.
I am still not sure how, if I was only going 15m/h she could have been remotely close enough to me that she would have had to quick-stop, except that of course she was busy talking on the phone and probably missed the first second or two to stop.
Anyway, these rotaries are poorly designed, drivers go way too fast through them. Anyone else have an opinion about how a bike should take them.
7) Stop dangerously tailgating other cars, bikes etc.
Does anyone else have a view on this situation.
Take those old school ginormous rotaries on the Dedham / JP 'parkways' (like this).
Apparently the generic rule is to move safely to the inside lane until you get close to your exit, then safely move over to the outside lane, then signal for exit from the rotary.
In this example we have possibly four, or at least 3 travel lanes, none of which are indicated. But not nearly enough time to be on the inside lane for the first exit and then switch to the outside lane for the second exit.
Anyway, on a bike I would never try to travel all the way on the inside lane to go more than one exit. I generally stick to the outside lane, trying to be as careful as possible and trying to take the whole lane and then rely on drivers giving me room at each exit.
In this case driver number #1 came from the inside lane, crossed in front of me across all the lanes to the exit, at fairly high speed. And did not see me at all.
After I slammed on the brakes, the woman behind me had to stop suddenly as well, and was then upset that I had stopped in my lane to prevent my own death. Think about how I felt.
I am still not sure how, if I was only going 15m/h she could have been remotely close enough to me that she would have had to quick-stop, except that of course she was busy talking on the phone and probably missed the first second or two to stop.
Anyway, these rotaries are poorly designed, drivers go way too fast through them. Anyone else have an opinion about how a bike should take them.
As a driver, I gotta say I love the parkway rotaries - its basically the only set of roads where traffic keeps moving, but in an effort to make them safer, DCR has managed to ruin the northernmost one (by the new Wegman's).
But, as I also do a lot of biking a lot in that area, I first usually avoid the parkways in general because I dont like biking next to fast traffic, and really hate biking in rotaries, but when I have to negotiate them, I hug the shoulder as much as possible, and often Ill just ride on the sidewalk and use the crosswalks (on bike), usually theres a zebra stripe only a few feet after an exit.
rinserepeat
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pretty much...
I recently had someone yell "get on the sidewalk" at me - I was in cambridge, on a side street where there are often more bikes than cars - and we were stopped behind a bus.
last winter riding home during a snow storm... as I was navigating around gridlock this old man rolls down his window an starts yelling - I have no idea what he was saying, but I guess he was frustrated that he was stuck in traffic and I wasn't.
and this morning, someone started honking at me about 100 feet from where a bike lane started. I move over at the bike lane - this guy guns it to attempt to pass me and but immediately has to slam on his brakes because there are stopped cars - never caught up to me.
in the past I've had people try to run me off the road, have had people pull up along side me when I'm in a bike lane and start yelling (a couple times I've had things thrown at me), I've had death threats, people following me acting like they're going to run me over... fun stuff. And I'm probably one of the most mild-mannered bike commuters out there - I don't run reds, I rarely filter, always use hand signals, stop for peds in crosswalks, I try to move over and let people pass whenever I can - I don't purposefully antagonize motorists... but the fact is there are a lot of motorists who simply do not like the idea of sharing "THEIR" road.
On the nice side, I had a very pleasant encounter today where I was at a red waiting to make a left, and a car slowly pulled up behind me, rolled down their window, and very nicely asked if I could move over a foot so they could make a right red. I was flabbergasted at how nice it was