with only a couple fatal flaws. The city just dieted large parts of two major thoroughfares in our city. Park street is one way for several miles going north while Westnedge Ave. is one way heading south. Both were large 3 lane corridors guiding major traffic flows for large parts of the day.
They were fog sealed and re-striped this week. Both streets were reduced to two narrower lanes, the extra space is accommodating parking and a bike lane. It's an enormous improvement and the bike lane is comfortably wide. I rode it this mid morning when traffic was very quiet. It should have a calming effect on a stretch of road that has become a virtual drag strip through a dense residential area.
It's all a welcome accomplishment to see that the city planners realize that restricting and slowing auto traffic is the answer to urban improvement. But, they must not ride bikes much. They put the bike lane next to the parking which invites "door zone" incidents, and the the bike lane is on the left side of the traffic lanes. Since we are required to ride "as far to the right as practicable" everywhere else, cyclists place their rear view mirrors on the left. With this configuration, only on this stretch of road, we will have a helluva time monitoring traffic approaching from behind. It's nice that they are accommodating us and I will enjoy all they provide, but when the paint wears out it would be best to move the lane.
Other than noticing a couple potentially dangerous flaws, I had a time and a half riding through the intoxicating weather this morning.
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