Saturday, April 6, 2019

Bike lanes: Contrarian Fit


Please bear with RantWoman who is devoting her Saturday night keyboard to a contrarian FIT.

 
RantWoman hopes everyone interested will attend the opening of the NE 65th St. bike lanes with more joy and enthusiasm than RantWoman can find.
 

 

RantWoman is thrilled that buses on 65th will not face the terrifying to RantWoman reality of leapfrogging back and forth with bicyclists at every stop. RantWoman is supposed to be thrilled that there is now separate biking space on 65th. But the other day, RantWoman watched the bus she was on try to negotiate the turn from 15th Ave NE to NE 65th. Let’s just say, the turn past the bike lane did not seem like it would be fun for a bus driver.
 

RantWoman is well aware she is swimming against the current to ask “wouldn’t the bicyclists be even happier if they could have a freer more open ride on say 68th or 70th. RantWoman is all for bicycle infrastructure, and also all for the reality that there are LOTS of people for who bicycles are NOT a workable first mile / last mile solution. But RantWoman digresses.
 

Congratulations on the opening of the new bike lanes.



And from LAST Saturday’s meditations:

 

RantWoman has a long list of to-do’s that probably are not going to get to-done tonight.

 

Instead, RantWoman will first wax lyrical about a journey to NE Seattle, to the land of large homes and long established trees. RantWoman always appreciates this journey for vegetation and fresher air. RantWoman also allows herself a pang about the need for greater density and more multifamily housing even when RantWoman is really going to enjoy someone’s large single-family home.  RantWoman always finds herself grateful to have very hospitable friends who from time to time invite the likes of RantWoman to come visit. These visits are a delight on MANY grounds but they also make RantWoman grateful that someone else is in charge of all that homeowner property management stuff.

 

This time RantWoman also collected data she needs to remember to convey to Metro: RantWoman was travelling late in the afternoon on a Saturday and needed to catch the 71 from in front of the UW Medical Center. Both the Transit app and the posted schedule suggest that the 71 is operating on the timetable listed for the 73 and the 73 is operating on the timetable listed for the 71. Facepalm, except the sun was too glorious to be crabby too long.

 

Once RantWoman was on the right route, the next bus moment was, drum roll please, the protected bike lane on NE 65th and watching the bus try to turn onto NE 65th. The turn did NOT look like a happy experience.

 

As a bus passenger, the bus driving behind a bicyclist experience is frequently terrifying so RantWoman likes the idea of protected bike lanes to a point.

 

NE 65 is comparateively narrow. Why not have the PBL on 70th?

 

RantWoman definitely does not feel the same way about 35th Ave NE. RantWoman thinks 35th NE is more than wide enough to support bike lanes. AND RantWoman thinks bike lanes would be a great use of that wide roadway.

 

RantWoman already has plenty else to keep her busy but RantWoman hereby joins the chorus of people opining about revisions of the Bicycle Master Plan.
 

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