There's potential yes.  If you add a center turn lane, then you only have parking on one side of the street.  That also means on the no-parking side buses still have to stop in traffic.  Then you run the risk of motorists using the turn lane as a passing lane, which is also dangerous and illegal.  Also, having buses pull over actually hurts bus service because they lose time having to merge back into traffic from a stop.  Overall, is left turning traffic and/or bus stops on the hill really that big of a problem? 

 

^I'd coordinate the bus stops with the on-street parking. That would create a "weave" in the traffic lanes which might slow traffic down a bit? Again, not sure this is the best idea. Maybe we just remove the rush hour restrictions, which would allow the parking spaces to be painted accordingly, and then - as you said - ticket cars for parking on the sidewalk.

Good luck getting DOTE to implement it, but you could "chicane" the through lane into the parking lane and have the through lane become a left turn lane, wherever left turns could be a problem. Bumpouts at midblock crossings, with the pedestrian-crossing "paddles" like have been installed by Ziegler Park. Bumpouts where parking lanes end and bus stops begin.

Good luck getting DOTE to implement it, but you could "chicane" the through lane into the parking lane and have the through lane become a left turn lane, wherever left turns could be a problem. Bumpouts at midblock crossings, with the pedestrian-crossing "paddles" like have been installed by Ziegler Park. Bumpouts where parking lanes end and bus stops begin.

 

Not sure what "chicane" means, but I think I envision what you're saying (with the travel lanes moving as necessary to allow for center turn lane when needed), and that's what I had in mind. Do you know of any examples of this kind of road configuration. I agree it's a long shot, but I'm just genuinely interested in what would be the best fit for this street.

I would be curious to know whether traffic levels have decreased on either Vine or Sycamore/Auburn with the opening of the MLK interchange. My preference would be to make the parking lanes permanent by removing the peak lane restrictions and adding periodic crosswalks with bump-outs.

 

I'm also not sure why East Hollister is one-way westbound. With all the new development happening in Mt. Auburn, it seems like making this section two-way would enhance connectivity for that neighborhood.

I'm also not sure why East Hollister is one-way westbound. With all the new development happening in Mt. Auburn, it seems like making this section two-way would enhance connectivity for that neighborhood.

^Agreed!

Vine needs to get rid of peak lane restrictions all the way to Mitchell Avenue, although I don't know if that would mean completely removing on-street parking or permanently making Vine one lane and one parking lane each direction on the northern stretch through Avondale. That area gets pretty gnarly during rush hour, especially when someone inevitably leaves their car in the right lane and almost crashes into it.

Self-centered motorists are at war with cyclists and pedestrians. They raised the DEFCON level today. A very disturbing video caught an attempted by murder by car. The driver of this car was previously filmed by @KTLA getting into an altercation outside her car with these cyclists. She got in her car, turned around and came back to do this.....

 

Video Shows Car Hitting Pedestrian During Vigil for Cyclist Who Was Killed in South L.A. Hit-and-Run

http://ktla.com/2018/04/11/1-person-hit-by-car-during-vigil-for-bicyclist-fatally-struck-in-south-l-a-hit-and-run-crash-video/

There's potential yes.  If you add a center turn lane, then you only have parking on one side of the street.  That also means on the no-parking side buses still have to stop in traffic.  Then you run the risk of motorists using the turn lane as a passing lane, which is also dangerous and illegal.  Also, having buses pull over actually hurts bus service because they lose time having to merge back into traffic from a stop.  Overall, is left turning traffic and/or bus stops on the hill really that big of a problem? 

 

Just a couple other notes, parking on sidewalks is happening all over the city.  I don't think it's because of any actual risk, but because police aren't ticketing for it (heck, I don't think they're even ticketing for parking in front of fire hydrants).  The lack of enforcement, plus low curbs, leads to lazy parking and feeds into motorists' sense of entitlement if not outright contempt for pedestrians.  That said, Vine Street is only 36' wide from curb to curb in the hill, so there's not much room to play with.

 

Second, the extra space at bus stops is actually a holdover from the streetcar days when there was a small concrete platform flanking the tracks.  You see it on Riverside Drive a lot, along with newer full size turnouts to "get the buses out of the way."

 

I love this picture, it's Harrison Ave looking east. Fisher Place on the left. Still a bus top with shelter nearby today.

Large apartment building on right still stands as well as the small portion of the front porch of the single family home before and next to it.  The homes on the left gave way to apartment blocks in the 1970's.

Good luck getting DOTE to implement it, but you could "chicane" the through lane into the parking lane and have the through lane become a left turn lane, wherever left turns could be a problem. Bumpouts at midblock crossings, with the pedestrian-crossing "paddles" like have been installed by Ziegler Park. Bumpouts where parking lanes end and bus stops begin.

 

Not sure what "chicane" means, but I think I envision what you're saying (with the travel lanes moving as necessary to allow for center turn lane when needed), and that's what I had in mind. Do you know of any examples of this kind of road configuration. I agree it's a long shot, but I'm just genuinely interested in what would be the best fit for this street.

 

A chicane is basically an obstruction which makes a lane shift. I think I've seen this done in the UK for the creation of a turn lane (right turn, due to driving on the opposite side), but I can't find an example with a quick look. Basically anything which creates the scenario in my (very crude) picture below. (Obviously, the geometry would have to factor in buses, so more gradual shifting than in my picture.) Ideally, there would be more than paint where the yellow hash is. So something more along the lines of this.

 

The closest example I can think of in Cincinnati, which is quite different but affords some precedent, is at Clifton & McAlpin, where the through lane shifts to make a right turn lane. It's done in a way which is not intended to calm traffic, though.

I'm wary of chicanes as a traffic calming measure especially if they're just painted.  On a low-speed street with actual curbs to channel traffic, ok, but otherwise people tend to just cut over the lines.  Plus, Vine Street hill is curvy enough as it is, and I don't think making the geometry even more complicated would really help.  Permanent parking and curb bump-outs at intersections are probably the simplest/safest thing to do. 

Talking it through with you all who know more about traffic... it seems like the best options for Vine St would be:

• As much as possible, make parking permanent on both sides
  
• Add a few clearly designated crosswalks with bumpouts
  
• Give bus stops clearly defined space (in the curbside lane)
  

 

The problem with the current configuration is that it's really too narrow to safely have two lanes of traffic moving in the same direction. The whole street would feel much safer if we remove the parking restrictions and just clearly paint 1 lane for traffic in either direction.

The problem with the current configuration is that it's really too narrow to safely have two lanes of traffic moving in the same direction.

 

Along with the lack of policing of sidewalk parking is a similar lack of enforcement of rush hour restrictions.  Woodburn Avenue in East Walnut Hills during the evening rush hour is particularly egregious, for example.  Enforcement must be 100% for rush hour parking restrictions to work, since it only takes one illegally parked car to make that extra lane useless.  So if they're not going to police it, there's no reason to bother in the first place. 

I'm wary of chicanes as a traffic calming measure especially if they're just painted.  On a low-speed street with actual curbs to channel traffic, ok, but otherwise people tend to just cut over the lines.  Plus, Vine Street hill is curvy enough as it is, and I don't think making the geometry even more complicated would really help.  Permanent parking and curb bump-outs at intersections are probably the simplest/safest thing to do.

 

I put chicane in quotes in my OP for a reason; I just meant shifting the lane. And, yes, paint-only would probably not work well. If left-turning cars are a problem preventing permanent parking lanes (an issue which was expressed), this would be a viable solution assuming it's well-executed. Too often, problems lie in the execution, and then people conclude there is a problem with the concept. The lane shifting could be as gradual as to be almost imperceptible, or as sharp as buses can handle if speeding is perceived to be a problem in a given location.

Also, I'll throw this out there since no one has said it out loud yet, Vine Street is still the "official" route for the streetcar to take to get Uptown. So any changes that are made should not prevent the streetcar from using Vine Street in the future. Although most of Vine Street can not be widened due to buildings on both sides of the street, I think it could be possible to widen it by one lane along side Inwood Park and Hollister Recreation Center to provide two northbound travel lanes, effectively giving the streetcar its own "climbing" lane and an additional travel lane where cars can safely pass.

Cleveland Heights recently announced a program to move traffic along Mayfield Road by having fiber-optic controls added to all of the signals, a project that will precede a review of the design of the road itself, including the possibility of a road diet.  (Easy -- let's reduce our maintenance costs, Mayfield does not need six lanes by Severance center!)

 

http://www.cleveland.com/cleveland-heights/index.ssf/2018/04/cleveland_heights_oks_817000_f.html

 

Several years ago when Taylor Road was resurfaced by Severance the residents asked to have their front lawns increased and the road width decreased.  It didn't happen, and I think it was because moving the storm drains and fire hydrants would have added significantly to the cost -- even though maintaining the existing excess lanes of roadway will add future maintenance expense over what is needed.

 

All of that reminded me of this article, which should be a must-read for anyone considering any new road projects and road diets.  Driving at lower speeds along more interesting streets is both more productive and more pleasant, and the drive time difference compared to a higher-speed street is small.

 

https://www.strongtowns.org/journal/2017/3/16/everyone-knows-we-have-a-traffic-problem

 

 

I once attended a Cleveland Heights zoning meeting where an attorney from Pittsburgh complained about having to stop at every possible light on Mayfield.  City officials said that was intentional because they wanted her to go shopping.  Problem is, her only purpose for being on Mayfield was to arrive at a zoning meeting, and their plan for her ran counter to that purpose.

I once attended a Cleveland Heights zoning meeting where an attorney from Pittsburgh complained about having to stop at every possible light on Mayfield.  City officials said that was intentional because they wanted her to go shopping.  Problem is, her only purpose for being on Mayfield was to arrive at a zoning meeting, and their plan for her ran counter to that purpose.

 

And as a motorist I would try to avoid that street in the future rather than shop along it. But as a prospective resident I wouldn't mind living along it.

And as a retailer, I want people going as slow as possible always. 0.5 mph is target.

Got this in the mail today. Interesting approach to calming traffic and sure to upset people.

Dayton just repaved a couple more roads downtown and added new bike infrastructure. They did a good job overall, although I wish there wasn't just a sharrow on the northbound side of Wayne Avenue.

Interesting how street grids have much more capacity to accommodate traffic and calm it at the same time....

 

 

Why street grids have more capacity

The greater choice offered by well-connected street networks leads to more capacity and efficiency, according to pioneering smart growth engineer Walter Kulash.

ROBERT STEUTEVILLE    JUL. 31, 2018

 

I recently posted “The copious capacity of street grids” making the case that traditional street networks are not just better for walking, biking, and livability, but also offer far greater vehicle capacity. In the comment section, somebody posted a link to a long-forgotten talk by Walter Kulash.

 

Walter Kulash was the original traffic engineer who promoted walkable urbanism. In a presentation to the “Annual Pedestrian Conference” in 1990, Kulash explains the virtues of “Traditional Neighborhood Development,” then a nascent alternative to conventional suburban development.

 

Kulash delves more deeply into the “why” of walkable urban street design than I normally hear from other traffic engineers and transportation planners, even three decades later. The “why” is usually assumed to be obvious: “Complete streets” accommodate all users, not just automobiles. That is fairer and it diverts traffic to other modes such as walking, bicycling, or transit—thus freeing up street capacity. Advocates also emphasize safety—complete streets are safer statistically.

 

MORE:

https://www.cnu.org/publicsquare/2018/07/31/why-street-grids-have-more-capacity

^^ There is also a contraflow lane on Jefferson now, connecting to the existing southbound lane on Warren and Brown. I haven't had a chance to check this out yet, but there may now be a complete connection northbound between UD and Downtown. The northbound route is straightforward, Brown>Warren>Jefferson, but the southbound route starting on St. Clair>Patterson is supposed to use Stone to cut over to Jefferson. I don't think Patterson (south of 5th) has its lane yet. Stone has what appears to be the start of a buffered bike lane, but it currently just looks like there are two car lanes separated by a solid white line on the north (westbound) side of the road.

 

This connection should greatly increase the utility of both the Jefferson/St. Clair pair of downtown bike lanes, and the Brown Street lanes. It will be interesting to see how usage of the lanes is affected, although there have been technical problems counting bikes on Brown Street.

Graphic of the year....

Lakewood is taking a closer look on how to curb traffic on busy Franklin Boulevard

https://www.news5cleveland.com/news/e-team/wide-streets-are-a-result-of-infrastructure-that-focuses-on-cars-and-is-designed-for-more-people

^^ There is also a contraflow lane on Jefferson now, connecting to the existing southbound lane on Warren and Brown. I haven't had a chance to check this out yet, but there may now be a complete connection northbound between UD and Downtown. The northbound route is straightforward, Brown>Warren>Jefferson, but the southbound route starting on St. Clair>Patterson is supposed to use Stone to cut over to Jefferson. I don't think Patterson (south of 5th) has its lane yet. Stone has what appears to be the start of a buffered bike lane, but it currently just looks like there are two car lanes separated by a solid white line on the north (westbound) side of the road.

 

This connection should greatly increase the utility of both the Jefferson/St. Clair pair of downtown bike lanes, and the Brown Street lanes. It will be interesting to see how usage of the lanes is affected, although there have been technical problems counting bikes on Brown Street.

 

Crews were out painting the buffer parts of the bike lanes yesterday. I rode them to see how complete they are. Aside from a very small southbound segment around 5th Street, where St. Clair joins Patterson, there are now bike lanes all the way between Monument in the north and Stewart in the south. That's 1.7 miles, from the northern edge of Downtown to the southern edge of the UD/Brown Street business district.

 

The buffers on the northbound lane at the 35 interchange are pretty creatively designed to calm traffic that is turning through the bike lane. Overall, I'm impressed with the design. And I'm wondering if the southbound contraflow lane on Jefferson is the first in the state.

I might have to bike over there later to check it out. That whole area still needs a drastic redesign whenever 35 gets rebuilt, but having bike lanes in that area will make it a lot more hospitable to pass through.

^ I'm just judging based on what is possible with paint.

 

I'll be curious to see when and how they choose to deal with the St. Clair/5th/Patterson intersection.

 

I guess from Wright-Dunbar, you probably normally take the bike trail on the river to Stewart to go to Brown. I've normally used the Burns-Jackson bridge over 35, which is supposedly going to be closed for repairs soon. Rather than the up-down and winding ramps of the bridge, I think I might just stick with the new bike lanes even when the bridge reopens. It'll be nice to have options, anyhow! :)

^ I went over to check out the Jefferson bike lanes, and WOW that area is so much friendlier now. It's kinda cool that there's a traffic light just for bikes on the contraflow bike lane now, although I guess you need one to handle the transition from 1-way to 2-way traffic. I didn't realize they also redid the lanes near the 35 exit, that area always seemed like a bit of a disaster before. I also noticed a whole bunch of new bumpouts around downtown, especially on Monument.

This is such a great idea -- this is needed at many places in downtown Cleveland, especially on East 9th Street where pedestrians/bikes/scooters keep getting hit and fatalities have occurred....

 

[/member]WalkBoston

Cambridge is continuing to add raised crosswalks at side streets along Mass Ave to prioritize people walking and slow the speeds of turning drivers. Bonus: no giant puddle/frozen slush in curb cuts at this corner next winter - Great job! – at MBTA Bus Stop (Mass Ave [/member] Pearl St)

 

This just in -- private investment follows public capital 

(shh.... It has since the Romans built roads)

 

 

 

 

^ Guessing this is in Cleveland? Might be helpful to state which city it's in.

https://www.latimes.com/local/california/la-me-ln-paradise-evacuation-road-20181120-story.html?fbclid=IwAR3pHEl8bd4aivnjsnBhbUeK5AK6J3WGVrr6gOAqD1Ukr4_AGqDCUSZ6QoU

So they haven't even determined if the road diet contributed at all, but they're going to report on it and use a bunch of scare quotes anyway.  No concern for trying to prevent people from being killed and maimed on such roads on a daily basis.  Talk about fear mongering, and the danger of "but sometimes."  

  

20 hours ago, E Rocc said:

https://www.latimes.com/local/california/la-me-ln-paradise-evacuation-road-20181120-story.html?fbclid=IwAR3pHEl8bd4aivnjsnBhbUeK5AK6J3WGVrr6gOAqD1Ukr4_AGqDCUSZ6QoU

 

Closing Ontario St. doesn't exactly help with downtown Cleveland's evacuation plan either.  There is an extent to which efficient traffic flow must always be a priority.  It's not a city vs suburb or cars vs people scenario.  The benefit of physically choking off roads like this is not worth the cost, especially when the risk analysis includes no longer having a real road to use. 

Quote

Mayor Jody Jones said Tuesday that the evacuation of Paradise, begun at 7:46 a.m Nov. 8, was complete by 3 p.m. Residents who arrived at a shelter in Oroville said the 16-mile exodus took 2½ hours, better than the three-hour evacuation in 2008 that sparked the Butte County Grand Jury’s investigation.

They had a 17% faster evacuation after the road diet compared to a previous evacuation with the wider roads.

 

I think they had an evacuation plan in place for this fire and not the earlier one, so that may account for some of the faster evacuation times. People may also be taking fires more seriously and leaving before they are required to. But I don't know that you should stop road diets like this because of the evacuation plans. How often does a city like Cleveland need an evacuation plan? Do they even have one? What would they be evacuating? Cleveland (and Ohio) isn't very susceptible to hurricanes, or wildfires.

1 hour ago, ryanlammi said:

They had a 17% faster evacuation after the road diet compared to a previous evacuation with the wider roads.

 

I think they had an evacuation plan in place for this fire and not the earlier one, so that may account for some of the faster evacuation times. People may also be taking fires more seriously and leaving before they are required to. But I don't know that you should stop road diets like this because of the evacuation plans. How often does a city like Cleveland need an evacuation plan? Do they even have one? What would they be evacuating? Cleveland (and Ohio) isn't very susceptible to hurricanes, or wildfires.

 

Evacuation plans don't only apply to natural disasters.   

 

But my point was more that physically destroying infrastructure for aesthetic/social engineering reasons can have adverse consequences that far exceed any perceived benefits.

Physically destroying our cities for aesthetic/social engineering reasons (forcing us to drive just to survive) can have adverse consequences that far exceed any perceived benefits.

Lol, infrastructure (and land use more broadly) is not some naturally occurring thing. Every decision about it, including maintaining what's there or just letting it sit, is an aesthetic choice that could be construed as having a social engineering component.

Reminds me of when ODOT was asked a few years ago if they would do anything to encourage more people to use transit and they said, "oh no, we don't do social engineering." But of course they pump billions into highway expansion projects that encourage people to drive move. As usual roads get a free pass and are "not social engineering" while anything transit, bike, or walkability related is.

1 hour ago, taestell said:

Reminds me of when ODOT was asked a few years ago if they would do anything to encourage more people to use transit and they said, "oh no, we don't do social engineering." But of course they pump billions into highway expansion projects that encourage people to drive move. As usual roads get a free pass and are "not social engineering" while anything transit, bike, or walkability related is.

 

The federal highway system is one of the largest government subsidized programs in U.S. History and the free market peeps don't even bat an eye.

 

If you need this many signs warning drivers about a crosswalk, it's probably a sign that the street needs to be entirely redesigned.

Check out this article on a site that compiles before and after street views

https://www.businessinsider.com/urbi-public-space-transformations-2016-3

NYS is recommending that the elevated section of I-81 be removed from downtown Syracuse. I think this is a great decision, but it will still be important to do it right. Here is a link: https://www.syracuse.com/opinion/2019/04/community-grid-is-the-right-choice-to-replace-i-81-editorial.html.

 

 

This authorizes the city of Cleveland to take actions, seek grants, etc. to make East 105th/Woodhill/93rd a much more pedestrian friendly street.....

 

Ordinance No. 700-2019(Ward 2/Councilmember Bishop; Ward 4/Councilmember Johnson; Ward 6/Councilmember Griffin; Ward 7/Councilmember B. Jones; Ward 9/Councilmember Conwell; Ward 10/Councilmember Hairston): Giving consent of the City of Cleveland to the Director of Transportation of the State of Ohio for constructing the complete streets project along the East 93rd Street/Woodhill Road/East 105th Street corridor; to apply for and accept any gifts or grants for this purpose from any public or private entity; authorizing professional services, agreements with public and private entities, and any relative agreements; authorizing the Commissioner of Purchases and Supplies to acquire, accept, and record for right-of-way purposes any real property and easements necessary to make the improvement; and causing payment to ODOT of Cleveland's share of the improvement.

 

http://planning.city.cleveland.oh.us/designreview/drcagenda/2019/06212019/index.php