Biking the Hoosier Uplands, Summer 2008

As some of you may know, I have been chair of the Bloomington Bicycle and Pedestrian Safety Commission for a number of years. We look at building plans and recommend bike/ped amenities for new projects, we review traffic calming applications from neighborhoods, make suggestions as how to improve the bike/ped infrastructure. At the top of the list for me is safety, I have been worried for years about the bad attitudes of both bikers and motorists, everyone is alway such a hurry that common courtesy and traffic laws are run over.

I just got an email from an IU employee commutes to Bloomington, and is worried about hitting a reckless biker, and following is my quickly written reply.

Sent: Monday, April 14, 2008 12:18 PM
To: ‘public.works@bloomington.in.gov’
Subject: Bicyclist

I am not a resident of Bloomington but commute Monday through Friday to work at IU. I would like to make a suggestion. It is my understanding that bicyclist are required to obey traffic rules however stopping at four way stops and red lights seem to be laws some bicycle feel exempt from. Many times I have witnessed bicyclist go straight through four way stops, often endangering drivers who are obeying the laws. My fear is that one day I may hit or injure one of the bicyclist or even injure myself trying to avoid hitting them. Since the Bloomington business area contains many stops perhaps this could be a topic of concern.
*****************
D

I share your concern. I do not drive, and I do bike everywhere. Bikers who behave as you describe seem to be the norm, or at least a significant percentage of riders. When I did drive, I experienced the scenario you mention, where a bike rider going down hill ignored a stop sign (and he was coming from out of the setting sun), and he ended up on my hood. I assure you, his vehicle was in much worse shape than mine from the encounter. He apologized and carried his broken bike home.

Because so many cyclists do bust through stop signs, mmany motorists seem shocked when I actually slow down and stop at interesections. They wave me on, even if it is clearly their right of way, but I never accept. I just want everyone to obey the rules, as do you.

But when we have asked (I’m chair of the Bloomington Bicycle and Pedestrian Safety Commission) for more enforcement, we found that is just not possible according to the chief of police, they djust o not have the resources.

Think of how many car drivers just slow down at stop signs, who sneak around corners with out stopping, who ignore “No right turn on red” signs, and who speed in town. The police have told us that traffic enforcement is a priority, but they do not focus on bikes. Remember a car can be a deadly weapon, can be used for homicide, it is 2 tons of heavy metal, but a careless rude biker will most likely hurt only themselves. This is not my position necessarily, but it is how the police prioritize. Our commission reviews all traffic calming requests that neigborhoods submit, and there are always neighborhoods asking. They know that enforcement does not stop speeding, and that is why the Feds supply money for traffic calming. We have engineered our streets for cars, and people are left to walk and ride bikes on the fringes. I don’t see this as sustainable, and I look favorably at most traffic calming projects.

I have repeatedly asked for more education for bicyclists, and more enforcement from police. Enforcement could be useful tool in educating our always changing poplulation of bikers, but as I mention, this is not on the agenda at this time. So education must be the keystone of any attempt to change the behavior of reckless bikers (and motorists).

There are thousands of new people who come to Bloomington from around the country and around the world each year, and they do not have the information to bike safely in our city. Many do not know that bikes are to follow the automotive traffic laws, and they are prone to dangerous mistakes (that seem safe) like riding against traffic and on sidwalks, which aer the two most statistically dangerous things you can do on a bike. IU should be involved, so should the city. If you have any suggestions, (you mention them, but I don’t really see any) let me know. I tend to holler at those who are being foolish, and occasionally straighten someone out, but not often.

Mitch

A new U bike rack has been installed at Bloomingfoods West, and it is under the roof. It looks like a city install, does anyone know?

I also noticed that there are 2 covered racks at the new Fess St. parking garage one on the northeast corner and one at the southwest corner, just outside the offices.

Here is my gallery of covered bike racks, I will keep it updated if folks send me more locations to shoot.

Here is the what we on the Bike/Ped Commission are to be doing, according to the municipal code. Unfortunately, there are a several unfunded mandates in our charter, but we do the best we can.

2.12.080 Bloomington Bicycle and Pedestrian Safety Commission.

(1) Purpose. The purpose of this commission is to promote and encourage bicycling, walking and running in a safe and efficient manner in the City of Bloomington for the purpose of health, recreation and transportation.
(2) Appointments. The commission shall consist of seven members appointed in the following manner:
(A) The Mayor shall make four appointments. Preference for two of those four appointments will be given one member from The Bloomington Bicycle Club Inc. and one member from The Bloomington Track Club Inc. The above named organizations shall submit a list of at least three names to the Mayor for consideration.
(B) The Common Council shall make three appointments. Preference for one of those three appointments will be given to one member from The Indiana University Student Association. The above named organization shall submit a list of at least three names to the Common Council for consideration.
(3) Terms. The initial terms of the members shall be staggered. All subsequent terms shall be for two years.
(4) Removal. Members may be removed for cause by the Mayor or Common Council. “Cause” shall include, but not be limited to, failure to attend three consecutive regularly scheduled OR four regularly scheduled commission meetings within a twelve-month period. The commissioner shall have the right to submit in writing any extenuating circumstances to the Mayor or Common Council before the formal decision to remove is reached. However, acceptance of extenuating circumstances puts the Commissioner on notice that further excessive absenteeism will result in removal.
(5) Meetings. The Commission shall meet at times and places as agreed on by the Commission and shall advertise those meeting times and places in accordance with the law. In any event the Commissioner shall meet no less than six times per calendar year.
(6) Duties. The duties of this commission shall be as follows:
(A) To serve as a citizens forum for discussion and recommendation of improvement to existing facilities and planning of new projects concerning safe access for cyclists, pedestrians and runners;
(B) To prepare reports and recommendations to the Mayor, Common Council, Plan Commission and Public Works Department as needed, concerning the needs of cyclists, pedestrians and runners within the City;
(C) To foster and develop safety programs for cyclists, pedestrians and runners;
(D) To encourage the hosting of cycling, walking and running events conducted in a safe manner which will attract visitors from outside of the City. (Ord. 02-15 § 1, 2002; Ord. 89-22 §§ 1, 2, 1989).

One of the topics that we often bring up at the BBPSC (Bloomington Bicycle and Pedestrian Safety Commission) is covered bike parking. Many of us have bikes that are our pride and joy, and we don’t like the idea of them being in the rain all day or even 5 minutes. Chains and gears rust quickly if you do not oil after getting wet, not to mention the problems of a wet seat. This is a real problem for me as my recumbent seat is 4 inches of foam, one big sponge. I always carry some plastic to cover it.

So I am aware of the various places around town that will protect my bike in inclement weather. So I’ve started a photo album of Covered Bike Racks in Bloomington. If you have any to add, just let me know, I still have to get to the Showers parking lot to shoot the racks the city installed last year.

Jojo was a bit a under the weather from breathing dust all week at work, so we took it easy riding about 15 miles up and down the Clear Creek path. The path is fine, plenty of people to look at as we cruise along the nearly level path, it is really easy riding. The weather was “warm”, in the mid-40’s, meaning you can get cold if you stop and hang out, but if you keep moving, you have to strip off a layer.

The problem is safely getting to the trailhead on Tapp Rd. As riding on Rockport Rd. from Rogers St. and then over the hills Tapp Rd. is such a hazard, we always approach from Weimer Rd. Getting to Weimer Rd. is a challenge as well. We avoid 2nd. St. and ride instead on Allen St., which would be cool if only there were a sidepath, it is hilly and narrow, we often ride on the sidewalk where available. At Cory Lane we loop around and get on Weimer south of 2nd St. The city plans either a path or bikes lanes coming down Sudbury when it connects over to Rogers Rd, and this will be great.

The most remarkable part of our ride was finding a beaver dam along Clear Creek, the industrious animals have created an small pond, with a drop of about 3 feet over the dam. We didn’t see the beaver or any tracks, but that is because we didn’t want to poke around and scare them. Here are some pictures and a video of the dam in action.

Now that i think of it, another remarkable thing happened, and this happened last week too. As we were heading down the trail past Church Lane, we weren’t sure how far we wanted to go, but a piliated woodpeck started squawking at us, flying tree to tree for a couple hundred yards, calling us to keep moving, and we stopped when he did, getting really good look at his red head, which neck and black body.

Here is my Fall 07 blog post for the IU Newsletter, “Fit for Life”.

In Chicago, quite a few intersections have a special bike lane that allows cars to move to the right lane to turn, while bikers have their own lane that runs with the straight through car lane. This eliminates the numerous problems bikers have with right turn on red, it just gets us out of the way. Here is an example in Schaumberg, Ill., the lane begins where the street widens, and is an extension of the bike lane where the road is narrower.

Here in Bloomington, at 10th and Walnut, we could use just such a lane, I have often found myself trapped in the right lane with impatient car drivers waiting to get around the corner. We would have to paint a dotted line to move the lane to the left, but it could be done here.

August 10

Eileen, Tim and I took the train downtown, where we emerged from the underground terminal right at the Chicago River. Eileen went to see a show at the CIA, while Tim and I rented bikes at Millennial Park and headed north across the river to Oak St. Beach where the lakeside pathway begins in earnest. We traveled with a mixed crowd of tourists, commuters and recreational riders, skaters and walkers. The cooling lake winds kept us from sweating, and we stopped at a convenince store for some tea, juice and snacks.

We got back on the path and went to nearly the end before dismounting and wading out into the waves. We found a little sand bar, with a couple dozen seagulls nest to us. Tim looked down and saw tiny fish swimming at our feet, and as we watched the gulls, it was evident we were at their sushi bar. Gulls swooped all around, waded into the water for a snack, and would then float along on the waves, or go back to shore to preen.

We decided to see what city street riding was like, so we headed west when we hit the end of the path at Thorndale Beach, just south of Loyola Uinversity. Coming off the path, we were forced to bike to the west, and the street we used
was for bikes only, but then headed into a one way street, which surprisingly had a bike lane such that we were riding against traffic for two blocks to the north-south bike routes. These are in an extended residential neighborhood, and sharrows with speed bumps are the rule, with 4-5 humps per block.

We rode south a while, then cut over to Clark St., which is designated as a bike route, with a bike lane between the traffic and the parked cars. There were a lot of bikers using the lane, both commuters and shoppers visiting the vast array of ethnic stores and restaurants. At least twice cars who wanted to turn right waited for us to go through an intersection, even though they could have speed around us and turned like people do here in Bloomington. The day was warm and partly sunny, with the skyscrapers hidden in the clouds.

On Saturday we went to Jesse and Sean’s wedding, and we stayed at a hotel in Evanston. Bikes were everywhere here too, of course there are a lot of students because of Northwestern, the neighborhood shopping area felt a lot like Bloomington. The wedding was at the Swedish Museum on Clark St., I ended up playing for about 4 hours on the sidwaslk outside.

Check out this link to Google maps, it was started by Steven Wallace to give bikers a place to add their favorite biking hazards in the city. If you have pictures to add, just send them or links to them to me or Steve.

“As part of our effort to make Chicago the most environmentally friendly city in the nation, one of our main goals is to promote environmentally friendly lifestyles. Bicycling is a great way to get around Chicago. It’s fun, fast, healthy and good for our environment….We want to make Chicago the most bicylce-friendly city in the United States”
Mayor Richard M. Daley!

Amazingly enough the Windy City is not just blowing smoke, they are serious, as evidenced in part by the mayor’s quote above which appears on their bike map. What was truly amazing in Chicago is that everyone, motorists, pedestrians, bus drivers, and bikers all respect each other and their place in the ecosystem that is Chicago’s streets. Bikes and pedestrians have the right of way, no questions asked.

At one intersection in the city. I had just picked up my parked bike and I was riding on the sidewalk to the corner to enter the street. When I got there, I stopped and put my feet down. A car had just pulled up to the stop sign next to where I was, and other cars were coming to stops in the other directions. I just stood there waiting for the intersection to clear, but when I looked up, I realized no one was going to move until I did! It was my world they they were just living it! I was stunned as I pulled out into the street and went my merry way. It took a while to realize this behavior was (like gravity), not just a good idea, but the law. Below are some pictures that illustrate the techniques they have used to get everyone on the same page. The tipping point has already been reached, everyone (a vast majority) seems to know and accept the legalities.

But more than just laws and paint Chicago politicians and citizens have come a rational understanding of the situation, and that more bikes means less cars, and other than public transit, there is no other relief to traffic congestion. They can’t make their 4 and 6 lane streets any wider, there are Interstates everywhere, but Chicago just can’t take any more cars downtown.

Downtown had plenty of commuter bikers, and the Lakeshore path seemed have quite a few commuters as well as the majority of recreational users, here are some pictures from my ride to Evanston and back downtown. Watch the video, you will see just how many people use this 10 mile stretch of path, many to commute to their homes on the north side.

Chicago has used combination of paint, signs, and speed bumps to make residential street safe. These pictures were taken on the north side where nearly all the residential streets had speed bumps, children at play warnings, and at every intersection the “No right turn when pedetians present” sign appears, it seems to work, motorists always gave me the right of way when I was walking around.

Several main arteries are designated as bike routes, and even without a separate lane, I felt safe riding up Clark St. (Chicago Bike Map) Running northwest, Lincoln has lanes just part of the way, and both streets are filled with bikes, people going from here to there, not commuting, but traveling to and through to various destinations on the commercial strips. The lesson I took was that you have to make your main commercial streets safe for bikes, or you will never reduce auto traffic.

I also spent some time biking in the Chicago suburb of Schaumberg, and I have several pictures here to show what they have done in suburban environment. The first thing I noticed was the residential streets were amazingly wide, allowing for four wide lanes. The right side of the road is shared by a bike lane and the occasional parked car. When I was passing around a parked car, I noticed the car coming up behind did not pass me even though there was room. He did after that, but slowly, and it wasn’t till I noticed the signs at the next stop that I notice that the street, and all the residential streets were 25mph, even though the road design could handle much higher speeds.

Another cool feature was where bike lanes came to major intersection with car lanes for left, right, and straight through, and the bike lane goes between the right and straight lanes (I know that’s hard to understand, look at the picture below. I also liked this treatment of a path on the way to a local lake, it makes a connection between two streets that would other wise not connect, everything there was curved around the lakes.

Schaumber had paths on most of the major streets, and they make it very clear that the path crossing has priority when cars are entering from the side streets. There is a great prairie park with a nine mile path all around the exterior, it is cut by a couple of highways, the paths appear out of the grassland, and there are sturdy ped crossing buttons which work well. A last thing I will mention, the law in Chicago is that bikes are not allowed on sidewalks, unless it is too dangerous to ride on the street. In Schaumberg I found a spot where the sidewalk is shared by bikes, the signs tells bikes to stay left, while peds are to stay right.