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Unbelievable how often this is written about without mentioning one of the primary reasons for this design: Parklets. Before the pandemic there was a finalized
by macrael 3y ago
Unbelievable how often this is written about without mentioning one of the primary reasons for this design: Parklets. Before the pandemic there was a finalized design for Valencia that would have done what has been done most commonly elsewhere which was to swap the car parking and the bike lanes, putting bike lanes right by the curb. But then the pandemic happened and many more parklets opened on Valencia for outdoor dining and people loved them! But parklets replace parking spaces so suddenly swapping the parking and bike lanes made a mess instead of safety. Take a look at Telegraph in Oakland, they had swapped parking and bike lanes before the pandemic, and now a ton of bars and restaurants have active bike lanes cutting through their dining areas. It's terrible! The alternative that was considered to the center lane involved weaving the bike lane around parklets, creating stretches of bike lanes that were no longer protected from cars and eating up parking spots with the weave.
As a cyclist, I love the center lanes. I feel safe. Before the change every time I biked down Valencia I had to weave in and out of the car lane b/c 100% of the time someone was parked in the bike lane. That basically doesn't happen anymore, and the one time I had an ambulance blocking my way, I went around it _in the opposing bike lane_ not exposed to cars at all.
It's always been the merchants opposing this stuff and study after study says they are wrong about it.
- usmannk 3y agoDid you notice most of the parklets on Valencia are actually gone now? The city forced businesses to get rid of them over the last 3 months or so. Monk's kettle, City Beer Store, and many more.
- macrael 3y agoThey've also stopped closing down every other block regularly and a bunch of other stuff that were actual wins from the pandemic. I'm as confused about that as anyone else but it's true that parklets were a big driver for the center lane design.
- usmannk 3y agoYeah I was sad when they stopped closing the street on Saturday :/
- xkekjrktllss 3y ago>parklets opened on Valencia for outdoor dining and people loved them! Patrons of specific dining establishments sure, but they objectively inhibit transportation even more than parking spots do. This is painfully straightforward. Optimizing for wealthy people that frequently dine out is a expert way to undermine the collective interests of people who actually live in the city and those neighborhoods. Gentrification 101.
- ink 3y agoJust curious, are you saying wealthy people _don't_ live in the city and those neighborhoods? Specifically around Valencia?
- jauntywundrkind 3y agoThis was a great lightning bulb moment for me. Yeah, detached bikelanes seem semi incompatible with parkets. Not being doored or having my bike lane taken over us probably the base of my heirarchy of needs. Not having a RL game of pedestrian frogger is also on the list.