Metro Jacksonville

Separated Bike Lanes: Could Jacksonville Benefit?

(http://www.metrojacksonville.com/photos/images/learning_from/st_petersburg/p1170741.JPG)

With JTA attempting to force their dreams of bus rapid transit down the throats of residents, bicycle and pedestrian safety improvements continue to be ignored.  The City of Vancouver is implementing something that Jacksonville needs more than bus only lanes: Separated Bicycle Lanes.

Full Article
http://www.metrojacksonville.com/article/2010-aug-separated-bike-lanes-could-jacksonville-benefit

these are often built in very high bicycle traffic areas....as an example, there are several of these on the UF campus in Gainesville.

Jacksonville absolutely needs this. I got a little two person bike and my preschooler and I biked to her DT school everyday for a year. It was fantastic, except when I was trying to cross Union or State St., avoid cars honking and swerving at me, or buses trying to hit me (as apparently they own the curbside). I soon gave up and ended up driving the ten blocks to the school (how crazy is that??!!). We actually have a bike lane on 8th st, it just starts about a block off of Main and then just ends two blocks later. I have always wondered about this two block bike lane, was this an experiment? Jacksonville needs to wake up, even small towns have bike lanes!


Note: If JTA is goign to add this horrible bus plan that no one really wants, they should have to spend a portion of that money to implemnet bike lanes. Its the right thing to do.

That rocks!!!

We need for everyone at the city to watch this!

A separated bike lane from downtown to the beach would be very popular.


Chicago's Lakefront Path:

(http://photos.metrojacksonville.com/photos/904520639_YDZrg-M.jpg)

(http://photos.metrojacksonville.com/photos/904521334_kKt4e-M.jpg)

(http://photos.metrojacksonville.com/photos/904522810_LkwLV-M.jpg)

I gew up in J-ville and currently live in Minnesota where there are bike paths almost every where especially in the metro. It's a great way to encourage alternate transportation, increase safety and promote health. I think all a person has to do is to take an honest look around at what's going on in the environment and with obisty and the benefits are obvious.

Instead we are spending hundreds of millions of dollars on overpasses and flyovers.

(http://photos.metrojacksonville.com/photos/755543399_nCevM-M.jpg)

Here is another good video from NYC.

http://vimeo.com/moogaloop.swf?clip_id=12120402&server=vimeo.com&show_title=1&show_byline=1&show_portrait=1&color=9086c0&fullscreen=1&autoplay=0&loop=0

Gainesville actually has very few physically separated bike lanes, and all of them are for pedestrians as well, but they still make a huge difference for students going to and from class.  I could make it from my house to class (about 2-2.5 miles on average) in less than 10 minutes.  Consistent bike lanes at street level would be a start.

I also think that being able to ride my bike to class helped me fight of a few pesky pounds that I am currently unable to shake! ;)

When I visited Ireland, I was impressed with how Dublin and other cities all had separated bike lanes. I was also amazed at how many bikes used them. Jacksonville is sorely lacking in providing bike lanes, where as most major cities have created them years ago.

This could turn into a turf war between motorists and cyclists.  It's probably more politically doable to put something like this on streets in the urban core not typically used by suburbanites passing through.

Let's see; our city is flat, our climate mild, no ice or snow.   DUH!

Segregated Bike/ped infrastructure is something we at Bike Jax have been pushing for for sometime. We even did an post in January of last year proposing what we think is a better and more economical way to build roads in the suburban landscape. http://www.bikejax.org/2009/01/rethinking-how-we-build-our-roads.html (http://www.bikejax.org/2009/01/rethinking-how-we-build-our-roads.html)

We are continuing to refine that original post into a viable idea and during this period we have learned so much about the road building process and its funding. The hurtles we have to over come are many, a city with a part time bike/ped coordinator that does not believe in or support segregated paths, A state department of transportation that is still desperately clinging onto 1950's design principles and most important of all is that all funding comes through the federal government which dictates certain criteria that city or state must abide in order to attain that funding.

I also personally feel that on what segregated we have already are under control of the Department Recreation and not under roads and planning doesn't help. If these paths are to be respected as alternative transportation corridors then they should be treated as such.

We are working with cycling groups in other cities to refine the idea suggested in the above link so we can take it to the source, the USDOT. If it we can get it adopted by the agency that sets the standards and provides the funding, then it won't be long before we start see some real change in our streets.

PS. We are desperate need of an engineer with cad accessibility that would like to contribute to this project.

Quote from: Dog Walker on August 12, 2010, 11:24:19 AM
Let's see; our city is flat, our climate mild, no ice or snow.   DUH!

LOL!!!  ;D :D ;)

Quote from: urbanlibertarian on August 12, 2010, 11:15:56 AM
This could turn into a turf war between motorists and cyclists.  It's probably more politically doable to put something like this on streets in the urban core not typically used by suburbanites passing through.

It would be smart to start in the urban core.  Right now the burbs have more bike oriented facilities than the core does.

About 10 years ago we visited the Netherlands on business with some time for fun. We traveled around on the trains and at each station rented bicycles and obtained a free map of the local bike paths. Train stations provide rental bikes and also space to park your personal bike. Many people ride a bike to the commuter station, park it and ride to work. At the other end, they collect their in-town bike and ride it to their work destination. This reverses at night.

(http://i227.photobucket.com/albums/dd256/dellwooddaisy/100_3472.jpg)

The bike lanes for the most part are separated from pedestrian and sometimes motorized vehicles such as motor cycles.

(http://i227.photobucket.com/albums/dd256/dellwooddaisy/dscf5675.jpg)
In the country, they may share the same path especially if it crosses a bridge or goes along a dike. Some older roads in old towns do not have bike paths and you just have to mix it up with the cars. People ride for pleasure or work. Restaurants provide bike parking as well as other places like museums and parks.

(http://i227.photobucket.com/albums/dd256/dellwooddaisy/dscf6469.jpg)
I love this image because the narrative says that cars are considered the guests of the bicyclists on this road!!

Biking is so safe in Holland that most kids ride bikes to school and most people do not wear special bike clothes or gear. Women frequently ride in skirts and business men in suits.
(http://i227.photobucket.com/albums/dd256/dellwooddaisy/dsc02607-2.jpg)

Quote from: Lunican on August 12, 2010, 10:30:05 AM
Instead we are spending hundreds of millions of dollars on overpasses and flyovers.

(http://photos.metrojacksonville.com/photos/755543399_nCevM-M.jpg)

These are actually just really big bike lanes. You just have to watch out for the cars and trucks.

I've been riding the 10 mile trek to work for the last month and a half and I could only wish that there were bike lanes. Beach Blvd is a bitch to ride on the sidewalk, especially with all the drivers not looking both ways before they pull out of the parking lot.

How about hopping a ride on the BRT after leaving your bike at the station? Will those BRT stations have secure bike parking?

Quote from: Lunican on August 12, 2010, 10:30:05 AM
Instead we are spending hundreds of millions of dollars on overpasses and flyovers.

(http://photos.metrojacksonville.com/photos/755543399_nCevM-M.jpg)

remember that this overpass is being built (and paid for) by the developers of Nocatee....and I believe they are also constructing miles of bike trails through the community.

Isn't that the new flyover from I-95N to 9A South, near the airport?

Quote from: Springfielder on August 12, 2010, 10:52:55 AM
When I visited Ireland, I was impressed with how Dublin and other cities all had separated bike lanes. I was also amazed at how many bikes used them. Jacksonville is sorely lacking in providing bike lanes, where as most major cities have created them years ago.

Dublin also has tons of bike rental racks throughout the city. But in many streets, the bike path and bus lane are shared. This threw me off trying to drive in that city (yes, I was crazy enough to try), along with the fact that the bus lane ended without warning and merged with regular traffic that had condescend from 3 lanes to 1 just 50 feet back.

Quote from: tufsu1 on August 12, 2010, 01:02:08 PM
remember that this overpass is being built (and paid for) by the developers of Nocatee....and I believe they are also constructing miles of bike trails through the community.

Don't get hung up on the specifics. It doesn't matter where it is because they are all over town and they are still a waste of money.

Quote from: Doctor_K on August 12, 2010, 01:06:18 PM
Isn't that the new flyover from I-95N to 9A South, near the airport?

Possibly not.  I don't think there are enough lanes on the Southbound side for it to be I-95.  That just goes to show how many of the things there are around town.

These would be awesome. I've been riding the mean streets of Jax for 20+ years and...damn, I'm old...anyway, these would be progressive, practical and just a great attractor for anyone who wants to ride in our city.

Let me remind everyone on what our lovely JTA and city officials like: ROADS ROADS and more ROADS! I will 'bout fall over if JTA even considers putting in separate bike lanes anywhere in the city. Yes it seems so logical and simple, but JTA doesn't see things like we see it.

Commuter Rail, Streetcars, Bike Lanes, and improved pedestrian walkways would make our city so much better. Instead we get BRT, buses, more highways and less ability to not need a car.

On a side note, Vancouver looks like a wonderful city, should schedule a vacation there.

Bike Jax, are you familiar with the "Pottsburg - Julington Creek Trail" proposal? I saw this at a cherrette in the Saint Nicholas area. I don't know who is behind it but it is one of the most exciting and boldest trail ideas to ever come out of Jacksonville. Imagine being able to ride from Mandarin to Arlington with 99% being through forests and wetlands. Some of the route would be through Tiger Hole Swamp, close to the Town Center.

What think y'all?

OCKLAWAHA

Doctor K.......that is the overpass going in to connect Phillips Highway to Nocatee! I think that is called Nocatee Parkway and connects up inside Nocatee  proper! Been building on it for awhile and yes.......Nocatee is paying for it!  When it is operational, you will no longer have to use SR216 as the only road into their world! Ock............someone is thinking outside of the box and I , IMHO, like it! More of a intermodal type system that caters to anything mobile! Off of the top of my little pointy head, I would say City Hall had nothing to do with it!

Quote from: CS Foltz on August 12, 2010, 02:53:48 PM
When it is operational, you will no longer have to use SR216 as the only road into their world!

I think you mean CR210.

Thanks for keeping me straight cline! I get that part of the world mixed up all of the time.....part of my bike south route and don't look at signs! Too busy staying focused on road and vehicles!

Isn't there a large bike/walk path seperate from traffic along Kernan now? I would think that would be beneficial for UNF students.

Quote from: iluvolives on August 12, 2010, 03:12:56 PM
Isn't there a large bike/walk path seperate from traffic along Kernan now? I would think that would be beneficial for UNF students.

wait...you mean Jacksonville is actually implementing some of these ideas...who knew  :)

 

Quote from: tufsu1 on August 12, 2010, 03:24:49 PM
wait...you mean Jacksonville is actually implementing some of these ideas...who knew  :)

Who said Jacksonville implemented? There is also one along side Rosevelt heading towards Green Cove Springs.............Fleming Island put that whole thing in, not Jacksonville tufsu! Seen deer eating grass along side of it.............two or three in the morning heading to a site.............5 or 6 of them!

um, CS...Kernan is a local road in Duval County....the bike path was built by the City!

Quote from: tufsu1 on August 12, 2010, 10:00:57 PM
um, CS...Kernan is a local road in Duval County....the bike path was built by the City!

Uh TU?

QuotePosted by: CS Foltz
"There is also one..."

He said "ALSO" this generally means:

al·so  (ôls)
adv.
1. In addition; besides.
2. Likewise; too: If you will stay, I will also.
conj.
And in addition: It's a pretty cat, also friendly.
[Middle English, from Old English ealsw : eall, all; see al-3 in Indo-European roots + sw, so; see so1.]
Usage Note: Some maintain that it is inappropriate to begin a sentence with also. In an earlier survey, however, 63 percent of the Usage Panel found acceptable the example The warranty covers all power-train components. Also, participating dealers back their work with a free lifetime service guarantee.

The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition copyright ©2000

I don't see where he said Kernan was on Fleming Island, or that Kernan was not.


OCKLAWAHA  ;D

uh Ock...he said "who said Jax. implemented?"...I just clarified that the City did indeed do it

As one smart ass to another... Touché my friend!

OCKLAWAHA

I know I would  love to ride a bike in Jax but refuse to play bike-car roulette where the bike will always lose, just a matter of when.  If bike lanes are going to be appealing to all but the most "die hard" (no pun intended! ;) ) bikers, separated lanes are the only way to go.  Painting a stripe (akin to an imaginary line for car drivers) for a narrow lane of pavement along cars, suvs, and trucks going 45 to 60+ miles an hour isn't going to cut it.

We won't even discuss the front row seat to inhaling exhaust fumes that may do more harm than the exercise does good.

Quote from: Ocklawaha on August 12, 2010, 03:09:07 PM

JUST FOR KICKS AND GIGGLES HOW ABOUT A "TOUR" OF THE POTTSBURG - JULINGTON CREEK TRAIL?

1.(http://cdn-www.trails.com/Cms/images/GlobalPhoto/Articles/2010/4/21/30279/fotolia3835205XS-main_Full.jpg)

2.(http://www.johnnyjet.com/image/PicForNewsletterFloridaBradentonJan2008100.JPG)

3.(http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3334/3564479981_5862c4b862.jpg)

4.(http://www.deldot.gov/information/community_programs_and_services/te/images/trap_pond_wetland_boardwalk_full_size.jpg)

5.(http://www.gallagherstravels.com/States/DE/southern_de/images/bikeTrail_lg.jpg)

6.(http://www.ettechtonics.com/pedestrian_and_trail_bridges/images/boardwalks/albion.jpg)

7.(http://www.bikingflorida.com/images/pagemaster/alderman04r1.jpg)

8.(http://www.floridastateparks.org/history/img/park/DRL-sidewalk_ADA.jpg)

PRETTY DAMN COOL EH?

I M A G I N E     J A C K S O N V I L L E

Ocklawaha, I don't know about this trail. its not on the MPO's 2030 plan. Would you be so kind to send any information you may have on it? info@bikejax.org

It does sound nice and I would really like to learn more about this proposed trail. But my first reaction based strictly on the images you provided above and with no real information is, this just yet another recreation trail that may benefit a few. But it won't be true a transportation corridor. How many people will this path allow and encourage to bike to work, shopping and schools with its remote location and limited access?

The path along Kernan is without a doubt the finest example of our city actually doing something right for a change. If you have not seen or rode this path do so. Take pictures and send them to everyone you know. Start a scrapbook, because it ain't often our city gets it right the first time and only your god knows how long it will be before the city will do something right again. This path if completed (Baymeadows & 9A to end of University Blvd. at St. Johns River) will have the ability to move thousands of people daily.

That trail was never a real plan.  It was a line a group drew on a map at a visioning charrette over a year ago.

^ The bike path on Kernan is poorly implemented.  It dead ends into the street before it even gets to UNF!

I would like to see something like this happen on Southside Boulevard.  There is plenty of ROW to completely rework the whole street adding separated bike lanes and pedestrian sidewalks.  There are so many isolated hubs of activity that are disconnected and not easy to get to unless you get in your car.  There are also thousands of residents that live along Southside and I think connecting all of the areas with safe pedestrian improvements would spur even more growth along this stretch.  Southsiders also tend to be very active and making it safe for us to run, bike and walk the little ones would be a huge boost in our quality of life. 

The 2030 Mobility Plan includes money for a multiuse path along Southside Blvd.

I would like to see it done correctly, not just thrown down.  There could be an opportunity to really add pedestrian connectivity to a very suburban design with the same amount of money required.  I will check out the Mobility Plan.  Thanks Lake!

http://www.metrojacksonville.com/article/2010-apr-2030-mobility-plan-bicycle-network

Quote from: thelakelander on August 13, 2010, 03:55:57 PM
That trail was never a real plan.  It was a line a group drew on a map at a visioning charrette over a year ago.

Lake, in the charrette they talked about the trail as a given item, something the all knew something about. TUFSU1 posted in some thread a few days ago that it was/is a proposal in some plan within the city. Yes we all knew it was in the charrette too, but I think it's roots are a bit deeper then that.

BikeJax, If you'll look at the route it is basically a bike/pedestrian version of University Blvd with some aspects of 9-A tossed in. While not a distributor trail, it sure would be a major connector. It would tie the Arlington and Mandarin areas together with easy connecting links to JTB, UNF, Southside, Arlington Expy, JU, a large number of tech schools and private colleges, and one of the largest stretches of WILDERNESS remaining in the City. With very little work a parallel canoe trail would be fantastic, Pottsburg Creek has been calling me!

There should be a ton of grants to get this done that other trails couldn't be considered for. Think woods, water, wetlands, creeks, rivers, canopy, wildlife, conservation, preservation, Audubon, World Wildlife fund, Nature Conservancy, Historical Society's, etc...



OCKLAWAHA

Ock, I was a part of the Southeast Visioning Committee.  In fact, I may have been the one to originally draw it in a brainstorming charrette held a few weeks earlier.  The meeting you all attended at Cuba Hunter was one of our final charrettes that included all of the work produced in the earlier ones.

This is the bike path on Kernan in b/w Beach and Atlantic. 


(http://img517.imageshack.us/img517/7347/picture001jk.jpg)

Here is the path that was implemented in the Beach Blvd widening(The Beach and Kernan projects were both part of the Better Jax plan... maybe Delaney wasn't so bad after all  ;))


(http://img13.imageshack.us/img13/2159/picture019dl.jpg)


And the bike lane extends across the intracoastal bridge and dead ends at 3rd Street in Jax Beach.


(http://img299.imageshack.us/img299/8835/picture022u.jpg)

While both of these are improvements, in my opinion they still miss the mark.  Obviously there is plenty of ROW to fully implement safe pedestrian and bicycle lanes with better design.  

The bike path on Kernan is perfect, but notice there isn't a sidewalk, so pedestrians and cyclists must still share the lane.  In this, it is pretty much the equivalent of a sidewalk with a stripe down the middle.  The path could have easily been widened enough to have three lanes with one designated for pedestrians and the other two for cyclists.

Many adults and kids are still afraid to ride on small paths on the edge of the road, similar to the new Beach Blvd lane.  With the crazy Jax drivers whizzing by at 50-55mph, this isn't safe.  So on this street we got an unsafe bike lane as part of the street and a sidewalk.  Again there is plenty of ROW for a three lane, divided path, with a sidewalk for pedestrians and two bike lanes.

These design changes with full implementation are not going to increase project costs by much and would result in safer and better utilized paths.  Notice that Kernan has a school zone and the picture you took on Beach is right next to the library.  Parents drive their children a couple blocks to school because there aren't safe paths and well marked crossings for walking/biking.  With better design, Jacksonville could make its streets safer for everyone!  To me, it seems like a no-brainer.  

QuoteThe bike path on Kernan is perfect, but notice there isn't a sidewalk, so pedestrians and cyclists must still share the lane.  In this, it is pretty much the equivalent of a sidewalk with a stripe down the middle.  The path could have easily been widened enough to have three lanes with one designated for pedestrians and the other two for cyclists.

Going above the minimum design requirements: The new Dequindre Cut Greenway in Detroit.

(http://www.thedetroiter.com/v3/var/www/vhosts/thedetroiter.com/httpdocs/v3/wp-content/uploads/2009/05/d-cut-web.jpg)

path design is usually determined by expected use....the minimum width for a shared ped/bike trail used to be 8'....now the recommended minimum is 10' with a more common desirable 12'.

heavily used paths are often being built up to 16' wide as shown in the Detroit example...of course, notice that the bikes still use the ped lane!

Yes, the Detroit example is a rail to trails project.  However, unlike the S-Line, they left room for a future rail line.

(http://www.detroiteasternmarket.com/media/images/gallery/lg/125.jpg)

Quote from: urbanlibertarian on August 12, 2010, 11:15:56 AM
This could turn into a turf war between motorists and cyclists.  It's probably more politically doable to put something like this on streets in the urban core not typically used by suburbanites passing through.

There already IS a turf war between motorists and cyclists, albeit a rather one-sided one. There seems to be an awful lot of motorists in this city who think cyclists have no right to be on the road. The point of separated bike lanes is to assuage, not exacerbate the situation.

With physically separated bike lanes, motorists and cyclists have their own designated areas to operate their vehicles of choice with minimal hindering or endangering one another. I can't see that being a problem for anybody except motorists who enjoy terrorizing cyclists and pedestrians and don't want to jump a curb to do it.

Quote from: Ocklawaha on August 12, 2010, 03:09:07 PM

JUST FOR KICKS AND GIGGLES HOW ABOUT A "TOUR" OF THE POTTSBURG - JULINGTON CREEK TRAIL?

That's very pretty, but who cares? It won't get me safely from Springfield to Arlington, or from Arlington to Riverside, or from Riverside to anywhere else in town I want to go.

It's a catch-22. There's not enough bike lanes because there's not enough cyclists, and there's not enough cyclists because there's not enough bike lanes. Simply put, it's scary to ride bikes here, and with good reason.

QuotePreliminary numbers released by the state last month have 113 cyclists being killed on Florida roads last year. That is a marginal drop from 2007, when 121 cyclists were killed -- the most of any state in the country, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

via http://jacksonville.com/news/metro/2009-05-10/story/florida_the_most_dangerous_state_for_bicyclists

That's more than even California, which has similarly year-round-outdoor-activity weather and a much larger population.

Personally, I would cheerfully ride a bicycle all over town if the idea didn't reduce me to a gibbering lump of completely rational stark terror of dying a hideous, mangled death. I saw a freshly-killed cyclist lying in a crumpled, bloody heap in the street downtown one morning about two years ago, and I see him again in my mind's eye every time I think about getting on a bike. Him, and/or the grille of the pickup truck that ran me into a ditch after unsuccessfully trying to run OVER me the last time I rode a bicycle. Maybe I could banish those horrible visions if there was a barrier between myself and the motor vehicles...

It should not be that hard to seperate the two, unless your thinking of the median concrete barriers favored on major roadway projects! I'm sure Gate Concrete could fix the City up with a proposal that would be cost efficient...........right? Those puppy's go down and bolted together and a semi would be hard put to cross over!

With healthy trends replacing couch potato lifestyles, bike routes would be a niche or attraction for many to make a move to Jacksonville. You are all so right.  Our historic bike tours ride the back roads at a slower pace touring R/A, and San Marco and Old Mandarin, and have very little traffic, so we feel safe, but it should be that the people of Jacksonville may ride safely everywhere, anytime.   Flat terrain, great weather year round... City Council, how about attracting people, businesses and revenue to Jacksonville by making us a bike friendly city?

Quote from: e2ride bike tours inc. on August 16, 2010, 06:34:03 PM
With healthy trends replacing couch potato lifestyles, bike routes would be a niche or attraction for many to make a move to Jacksonville. You are all so right.  Our historic bike tours ride the back roads at a slower pace touring R/A, and San Marco and Old Mandarin, and have very little traffic, so we feel safe, but it should be that the people of Jacksonville may ride safely everywhere, anytime.   Flat terrain, great weather year round... City Council, how about attracting people, businesses and revenue to Jacksonville by making us a bike friendly city?

I'm not sure that's possible unless they actually do place physical barriers between the bike lanes and the car lanes, after reading the comments on this article (http://jacksonville.com/news/metro/2009-05-10/story/florida_the_most_dangerous_state_for_bicyclists) I quoted earlier. The naked hatred for cyclists is absolutely appalling. There are yahoos in this town who think you're asking for it if you ride a bicycle on a main traffic thoroughfare, and apparently would have no compunction about hitting a cyclist who got in their way. Being a pedestrian in this town is bad enough, but I don't know if I want to ever ride a bike again knowing that there are motorists who actually think you deserve to die for it.

DeadGirlsDontDance..........might I suggest what is called a slingshot! Best one is called a "Wrist Rocket" and a few marbles or ball bearings! You steer with body, hands off the bars and load and fire! Of course this is a last resort but there is no license required and you would have some protection! If my knee's could handle the load, I would not mind peddling around but that is not to be................whatever, be safe!

Could be a bad side to this too... WHAT IF, we put all the bicycles in restricted, separate lanes? For good ol boy's Earnest and Bubba it would give them a reason to dive down the sidewalk!

"YEEEEEEEEEHAWWWWWWWWWWWWWW Got me anotherin Earnest..." "Yeah Bubba, thatin got away last time in  this here ditch, but she didn't count on them there new mud tires!"


OCKLAWAHA

Quote from: Bike Jax on August 12, 2010, 11:31:49 AM
Segregated Bike/ped infrastructure is something we at Bike Jax have been pushing for for sometime. We even did an post in January of last year proposing what we think is a better and more economical way to build roads in the suburban landscape. http://www.bikejax.org/2009/01/rethinking-how-we-build-our-roads.html (http://www.bikejax.org/2009/01/rethinking-how-we-build-our-roads.html)

We are continuing to refine that original post into a viable idea and during this period we have learned so much about the road building process and its funding. The hurtles we have to over come are many, a city with a part time bike/ped coordinator that does not believe in or support segregated paths, A state department of transportation that is still desperately clinging onto 1950's design principles and most important of all is that all funding comes through the federal government which dictates certain criteria that city or state must abide in order to attain that funding.

I also personally feel that on what segregated we have already are under control of the Department Recreation and not under roads and planning doesn't help. If these paths are to be respected as alternative transportation corridors then they should be treated as such.

We are working with cycling groups in other cities to refine the idea suggested in the above link so we can take it to the source, the USDOT. If it we can get it adopted by the agency that sets the standards and provides the funding, then it won't be long before we start see some real change in our streets.

PS. We are desperate need of an engineer with cad accessibility that would like to contribute to this project.

Mr. Bike Jax - you found your engineer - let's get started!

Quote from: tufsu1 on August 12, 2010, 08:09:06 AM
these are often built in very high bicycle traffic areas....as an example, there are several of these on the UF campus in Gainesville.

That's the ONLY way they build them in the Netherlands..........been that way for decades, maybe even a century.

But too expensive for the US..........remember here nobody wants to pay any taxes.

I'd love to see seperated bike lanes.  I won't ride my bike on the road lanes around here, not with so many distracted and overly aggresive drivers.  I would like Faye to pay for them, though.  I hate paying taxes.

I also can't believe how careless and/or trusting? overconfident? stupid? some people are in the bike paths.  At rush hour on Gate Parkway by the FBI building, I saw a rollerblader, his back to traffic, veering into the traffic lane every time he strode to his left blade, causing cars to slam on their brakes to avoid clipping him.  I've also seen a lady on Baymeadows Road on a beach cruiser, in the bike lane, slowly pullling her baby in a trailer, traffic flying by, inches away from that poor child.

Another reason why we need separated bike lanes.  Some people confuse the bike lane symbol for a parking space.  This was today on Hendricks.  I've noticed it for several weeks now.  When I turned around to take the picture, I saw a police car drive past.  I guess it is not important enough to write a ticket for.

(http://i55.tinypic.com/wujzf7.jpg)

If the mobility plan passes, there will be money set aside that will go to construct multiuse paths throughout the city.  I took this picture yesterday in Tampa along Bayshore Drive.  Bike lane vs. wide sidewalk set back from the street.  Guess who wins for the average bike rider?

(http://photos.metrojacksonville.com/Learning-From/Tampa-Dec-2010/P1430800/1133039514_4R5pm-M.jpg)

Quote from: FayeforCure on December 21, 2010, 02:27:26 PM

Quote from: tufsu1 on August 12, 2010, 08:09:06 AM
these are often built in very high bicycle traffic areas....as an example, there are several of these on the UF campus in Gainesville.

That's the ONLY way they build them in the Netherlands..........been that way for decades, maybe even a century.

But too expensive for the US..........remember here nobody wants to pay any taxes.

Yeah Faye, one would think if Bogota, Medellin and Cali, all have some of the worlds finest bike lanes and Bicicleta only highway events that Florida could at least afford a few...

Y'all might enjoy this link - in Spanish
http://www.esciclismo.com/zonas/Colombia/


OCKLAWAHA

Quote from: Ocklawaha on December 21, 2010, 09:29:01 PM

Quote from: FayeforCure on December 21, 2010, 02:27:26 PM

Quote from: tufsu1 on August 12, 2010, 08:09:06 AM
these are often built in very high bicycle traffic areas....as an example, there are several of these on the UF campus in Gainesville.

That's the ONLY way they build them in the Netherlands..........been that way for decades, maybe even a century.

But too expensive for the US..........remember here nobody wants to pay any taxes.

Yeah Faye, one would think if Bogota, Medellin and Cali, all have some of the worlds finest bike lanes and Bicicleta only highway events that Florida could at least afford a few...

Y'all might enjoy this link - in Spanish
http://www.esciclismo.com/zonas/Colombia/


OCKLAWAHA

I really need to visit Colombia..........I was born in Bogota and lived there 7 years.

The US is at a point where it can learn from so-called third-world countries that have passed them by on the green energy front in almost all ways.

Funny thing is that when I visit the Netherlands, where all of my family lives, I almost always get surprised comments about my 5 children:

QuoteWow your kids are skinny, I thought everyone in the US is obese!!

You just have to laugh!!!

But it IS very telling how Americans are thought of in the rest of the world.

Here is something just in from PORTLAND, something that our new JTA "THINKERS" might want to note.

(http://pricetags.files.wordpress.com/2008/11/portland-bike-trip-sign.jpg)

(http://lh6.ggpht.com/_bQsuhPJduqQ/TRItxnwpS0I/AAAAAAAADVk/HaD4XNwE17E/s800/New%20Picture%20%281%29.jpg)

Faye, you might want to grab that citizenship if you don't already have Colombian papers so you'll be able to come down and hide when this place goes to hell under the evil Republicans.

OCKLAWAHA

I went to the reincarnated BPAC meeting last night (Bicycle/Pedestrian Advisory Council) for the City of Jacksonville.  The meeting was well attended (I counted 15) with representatives from COJ, JSO, FDOT, local bike shops, local cycling clubs, bicycle commuters/avid cyclists and health planning groups.

The group spent much of the meeting discussing how to organize (formal vs informal) and identifying the purpose/mission.  What I got from it is that the emphasis will initially be on education and public safety campaigns.  I am hopeful that eventually the conversation will turn to infrastructure improvements.

The mobility plan includes 100.81 miles of bike and 68.44 miles of pedestrian infrastructure improvements.  Feel free to share what appears to be breezing through council to the BPAC.

http://www.metrojacksonville.com/article/2010-may-2030-mobility-plan-pedestrian-network

http://www.metrojacksonville.com/article/2010-apr-2030-mobility-plan-bicycle-network

It looks like Chicago's separated bike lines are well received. The bike lane is moving more people than the traffic lane.

Video: https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?v=845105245507165