New Medians in Jax Beach?

[David]

Does anyone have any photos or info about the new medians under construction on A1A/3rd St. in Jacksonville Beach?

The medians are now lined with more palm trees and an interesting design with the concrete, it looks like rolling sand dunes. It's very aesthetically pleasing. Since the area probably draws the most visitors out of anywhere in Duval, it's good to see them stepping up the visual appeal.

[stjr]

Landscaped medians make a road and neighborhood look so much nicer.  A lot of bang for the buck.  I wish every 4+ lane road in Jax received this treatment.  It would sure beautify the city and increase community pride!

Just the handful of landscaped medians recently added to the San Marco area really took it up a few notches.

Maybe someone should examine the economic and social returns on doing this.  Higher home values and more business in commercial areas?  I also think that green areas have a psychological benefit of calming people - maybe less road rage and community violence too?  Environmental returns are another bonus.

[Ocklawaha]

Orlando Downtown Street Scene

Good thing we have the river, or else where would we take photos?

I was out at Joe's Crab Shack today and saw the new medians on my way up to the Navy Base. They are very nice as are the new ones on A-1-A  up to Mayport NS, in Atlantic Beach. I agree this is good policy, I was in Winter Garden Friday and Saturday and am always envious of Orlando and the surrounding area's for their manicured roadways, right-of-ways, trails, medians and public spaces. Having to swallow a ton of pride in Jax, I have to admit, they put us to shame. It's like compairing "Sanford and Son with the Taj Mahal," and guess which one is Jax... Uck. We might have the bigger park system, bigger transit system, and bigger expressway system, but many other Florida cities actually mow the right-of-ways and pick up the litter! Some even go so far as to plant flowers and shrubs, and then they even have the nerve to maintain them!


Too much to hope for?


Blueprint for JAX...

Now if JTA wants to read a secret message into this text I'll spell it out for you: MAKE ALL MEDIANS WIDE ENOUGH FOR FUTURE MASS TRANSIT USE! How about a simple message, "It's mobility with beauty stupid."

OCKLAWAHA

[Charles Hunter]

Ock, that's a good policy for new roads - but how many of those are there?  Converting existing turn lanes into medians, they have to work with what they've got, which is usually only 12 to 15 feet.  To make the median wide enough (24'?  what is it, Ock?) would require rebuilding the entire road - which is a lot more expensive than just planting some grass and trees in the median.

[tufsu1]

FYI....FDOT has had a general policy for over a decade that all new multi-lane roads will be divided by a median....they don't want to build undivided roads or those with center "suicide" turn lanes anymore.....but any extra landscaping usually is paid for by the local government or another entity.

[Ocklawaha]

Ock, that's a good policy for new roads - but how many of those are there?  Converting existing turn lanes into medians, they have to work with what they've got, which is usually only 12 to 15 feet.  To make the median wide enough (24'?  what is it, Ock?) would require rebuilding the entire road - which is a lot more expensive than just planting some grass and trees in the median.

This gives an idea of a small streetcar space 11', much less then a grand 24' median.



These views give some ideas of getting a slightly larger streetcar layout onto a median.

Median lanes for streetcars have been found to be much safer for bikes and motorcycles. Hitting the grove in the tracks at anything but the proper angle can toss a bicyclist into the street. Here is some recent Seattle talk on the subject:

In December, Mayor Greg Nickels complained in casual conversation that the bike issue was overblown. Transportation Director Grace Crunican has said curbside stops encourage redevelopment and allow safe boarding from sidewalk stations. But on Tuesday, Bob Powers, a Seattle Department of Transportation (SDOT) projects manager, said: "We've heard some concerns from the bike community â€" we're trying to address those."

At least a dozen crashes on the streetcar route have required medical treatment, said David Hiller, advocacy director for the Cascade Bicycle Club. Cyclists have reported injuries ranging from cuts to broken bones. They rode in a protest Dec. 12, the streetcar's opening day.

Drago said she toured Portland's thriving streetcar system, where a new line to the south waterfront runs toward the middle.

"When possible, it's much preferable to do a streetcar with a median, and lanes going both ways," she said.

Drago also thinks a two-way center station would save money, and remove fewer parking spaces, compared to building pairs of stops on both sides of the street, said aide Jodie Vice.

Councilman Nick Licata has called for future streetcars to have their own middle lanes, so they won't get stuck in traffic.

Seems to me that Jacksonville Traction was WAY AHEAD of the curve back in 1930... WTF happened to us?

OCKLAWAHA

[TheProfessor]

Anyone have pictures of the Jax Beach medians?

[coredumped]

I grabbed this photo tonight. I believe on the right that construction is the urbina.

Not the best quality but hope it helps...


Higher resolution: http://www.flickr.com/photos/nichos79/3815582401/sizes/l/

You can see we gained medians, but lost parking on the roadside. I wonder if that has anything to do with them charging for parking? 

[TheProfessor]

Thanks for the pic. For some reason I can't see it.

[coredumped]

TheProfessor, I'm not sure why, it's just a flickr photo, does the flickr link work for you? I tried it in Firefox & internet explorer (logged out and logged in) and it worked for me. Maybe one of the mods will point out if I did something wrong, it's possible

[TheProfessor]

It is working now. Time heals all wounds. hehe. 3rd street looks much better.  Reminds me of Ft. Lauderdale a bit.  They just need some planter benches so you can sit in the median. hehe.

[ErikSetzer]

I grabbed this photo tonight. I believe on the right that construction is the urbina.

Not the best quality but hope it helps...


Higher resolution: http://www.flickr.com/photos/nichos79/3815582401/sizes/l/

You can see we gained medians, but lost parking on the roadside. I wonder if that has anything to do with them charging for parking? 

Yeah, that's the "Urbina" where they'll have a Five Guys to murder your diet and hopefully a few good shops.

I think they're clearing the way for a new parking garage near there.

If anyone still wants pics, I've got a pretty good camera, I can snap some next week.  I work in the area, actually a couple of blocks north of where this photo is.  It's been interesting seeing them redo the medians, the lights, and the sidewalks, though admittedly a little annoying at times (traffic, and of course it's hard to walk on the side of the road without a sidewalk).