Hey Bicyclists! What Should We Fix?

28 comments

• J jamie from thriceallamerican November 20, 2008

  I think the biggest thing for bicycling is to enhance routes for both getting to/from and getting around downtown. Designated routes either on St. Helens or Broadway for getting out of downhill to the north. Something through Nalley Valley (either Water Ditch or maybe Center Street) to connect up with Scott Pierson Trail, Yakima Ave to points south, continuing along Center to Fircrest/UP, etc. And something to Puyallup, Sumner, etc. (on to the mountain?), not to mention connecting to trails in King County would be great, too, and I think in the big picture local trails advocates envision this. But from the city perspective, I think focusing on serving the needs of people reaching and traveling in the downtown core is the big goal.

  Now, pedestrian needs. The big thing I’m going to say is that traffic light cycles just need to be shorter. Especially where pedestrians have pushed the button for a signal, the wait should be short and sweet (I’m talking to you, signal at 6th and Pine!). And never, ever should the crossing signal go solid red before the associated traffic light turns yellow, as seems to be common downtown…do we really have enough pedestrian traffic that cars need that extra 15-20 seconds to get through the light unimpeded? Seems that it just encourages jaywalking to me.

• R Randy Brown November 20, 2008

  I agree with the previous comment. I would specifically like to see S. 12th Street in its entirety reduced from a four lane road to a three lane road (one lane in each direction with a middle turn lane) and provide bike lanes along the shoulder. The city needs to do the same thing to Yakima Ave S. (And Thompson Ave and N. I St. where the road changes names). Through its entirety, the road needs to have three lanes, with bike lanes on the shoulder. Ample signage needs to provided. Both of these routes never have the traffic volumes the roads seem to be designed for. And it just makes the streetscape look more attractive. Come on Tacoma! We’re the only city in the Northwest that hasn’t got up to speed with bike amenities! Now’s our chance!

• M Michael November 20, 2008

  I like what Jamie said and I think it’s great that folks from Portland are coming. Kudos to the city for that.

  Tacoma seems to treat cycling as a recreation, not a form of transportation. Bike lanes start and stop with no rhyme or reason. You rarely can use bike lanes and trails to actually get you somewhere. When you do get to your destination there’s nowhere to lock up your bike. How often would you leave your car untended if the keys were always in the ignition and there was no way to lock the doors? We really do need to look at the big picture.

  That said, The Scott Pierson Trail would be a good place to focus on for little fixes.

  The trail between Skyline and Pearl is separated from N. 9th by a curb without any breaks in it . Riders must stop and lift their bikes over the curb to get onto the trail. Oops!

  Crossing Union and 6th Ave while using the trail are a pain, you have to wait too long for the lights to change, there’s not enough room for more than a couple of bikes at the lights and you need to share space with pedestrians using sidewalk. We could use more room. Crossing Union doesn’t feel very safe and street traffic doesn’t see you.

  That about all I can come up for now.

• R Randy Brown November 20, 2008

  Also, McKinley Ave on the Eastside would provide a good bike route. Continuing with the North I Street concept, 21st Street should be reduced the same way to provide bike lanes… And, pedestrian and bicycle amenities need to have funding priority over motor vehicle enhacements. People are what make great cities great places, not automobiles…. (Not that I hate cars… I love em! They just shouldn’t recieve priority planning in a city…)

• J Jenny November 20, 2008

  I have four words for you. Sykkelheis Municipal Bike Lift. Google it. Seriously. Why not? Let’s be the Copenhagen of Washington, or even America!
  As a bicycling advocate in my workplace, I can tell you that the hills of Tacoma are daunting to folks who don’t want to be sweaty and stinky when they get to work. That might be the number one reason in my opinion why more folks in Tacoma don’t commute that way. I am of the opinion that more attractive options need to be presented to get more people to do it, including the improvements that have been mentioned to some of our roads and the SP Trail, but also maybe a few new cool things, such as a bike lift. It’s about changing perception. I’ve noticed in my Tacoma biking experience that there isn’t as much of a “friendly” attitude coming from non-bikers, and i have to routinely dodge recycling bins in the bike lanes. A bike lift plus an education campaign would go a long way.
  If you knew of a bike lift, wouldn’t you go check it out somewhere? I would! Put that sucker right up 15th!

• J jamie from thriceallamerican November 20, 2008

  Maybe while they’re getting the bike lifts installed we could at least have a Pierce Transit free ride zone that bicyclists could use to get up the hill…

• S sarah miller November 20, 2008

  A bike lane on Market Street through downtown- it’s a great way to get out of the city core to the North End if you want to avoid most steep hills.

  Definitely some kind of driver education program about sharing the roads.

  I use the bike lane on 15th going downtown, and it’s a mess of broken glass and rocks. Why can’t we keep the streets cleaner?

  Maybe some bike lockers for downtown, for those commuters who can catch their bus there, rather than the T-Dome. Nothing worse than a bus bike rack already full.

  A bike lane from Tacoma to the 512 and new Lakewood Park and Ride, down S Tacoma Way or a less-traffic alternative.

  Having to push the walk button for the pedestrian walk light to come on is annoying. They should just come on when the corresponding traffic light turns green.

• K kbce November 20, 2008

  If the proposed bike lane is going in on N36th, then yeah… a bike lift will definitely be needed for the avg. 12% grade. I’m sorry, but having looked at that bike map and seen that N36th is a proposed bike lane, I have little faith that the designers know what they’re doing when it comes to bike lanes.

  A few other things to take a look at:

  Bumped-out corners (these seem to be getting more popular, unfortunately… UP’s bike-lane-between-corners is a particularly bad example of the failings of these corner designs).

  Disjointed bike lanes/lack of connected system of routes and signage indicating possible routes.

  The lights bit is particularly poignant when cyclists may be the only ones at the light (say on a side street or in a low-traffic area/time… like during the morning commute).

  A specific “question” for the group should be how the plans for a one-way St. Helens could’ve incorporated the fact that it’s a heavily-used cycling route. Simply saying “oh, you’ll have to find a new route” doesn’t work.

  Honestly, the fact that they’re talking with PDX people and the cycling day not too long ago gives me hope that things are moving in a considerate direction. Still, I’d like to get out there and ride with these people along all the proposed bike lane areas.

• C CMN November 20, 2008

  For the NE Tacomans, I recommend sweeping the sidewalks along Marine View Drive up to where the 509 bike lanes begin. It’s too dangerous to ride on the road in the double lanes, especially during rush hour, and bike tires wouldn’t stand a chance on the sidewalks in this industrial area. The bike lanes on the 509 need to be sweeped as well. There will definitely be an increase in bicycle commuters if this was done. Why have the bike lanes if they can’t be used?

• Y You're Welcome November 20, 2008

  Bicycle education is a great idea. For drivers and the bicyclists. I’ve almost hit a guy on a bike driving down 6th ave: gave him plenty of space as he coasted along the roadside and then WHAM he splits his personality into a pedestrian and bolts across the crosswalk forcing me to skid out slamming on my breaks. How was I supposed to know he was off his “multiple-personality” medication for that day?

  So maybe commercials or something that teaches us all a little bit about car and bicycle rules of the road.

• M Michael November 20, 2008

  They should ask about Portland’s use of Blue lanes to improve cycling safety. Blue lanes could help get bikes through screwy intersections like 6th/Sprauge/ Division.

  http://www.johnforester.com/Articles/Facilities/BlueBikeLanes.htm

• A amyk November 20, 2008

  South 19th Street would also be a good street for a bicycle path, from Hilltop to TCC! Think of all of the Foss students who could safely cycle to school. Presently the intersection at 19th and Union feels very unsafe for bikes and pedestrians.

• S Steven Garrett November 20, 2008

  In general:
  • Connect existing bikeways
  • Make bikeways from residential to work centers
  • Connect to other cities

  Specifically:
  • North 11th needs to be connected to the Scott Pierson Trail at Pearl.
  • North 26th needs to be striped from Stevens to Pearl.
  • Once South 12th has bike lanes (now in the planning stage), connect 12th to the Scott Pierson Trail at Orchard Street.
  • Make connections to University Place bike lanes (e.g., Bridgeport).
  • Fix sewer grates and put bike “sharrows” on South Pine for connections to S 38th/mall area employment.
  • Put bike lanes on Pearl from North 45th to Pt Defiance Park. Make this area no parking and repave it. Now it is gravelly and cracked.
  • Make Fawcett Street (downtown) into a bikeway (limited parking, roundabouts, etc) and connect it from the Dome District Transit Center to the Stadium District.
  • Make a bikeway directly downtown: such as 9th or 11th.

• A Andrew Bacon November 21, 2008

  Make sure that bike lanes are paved with SMOOTH asphalt. owie.

• J johnc November 21, 2008

  That crazy asarco tunnel on ruston way to ruston/point defiance is suicide on a bike. But it is a highly desirable route. Actually, the route from downtown to Pt. defiance should have a water front bike/hike path…

• J John Sherman November 21, 2008

  I see the City must have some money to support this cycle and pedestrian planning project, else the City would not be wasting resources and money on this planning effort now, but has anybody asked the City: Just when and how much money is available for the implementation of solutions presented?

• D Douglas Tooley November 21, 2008

  Connecting comment #1 and 16 –

  Most likely the single most effective bike route is going to be extending the Ruston Way Trail to the Thea Foss Esplanade and, via the 705 gulch, the Dome District, as well as Point Defiance.

  A Downtown waterfront trail will get used, and will help the other worthy adjoining trails avoid a start as bum routes through south downtown.

  However the most critical trail segment right now is the unfunded Water Ditch Trail expansion through the Nalley Valley – along the Lakewood Sounder ROW. Getting from Yakima/Tacoma to the Dome District/Foss Waterway is tough and it is essential that Sound Transit planning take this into account – if not actually build it now.

  One of the ‘network’ benefits of this segment is that it will allow a great bike loop from the Water Ditch to the Hwy 16 Pierson Trail, then North to Point Defiance, completing via Ruston Way.

  The one specific junction that tops is under the 705 bridge between 25th and 26th. Not only does this particular spot complete this loop it also is the start for Norm Dick’s proposed Mount Rainier Trail down the 705 Gulch Rail Corridor. Also, connecting to this area somehow, is the popular County Foothills trail coming down the Puyallup River.

  This particular location is just to the east of the Sound Transit emminent domain actions on Pacific. We can’t ask Sound Transit to take the lead on this Bike project, but we can sure insist they act as a responsible ‘neighbor’ and make sure there plans are consistent – again including the Sounder Water Ditch connection.

  As you will recall the rebuild of I-5 is in the planning stage from just South of Pacific across the Puyallup. This is a crucial issue in many regards including whether Sounder Street closures effect access.

  Hopefully we can have a coordinated WASHDOT/ST effort that also provides the for a hub of a great bike trail network – while also improving mass transit and vehicle access to South Downtown.

  Lastly, the connection to the Puyallup River may well be done to the south of I-5 – done at the same time as the next construction phase. Coincidentally this also is part of a route I’ve been talking up for my own neighborhood, just south of the Freeway – that is an unfunded item in this year’s comp plan process scheduled for a council hearing next Tuesday.

  http://www.motleytools.com/blog/2008/02/on_presidents_day.html

  That doesn’t show the connection to the Puyallup, but continuing routes do exist – including those connecting to First Creek area near Portland Avenue.

  FWIW, my trail proposal is probably the least priority of all of these, but I’m also hoping it can get done via the Federal I-5 process.

• D David Boe November 21, 2008

  Fix all of the bloody potholes, stripe all angle parking as back-in only (unless road grade is too steep) and re-re-route St. Helens to a one-way UP hill to provide a direct route up and out of Downtown to the Northend.

• M michael g. November 21, 2008

  Good ideas @19. I would also put some “sharrows” on the road (painted bike symbols on the road) where safe bike lanes aren’t feasible (Like Pacific Ave). They’re all over the place in Seattle and Portland now, and they help show drivers that they should expect to be sharing the road.

• E Elliot November 21, 2008

  BIKE LANE DOWN SIXTH.

  I’m all for taking 12th down to one lane each way and putting in bike lanes, but for godsakes, there could be a bike lane on 6th TOMORROW, rather than waiting 3 years for the city to design and re-arrange 12th. In my opinion, 6th is for shopping and walking and such, 12th is for getting accross town. Biking is more comfortable on a slower street, thus 6th makes more sense than 12th.

  Also, the existing (and planned) bike routes in Tacoma seem completely random. We need real connected routes. Bike lanes should never randomly end, and they should interect with other streets with bike lanes.

  Tacoma has some of the widest and most underutilized streets I’ve ever seen. It feels like they built our streets, then the population shrunk or rearranged itself, but they never changed the streets to reflect this. Honestly, there are very few major streets that I feel like have enough traffic to not reduce the capacity of and put in a bike lane.

  I’ve lived here for two years and I’ve got one left. I’m starting to doubt I’ll see any improvement to Tacoma’s bike infrastructure while I’m here. It’s a shame, because this stuff shouldn’t be that complicated. Tacoma simply doesn’t have enough traffic in most areas for it to be a big deal to put a white stripe down the right hand side of a road.

• J Janet Higbee November 21, 2008

  As someone already mentioned, the intersection on the Scott Pierson trail by Target is DANGEROUS. Also the light to cross 6th avenue on the trail responds irregularly.

  Crossing Jackson by the bridges is dangerous and a path should be marked or the sidewalks improved for bike use. Given that the Scott Pierson trail starts there, bicyclists are invited into this area and yet it is dangerous for us.

  It would be soooo sweet as already mentioned to connect Ruston to the Pt. Defiance area.

  Getting from UP or Fircrest to Lakewood could be made more safe by painting bike lane lines.

  Thanks for asking and advocating!
  Janet Higbee

• S Steve November 22, 2008

  Secured bicycle parking near the door of the Tacoma Dome. Don’t think there is even a bike rack within a quarter mile

• J J. Cote November 23, 2008

  How about if all bicyclists wear white/bright clothing and reflective tape on helmets (which should ALWAYS be worn) at night. Too many times I’ve come close to clipping a rider that could not be seen because he/she is dressed in dark clothing.
  The small reflectors that are on bikes are not enough and most times, can’t be seen.
  Also, follow the rules of traffic. Don’t cross on red, ride against traffic or turn against the light. Surprisingly, many bike riders are either ignorant or have a strong desire to be a hood ornament.

• M Michael November 24, 2008

  @24
  State law says that bikes need front and rear reflectors and a head light to be on the road at night.

  Like you said, reflectors are pretty much useles and I’m more worried about the cars behind me than about the ones in front of me.

  Head and tail lights should be required on bikes, they help with daytime visibility too. Bikes should come from the shop with lights installed. Failing that, it might be a good move for cyclists in the city to advocate for a tail light law.

• M morgan November 24, 2008

  21st needs help: there is no sidewalk for a portion of it. From 21st & Oakes to Alder needs bike lanes painted. From Proctor to Westgate there could be a path down the median (under the high tension power cable towers.)

  Besides that, Tacoma in general needs more ADA sidewalk ramps all over. I don’t like riding in most of the traffic and hitting the curb is no fun.

• S Scott McElhiney November 27, 2008

  #26 Morgan, riding on the sidewalk is not safe nor is it legal. Hate to say that one of the city planners at the last non motorized transportation meeting I attended also rides sidewalks,“Because the street is to dangerous”.

  #11 Michael.. did you read that link? Blue paint for safety… or at least to try and make a bad idea a bit safer.

  SHARROWS! Get the bikes where they belong and where it’s safer to ride… out as PART of the traffic, not off in the gutters, debris, storm grates. Not where every intersection is a death trap for a cyclist waiting for the driver that “didn’t see him” to make a right turn across the bikes path. Not in Bike Lanes that put you directly in the danger zone of parked cars opening doors.

  If your going to build a Dutch bikeway, make it complete… regular traffic signals for bikes and motorists. Want it used? Put in cameras like they used for vehicle intersections that “see” bikes approaching and change the light for them as they approach. Give the bikes priority along those routes for the light timing. This could be done with the Ditch Trail.

  Do SOMETHING about the Scott Pierson Trail crossings at Union and 6th Avenue. They are DANGEROUS. Both have bikes crossing traffic flow next to an offramp from Hwy 16 where the drivers making right hand turns are concentrating on traffic approaching from their left while the bikes are on their right. It would actually be safer to bore a hole under the offramp at Union and put the cyclists to the south (left) of the offramp, have them cross where the drivers are concentrating their attention and then on the other side cross back to the trail across the on ramp where drivers are also looking… or bore another hole under that onramp and regrade the trail to meet it.

• R Randy Gray November 30, 2008

  I agree with sweepting the sidewalks along marine view drive. They are covered with sand and gravel. The railroad tracks cross the road at a 45 degree angle. And the road has a lot of high speed traffic.

• J J. Cote December 1, 2008

  Morgan @26: I agree wholeheartedly! The City is failing miserably in it’s ADA compliance. They are actually building ADA compliant sidewalk corners where NO SIDEWALK exists. Figure THAT one out.
  As for 21st Street, residents were promised sidewalks in the late 1940’s when some of the homes along in the Procter area were built. Promises, promises. Some sort of walkway/bikeway could be built between the electric supply towers, but there is probably a liability issue somewhere. That’s the usual answer for nixing an otherwise good idea.