Show Your Support For Buffered Bike Lanes on Colorado Boulevard

A cyclist rides by Eagle Rock City Hall, where the Eagle Rock Neighborhood Council meeting will be held.

If you want to see a safer, more civilized Colorado Boulevard be sure to voice your support at tonight’s Eagle Rock Neighborhood Council meeting. The meeting will start at 7pm and be held at Eagle Rock City Hall, located at 2035 Colorado Boulevard. If you want to speak at the meeting, you must fill out a speaker card at the beginning of the meeting.

Whatever your reasons are for supporting buffered bike lanes, the neighborhood council wants to hear them.

Perhaps you want to better enjoy outdoor seating at your favorite restaurant by not having cars loudly whiz by at speeds that exceed the speed limit.

Or maybe you want Colorado Boulevard to be safer for bicyclists so that you don’t have to worry about a loved one when you know they’ll be riding on the street to reach a destination.

Maybe you’ve noticed more youth cycling in the neighborhood and you want to encourage their healthy lifestyle

Or maybe you’d like to take your own kids by bike to places around the neighborhood

Or perhaps you’d rather not spend 10 minutes trying to find parking at Trader Joe’s next time you need a gallon of milk

There are plenty of social, public safety, public health, economic, and environmental reasons to support bike lanes and encourage more bicycling in the neighborhood– go to tonight’s meeting and share with the neighborhood council your reasons for supporting buffered bike lanes on Colorado Boulevard.

If you can’t make it to the meeting but want to voice your support for bike lanes, feel free to write the neighborhood council at this email address info@eaglerockcouncil.org and cc the below email addresses as well so that your email reaches necessary people at the LADOT and in council member Huizar’s office.

nate.hayward@lacity.org
Councilmember.Huizar@lacity.org
tim.fremaux@lacity.org
nate.baird@lacity.org
info@takebacktheblvd.org

If you are on facebook, you can  confirm your attendance there.

This is likely to be the last opportunity to speak in favor of buffered bike lanes before the neighborhood council and Huizar decide whether or not to endorse buffered bike lanes on Colorado Boulevard. They will only endorse buffered bike lanes if community members show up and make their support clear.

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Addressing Concerns With Implementing Bike Lanes on Colorado Boulevard

(“Creating bike lanes by reducing the number of lanes available to motorists will hurt businesses,” one of the many arguments presented against bike lanes on Colorado Boulevard. See “Bike Lane Concern #4″ below to find out if bike lanes are really likely to hurt local business)

Bike lanes on Colorado Boulevard, as planned in the Los Angeles Bike Plan, are coming closer to being a reality– a meeting on March 27th hosted by council member Huizar’s office will be held to determine based on community input how to move forward, if at all, with bike lanes on Eagle Rock’s main street.

During on-going opportunities for community input throughout phases of the Bike Plan formation, the Bike Plan’s environmental impact review, and most recently at a public hearing regarding the results of the environmental impact review comments have been mostly positive. However, now concerns about the potential impact bike lanes may are popping up in growing numbers. There is nothing wrong with this, concerns are well warranted for any proposed changes in town and a change to Colorado Boulevard’s public right-of-way will affect daily travel for many.

To gain a clearer perspective of what the current circumstances are and what may possibly change as a result of bike lanes being implemented, it may be beneficial to have the recurring concerns and questions people have regarding bike lanes on Colorado Boulevard actually be addressed. That’s what this blog post will attempt to do– address concerns that have been raised in conversations about bike lanes in the community.

Bike Lane Concern #1: “Shouldn’t we spend money on (insert priority here) instead?

• With city services getting cut left and right many rightfully feel bike lanes should not be a priority for the city. Some say we should spend the money on something more important, like police officers, keeping libraries open, after school programs, paving streets, etc. Important as these services are, the money that would be spent installing bike lanes on Colorado Boulevard would come from a portion of the 2008, voter-approved, Measure R specifically intended for bicycle and pedestrian safety improvements. Also,  re-striping streets to create bike lanes is relatively cheap– even if the money could go elsewhere there are few services that it could substantially fund.

Bike Lane Concern #2: “Reducing the number of lanes available to motorists will cause a traffic nightmare!”

• It seems intuitive– removing the number of lanes available to motorists will cause traffic to back up, especially during peak-hours, so much so that drivers will move at a near crawl. According to the Los Angeles Department of Transportation’s (LADOT) own estimates, converting one lane in each direction to create bike lanes on Colorado Boulevard will only impact peak-hour travel (morning and evening rush hour)– adding no more than about 3 minutes to the time it takes to travel the three miles from Eagle Rock’s border with the City of Glendale to Eagle Rock’s border with the City of Pasadena. To put things in perspective, this is the equivalent of listening to one extra song on the radio during one’s commute, and this is under the LADOT’s “worst-case scenario” estimate. The reason for the minimal impact bike lanes are projected to have on Colorado Boulevard is likely because the street carries very little traffic relative to it’s engineered capacity. The street is engineered to carry between 30,000 to 50,000 trips per day yet for traffic counts conducted over the past 15 years seldom has the street carried above 35,000 trips per day. Colorado Boulevard’s relatively low levels of traffic become evident when there are unexpected lane closures during rush hour and traffic manages to move just fine.

Bike Lane Concern #3: “The street is just fine the way it is– no need for bike lanes.” and  ”If the street isn’t broken, don’t fix it.”

• This concern with bike lanes is entirely subjective, though because the street carries little traffic relative to it’s engineered capacity and because an average of a crash a week occur on Colorado Boulevard there is reason to believe that the street is not fine and that it is broken, statistically speaking. Year after year the leading causes of crashes along Colorado Boulevard are speeding, failure to yield right-of-way, and running red lights– all these things happen when a street is engineered poorly and encourages dangerous, illegal behavior. Following a horrific crash in 2008 caused by an illegal street race over 600 tickets were issued to people for speeding on Colorado Boulevard. The crash, but especially the 600 speeding tickets issued in the wake of the crash, demonstrate the street is surely broken if so many people are unable to adhere to the current 35mph speed limit.

Bike Lane Concern #4: “Bike lanes will be bad for local business”

• Nobody wants to hurt local businesses– they make Colorado Boulevard the attractive, interesting street that it is. Without local businesses, Colorado Boulevard would be indistinguishable from any other business corridor lined with big box retailers and chain restaurants. Why bike lanes would hurt local businesses any more than maintaining the status quo of daily unsafe speeding and weekly crashes is unclear, though the logic seems to go something like this: “Bike lanes will slow down traffic on Colorado Boulevard so much so that people will stop patronizing local businesses because it will take too long to make a quick visit to their favorite restaurant or boutique.” There could be merit to this argument though there is not hard evidence to suggest that reducing the number of lanes available to motorists will be bad for business. A case study of the business corridor along York Boulevard in Highland Park, just south of Colorado Boulevard, by UCLA student researcher Cullen McCormick demonstrated that reducing the number of lanes available to motorists to create bike lanes on York Boulevard did not hurt business. Meanwhile, a growing number of studies in other cities show bike lanes are actually proving to be beneficial to local businesses. Perhaps worst for local business is relying on people to drive to there in the face of escalating gas prices and limited amount of convenient parking. Why not make cycling a pleasant, viable option so people don’t have to spend money in gas and parking to patronize their favorite local business?

Bike Lane Concern #5: “Reducing the number of lanes available to motorists to create bike lanes will hurt emergency response times!” and “We need to maintain the number of lanes available to motorists so that we don’t delay emergence responders!”

• Naturally nobody wants to delay emergence responders and potentially risk losing lives because people can’t get medical attention quickly enough. It is very understandable and commendable to have safety be a prime consideration. However, perhaps this concern is a little overstated, let’s explore why.Firstly, the local Los Angeles Fire Department (LAFD) Station on York Boulevard has not raised concerns to the LADOT about being able to respond to emergencies. In Downtown LA, at the request of the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD), the LADOT will remove a bike lane on 1st street. If there were a significant impact on the ability for emergency responders to reach their destinations because of bike lanes on York Boulevard, the LADOT would remove the bike lanes immediately.
• Also, as noted by Tom Vanderbilt, author of Traffic: Why We Drive The Way We Do and What It Says About Us, generally speaking any time saved by emergency responders by not implementing a traffic calming measure is negligible. In fact, Vanderbilt notes the status quo is likely more dangerous– as he succinctly puts it “speeding cars have surely claimed more lives than speeding responders have saved.” If we turn to York Boulevard again, we see what bike lanes may mean for Colorado Boulevard. The number of crashes on York Boulevard went down following the implementation of a “road diet” that reduced the number of travel lanes available to motorists. Part of York Boulevard went on a “road diet” in 2006 and utilizing traffic collision data available through UC Berkeley’s Traffic Injury Mapping System one will note that from 2002 to 2005, there were 92 crashes on the section of York Boulevard that would eventually go on a “road diet.” From 2006 to 2009 that same stretch of York Boulevard saw only 61 crashes. Comparing pre- and post- “road diet” data on York Boulevard show additional safety benefits.  The number of misdemeanor and felony hit-and-runs are on a decline and as are the collective number of visible, severe, and fatal injuries. Collision data from York Boulevard suggests there is reason to believe that reducing the number of lanes available to motorists will make Colorado Boulevard safer and reduce the need for emergency responders to go to the scene of preventable crashes.

Bike Lane Concern #6: “Are there enough people cycling to warrant reducing the number of lanes available to motorists?” or, “do bicyclists really deserve bike lanes until they constitute a significant proportion of daily travel on Colorado Boulevard?”

• There are a number of ways to approach this though the LADOT’s simple response to this concern is that the bike lanes are intended to increase the number of people the choose to cycle for local trips. People sometimes respond to this by saying “Eagle Rock Boulevard has bike lanes but hardly anyone uses them.” This is true, and this is most likely because the bike lane does not provide sufficient subjective safety for the average person to feel comfortable cycling in it. Many people who oppose bike lanes say “I wouldn’t feel safe riding in a mere painted bike lane, drivers can still veer into it.” This is why the proposed bike lane design on Colorado Boulevard is a more substantial, a design called a “buffered bike lane,” that has has demonstrated to have vastly increased the number of journeys made by bicycle on Spring Street in Downtown LA. The Eagle Rock Boulevard bike lane is a good example of what a low quality, minimal bike facility produces– low levels of cycling.  Additionally, the LADOT has frequently stated at public meetings that the more complete a network of bicycle facilities there is, the more people will cycle. Part of the reason why few people use the bike lanes on Eagle Rock Boulevard is that in addition to providing low levels of subjective safety, the Eagle Rock Boulevard bike lanes only connect to the one other bike facility– the bike lanes on York Boulevard (which did not extend beyond Avenue 54 until recently).
• Though perhaps a better way to address this concern is to compare it with curb cuts on sidewalks. Relatively few people actually benefit from curb cuts, intended to allow people with disabilities to cross the street. More often on Colorado Boulevard one will see a person pushing a stroller than someone in a wheelchair utilizing a curb cut to cross the street.  This concern asking if there are enough bicyclists to warrant bike lanes is ultimately an ethical question, something which is entirely subjective– some say “yes” while others say “no.”  However, because we live in a democracy, and the bike lanes would be installed in public space, it seems that the percent of traffic bicycling constitutes should not be a prime consideration of whether or not to implement bike lanes. While few people currently cycle in Eagle Rock they are just as entitled to safe, pleasant travel as motorists and pedestrians are– aren’t they?

(An older man doing some utilitarian bicycling approaches Colorado Boulevard from Townsend Avenue)

Bike Lane Concern #7: “Removing lanes available to motorists to create bike lanes only benefits a small minority”

• Related to Bike Lane Concern #6, this concern is that reducing the number of lanes available to motorists to create bike lanes on Colorado Boulevard will only benefit a small margin of the local population and therefore is unfair or unacceptable. While this concern is again largely subjective, there is some reason to suggest that more than a “small minority” would benefit from bike lanes on Colorado Boulevard. First, the proposed buffered bike lanes are likely to improve safety for all people on Colorado Boulevard– whether they travel by car, foot, or bicycle. As has happened on York Boulevard, safety improvements benefit everyone – not just cyclists – who travels, lives, and patronizes businesses along the street . Fewer emergency responders are sent out to clean up crashes when safety improves. Fewer people get into crashes when a street becomes safer. People are less likely to be delayed by crashes if a street becomes safer. And so on… Also, because buffered bike lanes on Colorado Boulevard are likely to increase the number of people cycling to destinations along the street, people who continue to drive will benefit from reduced competition for scarce parking spaces. Because buffered bike lanes will likely reduce the number of people cycling on the sidewalk, pedestrians will benefit from a not having to negotiate limited sidewalk space with bicyclists. Because bike lanes on Colorado Boulevard will likely slow down motorized traffic to be in better compliance with speed limits, pedestrians will benefit from being able to cross the street easier. Because gas prices continue to rise year after year, anyone unable or unwilling to keep up with the price of gas will benefit from having bicycling become a more viable, safe, and pleasant option for local trips. The reality is that maintaing the status quo on Colorado Boulevard is worse than any perceived negative impacts implementing bike lanes will have. Nobody benefits from the dangerous speeding the current situation encourages. Nobody benefits from feeling compelled to drive a mile to the grocery store because bicycling is seen as unsafe and unpleasant. Nobody benefits from parents chauffeuring their children to school by car during rush hour. Perhaps a better question is– what are the benefits of maintaining the status quo?

Closing Remarks

Proposed bike lanes on Colorado Boulevard seem to be of high contention but there is little reason for this to be so. Let’s recall that the LADOT projects no more than an additional three minutes to travel time if traveling the three mile entirety of Colorado Boulevard during peak-hours. In other words, bike lanes will only have a minimal impact on a small number of trips being made during the rush hour and most of the time bike lanes will have have virtually no negative impact on travel times of motorists. Because there are a lot of potential impacts – both positive and negative – how about we still move forward with buffered bike lanes but do so provisionally for a year to evaluate the impacts of the bike lanes? What is being proposed on Colorado Boulevard is not radical– it’s a simple re-striping of the street, it can easily be reversed or adjusted (with funds from Measure R) if necessary. Long Beach recently installed a pair of physically separated bike lanes (which reduced the number of lanes available to motorists) on a year trial to study the impacts and the findings have been quite positive. See the video below to learn what kind of an impact separated bike lanes had in Long Beach, skeptics may be pleasantly surprised and perhaps be willing to give bike lanes on Colorado Boulevard a chance.

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Observing A Temporary Lane Closure on Colorado Boulevard

One concern regarding the potential installation of bike lanes on Colorado Boulevard is that it would cause a “traffic nightmare” since it would reduce the number of travel lanes available for motorists between Broadway and Townsend Avenue, a 1.5 mile stretch. The Los Angeles Department of Transportation’s (LADOT) Bikeways Division has communicated  it doesn’t anticipate any major delays in travel times by implementing bike lanes but concerns among residents persist, and understandably so. However if a recent, temporary closure of a single travel lane is any indication, it seems Colorado Boulevard will function just fine if bike lanes are implemented.

Friday, January 11th, a film crew was out on Colorado Boulevard on the block between Caspar Avenue and Maywood Avenue and due to all the equipment present during the filming, one eastbound travel lane was closed to traffic on this block of the street. Generally speaking, such unanticipated lane closures tend to cause bottlenecking, but this was not the case on Colorado Boulevard during this particular filming. Eastbound traffic appeared to be moving just as smoothly with only two of three lanes available as the westbound traffic where there was no unexpected lane closure.

Could it be that the LADOT’s projections are accurate– that creating bike lanes by removing one travel lane for motorists really won’t have much impact on travel times?

This temporary block long lane closure can’t provide conclusive evidence of what conditions would be like with bike lanes but it was interesting to observe nonetheless. Below is a video of the traffic conditions as they appeared between 5pm to 5:25pm

(Note  the block before the lane closure traffic was forced to merge from three lanes to two lanes and there didn’t appear to be any clogging of traffic there either.)

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Subtle Signs of Take Back The Boulevard’s Efforts

(In my last post I asked if there was anything specifically I should write about in 2013, one reader requested I keep followers updated with the status of Take Back The Boulevard. So to kick off the year, here’s an update on the initiative.)

It’s been almost two years since Walk Eagle Rock first covered Take Back the Boulevard (TBTB)– the community driven initiative to make Colorado Boulevard a safer, friendlier street for  all.  While there were initially some public meetings following the launch of Take Back the Boulevard, the past few months have been relatively quiet. So what’s new? Why hasn’t the boulevard been taken back already?

According to Bob Gotham – chair of the Take Back the Boulevard’s steering committee – the initiative isn’t intended to transform Colorado Boulevard over night or even over a couple of years. To fulfill it’s goals, the initiative is realistically envisioned as an on-going process that will consist of short-term and long-term solutions to improve the boulevard. This is in part because any substantial, visible changes to the boulevard will only be able to move forward as funds are made available and if the City’s departments are willing to act. A safer, more pleasant Colorado Boulevard that functions for all users is at least a few more years off, but Take Back The Boulevard has taken steps towawrds bringing change to Eagle Rock’s main street. Let’s take a look…

• April 2011–  LADOT Bike Blog noted that bike lanes along Colorado Boulevard had been prioritized in the City’s Bike Plan due to the momentum of Take Back The Boulevard. Originally scheduled to be implemented sometime after 2015, the City will likely be moving forward with bike lanes along Colorado Boulevard in 2013.

Once bike lanes are installed, the street will likely have the same configuration as this bike lane on Sloat Boulevard in San Francisco. Photo credit: San Francisco Bicycle Coalition

• March 2012 – Take Back The Boulevard announced: ” In earlier public meetings, the challenge of crossing Colorado Boulevard and the shorter time limits of the parking meters on the north side of the street (one hour) were the most frequently cited reasons for the lower usage of those meters… based on recent efforts by the Council Office, the time limits on the meters on the north side of Colorado Boulevard have now been changed to two hours.”

• March 2012 – In the same March 2012 announcement, it was also reported: “The public parking lot at the intersection of Merton and Caspar Avenues significantly mitigates the parking issues in that area. Many have claimed they did not know this parking lot exists. New signage has been installed, making the availability of this lot, which is located within three blocks of a large number of commercial establishments, more apparent.”

One of the new sign on Colorado Boulevard pointing towards the public parking lot at Caspar Avenue and Merton Avenue

• January 2013 – The most recent development since TBTB formed occurred just a few days ago. Yield markings known as “shark teeth” were added to the crosswalk at Hermosa Avenue and Colorado Boulevard at the request of the TBTB steering committee. The markings remind traffic where to yield for crossing pedestrians.

New shark teeth yield markings indicating where motorists must yield to crossing pedestrians

Look at those shark teeth!
Where the yield markings were applied for eastbound travel

There has also been a subtle change to the two curbside parking space in front of Cacao Mexicatessen and Eufloria. In mid-2012 the parking space were converted from 30-minute parking space to one hour parking spaces. This may not be the direct result of  Take Back The Boulevard, but it would not be surprising if it were as the Department of Transportation has been reevaluating conditions along Colorado Boulevard following requests from TBTB’s steering committee. Hopefully the additional half hour granted to the parking spaces now makes them more attractive and useful for patrons of Cacao.

Note the curb in front of Eufloria and Cacao is no longer green, which indicated parking there was only allowed for 30 minutes– not enough time if one parking there wishes to comfortably enjoy a meal at Cacao

The above changes aren’t the most visible or high-profile – nor are they the only accomplishments from the initiative – but they are meaningful changes that we can point to and thank Take Back The Boulevard for. Hopefully 2013 will continue to bring more visible accomplishments from Take Back The Boulevard’s hard work.

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Progress at 5 Line Restaurant

A changing facade along Colorado Boulevard

At the corner of Colorado Boulevard and Caspar Avenue the building that formerly housed Corner Pizzeria has been undergoing a bit of a transformation. According to Eagle Rock Patch, the building will become a “two-in-one restaurant”, combing a Big Mama and Papa’s Pizzeria and casual bar. The two establishments will be connected by a common door and go under the name “5 Line”, a reference to the former streetcar line that used to run through Eagle Rock along Colorado and Eagle Rock Boulevard.

5 Line remains a work in progress but one can already see the exterior resembling the look of the Los Angeles Railway Yellow Car line the restaurant takes its name from.

The 5 line streetcar on Eagle Rock Boulevard, 1955. Photo credit: Alan Weeks via The Metro Library and Archive.

Another view of the 5 line streetcar on Eagle Rock Boulevard, 1953. Photo credit: Alan Weeks via The Metro Library and Archive.

Here are more views of the Yellow Car like exterior:

Corner Pizzeria/Big Mama’s and Papa’s remains open

Looking at the exterior along Caspar Avenue. The paint on the brick wall has been partially removed.

Work remains to be done

The yellow car exterior is promising, it’ll be interesting to see 5 Line once the restaurant is complete. Read more about Eagle Rock’s former streetcar line here and here .

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Embrace Occidental College

Eagle Rock is very proud to be home to the humble and increasingly well-known Occidental College, or Oxy as it is known among the college’s students and locals. The sign that welcomes people at our town’s eastern end, at the  intersection of Colorado Boulevard and Wiota Street, reads “Eagle Rock, Founded 1911. Home of Occidental College”. Every year when Occidental College starts the Fall semester a banner hangs at the intersection of Colorado Boulevard and Eagle Rock Boulevard that welcomes Oxy students back to Eagle Rock. These are literally signs of the affection and positive relationship fostered between the College and Eagle Rock.

There is no doubt that Occidental College has had a positive impact on our community, and that Eagle Rock has been good to Oxy. Though perhaps Eagle Rock can be more welcoming to Occidental College, particularly to its students, and equally benefit to the community at large through ways that embody the messages we put on our welcome sign and the banner that hangs over our town’s major intersection.

While Eagle Rock has always been home to a handful of Oxy students, about 60% of the school’s students are not from California, which demonstrates quite clearly many students are seeing Eagle Rock for the first time. Eagle Rock being the lovely and cool neighborhood that it is is definitely worth exploring, but is our community accessible and inviting to the many car-free college students who’ve never been here before? Our residential streets are typically relaxing and nice to walk along, but unfortunately the same cannot be said of our car-centric commercial corridors– which is a shame because that’s where our local businesses are! But things can change, for the better.

So what’s the current situation?

We can perhaps assume that most Oxy students are easily willing to walk to local destinations that are within a 10 minute’s reach. In actual distance this means students are likely able to stray about 0.5 miles from campus at a calm, relaxed walking pace. This also means that most of what is captured in this 0.5 mile radius from campus is our nice residential streets with a few businesses at the periphery of this comfortable walking distance zone along Eagle Rock Boulevard and York Boulevard. The below map shows a visualization of the 0.5 mile radius, a blue circle, around the Oxy campus with some local businesses indicated with red markers.

(Click on the map for a better view)

Almost everything within the blue zone is no more than a 10 minute walk from campus. Reaching any of the above destinations requires minimal walking on our car-centric commercial corridors and makes the local businesses indicated as likely candidates as destinations that Oxy students may visit. As one may notice, the map also includes several destinations just outside the comfortable walking zone along York Boulevard between Avenue 50 and Avenue 52. I included these businesses because that stretch of York Boulevard is enough of a hot spot, with enough commercial activity, that it is likely to warrant the little extra walking required to reach the area. York Boulevard is a relatively pedestrian friendly street that makes it attractive enough to walk to. This is especially true during Northeast LA’s monthly art walks, which liven up York Boulevard considerably.

What’s unfortunate about the comfortable 10 minute walk zone, is that it excludes many of Eagle Rock’s most popular businesses along Colorado Boulevard. This is understood clearly from a typical comment made by an Oxy freshman in a recent Eagle Rock Patch article–

I haven’t been able to venture out in Eagle Rock yet, but I’ve heard there are a lot great eating places. I heard there’s a real great Thai place and a Mexican place, although I’m not sure if they’re within walking distance of Occidental.

In reality businesses along Colorado Boulevard are not far from Oxy. The corner of Eagle Rock Boulevard and Colorado Boulevard is only a mile away from campus and businesses such as Organix are less than 2 miles away from campus. Given that it takes about 20 minutes for a typical young, healthy person to walk a mile, reaching businesses along Colorado can seem daunting, especially when one needs to walk on Eagle Rock and Colorado Boulevard– unfriendly, loud streets with zooming car traffic.

What Can Be Done?

So nothing can be done to physically move the Colorado Boulevard business corridor close to Oxy, however, as I suggested earlier, the businesses can be made more accessible. What does this mean? Well currently Eagle Rock Boulevard and Colorado Boulevard are car-centric; if you’re not in a car, you’re not prioritized. This is clear through the street design that gives the majority of space to motorists, encourages speeds in excess of 35mph, the obvious lack of crosswalks, and absence of bike infrastructure. All these conditions make our streets unaccommodating to Oxy students, 40% of which are car-free.

There are bike lanes on part of Eagle Rock Boulevard and York Boulevard, however the Eagle Rock Boulevard bike lane disappears at Westdale Avenue (just at the periphery of the comfortable walking distance zone) and the York Boulevard bike lane only makes the already pedestrian friendly portion of York more accessible, and does little to encourage students to travel north to Eagle Rock’s businesses corridor.

But there is a solution. In fact, there are many solutions but the simplest and most cost effective measure that can be implemented to make Colorado Boulevard businesses more accessible, and make our streets more welcoming is to extend the existing bike lanes on Eagle Rock Boulevard north all the way to Colorado Boulevard and to add bike lanes along Colorado itself. Comfortable bike lanes have a well-documented effect of encouraging cycling – particularly among younger people – and the bicycle allows one to cover a greater distance than walking with the same amount of time. One can easily cover a mile in 10 minutes on a bicycle, and if Eagle Rock’s main boulevards were kinder to all modes of travel there is little doubt that more Oxy students would cycle and patronize local businesses. The map below shows some local businesses that are within a comfortable bicycling distance from Oxy

(The outermost circle represents everything within a 1.5 mile radius from Oxy. The middle circle represents everything within a mile from the campus and the innermost circle is the comfortable 0.5 mile walking zone. Click the map for a larger image.) 

Will It Work?

While college students are typically thought of as being on tight budgets with little free time, this does not mean that college students do not spend money or have zero free time. It’s not unusual to see Oxy kids visiting the businesses that are within the 10 minute walking distance from campus. In fact, some Oxy students already like to eat out at businesses along Colorado Boulevard as well despite not being within the quick, and comfortable walk zone. A student from the same Eagle Rock Patch mentioned above commented the following about Eagle Rock:

I always eat at Classic Thai. The pad thai there is the best—and I can’t go to any other Thai restaurant. I also love the Eagle Rock Music Festival. People are friendly and the nightlife is very calm and chill.

Classic Thai is about 1.5 miles from the Oxy campus and could be same “great Thai place” the other student was quoted as saying it was not within walking distance. Perhaps this particular student reached Classic Thai by some other means but combining the comments made by the Oxy students does suggest that if businesses are easy to reach, the students are just as likely to enjoy local eateries, cafes and shops as much as the rest of the community. As already mentioned, Oxy students are known to visit many of the businesses that are easy to reach, within a comfortable walking distance. It seems plausible that if we extend the distance that students are comfortable traveling independently, and truly make Eagle Rock a welcoming home to Occidental College, that businesses as well as students will can benefit.

Current Eagle Rock Neighborhoood Council President, Michael Larsen, seems to have confidence in such a vision– of streets that are friendly and inviting to college students. In an Eagle Rock Patch article titled “The Future of Eagle Rock” Larsen had this to say–

“I’d love to see more places where the Oxy kids could hang out. We have an amazing, world-renowned college here and Eagle Rock should really have more of the traditional positive features of a college town… I’d like to lure them [students] back by making walking and bike riding more pleasurable and safe. I’m encouraged by Take Back The Boulevard campaign that just started, which will re-envision Colorado Boulevard to make it pedestrian and bike-friendly. Slow it down, plant more trees, give space to bikes, create safe crosswalks.”

There are plenty of bike racks along Colorado Boulevard and Eagle Rock Boulevard. Occidental College is than a mile away from 2 bike shops and the campus even has a bikeshare system, which allows students to borrow bicycles for daily use. Most Eagle Rock businesses are less than 2 miles away from campus. It seems the only thing that’s preventing more Oxy students from taking to two wheels is safe provisions for bicycling.  Existing signs are encouraging, we see on York Boulevard that bike and pedestrian friendly measures have increased the number of people walking and cycling along that street. Can Eagle Rock step up and make an environment that is welcoming to Oxy students? As Occidental College’s own website says of Eagle Rock–

“Oxy isn’t just located here; it’s a vital part of the community.” 

Let’s make our streets reflect our written commitment– let’s welcome students and have Eagle Rock feel like home.

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Pedestrian Friendly Elements in Berkeley

The summer is over which means that Walk Eagle Rock is migrating north to Berkeley for an other semester of university. While there’s no place like home, there are occasions on which I feel Eagle Rock can learn from Berkeley, particularly about street design and especially now with Take Back The Boulevard afoot.

Downtown Berkeley’s main street is Shattuck Avenue and  it may not resemble Colorado Boulevard much but there are elements from the street that seem they could be happily embraced along Colorado Boulevard. Let’s take a look…

• Seating implemented around street trees. Similar structures can be found in Highland Park around a handful of ficus trees that line North Figueroa Street. Having public seating available is vital if a street is to be friendly for people on foot, and these small wooden benches seem they could be attractive and easily implemented along Colorado. If someone is shopping or couples are walking, such seating can be a nice place to rest and take in the street life before carrying on.

• Hanging flower baskets from street lights. This treatment is a rather common one on main streets throughout the U.S. but it is also quite effective: it literally makes the street more colorful, gives people something to look at, and makes the street more aesthetically pleasing. In the case of Eagle Rock, if these were implemented along Colorado Boulevard perhaps adjacent store owners could agree to regularly water the plants. Like installing benches around street trees, this measure capitalizes on an existing element of the street ( the lighting) and enhances it to make the street more pleasant, attractive, and ultimately more of a destination.

• Identifier. Berkeley, like many other cities, has installed a street clock on its main street; such clocks help identify and define the commercial core of a neighborhood. Now, some might say that street clocks are overdone or cliché– and to some extent Eagle Rock already has a neighborhood clock above the awning at The Coffee Table. A street clock may not be appropriate or desired along Colorado because of this but perhaps Eagle Rock can have a unique identifier or piece of public art along Colorado Boulevard. Identifiers can be iconic, public attractions– the kind of thing that helps make Colorado a street where people might parks their car, dine somewhere, then enjoy a nice stroll along the boulevard to see the other various shops, street life and relax.

These are just simple three ways in which Eagle Rock could perhaps improve the experience of shopping, walking, and dining along Colorado Boulevard and help change the identity of the street from speedway to commercial district.

 

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Impressions of Las Flores Drive

Earlier this summer I walked some streets in Eagle Rock, observed conditions and noted my impressions. One of the streets I walked was Las Flores Drive. Las Flores is perhaps one of Eagle Rock’s narrowest and must unassuming streets, it rests parallel between our main commercial corridor – Colorado Boulevard – and one of our most prestigious and wealthy streets – Hill Drive.

Las Flores Drive is marked in blue (with a brief jog onto Hill Drive as Las Flores is bisected by Caspar Avenue), Colorado Boulevard is marked in red, and Hill Drive is the  unmarked, winding street roughly parallel Las Flores to the north.

Now, Las Flores is a little disjointed, as I’ve noted in a previous post, but it can be understood, especially with the image above, that it mostly parallels Hill Drive and Colorado Boulevard.

I started my walk on the eastern end where Las Flores intersects with Townsend Avenue

Looking west on Las Flores Drive from Townsend Avenue

I measured the street to be 19 feet, curb to curb. At this point there is no sidewalk but as can be seen in the center left of the picture (behind the green shrubbery) a sidewalk picks ups on the southern side of the street (the left in this picture). I measured the sidewalk to be 53 inches (~4.4ft) wide but the telephone pole visible in this picture reduces the sidewalk width to 35 inches, one inch short of the Americans with Disabilities Act recommended minimum sidewalk width of 36 inches.

At the next block, the intersection of Las Flores Drive and Vincent Avenue, there are stop signs facing traffic on Las Flores, none on Vincent Avenue. The sidewalk disappears when continuing west and crossing Vincent Avenue. A sidewalk appears mid-block on both sides of the street and sidewalks continue on Las Flores Drive all the way to where the street’s western end (Sumner Avenue) but seldom to pedestrians get to use the full sidewalk without interruptions. Throughout the street is comfortable and easily navigable for motorists with smooth asphalt and enough space to park, but see below some obstacles pedestrians face on these narrow sidewalks:

Poorly maintained sidewalks that can make the space difficult to navigate if pushing stroller or in wheel chair

Signs for motorists clutter the narrow sidewalk of Las Flores Drive

Crumbling sidewalk

While such features can be pleasant, especially on summer days, overhanging greenery makes the space further unnavigable when coupled with the many other obstacles on this narrow sidewalk.

On my entire walk along Las Flores Drive I encountered four people– two of which were walking, one person cycling and one person was driving his truck on the street.

Reflecting on the conditions after I walked Las Flores Drive from Townsend Avenue to Sumner Avenue I felt given the street’s current characteristics – narrow, residential, little through motor vehicle traffic, lacking adequate sidewalks – that perhaps the street could be improved if converted into a “shared space”.

So what’s a shared space? In essence, it is a street where all users (motorists, cyclists, pedestrians) are asked to negotiate the same space without physical or delineated separation.

In an Eagle Rock context the typical parking lot may be the most comparable thing we have to a shared space– drivers crawl at no more than 5mph and pedestrians walk in the same space that drivers use, without either party getting upset that the other is in front of them.

So why do I propose shared space? Two main reasons:

1) The sidewalks, even at their widest on Las Flores, are no more than 53 inches. Currently sidewalks are full with a number of obstacles including driveways, telephone poles. Every Tuesday trash bins are placed on the narrow sidewalk. By combining the sidewalk and street into one space, pedestrians are not restricted by any means as they would be able to freely walk in the 19 feet currently dedicated to vehicles. Furthermore, the sidewalks and street would simply be one, meaning stroller pushers, wheelchair users could easily navigate an obstacle.

2) Reinforce that Las Flores Drive is a residential street. It is already quite clear that Las Flores, with its low traffic volumes, is a street used mainly  by the people who live on it or visit friends and family that live on it.  However, despite this there is occasion on which motorists will use Las Flores Drive to bypass Colorado Boulevard. This is particularly true on the western end between Sumner Avenue and Ellenwood Drive where Colorado Boulevard traffic can get nasty and stressful. Residents keyed in can use Las Flores as a means to avoid Colorado Boulevard traffic when reaching their homes north of Colorado Boulevard. This isn’t a criminal use of the street but in my observations motorists using Las Flores in this manner tended to drive faster, and more aggressively– certainly not the kind of traffic the street is intended for. In a shared space there are only obstacles for drivers wishing to speed, an element I’m guessing Las Flores residents may appreciate.

Now for the fun part– what would this “shared space” look like?

A sign for a shared street in Santa Monica. Photo credit: Jarrett M

Perhaps it would look like this….

Photo credit: Joel Mann
…. the sidewalk and street are at same level. Play equipment, trees, and bike parking force drivers to go slowly. It is quite obvious the main purpose of the street is not speeding.

or like this…

… with a speed limit of “walking pace” where pedestrians can walk freely in the middle of the space without fear of aggravating motorists.

…or even like this

Photo credit: Alissa Walker
… the street painted a fun pattern and where children can play and couples can stroll, care-free.

At 19 feet wide from curb to curb, and no more than 30 feet wide from property to property, there isn’t much space on Las Flores Drive to accommodate two-way traffic for vehicles and pedestrians alike. The lack of width, traffic, and non-residential use along the street would seem to suggest the street should be designed for, and only accommodate, slow speeds. Families should feel comfortable walking on Las Flores Drive, without major obstacles every few feet. The street should empower residents and have through motor vehicle traffic be secondary to the safety and comfort of someone walking on foot. A shared space can provide just that.

It appears Las Flores Drive residents has little to lose, and so much to gain. What do you think?

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Crossing Colorado Boulevard

A lone pedestrian tries to cross Colorado Boulevard to reach Trader Joe’s

A vibrant commercial corridor is in part identified by how easy it is to cross the street. The easier it is to cross, typically, the more shopping and people friendly a street is. Think about Colorado Boulevard in Old Town Pasadena or York Boulevard between Avenue 50 and Avenue 53 in Highland Park. Both these streets have safe, convenient crossings on every block that make it easy to stroll while fostering a low stress environment for people on foot. Along these business corridors pedestrians are not confined to one side of the street for long intervals.

Conversely, on Eagle Rock’s main commercial corridor – which is frequently defined by Colorado Boulevard as it runs between Eagle Rock Boulevard and Townsend Avenue – only 7 of 12 intersections have crossing opportunities. At roughly 3,800ft long, the “downtown Eagle Rock commercial corridor” has two major gaps in crossing opportunities.

The first major gap is between Maywood Avenue and Hermosa Avenue, in which one walks roughly 1,200ft without any crossing opportunities.

The second gap is between Argus Drive and Mount Royal Drive, in which people on foot go 630ft without any crossing opportunities.

The limited crossing points are hardly conducive for visitors to take a spontaneous stroll along Colorado Boulevard and get a glimpse of all our local businesses.

“Downtown Eagle Rock commercial corridor” outlined in blue. The red blocks represent sections of Colorado Boulevard where pedestrians have no crossing points. Image credit: Google Maps

And of the pedestrian crossings we do have, not all are created equally.

Image credit: Google Maps

The non-signalized crossing at Colorado Boulevard and Hermosa Avenue (pictured left) only allows crossing on one side, making crossing at this intersection that much less convenient for pedestrians. (Note: This crossing is the only non-signalized crossing along all of Colorado Boulevard and didn’t exist prior to Renaissance Arts Academy Middle School moving in at Colorado Boulevard and Argus Drive about 5 years ago.)

Now compare this with conditions for people driving– motorists never have to go more than 350ft before being able to make a left turn or U-turn at an intersection (roughly the equivalent of a pedestrian wishing to cross the street) to reach the other side of the street .

Forcing pedestrians into having to stay on one side of the street for an extended period makes walking less convenient, less pleasant and less safe.

It’s not unusual to see people running across Colorado Boulevard at intersections that do not have any crossing provisions. While it is actually legal to cross at any intersection unless signs prohibit otherwise, not many are aware of or take comfort in this. Motorists tend to either be unaware of this law, ignore it, or  deliberately speeding up so to frighten pedestrians into a) running across the street or b) not crossing at all.

A pedestrian advantageously crosses Colorado Boulevard at LA Roda Avenue intersection during a break in the flow of cars.

The lack of crosswalks, particularly clear, well-defined crosswalks, really makes anyone walking feel as though they are being punished for walking.

But it’s not just pedestrians that suffer from lack of safe pedestrian crossings, motorists suffer a little as well.

Consider this common situation encountered by patrons at Casa Bianca Pizza:

There’s no parking on the south side of Colorado Boulevard or on Vincent Avenue south of the restaurant. There is parking however on the north side of Colorado Boulevard but because crossing is inconvenient and unpleasant the patron is left with choosing between two preferences– 1) Continue searching for parking on the south side or 2) Bite the bullet and cross at Vincent Avenue and Colorado Boulevard.

Hurrying across Colorado Boulevard at Vincent Avenue to get to their car. This is a common sight during the evenings Casa Bianca is open.

Those who cannot find parking on the south side of Colorado Boulevard close to Casa Bianca often choose to park on the north side and take their chances crossing at Vincent Avenue.

If one parks on the north side of Colorado Boulevard across the street from Casa Bianca and walks to the closest signalized crossing at Mount Royal (noted by the red line above) the total length of the trip from parking space to Casa Bianca is about 400ft. If one simply crosses at Vincent Avenue (noted by green line above), the length of trip from parking space to Casa Bianca is reduced to about 100ft.

While it is common practice to cross at Vincent Avenue, and arguably safe as there hasn’t been public outcry of the situation, it remains an unpleasant and subjectively unsafe experience. Motorists seldom yield to people crossing – if they even notice people on foot – and instead zoom by at 35mph+. People with children are probably much less likely to park on the north side of Colorado Boulevard as they would rather not have to inconveniently walk to the signalized crossing at Colorado Boulevard and Mount Royal Drive or risk rushing across at Vincent Avenue.

It seems that if Vincent Avenue had a marked, zebra crossing that benefit would be two-fold: the experience of crossing the street, and the issue of finding convenient parking, could be positively affect conditions for Casa Bianca patrons during the evening (and benefit local French restaurant Le Petit Beaujolais patrons in the mornings); and pedestrians simply strolling the street or walking for transportation get a nice, convenient crossing.

Of course, it can’t be said that Casa Bianca (or Le Petit Beaujolais) has exactly been at the brink of shutting its doors due to lack of parking, Casa Bianca is among the most well-known restaurants in Eagle Rock and has been in business for several decades. However, it ultimately seems that safe, convenient crosswalks along Colorado Boulevard – particularly at intersections in the big gaps where there are no marked crosswalks –  could go a long way to not only enhance the walking experience and spontaneous visits to shops and restaurants, but also enhance the experience of driving to destinations along Colorado Boulevard.

Maybe if Colorado Boulevard has more crosswalks more people will be seen walking and Eagle Rock can truly feel like the small town residents aspire for where something as simple as crossing the main street is pleasant, easy, and safe. After all, downtown Eagle Rock as it runs along Colorado Boulevard is a commercial corridor lined with small businesses, not a freeway alternative,  adjacent to single family homes; the street should be conducive for business and neighborly interaction, not speeding.

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Embrace Bikes, Embrace Business

In discussing Take Back The Boulevard (TBTB), the initiative seeking to improve various elements along Colorado Boulevard to make the street more safe and pleasant, it is not unusual for residents to be divided. Do we make more intersections signalized or add bike lanes to reduce speeding? Do we reduce number of travel lanes or increase amount of parking to make the street more pleasant? The community organizations that have spearheaded TBTB (Collaborative Eagle Rock Beautiful, the Eagle Rock Chamber of Commerce, the Eagle Rock Community Preservation and Revitalization Corporation, the Eagle Rock Neighborhood Council, the Eagle Rock Valley Historical Society, Occidental College, The Eagle Rock Association, and the Twentieth Century Women’s’ Club of Eagle Rock) have tried very hard to please all parties and incorporate all needs in pursuing a better Colorado Boulevard that functions for everyone. 

However, while the general idea of improving safety through reducing speeding seems to have near unanimous support, there’s one notable conflict that emerges in almost all discussions of TBTB. All to often it seems neighbors break out into a “bike lanes vs car parking” debate, as though these are two ideas that can only work against each other. It appears to some as an either/or proposition: either we provide bike lanes, or we provide more car parking through converting parallel parking to angled parking, by reallocating superfluous travel lanes on Colorado and achieve the goal of reducing speeds.

The two methods of reducing speeds along Colorado, bike lanes or additional parking, are thought of as incompatible to some, perhaps due to an expected tight budget. It seems unlikely that the community will be able to scramble together funds to acquire land to provide a public parking lot along Colorado Boulevard, so Eagle Rock can really only try reconfiguring the public right-of-way on Colorado through low-cost measures to improve safety and hopefully encourage commerce. Also, while building a public parking lot sounds like a worthwhile effort, it seems to fall outside of the main purpose of TBTB and a long-standing community desire to improve safety on Colorado Boulevard. So what do we do?

Re-envisioning Colorado Boulevard to be safe and pleasant for all, the community will need to collectively address the many concerns stakeholders, like: how can we improve safety? how can we improve parking? how can we make our street friendlier? how can we reduce speeding? These are just some concerns that have been raised in conversations, and of course tacked on to all the community’s concerns is “how can we get the money to make any of these changes?”

To residents and businesses alike looking to improve commerce while improving safety I would humbly suggest this– embrace bicycles! Bike lanes are not necessarily an opposition to more parking or better business. Let’s examine why…

On Colorado Boulevard we could convert one travel lane in each direction to bike lanes– and what would this likely accomplish? Well much of what community members have voiced a desire to improve:

• Improve safety: It is well-documented that road diets and car lane removal improve safety for all users. By converting one travel lane in each direction, we would put Colorado Boulevard on a “road diet” and likely see fewer crashes and less risky behavior by motorists.
• Reduce speeding: Road diets have also been shown to reduce speeding without adversely affecting normal traffic flow during peak hours.
• Reduce noise pollution: By reducing speeding and further separating motorized traffic from sidewalks by adding a bike lane between the two, the street would be quieter and more conducive for relaxed strolling, outdoor dining, socializing… Also, since bike lanes are likely to reduce unnecessary speeding, the street will be quieter simply because cars will not be going as fast.
• Improve business visibility: The faster cars go, the less visible things in periphery become to drivers. By reducing speeds and calming traffic through a road diet, motorists will be able to  more easily, and safely, glance at the buildings lining Colorado Boulevard. Moving slower means not only will businesses be more visible, but motorists will also not be as pressured to speed through Eagle Rock’s increasingly thriving business corridor. This means motorists can more easily stop and visit a business if they feel so inclined. Also, businesses can look more appealing– people passing by may observe more people dining outdoors since eating outside will likely be more pleasant option from expected reduced noise pollution.
• Improve parking: Having a bike lane, Colorado Boulevard is likely to encourage more people to cycle to local destinations. Bike lanes increase the subjective and physical safety while simultaneously reducing the stress of bicycling. More people biking of course means fewer people driving, and fewer people driving means there are more parking spaces available for those who still choose to drive. Not to mention most destinations along Colorado Boulevard already offer free, convenient bike racks to accommodate customers that arrive by bicycle. Customers that arrive by bicycle need not worry about feeding any parking meters or wondering if they’re blocking a resident’s driveway.
• Choices, opportunities, potential: By providing a bike lane on Colorado Boulevard, residents of Eagle Rock will have bicycling be an increasingly safe and viable option. No longer will residents feel forced to drive to a destination less than 2 miles away when there is an attractive bike facility. Parents may be more willing to let their children cycle to destinations.
• Improve traffic flow: Speeds along Colorado Boulevard can vary greatly– by reducing the number of lanes, a more consistent pace can be established  for motorists and actually improve through-put.

Even if a small portion of people switch to bicycle for a handful of trips throughout the week it will benefit local businesses, perhaps more than they realize.

First off, it’s worth repeating that more people bicycling to a local businesses means fewer people driving to that businesses which means there will be more car parking spaces available for those that still choose to drive.

Secondly, it turns out, according to studies and experience, cyclists are better customers than motorists, who knew?

So are you convinced yet? Even today, without any bicycle infrastructure along Colorado Boulevard, people are still bicycling, and businesses are benefiting from having bike parking

A bicycle parked to a bike rack at Four Cafe

Three bikes parked to the single bike rack in front of Four Cafe

Two bicycles parked at a bike rack in front of The Coffee Table

Two bicycles parked using two bike racks at Pete’s Blue Chip Burger

A bike parked at Pilates

Even businesses without bike parking benefit from bicycling customers

Two bicycles parked to a pole between The Best Flowers and Swork

A bicycle leaning against the exterior of One’s Liquor

A bike parked to hand-railing in this Colorado Boulevard strip mall

It may not be obvious as bicycles are small and subtle, but if one looks closely, one will notice that people do indeed already cycle to local businesses. Maybe residents and businesses who desire additional parking along Colorado Boulevard could benefit from embracing bicycling– people who arrive at businesses by bicycle do not use any curbside car parking. But when curbside space is allocated to bicycles, as it is at the intersection of York Boulevard and Avenue 50, more customers can be accommodated than if the space is used to park a single car as demonstrated below and in this post on Flying Pigeon LA

Five bicycles parked using the same amount of space used to accommodate one car

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