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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Some Thoughts on Outdated Bikeway Designs

(This is a non-Eagle Rock specific post mostly consisting of thoughts on bicycle infrastructure design standards that dictate bikeway design in Los Angeles)

When bicycling on the streets of Los Angeles I am expected to ‘share the road’ with motorists. On quiet residential streets this is rarely an issue, cars seldom go above 20 miles per hour. But even on residential streets there is the occasional pressure to speed up or move aside when a motor vehicle approaches from behind. However, residential streets are pretty manageable and subjectively safe for myself, and the many people I see who simply enjoy to go for a ride around the block. Intersections are not an issue either as residential streets are usually narrow with little traffic.

However, the comfort utilitarian and recreational bicyclists feel on residential streets quickly disappears when traveling on major, commercial streets. One of the biggest hindrances to people choosing the bicycle for travel is how dangerous larger streets with greater amounts of traffic feel.

Now I am an everyday bicyclist and I have no problem negotiating with motor vehicle traffic, or making left turns like a motor vehicle. I expect motorists to needlessly discriminate me by shouting, honking, and telling me to get out of the way. But this is not the reality I want to experience. When traveling by bicycle I’d prefer to be separated from motor vehicles traveling over 20 miles per hour;I do not want to breathe in exhaust, feel cars zoom by, or put up with the noise pollution and increasingly distracted drivers. And I’m not the only one who feels this way. There are many more who cite their number one reason for not bicycling more often being how unsafe and unpleasant conditions are, being forced to mix with motorized traffic to go to the grocery store, a friend’s house, or local restaurant.

So what is being done to address the concerns of the many people who want to get on their bicycles but don’t? Well, here locally in Los Angeles the city has a Bicycle Master Plan which seeks to create a 1,600 mile network of bicycle facilities over the course of the next 30 years. The city hopes that in those 30 years bicycling will eventually make up 5% of the city’s traffic.

Almost half, 700 miles, of the 1,600 miles of bicycle facilities will be on the a backbone network– that is, this backbone of the bicycle network will be on the heavy traffic streets many are currently afraid of. So what will the facilities on these major streets look like? Currently bike facility designs are largely dictated by: The American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO); California Highway Design Manual (CHDM); and the California Manual of Unified Traffic Control Devices (CAMUTCD). What these design guides recommend will likely dictate what LA’s backbone network of bicycle facilities on major streets will look like.  What do these manuals have to offer?

Facilities offered in AASHTO and CAHDM are:

• Class I Bike Path: Completely separated right-of-way for exclusive use by bicycles and pedestrians
• Class II Bike Lane: Provides a striped line for one-way bicycle travel on a street or highway
• Class III Bike Route: Provides shared use with pedestrians or motor vehicle travel

It is well known that the majority of people will refuse to start bicycling unless safe, separate facilities are provided. Anecdotally, when I ask my non-bicycling friends, my grandfather, my sister and mother– they all answer that they would love to cycle more if they had separated bike paths to use. This can also be observed where people do cycle most– bike paths such as the LA River Bike Path. Admittedly the majority of users on LA’s bike paths are recreational riders, but a few points can perhaps explain why: Current bike paths are largely isolated and are difficult to integrate into any kind of travel other than recreational; current bike paths are often linear, uninterrupted paths, optimizing them for sporty recreational travel; the facilities feel safe enough to use for recreational purposes (unlike any parallel streets).

Naturally, it seems bike paths would be recommended for installation on major streets, right? Let’s see what the CAHDM say about providing bicycle facilities…

“Pavement markings alone will not measurably enhance bicycling.”

The CAHDM admits that mere painted bike lanes are not too effective in enhancing bicycling. While painted bike lanes not physically separated from motorized traffic have been shown to increase bicycling marginally and enhance the experience a little bit, they are unsatisfactory to the majority of people. The existing bike lanes throughout Los Angeles demonstrate this very well.

So perhaps we could provide bike paths adjacent to motorized traffic to enhance the bicycling experience and get more people riding? After all, bike paths are the most desired kinds of infrastructure among non bicyclists and they are the most utilized pieces of bike infrastructure that do exist despite their lack of accessibility to the majority of people. Well, not according to the CAHDM:

“Bike paths immediately adjacent to streets and highways are not recommended. They should not be considered a substitute for the street, because many bicyclists will find it less convenient to ride on these types of facilities as compared with the street, particularly for utility trips”

The reasoning for not providing bike paths adjacent to streets is in complete contradiction to the reality. Many potential bicyclists would find bike paths adjacent to streets more convenient (and safe, and pleasant) than mixing with motorized traffic, given that the facility is designed well. One of the greatest concerns people currently have with cycling is lack of subjective safety from being required to mix with motorized traffic. Adjacent bike paths would reduce moments required to mix with motorized traffic to intersections and driveways.

Alright, so maybe no bike paths adjacent to streets. Perhaps bike lanes can be placed between the curb and parked cars to make facilities that feel safe enough for everyone? I frequently hear this as a solution from people who would like to cycle more or at all but currently don’t. The CAHDM doesn’t think so:

“Bike lanes shall not be placed between the parking area and the curb. Such facilities increase the conflict between bicyclists and opening car doors and reduce visibility at intersections. Also, they prevent bicyclists from leaving the bike lane to turn left and cannot be effectively maintained.”

Again, the reasoning surprises me. Given the average number of people traveling in a car is less than 2, bicyclists are more likely to have conflict with car doors opening from the driver’s side, where bike lanes are currently placed. As for reducing visibility at intersections, parking is seldom allowed close to intersections for this very reason– visibility. Additionally motorists already have to look for pedestrians on their right-hand side. This should not make it difficult for motorists to look for bicyclists at intersections, if parking is not permitted and the potential pedestrians need to be taken into consideration already. Left-turns are certainly not an issue for pedestrians, why would a bike lane between the curb and parked cars be much different? A similar motion can be made by bicyclists. In fact this is the solution often offered  in the Netherlands and Denmark where bicycle facilities are placed between the curb and parked cars.

Example of left-turn for bicyclists in Copenhagen, Denmark. Credit: Between Yellow and Blue

Example of how cyclists make lefts in the Netherlands. Credit: Mark Wagenbuur

Cyclists are hardly ‘restricted’ when placed between the curb and parked cars if the facilities are engineered properly like in the Netherlands and Denmark, the countries with the highest levels of bike usage in the western world. Additionally, just as there are mid-block crossings for pedestrians, the same could be provided to bicyclists if placed between parked cars and the curb. This could arguably allow greater freedom of movement than when cyclists are forced to use the same lanes as motor vehicle traffic where mid-block U-turns are often not possible or allowed.

One wonders, how are intersections to be handled according to the CAHDM? Here is more, general discussion of intersections:

“Most auto/bicycle accidents occur at intersections. For this reason, bikeway design at intersections should be accomplished in a manner that will minimize confusion by motorists and bicyclists and will permit both to operate in accordance with the normal rules of the road.”

This sounds good in theory, but the reality is that there is ZERO evidence of intersections in Los Angeles and much of California where any thought has been made to minimize confusion by motorists and bicyclists. In fact, the CAHDM at current suggests two ways for bicyclists to make left turns at intersections, with or without bicycle infrastructure.

“A prevalent type of accident involves straight-through bicycle traffic and right-turning motorists. Left turning bicyclists also have problems as the bike lane is on the right side of the street and bicyclists have to cross the path of cars traveling in both directions. Some bicyclists are proficient enough to merge across one or more lanes of traffic to use the inside lane or left-turn lane. However, there are many who do not feel comfortable making this maneuver. They have the option of making a two-legged left turn by riding along a course similar to that followed by pedestrians.”

The CAHDM shares two ways for bicyclists to make left turns. Knowing there is inconsistency in how bicyclists make left turns seems it would INCREASE confusion. Credit: CAHDM

The above excerpt is interesting for a couple reasons, it admits that there is trouble with through cyclists and right turning motorists as well with cyclists turning left. The first problem, through cyclists conflicting with right turning motorists has already been addressed in the Netherlands and Denmark– both these countries have made efforts to mitigate this type of conflict. If safety is the highest priority, the issue could be dealt with by reducing speeds at intersections by requiring a sharper turn from motorists through design, as is seen in the Netherlands. It could also be dealt with  by having separate signal phases for through cyclists and right turning motorists altogether.

The second problem, that of the left turn, the Highway Design Manual admits that most people would rather not have to cross one, two, or some cases three lanes of motor vehicle traffic to make a left turn like a motorist. This is especially true where speeds are between 30mph and 50pm, as they are on Colorado Boulevard in Eagle Rock.

Yet despite knowing the majority of people would prefer to make a two-legged left similar to pedestrian design, seldom have intersections in California been designed to accommodate, encourage, or guide this style of movement. Interestingly, the diagram from the CAHDM showing the two-legged left displays a movement very similar to the diagram showing a left turn for cyclists in Copenhagen and it would only require paint on the ground to mimic this treatment.

Furthermore, by having two different ways for cyclists to navigate an intersection, a cyclist’s movement is more ambiguous and arguably increases the potential for conflict with motor vehicle traffic because there is no consistent way to expect a cyclist to navigate an intersection.

So what can we do when implementing bicycle facilities in LA?

Well, the Danish and the Dutch have addressed the concerns the CAHDM by experimenting with bicycle facility design for well over 30 years. Contrary to what the CAHDM implies are drawbacks of bicycle facilities that physically separate cyclists from motor vehicle traffic, bicyclists in Denmark and the Netherlands are the safest in the world… and they are frequently separated from motorized traffic on major streets, and they have no trouble making left turns.

It is time to raise the bar for bicycle infrastructure design in California. We know what will create more bicyclists, separated facilities. We know how the majority would be comfortable making left turns, it is written in our state Highway Design Manual. There are several places around the world (and increasingly here in the United States) to look for design solutions yet we do zero to accommodate, encourage, or pursue this.

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Can Separated Bike Lanes Save Colorado Boulevard?

Colorado Boulevard, the commercial center of Eagle Rock, will undergo a transformation if the initiative Take Back The Boulevard can maintain the momentum it is experiencing at the moment. A lot of ideas about how to improve the boulevard are being circulated– everything from angled parking to sidewalk extensions, to increased greenery, to bike lanes, and more! Just the other day Eastsider shared the idea of reversed angle in parking as solution.

While there are many popular ideas, I feel that it is important to reflect on the mission of this worthy effort to reclaim our main street from the dangerous freeway it currently resembles. Take Back The Boulevard seeks to transform Colorado Boulevard into a safe, sustainable, and vibrant street in order to stimulate economic growth, increase public safety and enhance community pride. Given that we cannot accommodate all the possible ideas being discussed due to limited space on the street I would like to share why I believe a solution that includes protected bike lanes, also known as cycle tracks, could fulfill as many of the desires of this initiative and is perhaps the most promising solution available.

Protected bike lanes essentially place a bike lane along the curb and place car parking to the left of the bike lane as a buffer separating motorized traffic  and bicycle traffic. To read more about protected bike lanes concept check out the Los Angeles Department of Transportation Bike Blog’s recent post explaining these facilities.

So, installing protected bike lanes along Colorado Boulevard would result in what is known as a ‘road diet’, the removal of one travel lane in each direction. The new found space would be used to accommodate the proposed cycle tracks. Road diets have been proven, nationwide, to increase safety for all users. They have also been known to better the flow of traffic. Read about them here.

However, before I continue, let me share a couple rough drawings I made of what these protected bike lanes just might look like on our boulevard.

This first image is supposed to a rendering of Maywood Avenue and Colorado Boulevard, looking East.

Current Appearance

Via Google Maps Street View

Sketch Including Separated Bike Lane

(From left to right) Sidewalk, separated bike lane, bus stop island, motorized traffic

Now what does separated bike lane do to fulfill the mission of Take Back The Boulevard? Well if one examines my rough sketch there are a few things being accomplished

1) Most obviously a safe space is created to allow travel for cyclists that doesn’t force cyclists to mix with pedestrians or automobiles. This facility will encourage more than just young fearless people to cycle. There is no pressure to ‘keep up’ with motorized traffic and provides an environmental, sustainable means of traveling along the boulevard

2) The bus stop is moved to an island that frees up space on the sidewalk and allows for speedier bus service as buses won’t have pull up to a curb. Bike racks can be placed on this island to again free up space on our precious sidewalks. This bus island also reduces conflict between bicyclists and buses– often bicyclists and buses ‘leap frog’ each other as a bicyclist passes a bus that is stopped then the bus passes the cyclist once in motion again. This removes such conflicts.

3) Crossings for pedestrians is made shorter by allowing them to wait at a refuge alongside the bus stop island.

4) While the moved bus stop frees up sidewalk space, the former bus stop space could also be used to plant trees to provide more greenery.

5) Greater buffer between pedestrians and automobiles, making outdoor dining (where it is available) or mere strolling more pleasant as the increased distances makes the sidewalks less noisy from cars whizzing by.

6) Cars will not be allowed to travel as recklessly as in the past since they will only have two lanes. This will likely result in more civilized speeds and careful, conscious driving. As Tom Vanderbilt notes in his book Traffic, when we make roads forgiving to motorists (like by allowing excess number of lanes), motorists tend to drive sloppier. It’s these kind of excessively wide streets that encourage illegal speeding, and unfortunately result in deaths too.

Here is an other view of the separated bike lane looking West on Maywood Avenue and Colorado Boulevard

Current Appearance

Sketch with protected bike lane

This remains a very rough sketch but I would like to highlight the benefits of this proposed configuration

1) Again a safe space for people of all ages to cycle is created

2)Pedestrian crossings become shorter by allowing the creation of a small refuge

3) The protective barrier between bicyclists and automobiles allows an opportunity to plant trees and other greenery in what is currently just plain asphalt

I realize it may be difficult to completely understand these drawings, however there are also existing examples of where similar spaces have been created. Take a look below where Colorado Boulevard could look for inspiration

Better bus boarding, reduced conflict between cyclists and buses. Photo via Paul Krueger’s flickr http://www.flickr.com/photos/pwkrueger/5133809157/

Protected bike lanes can accommodate many parking spaces for cyclists. Given that protected bike lanes are proven to increase the number of trips by bike this would likely be good for business along Colorado Boulevard’s storefronts. Photo via Paul Krueger’s flickr http://www.flickr.com/photos/pwkrueger/5134416434/

Protected bike lane in Long Beach. Photo via Waltarrrrr’s flickr http://www.flickr.com/photos/waltarrrrr/5650654370

Unlike other proposed solutions to fix Colorado Boulevard, configurations similar to what I share in this post consider all users– pedestrians, bicyclists, transit users, and motorists.

Pedestrians get more spacious sidewalks by moving bus stops to islands, shorter crossings through the refuges, greater buffer from automobiles through the separated bike lane

Bicyclists get safe travel space away from automobiles and pedestrians

Transit users get loading platforms that will make getting on and off the bus, easier and faster

Motorists get safer streets that make traveling at the speed limit easier to do, they won’t have to change lanes to pass bicyclists. Potentially shorter waiting times at lights as pedestrians will be able to cross faster thanks to the pedestrian refuges.

Everyone gets a safer configuration, everyone will benefit from increased opportunities to plant greenery by some of the pedestrian refuges. This solution allows flexibility in space. Since bus stops will move to islands sidewalk space formerly used to accommodate the bus stop can be now used to plant trees, install benches, or simply allow a wider space for pedestrians. Colorado Boulevard is currently flooded with cars, this solution will make cycling, walking, and taking the bus more attractive than they currently are and reduce the demand for car parking, one of the problems of the way Colorado Boulevard is configured today.

I’d like to compare this solution to the proposed ‘reverse angle in parking’ that the Eastsider shared the other day. The angled parking creates more parking spaces for cars and could potentially create curb extensions at intersections for pedestrians. This solution also claims it could reduce conflict between bicyclists and cars pulling in/out of parking spaces but if cars stop suddenly to start parking bicyclists will have to swerve around– a not so safe action to take.

While it is an attractive solution in some respects it is awfully car centric. This design will do little to encourage more people to cycle or make bicycling safer. It seems to do nothing to make bus travel easier either. It also, while it will create a buffer between pedestrians and moving automobiles, will rather confine the sidewalk space. I have experienced firsthand that cars tend to pull in to angled parking spaces so that part of the car hovers over the sidewalk, making pedestrian space feel cramped. It also seems that by creating more parking spaces this solution will only encourage driving and wouldn’t be very sustainable, nor make the street more vibrant, in complete contrast with the goals of Take Back The Boulevard. On the other hand, encouraging multiple modes of travel as a thoughtfully constructed cycle tracks can do, the street will be less car centric (and more sustainable) and filled with people rather than cars (and be more vibrant). Because we have limited space I support a solution that will accomplish as many of the goals of Take Back The Boulevard, and implementing separated bike lanes seems to be a promising solution.

Further readings about Colorado Boulevard:

Some Reasons I Support Separated Bike Lanes

A post where I share additional reasons why I support separated bike lanes: “ In making the case for a calmer, more bike friendly Eagle Rock sometimes those who oppose the idea contend car traffic will slow down too much. However, as local resident Jack Burnett-Stuart points out

‘ It is 1.6 miles from the post office to Swork [via Colorado Boulevard]. If the average speed was reduced through a variety of traffic slowing measures (including changing the speed limit, but does anyone pay any attention to that?) from say 40 mph to 20mph, that would add 2 minutes 24 seconds to the time the trip takes ‘ “

Some Facts and Thoughts About Colorado Boulevard

Specific facts detailing current traffic levels of Colorado Boulevard: “Colorado Boulevard is a major highway class II, projected to carry between 30,000 and 50,000 cars daily. Traffic counts available from the LADOT website from the past 15 years shows that Colorado Boulevard seldom carries above 35,000.”

Some Simple Facts

Some simple, yet unfortunate facts about the danger of a car centric Colorado Boulevard: “…there has been approximately one reported accident a week over the past five years. More than half of the accidents involve injuries.

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Flooding on the Streets of Eagle Rock

I have only been back in Eagle Rock for one day and already my visit starts with a splash! (Pun absolutely intended)

Unfortunately Eagle Rock, along with the rest of Los Angeles, isn’t very well equipped for rain. The streets, aside from being poorly maintained and excessively wide, are made even more dangerous and inconvenient when it rains– poor flood control.

Not the worst puddle in Eagle Rock, but still inconvenient

Not all streets need to be as flooded as they are though. By the intersection of Hepner Ave and Loleta Ave this is what the situation looked like when I stepped outside:

Water unable to enter the storm drain because leaves and other debris are covering access

Move the leaves, dirt and trash and water can flow into the storm drain again

And across the street at the other storm drain:

Too many leaves blocking the gated drain so water accumulates surrounding the drain, causing this situation

It only took me a minute to clear the drain so that water could flow, and reduce the flooding of the street.

And finally, here is a video

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Difference Between LA and Copenhagen Bridges

“Not enough space for bicycles on existing streets,” this is a common argument against providing bicycle infrastructure on Los Angeles streets, as it is in most cities with low cycling rates. This argument is subjective and ‘enough space’ simply depends on where the city’s priorities are. Here in LA, a typical street may look like this:

Image via Google Maps

Or from the street level, like this

Street view of Fletcher Drive bridge. Image via Google Maps

These pictures of Fletcher Drive, a typical Los Angeles street in appearance and width, show that cars easily dominate the majority of the available space and pedestrians are left narrow sidewalks.

Of course, it doesn’t have to be like this, to have a street dominated by cars while there are minimal provisions for pedestrians and zero provisions for bicyclists. If anything, walking and cycling should be prioritized because these modes of travel are more accessible to people of all ages, of all incomes, of all abilities.

So where am I going with this?

I recently watched a video demonstrating how Copenhagen has achieved its high cycling rate of over 30% of trips by bicycle. One thing in particular caught my attention during the video, this bridge:

Dronning Louises Bridge

The Dronning Louises bridge in Copenhagen looks very similar to the Fletcher Drive bridge in Los Angeles and appears to be similar width. According to estimates off Google Maps it is revealed that the streets (not including sidewalks) in fact are quite close in width, Fletcher is about 51ft wide with conservative estimate and Dronning Louises is about 54ft. However, the big difference is that cars, bikes, and pedestrians have all been fairly distributed space in Copenhagen and cars dominate on Fletcher Drive, as they do all over Los Angeles. (If you look closely at the picture above you may also notice that on Dronning Louises bridge the car space was reduced from two to one travel lane in each direction by extending the width of the bike lanes.)

And what happens when space is more evenly distributed? More people choose to cycle or walk.

Some may remember bicyclists did temporarily reclaim space on the Fletcher Drive bridge without compromising the number of vehicle lanes, but this was short lived and the guerrilla bike lanes were removed. We could easily make conditions for bicyclists and pedestrians more pleasant in Los Angeles, it’s just a matter of allocating space more equitably.

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A Look at Cycling in Malmo, Sweden

Recently my father took some pictures of bike infrastructure in Malmo, Sweden at my request. Malmo, along with neighboring city Lund, has some of the highest cycling rates in all of Sweden. Both of these cities are close to a cycling city a little more well-known, Copenhagen

Here’s some of what is offered for cyclists in Malmo, courtesy of my father:

Tree lined bike path by the central station

Biking shirtless with sandals, probably came back from the beach.

Even at intersections cyclists have some separation from cars

Very pretty bike parking area

Some of the bike parking by central station.

Bike parking at night...

Bike/Ped path

Cobblestone street reduces speed

Bike racks that keep bikes upright.

Tree lined bike path, separated from sidewalk and car lanes.

Walking path along the docks

While we see car access, parking-lots, stripmalls and the like as normal parts of city life – after all, we live in LA – this is not necessary. This kind of streetscape and bike mode-share can happen anywhere.

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A More Pedestrian and Bike Friendly Yosemite Drive: Part 1

I hope to add a part two, perhaps part three in this series of ‘How to improve Yosemite Drive’.

Just a Note: In my posts where I re-imagine streets explaining the current situation always sounds similar, LA has long favored private car transportation over any other kind of travel and to no surprise, the streets reflect this car love. What we are constantly faced with day in and day out are streets that more resemble race tracks and anyone daring to cross a street or just get close better be careful. I know it can take a lot to change habits and standards,  but these kind of posts are fun ways to imagine “what if”. This isn’t quite escapism, I just want to show how there are several ways we can reconfigure our otherwise “one size fits all” way of making streets. Having said that…. enjoy!

Dear Readers,
I have recently been interested in obsessed with re-imagining our streets as a better place to walk and bike, but can you blame me? One would think that will so much packed into The Rock we wouldn’t have such a massive reliance on cars but we do! The furthest distance anyone needs to travel in our town, from end to end, is about 3.5 miles (this is the approximate distance from Delevan Elementary to Eagle Rock Park). This is the absolute longest distance any single one-way trip can be in Eagle Rock taking a direct route. Why are the majority of trips still made by car?

The easy answer to why more people don’t walk or bike in Eagle Rock can be observed on any of the outings we make on a daily basis. Our portion of North Figueroa is just a sea of cars on a bumpy road. Colorado Boulevard and Eagle Rock Boulevard the story is much the same with perhaps less bumps and more ‘waves’ of cars. All these streets have more car lanes than necessary as much of the traffic is local and therefore could should be substituted with a bike ride or walk.

Eagle Rock also has a pretty impressive transit service as well to further encourage less private auto travel with a 81, 180, 181, 780, and a Dash line on all the streets that are heavily used. These busses accommodate the streets I mentioned, but also  one more street which I did not note: Yosemite Drive. This is of course where the 181 bus runs.

Yosemite Drive is frequently used by residents to bypass part of Colorado Boulevard by residents living on the lower eastside of Eagle Rock on the way to Glendale or Target. It is a shortcut connecting Eagle Rock Boulevard and North Figueroa  Street. Yosemite is utilized in junction with Townsend Avenue to get from Eagle Rock to Highland Park. The street is also used to go to the library and Super A Foods by the residents living between  Yosemite Drive and Colorado Boulevard (roughly). These are by no means criminal uses of the street, it is rather convenient to any ‘insiders’ who are aware of the street. These uses, however, when all combined with additional transportation uses of the street I did not mention like just leaving the area makes for constant use of the street throughout the day. This again is not a big problem or a crime on paper. However, the sheer amount of traffic coupled with expectations that the street will be a speedy connection makes for a less friendly street for uses not in private automobiles, and this is wherein the so-called ‘crime’ is. And this really is a shame because the street services many could be trips by walking or bicycling: two schools (ERHS and Rockdale Elementary so all ages of children are represented), two churches, two corner stores, Eagle’s Landing Cafe, the Rock Teen Center, and Yosemite Park. If these constituents don’t scream “I should be walked/biked to” I don’t know places do.

I regularly bike Yosemite Drive (contrary to what the street name may want me to do) and just the other day I was honked at by somebody who then swerved around me. This is the kind of interaction I expect on Colorado or Figueroa. Both of those streets I have been honked at by somebody seemingly incapable of switching lanes to go around me. Yosemite, however, is primarily a residential street and should be treated as such. I do not bike on the edges of Oak Grove Drive or Maywood Avenue, I take the lane because cars are not in a hurry and can pass peaceably. I feel the constant use of this street as an alternative to Colorado has raised speeds and given drivers a sense of entitlement which places their time at greater importance than the safety of any local residents not in cars. This should not be and this is where I would like to propose one potential change, among a few others, to Yosemite Drive.

While traffic calming devices can be complicated on streets like Yosemite that are about 40 feet wide and serviced by buses, there is a solution I see possible to apply here which is practiced in the Netherlands in a similar manner.

Make a section of Yosemite Drive “Not Through” to private cars but allow bikes, metro, and school buses to go through. I strategically picked the section of Yosemite between the two parts of La Roda to place traffic diverters and signage indicating only buses, bikes, and emergency vehicles allowed through. I have seen similar treatment like this in Berkeley where cars must turn while bikes and emergency vehicles may go through.

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Proposed changes in drawing: Diverters between two sections of La Roda Ave allowing only buses and bikes to go through. Yield pavement markings. Zebra Crossing. Removal of street signal. Signage indicating only buses and bikes may travel through on Yosemite Drive.

Stopping through traffic in Berkeley "Do Not Enter. Emergency Vehicles And Bicycles Excepted. Minimum Fine $75."

Installing diverters will no longer require the stop light which is used to control the current situation, something I’m sure the homes immediately adjacent to this section will appreciate. No more green glare in the home at night. Diverting private automobiles will also obviously reduce through traffic, a benefit to the residents and anyone wishing to bike or walk to the many walkable destinations along Yosemite Drive. Such a change could also likely reduce car speeds. The current speed limit is 35mph which I find unbelievable, the same speed limit as Colorado Boulevard. I have been in a car on Yosemite before, the person that drives me on occasion unconsciously almost reaches 40mph! Anyway, speeds will likely be reduced because cars will not be racing through Yosemite, they simply won’t have enough time to be speeding since they will be diverted part-way through the street and if they are on Yosemite they must have some kind of business there and will be driving more carefully.

This map shows all the ways someone can exit/enter Yosemite on each side of my proposed diverters. Also, if absolutely necessary, cars heading East can go left on Rosemary Drive, right of Fair Park Avenue, right on La Roda Avenue, and then left to get back onto Yosemite Drive and bypass the diverters. Reverse the directions heading West.

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Needless to say, I highly promote diverting traffic on this street as it is unnecessary for the Yosemite Drive to be through to anyone but those walking, biking and 181 or school buses. Colorado Boulevard is available for through traffic.

An other interesting piece of information: Before ERHS was rebuilt in the 70s Oak Grove Drive connected to La Roda Avenue instead of the front and back cul-de-sacs the school has now. I wonder how the two streets, particularly Oak Grove, would be utilized today if Oak Grove still ran the full length it did ‘back in the day’. Looking at the old photo, there appears to be no value to Oak Grove, likely part of the reason why it was cut off. That, plus the boy’s gym was built across the street, so safety became an issue, yadda yadda yadda.

The old ERHS campus, Oak Grove is seen rounding the back of the school and connecting to La Roda. Credit: LA Public Library

What are you thoughts, reader, on how Yosemite Drive could better accommodate walking and biking? Or should the street be changed at all?

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Walk: 7-28-10

Today I went for a walk around town, something I have not had the opportunity to do lately for a variety of reasons. Most prominently, I twisted my ankle crossing the street about a month ago and I am just getting to the point where I can go with absolutely no pain during or after my walks.

A lovely Wednesday it was today, the weather almost ventured into the “too hot” category but stayed nice throughout with no sporadic changes in temperature, making for a smooth and cool transition into the evening.

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3.78 miles according to Google

The initial intention of this walk was to snap pictures for an “Alleys Rock” segment but I ended up picking up a treat from Pete’s for frequent commenter, hippierunner, and I to share.

The starting point for this walk, Loleta Avenue/Oak Grove Drive. I walk down Oak Grove and appreciate the calmness of the street. I make this point often but by no means thoughtlessly, like a handful of other streets in ER, Oak Grove Drive could easily become a bicycle boulevard. It would be an especially convenient bike boulevard at that as students walking or biking to Eagle Rock High School could do so with ease and bypass the more hectic Yosemite Drive. As I toy with the thought I am lucky enough to actually cross a cyclist’s path.

A few minutes later I caught a skateboarder too, on the street, perhaps a testament to the calm, low traffic volumes Oak Grove has, further making the case for the street’s conversion to a bike boulevard.

Off in the distance, to the right

I turn North by Glacier Drive/Oak Grove Drive but instead of going onto  Glacier, I take the alley running parallel to it. (I will save the pictures of this alley when I take a more detailed look on it in a separate segment of “Alleys Rock!”)

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The alley is interrupted by Yosemite Drive and Neola Street. Beyond Neola the alley continues on until it meets a set of stairs which brings one up to Glacier Drive/Saginaw Street. As I transition from the stairs to Glacier I begin noticing charming little details.

The curb next to the stairs has been beautified and personalized with smooth stones inserted. From my limited experience I would say this is a unique sighting of anywhere. I have see custom mailboxes and street signs and street addresses, but an entire custom curb? Not until now!

Mosaic art in front of one residence

Looking East there are some nice, interesting, and undoubtedly unique views of Figueroa Street area.

More interesting details on homes

Found an empty soda can, and if I were in the mood I would bring it home to recycle it for cash, instead I opted to place it in the nearest blue bin.

When I reach Colorado all the peacefulness from where my walk started on Loleta Ave/Oak Grove Dr to the small portion Glacier Drive is lost. Cars zoom by and there is a significant drop in attractive aesthetics.

Crossing from South Colorado to the North side and continuing West lowers the pedestrian’s subjective/psychological safety as the island refuges are bare, and tiny in comparison to the space dedicated for cars traveling on Colorado as well as cars entering the 134 freeway. I personally did not really notice this before, but any area adjacent to a freeway entrance seems to have cars racing for the 65mph freeway speed limit before they are actually on the freeway. The cars not entering the freeway also decide to travel faster just because the surrounding cars are doing so. The on-ramp in this area is particularly long and there is no reason why cars shouldn’t slow down before they are on the on-ramp. Alongside other ‘radical’ pro bike and pedestrian tricks I wish to push upon the rest of Eagle Rock, I think it would be a good idea to have cars slow to speeds between 10 and 20 mph before getting on an on-ramp; this could be accomplished in the form of traffic calming devices such as curb extensions or round-a-bouts. It is awful enough that people have to live next to freeways, the on/off ramps should at least favor the pedestrians who frequent the area or live there. But I digress… Also not helping the pedestrian’s subjective safety are the chain-link fence and glass and other roadside debris that collect on the curbs or sidewalk.

Confusing location of sign

Can't imagine waiting for the bus here

Continuing, I pass the infamous housing project that never finished with an Occidental College sign on a street post. The immediate area does not give Eagle Rock  a proper impression to first-timers.

Things that caught my attention on Colorado:

I guess dogs are a problem in this complex

Around Hartwick there are some signs rarely seen elsewhere in Eagle Rock, if at all

No parking of vehicles over 6ft

This is why the signage is necessary

Is this phone booth still in use? or can it become a book booth?

The result of one pedestrian wanting to cross the street, a block of traffic

Funny poster for upcoming movie

A narrow Mount Helena Ave

After I took a picture of Mount Helena there was a voice “what’s the picture for?” To my left I see a tattooed man with a beard smoking a cigar. Forgive my prejudgement, but I did not expect much in the way of conversation with this man. I simply told him I was taking pictures for a blog I just started and the street was particularly narrow, something I hadn’t noticed before. He responded “A blog just about Eagle Rock?” I specified it was from a walking perspective to which he said jovially “You can say you met a guy smoking a cigar after a 20 mile bike ride”. How did he know I love bicycling!? His ride length impressed me. I told him it was cool he did that. I asked if it was okay to take a picture of him with his bike. He struck a cool pose. I asked if he was informed with the LA Bike Plan. He was not aware of but mentioned the Mayor’s recent bike spill. I forget how the conversation exactly went but he pointed to his house, told me he submitted some comics to the Boulevard Sentinel, that he tries to arrange group rides, that the corner we ere standing on is subject to many car accidents and that he bikes to work when the weather is nice (he better bike often then!). His name is Matt and shook my hand with his left hand so I did not get smoke smell on my hand.  In our brief conversation he also gave a friendly nod of respect to a bicyclist that went by. You just don’t get that kind of spontaneous interaction when trapped in your car.

 

Proud Matt shows off his bicycle

And so my walk continues…

Heather’s Store now sells jeans, not perfect for the summer but the price is right at 10$ a pair.

Sometimes I feel the streets are cluttered with signs which do little to compensate for poor road design, found this by Heather’s

I was not aware I was ever in a school zone, there was no change in street-scape and definitely no change in car speeds either.

The Beverage Shop at it’s worst… soon to come a branch of Delta Driving School

An opportunity to do something with this little patio area, too bad it isn’t being utilized.

Finally I arrive at Pete’s. As bicycles are always on my mind, I take a few pictures of where there is ample space to install bike racks.

Every time I go to Pete’s by bike I need to lock it to a street post. Taking the pictures I also spot two cyclists, both on the sidewalk despite Colorado Boulevard being an official Bike Route.

Maybe the city is doing something wrong in making the street attractive to cyclists?

Amusing find inside Pete’s

Receiving my order I walk on Mt. Royal Drive for about a second before spotting a super cool alley which I take for as long as I can, then it was up Townsend Avenue to Hill Drive and down on Hartwick Street where I met with hippierunner to start sharing the chocolate shake and fries I ordered. Back onto Colorado with nothing new and a left on Townsend heading towards Oak Grove. As we turned onto Oak Grove I was pleasantly surprised to see an old friend. Just had a brief word with him then hippierunner and I concluded our walk on Oak Grove Drive and Loleta Avenue.

Reason #3 to walk Eagle Rock: admire intricate details on the local streets, re-imagine the paths you frequent as you would like to see them, go from Oak Grove Drive to Colorado Blvd without taking Figueroa St, Genevieve Ave, or Wiota St. In fact do it with only being on an official street for a small fraction of the time! Notice signs you did not see before, meet new people and discuss common interests, discover new ways to get places, say ‘hi’ to an old friend, enjoy an other friend’s company  and reward yourself with some Pete’s!

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Part Two: Metered Parking vs Free Parking

Since writing ‘part one’ I have realized that there is only so much that can be said of the metered parking vs free parking without sounding terribly redundant or requiring a good bit of time to set aside to study certain curbsides or parking lots. Nevertheless here is my ‘part two’.
On today’s adventure I tried getting the numbers of all the parking meters that are not functioning. A meter is determined broken if the screen is completely blank, flashes ‘FAIL’, or says ‘dEAd’ (about five meters in Eagle Rock have this on the screen). I may have missed some meters, in fact I am almost certain I did though I scanned Colorado from Ellenwood to Eagle Vista (it was unnecessary to go that far though I didn’t want to miss a single meter). I went down Eagle Rock Boulevard from Blockbuster to Fair Park Ave, with the few pockets adjacent to ER Blvd. Here are the meters I noted as not functioning:

9  14  47  50  55  56  58  60  62A  65  67  68  69  72  80  85  86  93  98A  103  105  108  110  123  124  125  127  129  130  131  133 134  135  139  140  142  143  146  150  152 155  156  157  159  160  162

To have the meters fixed, call 1-877-215-3958. You will be forwarded to a live person, when they go on the line say you want to report over 30 broken meters in Eagle Rock or any of the ones I have listed. Before hanging up be sure to get the person’s name for reference in case we have to call again in a couple of weeks.

I forget how to engage in these kind of phone conversations so I probably didn’t play my call all that well. I did not get the woman’s name and she stopped me after I named about 15 meters and said she would put in a request for the area. She asked where I was parked and I told her I wasn’t parked anywhere but was simply reporting broken meters. She sounded a bit exasperated throughout the conversation, but I assume she just isn’t used to getting calls for broken meters since everyone enjoys the socially implied free parking a broken meter provides.

Sure free parking is great but we need to realize it comes at a high cost and that frankly cars should pay for parking because of the sheer amount of space they take up. Here’s the now famous poster illustrating the problem of car dominated cities and why we can’t sustain more cars on the road each year.

Credit: Press Office City of Munster, Germany

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Part One: Metered vs Free Parking in Eagle Rock

This is part one of a series of posts I will do on parking/ parking meters in Eagle Rock. I have not yet decided whether to stick to Colorado or venture onto Eagle Rock Blvd, and Figueroa Street.

The blank meter

Eagle Rock: 134 Freeway to the North. 2 Freeway to the West. Widest part of Colorado Boulevard is in our town, three lanes wide, which formerly served as part of Route 66. Eagle Rock Boulevard too alternates between two and three lanes. Figueroa, one of the longest streets in Los Angeles ends in Eagle Rock. Cars have several unofficial reasons to have a crush on Eagle Rock with so much freeway-like access through the town. This is not the residents’ decision however as the community actually fought extensively against the freeways cutting our neighborhood. Eagle Rock’s main streets are wide as a result of previously accommodating trolleys.  Also, contrary to other parts of LA, Eagle Rock has managed to preserve a significant amount of its historic architecture in the face of an era of strip malls and ‘plazas’ through efforts of groups such as TERA and ERVHS. 1992′s Colorado Specific Plan, part of which included restrictions on future auto-related businesses is a testament to the community’s desire to remain “small town” as its origins and limit ER from becoming a town run by cars– the “car town” which communities such as Cypress Park have been unfortunate enough to fall victim to. In a “car town” the community loses opportunities to connect the neighborhood through pedestrian havens and instead becomes dissected, servicing automobiles over people for stretches on end with auto shops and drive throughs. However, despite Eagle Rock’s holistic and direct efforts to resist the car through combating freeways and strip malls, cars still have a reason to love Eagle Rock– free parking! I think most residents are aware of the failed meters on Colorado, here is a detailed look.

People take free parking for granted and rightfully so as the city Los Angeles itself reluctantly adopted parking meters in 1949. Nowadays people more or less know what to expect: parking lots often have free parking while curbside parking in front of shops have limited hour parking and/or meters. Colorado Boulevard in Eagle Rock features a mix of lots and metered curbside though don’t worry about paying curbside.

Between Eagle Rock Boulevard and Glen Iris, heading East, 19 of 26 parking meters are failed. This results in meters flashing “FAIL” or blank screens and plastic bags over meters (some of which appear on functioning meters as well). This also means a lot more free parking. Don’t want to pay for curbside parking? Move up a space or two and you are bound to find a non-functioning meter. In fact, as the numbers easily show, you are more likely to encounter a failed meter than a working meter.

On the same stretch, between Glen Iris and ER Blvd, heading West the situation is better or worse depending on how one looks. There are less meters though this is because there are more free parking lots. Going west towards Eagle Rock Boulevard of 14 meters 5 are failed.

Of a grand total of 40 meters between ER Blvd and Glen Iris 24 are not functioning. This is more than the city average of 1 in 10 meters not functioning. In such times of financial distress it seems like one logical place to allocate money would be to fix broken parking meters, because when functioning, meters are a consistent source of income for the city.

Broken meter....

A common sight along Colorado

Out of order

This person really wants the meter functioning "pls fix!"

This is unusual, it says "dEAd" instead of "FAIL"

Somebody doesn't want the meters fixed, the call number has been scratched

For broken meters, call 1-877-215-3958

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