new bike paths around town

[baalManche]

On 2/17/2020 at 10:15 AM, wilcal said:

 

 

Sign appears to be at Cavalcade @ AIrline.

 

 

Don't get too excited, I remember reading something about this before and along the red line it's sidewalk improvements only. 

 

I did find this PDF from the a public meeting held in June 2018

 

The TLDR is this from Airline to Irvington

 

 

I'd rather the buffer be 4' and sidewalk 7' instead.

[wilcal]

3 hours ago, X.R. said:

Looks like Hutchins is getting done really quick:

 

Not the biggest fan of Hutchin's development, but its 100% better than the old bike lanes like the ones in East downtown/Wesleyan.

 

And this shows that Cleburne is going to be done sooner than later: https://myemail.constantcontact.com/February-News-and-Updates.html?soid=1118751441959&aid=v8XUCwq_TFI

 

So from Hermann park you can take either Caroline or La Branch (both have generally slow traffic, easy to be on the road with cars), take a right on Cleburne, take Hutchins to Gray and then access East Downtown via the Columbia Tap. On mostly high-comfort bike lanes. Thats amazing considering where Houston was 10 years ago. 

 

Hutchins is paint only, so definitely a lot faster!

[wilcal]

59 minutes ago, baalManche said:

 

I'd rather the buffer be 4' and sidewalk 7' instead.

 

I believe those are pre-existing. Not allowed to make sidewalks 4'. I believe they have to be 6'

[X.R.]

3 hours ago, skwatra said:

From Hermann Park you can (for a long time now) go south and access Brays Bayou and get straight to Columbia Tap to get to East downtown. What I am hoping is doable is getting from Hermann Park to northeast Midtown (Bagby and Gray) direct quickly and safely. I've taken Caroline and Austin before, but haven't attempted Gray since they added the bike path. How far south does that extend?

 

Yeah you could take Bayou to Columbia tap but that always made me feel like I was going out of my way to go back up. Plus, at the very least, you have to access Brays either at the light on Almeda or cross somewhere else in the park to get into the bayou which then has me surrounded by usually fast traffic. I like this because to me it feels like less of a hassle, cars are a little slower. So basically, if I want the extra exercise its Bayou to Columbia, otherwise its the new way. 

 

Gray is super-duper nice. Goes from Bagby down to the Columbia Tapp, but the portion of nearest to the columbia tap for like three streets is a sharrow. Then it gets protected. With Bagby in downtown getting the facelift its getting, I'm wondering if bike volume on Bagby in Midtown will go up. That area, with all the apartments, need something other than the sidewalk (since people actually walk in that area) that is away from the cars to allow for bikes. 

[samagon]

17 hours ago, X.R. said:

 

Plus, at the very least, you have to access Brays either at the light on Almeda or cross somewhere else in the park to get into the bayou which then has me surrounded by usually fast traffic. 

 

there is a underpass that goes under MacGregor at the park near the bridge across the bayou (google says it's called the "Bill Coats Bridge".

 

https://www.google.com/maps/place/Brays+Bayou+Greenway+Trail,+Houston,+TX+77030/@29.7101631,-95.3873856,253m/data=!3m2!1e3!4b1!4m5!3m4!1s0x8640bf8eed72ae59:0x423941968fb7f326!8m2!3d29.7101619!4d-95.3868384

 

makes things a lot safer/easier.

[X.R.]

5 hours ago, samagon said:

 

there is a underpass that goes under MacGregor at the park near the bridge across the bayou (google says it's called the "Bill Coats Bridge".

 

https://www.google.com/maps/place/Brays+Bayou+Greenway+Trail,+Houston,+TX+77030/@29.7101631,-95.3873856,253m/data=!3m2!1e3!4b1!4m5!3m4!1s0x8640bf8eed72ae59:0x423941968fb7f326!8m2!3d29.7101619!4d-95.3868384

 

makes things a lot safer/easier.

 

Oooo will check it out. I sort of stay away from the gravel areas of the park, aka the main trail, because I feel like such a dick sometimes on my bike because of how many people are walking. Anyone else feel like that? I know that might be strange. The bayous are home for my bike, but man when Hermann park is busy I just dunno about getting on the gravel trail.

[samagon]

I get on the gravel trails all the time.

 

they're wide enough to accommodate cyclists and walkers/joggers.

 

I just keep the speed way down.

[j_cuevas713]

Yeah so my section of Cavalcade where the sidewalk improvements are being mode mostly consist of a few new bus shelters and new ramps on to the sidewalks. While it is nice, there are quite a few problem areas where the sidewalk just plain sucks. I’m ready to see the bike lane painted. 

[cspwal]

On Polk where they're improving the bike lane, they're starting with new floating bus stops and new sidewalk ramps, but they're also going to be redoing the pavement and putting something in to make the bike lane protected, at least according to the project drawings.  Maybe Cavalcade they haven't gotten there yet?

[samagon]

2 hours ago, cspwal said:

On Polk where they're improving the bike lane, they're starting with new floating bus stops and new sidewalk ramps, but they're also going to be redoing the pavement and putting something in to make the bike lane protected, at least according to the project drawings.  Maybe Cavalcade they haven't gotten there yet?

 

I saw some of the improvements, and they look great, I admit I was a bit worried about the implementation on Polk, but I like what I've seen so far.

[j_cuevas713]

Does anyone know who is responsible for maintaining these new bike lanes? Like if we notice a repair or clean up needed on one of the lanes. 

[JLWM8609]

12 minutes ago, j_cuevas713 said:

Does anyone know who is responsible for maintaining these new bike lanes? Like if we notice a repair or clean up needed on one of the lanes. 

 

Probably 311 since the lanes are on city streets

[j_cuevas713]

1 minute ago, JLWM8609 said:

 

Probably 311 since the lanes are on city streets

Yeah prob right. I've just noticed some small areas that could be patched up or cleaned up recently. I'd hate to have all these new bike lanes neglected over the years. 

Edited May 14, 2020 by j_cuevas713

[j_cuevas713]

On 2/17/2020 at 10:15 AM, wilcal said:

 

 

Sign appears to be at Cavalcade @ AIrline.

 

 

Don't get too excited, I remember reading something about this before and along the red line it's sidewalk improvements only. 

 

I did find this PDF from the a public meeting held in June 2018

 

The TLDR is this from Airline to Irvington

 

So this is looking great btw. They started making extended platforms for buses and where the bike lane will go. It’s exceeding my expectations tbh The ONLY issue I have is I wish they extended further down Cavalcade to Studewood and it involved repaving broken areas of the sidewalk as well. Only the ramps are being redone. 

Edited May 20, 2020 by j_cuevas713

[j_cuevas713]

So this is what’s being done from Airline to Irvington. I’m assuming the 2nd pic is part of the bike lane but not sure the bozo in the white truck knows that. 

Edited May 26, 2020 by j_cuevas713

[samagon]

until it's well marked, no one knows how to use any of that. hahaha

 

it's all new to everyone.

 

I was downtown yesterday and they have definitely finished painting Austin next to Phoenicia. cars parked in the bike lane, even with it having been painted. I suspect there will be more to come there, and I'll be interested to see how they mitigate/implement.

 

I'm guessing there's a lot more to come. I have seen cores taken out of the street, I assume they are going to be putting in bollards to split the lane and keep cars from entering the lane (similar to these bollards: https://www.google.com/maps/@29.7457794,-95.3464514,3a,15y,14.84h,80.3t/data=!3m7!1e1!3m5!1saGa1Rhbzb3LgmbGBP1goNQ!2e0!6s%2F%2Fgeo2.ggpht.com%2Fcbk%3Fpanoid%3DaGa1Rhbzb3LgmbGBP1goNQ%26output%3Dthumbnail%26cb_client%3Dmaps_sv.tactile.gps%26thumb%3D2%26w%3D203%26h%3D100%26yaw%3D311.1512%26pitch%3D0%26thumbfov%3D100!7i16384!8i8192). 

 

I also noticed that on Lamar they added a concrete bumper in front of the 4 seasons directly on the corner with Austin.

[j_cuevas713]

44 minutes ago, samagon said:

until it's well marked, no one knows how to use any of that. hahaha

 

it's all new to everyone.

 

I was downtown yesterday and they have definitely finished painting Austin next to Phoenicia. cars parked in the bike lane, even with it having been painted. I suspect there will be more to come there, and I'll be interested to see how they mitigate/implement.

 

I'm guessing there's a lot more to come. I have seen cores taken out of the street, I assume they are going to be putting in bollards to split the lane and keep cars from entering the lane (similar to these bollards: https://www.google.com/maps/@29.7457794,-95.3464514,3a,15y,14.84h,80.3t/data=!3m7!1e1!3m5!1saGa1Rhbzb3LgmbGBP1goNQ!2e0!6s%2F%2Fgeo2.ggpht.com%2Fcbk%3Fpanoid%3DaGa1Rhbzb3LgmbGBP1goNQ%26output%3Dthumbnail%26cb_client%3Dmaps_sv.tactile.gps%26thumb%3D2%26w%3D203%26h%3D100%26yaw%3D311.1512%26pitch%3D0%26thumbfov%3D100!7i16384!8i8192). 

 

I also noticed that on Lamar they added a concrete bumper in front of the 4 seasons directly on the corner with Austin.

I'm a little confused as to how people in wheel chairs will access the pedestrian islands for the bus stops. And does this narrow traffic down to one lane, because it bottlenecks in these area to one lane?

[samagon]

hard to tell, but it looks to me like the bike path elevates to meet the elevation of the sidewalk. 

 

so a pedestrian, or person with a wheelchair, will have to cross the bike path to get to the bus platform, island, thingy.

 

it's a very dutch design. the first few times you cross a bike path in the Netherlands you are a bit worried, and maybe even forget to look, but you get used to it.

[TacoDog]

15 hours ago, j_cuevas713 said:

I'm a little confused as to how people in wheel chairs will access the pedestrian islands for the bus stops. And does this narrow traffic down to one lane, because it bottlenecks in these area to one lane?

 

Will something be place in the grooved part to bridge the gap? It looks like both sides have the groove.

[j_cuevas713]

15 hours ago, TacoDog said:

 

Will something be place in the grooved part to bridge the gap? It looks like both sides have the groove.

See that’s what I don’t understand. I’m so confused about the design. 

[Texasota]

That looks like it's there for drainage. I would expect a metal grate that fits into the little grooves in the corners to create a continuous surface. 

[Triton]

3 hours ago, Texasota said:

That looks like it's there for drainage. I would expect a metal grate that fits into the little grooves in the corners to create a continuous surface. 

Bingo. That's exactly what the grooves in the concrete are there for.

[skooljunkie]

I give it 6 months tops by the time those drainage channels will be clogged with silt and another 16 years before anyone in this cash-strapped town does anything about it. 

[j_cuevas713]

2 hours ago, skooljunkie said:

I give it 6 months tops by the time those drainage channels will be clogged with silt and another 16 years before anyone in this cash-strapped town does anything about it. 

Hell I already saw problem areas with this bit of rain that just came through

[samagon]

I would hope that whatever grates that are being put in place will be in some way immovable. 

 

I'm guessing these will be the kinds of grates that we see:

[Luminare]

7 hours ago, Texasota said:

That looks like it's there for drainage. I would expect a metal grate that fits into the little grooves in the corners to create a continuous surface. 

 

Yes you are correct.

 

4 hours ago, skooljunkie said:

I give it 6 months tops by the time those drainage channels will be clogged with silt and another 16 years before anyone in this cash-strapped town does anything about it. 

 

Of course it looks clogged right now. Its still all under construction. Thats like going to a residential build site and complaining that there is no grass yet.

 

On 5/27/2020 at 9:19 AM, samagon said:

hard to tell, but it looks to me like the bike path elevates to meet the elevation of the sidewalk. 

 

so a pedestrian, or person with a wheelchair, will have to cross the bike path to get to the bus platform, island, thingy.

 

it's a very dutch design. the first few times you cross a bike path in the Netherlands you are a bit worried, and maybe even forget to look, but you get used to it.

 

Your also correct. Its used in a lot of places. Saw it a lot whenever I went to the UK, particularly in London.

 

There are things they can do in the next iterations of this design that would really improve things.

 

First, they need to start using pavers instead of all concrete. Different colored pavers would really help to differentiate what is what, and what is separate from what. The reconstruction of Bagby Street downtown has a pretty great design that illustrates this idea.

 

Second, the grate bridging the gap is ok, but it would be better if it wasn't just a channel, but instead it was a storm drain in of itself. Would solve the potential silt issues that @skooljunkie which I'm not debating won't happen later on no doubt. He is correct on that. Just think he is jumping the gun a bit to quick. I'm also hoping these grates won't just be placed on top of the groove in the concrete, but will be bolted into it, so it stays in place. Right now I don't see holes in the grooves for this, so I doubt it.

 

Not the best design, but for a 1st iteration in this town its a great first step. Again they really need to account for aesthetics and drainage system planning into these designs in the next iteration. Gotta at least pat them on the back for at least trying something different for a change. Been impressed with METRO with at least move forward even if it has been awkward, and a bit haphazard.

Edited May 28, 2020 by Luminare

[Triton]

Caroline Street looks really good

 

Caroline Street Bike Lanes by Marc longoria, on Flickr

 

Caroline Street Bike Lanes by Marc longoria, on Flickr

 

Caroline Street Bike Lanes by Marc longoria, on Flickr

 

Caroline Street Bike Lanes by Marc longoria, on Flickr

[j_cuevas713]

5 minutes ago, Triton said:

Caroline Street looks really good

 

Caroline Street Bike Lanes by Marc longoria, on Flickr

 

Caroline Street Bike Lanes by Marc longoria, on Flickr

 

Caroline Street Bike Lanes by Marc longoria, on Flickr

 

Caroline Street Bike Lanes by Marc longoria, on Flickr

The city needs to put parking signs up to show people where to park. I almost got hit dead on twice last night from people driving on the bike lanes. BUT this is beautiful urban-ism. Continuing to improve and build upon on our city. Think about how much better of a presence The Park Shops will have when they renovate.

Edited May 30, 2020 by j_cuevas713

[Triton]

46 minutes ago, j_cuevas713 said:

The city needs to put parking signs up to show people where to park. I almost got hit dead on twice last night from people driving on the bike lanes. BUT this is beautiful urban-ism. Continuing to improve and build upon on our city. Think about how much better of a presence The Park Shops will have when they renovate.

Yup, got nearly hit twice myself today right at Hardy St. going over I-10. First was a random person and then an Amazon delivery driver. I even yelled at them to get out and they barely clipped me in the bike lane.

[j_cuevas713]

19 minutes ago, Triton said:

Yup, got nearly hit twice myself today right at Hardy St. going over I-10. First was a random person and then an Amazon delivery driver. I even yelled at them to get out and they barely clipped me in the bike lane.

That lane over I-10 is getting destroyed by cars because of stupid drivers. 

Edited May 30, 2020 by j_cuevas713