Dangerous Intersections for Bikes and Pedestrians in Traverse City

[lostgears]

This is a doozey! I'm sure there are a bunch of pet peeves out there. I'm going to seed this thread with one.

Division - Any darn place you want to pick. It's a disaster for anything but fast-moving motorvehicles. No sidewalk, no shoulder, moves too fast, only two traffic lights between 14th and Grandview and those are designed for cars and trucks not us. What do you think? Any others? Photos? Videos?

[M'Lynn]

Because it is part of the Federal highway system we have to deal with MDOT, or take some initiative on our own. I remember the pedestrian "critical mass" a couple of years ago. The group slowly walked across Division/West Grand View Parkway, let a few cars through, and repeated. Car/truck traffic might have been backed up for several counties for all I know. Anybody up for a little Cherry Festival week consciousness raising?

[Alex Campbell]

Division isn't even safe for cars. There's been two accidents there in just the past week. A few days ago, we passed a car stalled on Division near 11th and the cars just lined up behind and honked, no one stopped to help. People these days, I tell ya.

South Airport is my pet peeve--going to the Goodwill, Salvation Army, or Army Navy stores means taking your life in your hands!

[Gary]

My dream. I don't want to solve Division's problems. I want to go over it.

My suggestion, and I've priced it at 2 million, is this. First, close the East side of 11th st. running into Division. Take a 1/3rd of that block (closest to Division), and create a green patch, effectively turning 11th into a turnaround. Second, build a gradual overpass over Division. The key is to design it well, and for this town, make it beautiful. On the east side it would need to be a spiral, to control the pitch, and on the west side of Division it could be a long gradually rising ramp. The alternative location would be at 10th st. where the westside landing might have more room.
Then, as people come into town there is a nice gateway and they don't have to worry about hitting one of the humans playing frogger.

[M'Lynn]

I agree with Gary that something needs to be done. I am also curious if the idea of a tunnel (such as the parking lot to Clinch Park) has ever been considered, or priced out?

[Gary]

Tunnels are scary at night, even when lit, and typically require some existing topography to make them affordable and usable.

I like the overpass only if it is designed super cool. A crappy, ugly and poorly designed overpass will go unused and unloved.

[lostgears]

I agree with Gary here. The tunnel option is difficult. They are unappealing. The one under Grandview right now wouldn't make current code I suspect. If I don't duck purposefully while in there my helmet gets pounded by the sharp-square overhead light fixtures.

Overhead pedestrian bridges pose other challenges. Aesthetic design is the major one:

BAD (Unnammed unfortunate community)

GOOD (Minneapolis Greenway Bridge over Hiawatha)

SAME different angle (Minneapolis Greenway Bridge over Hiawatha)

[Aaron]

Wow, that bridge in MN is beautiful! (for a bridge, I guess)

[Krios Consulting]

Aaron: I was just there riding the new Greenway. This bridge connects what is the west side of Mpls, with the east side. It is bi-sected by Hiawatha Avenue running north-south and which now hosts the light rail system. So the bridge was welcome and necessary. At night it is lit up with blue lights that lend it a quite mysterious glow from a distance. Point being....it can be done tastefully.

[Gary]

An overpasses to envy:
http://pricetags.files.wordpress.com/2007/08/griffiths-white.jpg

And, in the search, I found cool bike racks for parking meters:
http://washcycle.typepad.com/home/images/2007/07/22/converted_meter...

[Gary]

Here was the page I was looking for:
http://omahamidcenturymodern.blogsome.com/2006/10/01/memorial-park-...

What something might look like from the road at 11th and division:
http://www.sycamoreisland.org/graphics/overpass.jpg

[GeoBabs]

I think the most dangerous intersection by far is where the TART crosses Woodmere Avenue. Often, I see families with young children, and seniors crossing five lanes in heavy traffic without benefit of an on-demand pedestrian crossing signal. What gives with there being three of these controls where Woodmere ends at 8th, but none just up the street?

[Christine Sleeman]

The intersection of Front and Maple Street is annoying. There is a crosswalk there (without a flasher), but 90-95% of drivers do not stop and equally as many do not slow down, in fact it seems they speed up to get to the light at Front and Division. Then there are all the people turning at that intersection and the back ups!! It is scary!