HAVE YOU EXPERIENCED CONFLICT?
In our March issue of The Pedal Post (eNewsletter), Bike Fort Collins posed the question: “Have you experienced conflict, or right-of-way confusion at the intersection of Lemay Ave and Riverside Ave while riding your bike?”
Thank you to those who responded. Below is a recap of the results.
WHAT HAPPENED?
In addition, for those who reported conflict, we asked them to describe their experience. Here is a sampling of the responses we received:
- “Crossing at the cross walk vehicles have come close to me while I am in the crosswalk, and have almost been hit at the right turn lane at the south east corner.”
- “Heading S on Lemay, cars making a right turn from Riverside often pull out in front of me. Because of angle at which roads cross, bike lane is hard for drivers to see“
- “I have pedaled through a few times, it is a super car centric intersection with token bike lanes“
- “I have personally had experiences where cars did not see me when attempting to cross from multiple corners in this intersection. Visibility is low and distances are long so it feels overwhelming while on a bike, including due to the speeds of the vehicles. I witnessed another cyclist almost get hit when attempting to cross riverside going north on the west side of lemay due to the utility box blocking visibility of the cyclist (the car was turning right on red to go south on lemay).”
- “ I go through here regularly. I go from the Safeway parking lot to the west sidewalk on LeMay (or vice-versa). I haven’t felt in danger, but it’s confusing and not ideal. I usually get in the left turn lane on Riverside then use the crosswalk to get to the LeMay sidewalk when clear. If it’s too busy I’ll ride down the Riverside sidewalk to the crosswalk (not ideal, this sidewalk is narrow and I don’t think it’s appropriate for bikes, unlike LeMay which is kind of part of the Poudre trail). Going west on Riverside though, the left turn into Safeway is not ideal so I use the crosswalk.”
- ” I don’t ride here because Lemay is scary”
HOW CAN IT BE IMPROVED?
Finally, we asked respondents how they thought the intersection/facility could be improved. Here is a sampling of the responses we received:
- “There needs to be a dedicated bike lane on Riverside”
- “ Either an over or under pass of train track whichever is more cost effective.”
- “ North bound the bike lane ends at the light at the right turn lane. Followed by a large grate covering water drainage. Also, the bike line in that stretch is sketchy as the lane is divided by asphalt ending and the concrete of the curb. Also, there is a decent pot hole and buckling asphalt at the light. 1. Repair the road. 2. Actually stripe the bike lane. 3. Improve the triangular curb barrier of the turn lane. 4. Round the corner on the NE corner as cars cut the bike lane when driving north. 5. I could go on with several more improvements.”
- “ It’s hard to imagine widening the lanes but maybe widen the sidewalks to allow bike traffic.”
- “1) Put a stripe down the sidewalk on the west side of LeMay to make it a trail extension and call it out as part of the bike trail. 2) put a green/zebra strip on the crosswalk, and 3) create an easy-to-follow way to get from this intersection to the park north of Laurel Elementary. Or better yet..4) make a protected (not necessarily with a barrier) lane along LeMay. Even as an experienced cyclist I am not comfortable at all biking down LeMay, especially between Riverside and Prospect”
- “ a) set back eastbound traffic on Riverside so that cars in right turn lane have a better view. b) clean up the bike lane and sidewalk on southbound Lemay. Neither is very good.“
Again, thank you to all who responded—and for sharing their experiences. Stay tuned for additional surveys inquiring about other intersections and bicycle facilities.