tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5862444008740250372.post6296377378734722882..comments2024-02-01T04:37:41.878-05:00Comments on Cap'n Transit Rides Again: Sidewalk encroachments and encumbrancesCap'n Transithttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17057887736728828646noreply@blogger.comBlogger7125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5862444008740250372.post-48306419261618697052012-08-14T22:09:52.800-04:002012-08-14T22:09:52.800-04:00I'd like to add that there are a lot of sidewa...I'd like to add that there are a lot of sidewalk "encumbrances" which I'm fond of: on commercial streets, for example, stores rolling out display cases with vegetables or books or other wares to entice the passers-by, cafe tables with people sitting and watching, etc. These are what makes walking along the commercial strip pleasant and engaging. Of course there should be limits, but to ban them in the name of pedestrian access would be deeply misguided.alaihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05334835705248693244noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5862444008740250372.post-59901994823502388082012-08-14T06:07:06.986-04:002012-08-14T06:07:06.986-04:00It's not a pedestrian paradise in the UK, but ...It's not a pedestrian paradise in the UK, but I always remember my first trip to the states when I was 12. <br /><br />We were staying on International drive in Orlando, and it all seemed so strange. How could a six lane boulevard have such narrow sidewalks. They were barely 5 feet across in a sea of grass, and this was in an area full of hotels and shops. <br /><br />As a 12 year old I felt I had to run like a gazelle to cross the road before the lights changed. I was living in small village at the time that had better pedestrian facilities than this big tourist centre. <br /><br />Of course it all seemed so exciting at the time, but I kept getting little moments of culture shock, wondering where all the pedestrians were. It looked like we were in a big city, but no one seemed to be there. <br /><br />What I remember where some lovely landscaped ares where people 'walked' usually a theme park or tourist shopping zone etc, and then a little no infrastructure beyond except for cars. Unknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08255709757074026969noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5862444008740250372.post-14108595624663761252012-08-13T17:58:21.705-04:002012-08-13T17:58:21.705-04:00Why not? "They" had a chance to consider...Why not? "They" had a chance to consider the problem when planning the hapless "bike lane" and "they" did nothing. <br /><br />I'm thinking we didn't get any progress on this problem under Sadik-Kahn, and we have about a 99% probability that the next Transportation Commish and the next Mayor will not be half as good on these issues as the ones we have now.Woodyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03720203216182791704noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5862444008740250372.post-66069914159601830472012-08-13T17:54:59.634-04:002012-08-13T17:54:59.634-04:00Similarly a lane of traffic should be reallocated ...Similarly a lane of traffic should be reallocated to sidewalk on 41st St between 7th and 8th Aves. Currently the rush of commuters on 42nd St heading toward the bus terminal pushes people into the street.Woodyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03720203216182791704noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5862444008740250372.post-4349572322392787112012-08-13T17:54:02.152-04:002012-08-13T17:54:02.152-04:00Why not, Woody?Why not, Woody?Cap'n Transithttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17057887736728828646noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5862444008740250372.post-16700481926822799992012-08-13T17:51:43.255-04:002012-08-13T17:51:43.255-04:00Near the Port Authority bus terminal, in the rush ...Near the Port Authority bus terminal, in the rush hour, gonna-be bus passengers spill into 8th Avenue by the thousands per hour. <br /><br />Well, they used to spill into the avenue, but now, since a "bike lane" has been created, they simply fill the bike lane, making it useless in the late afternoon. <br /><br />Facing reality would require taking a lane of traffic from 8th Avenue. It should be added to the sidewalk on the west side of the avenue between, say, 34th and 50th Streets, or at a minimum between 30th St and 44th St. <br /><br />This change would allow the crowds of pedestrians rushing to their bus connections to do so safely.<br /><br />Not gonna happen, is it?<br />Woodyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03720203216182791704noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5862444008740250372.post-37691716432858479522012-08-13T12:01:59.841-04:002012-08-13T12:01:59.841-04:00I've been thinking about this for the past cou...I've been thinking about this for the past couple weeks, since I saw an extreme example of a street tree which was blocking off almost all of the sidewalk. Not sure how someone in a wheelchair or with a baby stroller would get by that. I was thinking: why can't this tree be taking up room in the street, instead of blocking the entire sidewalk? It wouldn't even take up an entire parking space, and would just make for a nice little gap between spaces.<br /><br />But every little bit of street parking is so sacred that they would rather force wheelchair users into the traffic lane to get by, I suppose. I have no idea how that thinking survives to this day.<br />Matthewhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02027332620204904993noreply@blogger.com