Next Thursday, May 14th at 5 PM I’ll be giving a presentation at the Model D Speaker Series.
The topic is greenways and trails in Detroit and Hamtramck. I’ll bring everyone up to speed on what’s been going on through my work with the Michigan Trails and Greenways Alliance.
I’ll also be introducing our brand new Detroit Greenways Network brochure, a hint of which is shown at the right.
The location is the Green Garage in Midtown at 4444 Second Avenue, conveniently located just around the corner from Motor City Brewing Works.
Bil Lusa will also speak about this September’s epic Tour-de-Troit bike ride.
In a previous post about the benefits in adopting a rolling stop law in Michigan, we said rolling stops are already a “common existing practice”. We added that having a rolling stop law would make bicyclists more law abiding by making the law more appropriate for biking.
We called it a common practice based on what we see.
However, the city of Portland recently did a field study which found 93% of cyclists already do rolling stops. It’s reasonable to expect a similar compliance rate among Michigan cyclists. Therefore, as we noted earlier, a rolling stop law would only legalize what most cyclists do already.
The Portland field study also found that 78% of motor vehicles rolled their stops. Should they adopt the same law? No.
The difference is motor vehicles rolling stops and running stops is a major source of road injuries and fatalities in the U.S. Pedestrians and cyclists are especially vulnerable.
Bicyclists do not pose this same threat to other users.
In addition, a fit cyclist can generate one-third of a horsepower. Stopping and starting places a much higher burden on cyclists than it does on motor vehicles.
Bicyclists in Idaho have enjoyed a law that other states are now trying to adopt.
In Idaho, bicyclists can legally treat stop signs as yields under many conditions when it won’t adversely affect others, including pedestrians.
The benefit for bicyclists is threefold:
It conserves momentum, making bicycling easier
It conserves time, making bicycling quicker and more convenient
It adopts the common existing practice, making bicyclists more law abiding
Bicycle advocates in Oregon recently tried to get the same law in their state. Spencer Boomhower made a great animation that explains the proposed law.
It would be an extremely valuable law change for those living in older communities that improperly use stop signs as neighborhood traffic calming. It would be equally valuable in Detroit where traffic levels have dropped dramatically since the 1950s yet the old traffic control devices remain in place.
Unfortunately there are obstacles.
Sign photo from BikeJax
In speaking with the League of Michgian Bicyclist staff, they don’t see this as a priority.
And, since this Idaho law is not in the Uniform Vehicle Code (upon which most states based their road laws), it would take considerable effort to get this passed in Lansing much less supported by the Michigan State Police.
One alternative idea is to post some signs along popular or designated bike routes with modified stop signs. This modification could indicate bicyclists would only need to yield whereas others must stop. It’s unclear how easy this alternative signage would be to implement. Regulatory signage has to be in the Michigan Manual on Traffic Control Devices before it can be installed on a road. The bike yield sign shown on the right is not in our Manual.
Piloting this short term signage solution may provide enough data to justify changing the law.
So there are no easy answers, but they’re rarely are. We need to continue to push for changes that making bicycling an easier, safer, and more convenient mode choice in Michigan.
At tonight’s Royal Oak City Commission meeting, city staff will recommend funding for a non-motorized transportation plan in the upcoming budget.
This is great news.
While everyone’s welcomed to provide public comment at tonight’s meeting, at this point it’s really not necessary — especially given the lengthy meeting agenda, the wintry weather, and some basketball game.
We will be sure to attend and provide an updates from the meeting.
Look at this map from West Bloomfield on the right.
The neighborhood streets are not in a traditional American grid pattern. Instead they are a maze of disconnected cul-de-sacs and roads to nowhere.
This design is embraced by communities where people drive everywhere and rarely walk or bike.
This design forces cyclists as well as motor vehicles to use the more busy arterials (such as Orchard Lake Road in this West Bloomfield example.) That often means less welcoming roads for many cyclists and plenty of traffic congestion.
Some cities (Charlotte, N.C., Portland, Ore., and Austin, Texas) and even states like Virginia are pulling the plug on cul-de-sacs.
The state has decided that all new subdivisions must have through streets linking them with neighboring subdivisions, schools and shopping areas. State officials say the new regulations will improve safety and accessibility and save money: No more single entrances and exits onto clogged secondary roads. Quicker responses by emergency vehicles. Lower road maintenance costs for governments.
But aren’t cul-de-sacs safer? Not really, according to William Lucy, co-author of the book Tomorrow’s Cities, Tomorrow’s Suburbs. Cul-de-sac communities have some of the highest rates of traffic accidents involving young children.
And these street patterns certainly aren’t safer for cyclists.
That’s one major reason why cycling in older cities like Detroit or Berkley is much more bike-friendly and convenient than places like West Bloomfield.
Next Thursday, May 14th at 5 PM I’ll be giving a presentation at the Model D Speaker Series.
