East Village's new protected bike lanes have some drivers totally befuddled

Des Moines drivers — and some cyclists — are struggling to figure out how new bike lanes in the East Village are supposed to work. But once the wrinkles are ironed out, biking advocates say they'll be a boon for riders and pedestrians.

The painted lanes were recently added along a half-mile stretch of East Grand Avenue. They run next to the curb on both sides of the street. Metered parking spaces that were previously there have been moved closer to the center of the roadway.

The idea is for parked cars to serve as a protective barrier between moving automobiles and cyclists.

Meanwhile, vehicle traffic has been reduced from three lanes to two lanes. City leaders hope that will slow traffic and make the shopping and entertainment district more pedestrian friendly.

It's a pilot program that, if successful, could spread to other parts of downtown.

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"It gives it a big city feel," Councilman Joe Gatto said. "In Chicago, it's like this everywhere."

But much like the addition of the metro's first roundabouts a few years ago, the new design has confused some drivers, with many people parking on the bike path instead of the strip of parking spaces.

Jeremy Lewis, executive director of the Des Moines Bicycle Collective, said there have been fewer problems since the city installed posts called "deliniators" between the bike lanes and the parking strips.

Cycling advocates have attached temporary signs to the posts to help drivers understand the new design. They include arrows pointing cars in one direction and bikes to the other.

But drivers are still learning to navigate the street.

Last week two of the deliniators at the corner of East Grand Avenue and East Sixth Street had already been knocked down. Brian Willham, the city’s principal traffic engineer, watched as a dump truck flattened a third barrier while making a right turn.

Like anything new, it will take some time for people to adjust, he said.

Drivers aren't the only ones adjusting. The bike lanes include a new wrinkle for cyclists. They are the first in the Des Moines metro to include "turn boxes" for riders making left turns at intersections.

Riders stop on the boxes (squares painted on the street) and wait for the traffic signal to change before crossing traffic lanes.

Mixed reviews

Raygun owner Mark Draper said he is “ecstatic” about the new design. He spent years trying to get a crosswalk at East Grand and East Fifth Street near his T-shirt shop.

“It was hard for pedestrians to get across," he said. "Traffic went too fast and used this as a pass-through street, not just as a neighborhood street.”

But not all business owners like the new setup.

David Lekowsky, owner of American Plumbing Supply, said moving parking spaces away from the curb has made it difficult for his business to handle deliveries.

Unlike some East Village buildings, American Plumbing does not have access to an alleyway.

For 80 years, trucks used a curbside loading zone along East Grand Avenue to drop off bathtubs, sinks or parts. Now that space is a bicycle lane.

“That’s my whole problem," Lekowsky said. "Cars aren’t able to be against the curb for customers to easily unload and load. And it looks so confusing with all of these white posts.”

Complete streets

The East Village project is part of the city's ongoing efforts to make its streets more accessible for pedestrians and cyclists.

Des Moines has installed dedicated bike lanes throughout downtown and revamped Ingersoll Avenue to slow vehicles and make the area — home to several restaurants, bars and retail stores — more pedestrian friendly.

But the East Grand project is the first time the city has added a barrier — in Des Moines' case, a row of parked cars — to separate cyclists and motorists.

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Protected bikes lanes have become prominent in cities like Minneapolis; Austin, Texas; Portland, Oregon; and Chicago, where barriers include parked cars, raised medians or even decorative planters.

"With these changes it’s clear the city has signaled that it’s a big priority for people to walk, bike and take public transit," Lewis said. "Study after study shows this improves access to jobs, lowers individual transportation costs and encourages healthier lifestyles."

Larry James Jr., a local attorney and co-founder of the Urban Land Institute of Iowa, applauded the city's latest effort.

“We have had several fairly serious accidents involving cars, pedestrians and bicyclists over the last five years that, hopefully, this type of design will avoid because cars will be travelling slower,” he said.

Between 2012 and 2016, there were 105 crashes on East Grand Avenue between Pennsylvania Avenue and Robert D. Ray Drive, where the bike lanes are located, city data shows.

The city is working on a plan, called Connect Downtown, to make downtown more accessible for walkers and cyclists by converting its one-way streets into two-way traffic. Travel lanes would be reduced, like on East Grand, to make way for additional protected bike lanes.

A draft of the plan is due in about a month, Willham said.

In the meantime, Des Moines is collecting feedback on the East Grand project on the city's website.

“We’re going to document good and bad and we’re going to use that to make things better,” Willham said.