Over GOP Murmurs, Cycletrack Approved

by Markeshia Ricks | Jun 22, 2017 4:36 pm

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Posted to: Transportation, Dwight, Edgewood, Westville

After nearly three years spent convincing Westville, Edgewood and Dwight neighbors of the benefits of a two-way cycle track stretching from Forest Road to Park Street, city planners found one group left to convince: Republicans. The city engineer and the deputy transportation director made that discovery Wednesday night when they brought long-awaited site, coastal, and inland wetland plans for what has been dubbed the “Downtown-West Community Connectivity Corridor” before the City Plan Commission for approval The received that approval in a unanimous vote, after one last round of convincing. The plan calls for creating a two-mile long, two-way cycle track from Forest Road to Park Street. It also includes improvements to pedestrian crossings and intersections, new signals specifically for bike traffic, and fixing a problem intersection at Winthrop and Edgewood Avenues. The state is providing $1.2 million to build the corridor, which City Engineer Giovanni Zinn will become the longest protected two-way cycle track in the state. The current record holder for the state is the two-way cycle track that runs along Long Wharf Drive. Zinn said pending state approvals for the planned changes in signalization, work is projected to start this fall and end some time in spring 2018. The presentation met with initial skepticism from Commissioner Jonathan Wharton, who happens to be New Haven’s Republican Town Committee chairman. He also is an avid cyclist who personally supports the city’s plans. “Giovanni, I have to tell you man—and this is killing me,” Wharton started ominously. “You know I have spoken to Doug [Hausladen, the city’s traffic and parking chief] an awful lot about this project. But I have to tell you right now on the record that the Republican Town Committee is against so much of this stuff.” Wharton said the prevailing concern, which he said has come up during several of thoat committee’s meetings, is that the project will be an eyesore with its green striping and delineator tubes. He predicted it will drive down their property values.



“I’ve tried to calm them down, especially as a cyclist,” he said. “God knows, it is tough to deal with some curmudgeon Republicans especially when it comes to bicycles, and God knows I’m probably seen as one of the biggest sell outs for pushing this project in the first place because they’re not for it.” He asked what the city might do to further convince people that not only is the project a good idea but that it’s good for them in the long run. Zinn said people should know that the national research shows that property values go up when infrastructure in general, and bike infrastructure, in particular, is improved. “We’ve certainly seen that with the belt line development along the Farmington Canal in New Haven and the other towns as well,” he said. “It’s something that drives development and property values nationwide.” He also pointed out that though a lot of attention has been paid to the bike lanes, the improvements that are coming aren’t just about bikes. He pointed to improvements to pedestrian crossings such as new signals and striping at Ella T. Grasso Boulevard; traffic calming as the travel lanes for cars are reduced from two lanes of car traffic to a lane for bikes and a lane for cars; and the placement of an actual traffic signal at the intersection of Winthrop and Edgewood Avenue to straighten out a tricky configuration that makes it safer for bikes, pedestrians and drivers. Deputy Transportation Director Mike Pinto said public outreach about the project has been ongoing since 2013, when he was tapped by Westville Alder Adam Marchand, who also serves as a City Plan commissioner, about ideas for traffic calming. “Outreach on this has been extensive,” Pinto said. “Excruciating,” Marchand chimed in with a chuckle Wednesday night. Pinto said even some of the strongest critics have come around, as the city has found ways to accommodate people’s concerns about lost parking. The design preserves a great deal of on-street parking and in fact, creates additional legal parking for Edgewood School. “If we had enough money we would do this as a curb-protected cycle track that would be much more attractive,” he said. But he also pointed out that places like San Francisco and Washington, D.C. have used delineator tubes to great effect and not made streets ugly. “This is an economic development issue,” Pinto said. “This is infrastructure for the 21st century. If we want to continue to grow, and maintain the population growth—we have 5,000 students college educated students who graduate [from here]—if we want to keep those well-educated people here, if we’re not competing with the other cities by investing in this infrastructure we will get left behind.” “You understand the concerns I’m hearing,” Wharton said. “We have some curmudgeons…” “We have some curmudgeons in our party too,” Marchand quipped. “You have curmudgeon Democrats,” Wharton asked jokingly. “I thought you were all happy, go-lucky people.” “Certainly not since November,” Marchand responded without missing a beat. Zinn said both the engineering and the city transportation departments regularly hear the concerns about speeding, pavement, sidewalks, and handicap ramps. He said while you can’t make everyone happy, he believes a lot of the problems raised were solved by taking those concerns into consideration and addressing them through the design. “I will tell you it probably comes up almost every other meeting that we have,” Wharton said of the Republican concerns. “The thing is that it’s an image thing because the perception is that it’s only for cyclists and even though you tell people otherwise, it’s still coming up. I applaud you all for doing this, I know it’s not easy.” Pinto said that overarchingly it is a question of access and equity as much for those who are east of the Edgewood Avenue mall as it is for those who live west of it. ‘We’re talking improvements to Edgewood Park and safe routes to school,” he said. “We chose the north side of the street as the final decision for the cycle track because it has direct access to two schools rather than south side because it has direct access to two New Haven schools,” Edgewood and Troup schools. That choice provides an opportunity for more children to bike safely to school he said. “This isn’t just about the bike lane,” Zinn said. “It’s improvement to the pavement, improvements to the sidewalk and the intersections.”

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posted by: Nadine H on June 22, 2017 5:49pm As a resident who lives on Winthrop and who regularly rides through the intersection pictured in the story on my bike and in my car, as well as down Edgewood on both sides when riding to Westville, I can’t tell you how happy I am to see not only the cycle tracks FINALLY being put in place, but to see this crazy intersection addressed. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve seen people regard the stop sign as a suggestion (and a poor one at that) rather than a requirement and blow through it, potentially t-boning those headed downtown! I’ve been on my bike and stopped at the stop sign as a rider here and seen folks in cars speed right pass me through the sign and frankly I’m amazed that someone hasn’t died at this intersection by now. I’m so glad there will now be a traffic light and specialized bike signals, re-striped crosswalks and signals. Making the streets safe for bikes and pedestrians makes the streets safe for vehicles as well, and that is a good thing for everyone!

posted by: BetweenTwoRocks This is gonna be awesome. Edgewood Ave via bike is my main commute to work, and while it’s pleasant, aside from the hilarious amount of broken glass, this bike lane is going to be a terrific addition to the city. And it’s going to be used by a lot of different types of residents here in New Haven. It may even make the Edgewood/Dwight area more attractive to graduate students at Yale, which is obviously something of a mixed blessing, depending on who you are and if your last name is FIFTHS.

posted by: THREEFIFTHS on June 22, 2017 9:53pm posted by: BetweenTwoRocks on June 22, 2017 7:37pm It may even make the Edgewood/Dwight area more attractive to graduate students at Yale, which is obviously something of a mixed blessing, depending on who you are and if your last name is FIFTHS.. The Gentrification Cycle. http://jensorensen.com/2013/04/15/gentrification-cartoon/

posted by: Noteworthy on June 22, 2017 11:25pm Lies Never Stop Notes: 1. This is not an economic issue - Pinto - That’s pure BS. There is no economic development to be had along this corridor that connects nothing to nothing. It is all residential, fully built out. Why keep repeating that lie? 2. To what does this deluxe cycle track that almost nobody uses connect? 3. It is worth noting that the pictures show the widest part of Edgewood - not the narrowest where installing this luxurious route will squeeze Edgewood to a single lane the closer it gets to Park. It will be a nightmare to drive into downtown as this route now houses three schools. 4. It is amazing how tone deaf and dismissive Adam Marchand is. He never listens to anybody. 5. This is a win for the limited number of bike nazis - at the expense of the many who are not. 6. Keep going the way your going, Mr. Marchand and you can count on having more bad Novembers.

posted by: robn on June 23, 2017 7:15am The Republicans should worry less about bike lanes and more about the number of dead bodies obstructing streets shortly after they repeal Obamacare and pass their Wealthcare Bill.

posted by: 32knot on June 23, 2017 8:14am Another example of why there is no real “loyal opposition” party in this city. Republicans have a concern and it is totally ignored and then usually cogent commentators call them killers for the Republican position on a national issue. Perhaps this is a reason for the extreme partisan divide in this country, “its all my party’s position in all issues or you’re not part of the discussion at all”. That’s why there are no ” Rockefeller Republicans” left anymore. and the same goes for the Democrats! Long live the Independent voter!!! (jeez, its only a bike lane, can’t we agree some people might not like them without branding them as evil?)

posted by: robn on June 23, 2017 8:38am 32KNOT, As someone whose drifted centrist in recent years (with some misgivings about the Democratic Party but not abandonment) I can say that I find it hard for any rational person to feel good about the evolutionary failure of the Republican Party during the past 30 years. I think you answered your own question about why Rockefeller Republicans have run screaming (aside from maybe Bloomberg…the last one who was able to do his own thing.) The only thing that’s kept them alive is a very well oiled and funded right wing propaganda machine which has taken advantage of the susceptibility of the religious right’s mysticism, those paranoid of outsiders, those in dying industries like coal and steel, and the undereducated. They have a perfect formula; raise them poor, dumb and malleable, and then manipulate them with lies. Donald Trump is not a problem; he’s a symptom of GOP strategy.

Back to New Haven; how can anyone from here possibly relate to the national GOP?

posted by: BetweenTwoRocks The notion that Edgewood/Dwight is going to become some sort of hipster/techie/oligarch Haven is hilarious to me. Perhaps in 500 years. But not in our lifetimes. I do love when people refer to any bike improvement advocates as “bike nazis.” Sorry we want to be able to bike ride safely, God forbid you use LITERALLY ANY OTHER ROAD IN NEW HAVEN. I don’t see why we should have to subsidize polluting cars with our tax dollars but we can’t get any share of the road. I guess it’s Noteworthy’s world, we’re just living in it. Please give me a list of things my tax dollars can go towards that help you specifically, I’d hate to inconvenience you at all.

posted by: EdgewoodHaven on June 23, 2017 9:49am I hope this cycletrack happens, and happens soon! Myself and many other Edgewood residents would be thankful for a safer way to bike this city as not every family has a car and can pay for parking, etc. Most other cities have similar fully designated bike lanes (like more than just a pictures of a bike on the road to tell cars to ‘share the road’....) already and I’m happy to see New Haven to trying to catch up.

posted by: Noteworthy on June 23, 2017 10:59am Edgewood Haven - You and the three other people who bike into New Haven. “Not everyone has a car?” The demographic of who lives along Edgewood does not suggest they don’t have cars. If you’re in Dwight, you have easy access to the bus or you’re close enough to walk. Even in Dwight, there is no shortage of cars. Even without the luxury bike lanes - it is already safe to bike into New Haven. If you think it’s not, then perhaps you shouldn’t even be riding a bike at all.

posted by: THREEFIFTHS on June 23, 2017 11:49am posted by: BetweenTwoRocks on June 23, 2017 9:39am I don’t see why we should have to subsidize polluting cars with our tax dollars My taxes and car fees pay for all the roads the bikers ride on as well as all the biking lanes the city puts in.The biking lanes take away both driving lanes and parking spaces from the cars that pay to make those biking lanes and we also pay for the all the bike racks too. So who is subsidizing who?Everyone pays for things they don’t use thru taxes and fees. Can you use bikes for full grocery shopping? The notion that Edgewood/Dwight is going to become some sort of hipster/techie/oligarch Haven is hilarious to me. Perhaps in 500 years. But not in our lifetimes. My point is it is still coming. I don’t see why we should have to subsidize polluting cars with our tax dollars but we can’t get any share of the road. But electric cars are starting to replace gas powered cars. Top Ten Electric Car Companies in North America

The electric car industry in North American is big. The industry players in the market consist of large mainstream manufacturers that have a dedicated division for electric vehicle (EV) to smaller custom EV retrofitters. The following is a list of top 10 electric car manufacturers in North America. http://cbelectriccar.com/blog/electric-car-makers/top-ten-electric-car-manufacturers-in-north-america/ China to replace Beijing’s 67,000 gas-powered taxis with electric cars http://inhabitat.com/china-to-replace-beijings-67000-gas-powered-taxis-with-electric-cars/

My bad. You talk about subsidize polluting cars Take a look at what Bike riding does to males. Testicle Damage From Cycling. http://www.livestrong.com/article/468837-testicle-damage-from-cycling/

posted by: anonymous on June 23, 2017 12:12pm Noteworthy, you wrote, “You and the three other people who bike into New Haven.” Did you mean three thousand? That might be a decent estimate for a given day. The experience of other cities suggests that if we built protected bicycle lanes, which easily could be done citywide for about half the cost of a single highway off-ramp, this number could easily increase by 300-500% in a year or so. That would free up a lot of parking spaces and parking lots downtown that the city could fill in with new local businesses and tax-producing property.

posted by: BetweenTwoRocks If you think there’s no environmental or human damage mining for the rare metals required to make electric cars, you’re kidding yourself. It’s a step in the right direction, but hardly without consequence. Also, car taxes and fees do NOT cover infrastructure costs. The Q Bridge alone is what, a billion dollars? How many billions is it going to cost to widen I-95? I’m so terribly sorry you’ll have to drive on Whalley Ave or George St or Chapel St or MLK Drive or any ANY OTHER ROAD. We want ONE protected bike lane. On ONE road. That’s it. But even that is apparently too much to ask.

posted by: BetweenTwoRocks Also re: testicle damage. Even the article you posted pointed out that chronic pain will happen before you do any permanent damage. So, you know… if you have chronic testicular pain, get it checked out. The notion that bicycling is going to kill us all is hilarious. The number of kids in New Haven who have asthma from drivers like THREEFIFITHS far, far outnumbers the people who have suffered long-term testicular damage from riding bikes.

posted by: Noteworthy on June 23, 2017 1:07pm Anon: The three people I referred to were the ones using Edgewood. The others come from East Rock.

posted by: robn on June 23, 2017 2:01pm 3/5, I resent your implication that all bicyclists in New Haven have testicles.

posted by: THREEFIFTHS on June 23, 2017 4:37pm posted by: robn on June 23, 2017 2:01pm 3/5, I resent your implication that all bicyclists in New Haven have testicles. My bad.Here you go. Riding bikes harmful to female sexual health Bikes are fun, but bike saddles? Not so much. A new study shows that riding on regular saddles harms sexual health not just in men, but women too. A new study at Yale, published in the Journal of Sexual Medicine, shows that riding bikes decreases women’s sexual sensation.The theory behind the connection is that riding on a bike saddle places a lot of pressure on the nerves and blood vessels in the genital area—and it turns out this happens whether you are man or woman.The study builds on a 2006 study at Yale that showed, compared to female runners, female cyclists had less genital sensation http://www.zdnet.com/article/riding-bikes-harmful-to-female-sexual-health/

posted by: BetweenTwoRocks on June 23, 2017 12:18pm If you think there’s no environmental or human damage mining for the rare metals required to make electric cars, you’re kidding yourself. It’s a step in the right direction, but hardly without consequence. Cell phones have consequence.Do you own one.If you do care to give it up. Pollution From Cell Phones Although the general public is not yet aware of it, cell phones are the cause of much pollution in our atmosphere. http://www.allbestarticles.com/technology/mobile-phone/pollution-from-cell-phones-what-s-the-solution.html

My Bad I forgot. How about the Health Dangers of Wi-Fi pollution in our atmosphere.Do you have Wi fi? https://www.globalhealingcenter.com/natural-health/10-shocking-facts-health-dangers-wifi/

posted by: robn on June 23, 2017 5:50pm 3/5, Thank you for your concern about our genetalis but F&(& you obstinence. We’re taxpayers and we’re many. Give us our F-Ing bike lanes!

posted by: Westville voter on June 23, 2017 9:49pm The mock-up photo of the idealized Winthrop intersection appears to show a biker illegally riding in the pedestrian crosswalk (lower right). When the bike advocates’ own plan shows bikers breaking the law, skepticism is warranted. Nice job, guys.

posted by: robn on June 24, 2017 7:38am WVV, Incorrect. The bicyclist crossing over the crosswalk is doing what every other vehicle (yes the bicycle a vehicle by law) does legally every second of the day. What would be illegal is not yielding to a pedestrian entering or in a crosswalk (a situation which this image is NOT illustrating.)

posted by: Westville voter on June 24, 2017 8:36am Robn: you are focusing on the wrong bike. Look farther to the right. There is a bike riding in the crosswalk in the boulevard section. That’s illegal. It’s also so common in New Haven that it’s understandable that you didn’t notice.

posted by: robn on June 24, 2017 10:13am WVV, That fuzzy portion of the rendering appears to be representing a small child on a bike next to his mother using the crosswalk. Haven’t checked the exact CTGS language in a long while but I believe that it gives latitude for young children WRT allowing them use of pedestrian areas while on bicycles.

Teens riding down the middle of the sidewalk? I’m with you 100%.

posted by: BevHills730 on June 24, 2017 10:47pm Great project, and congratulations to all involved. This project has tons of potential to decrease traffic and tie a lot of neighborhoods together even more tightly. Downtown accessibility and parking are persistent issues. This is a great contribution to addressing these issues. I’m personally very excited for these lanes to be developed. It is insane that some here like Westville Voter would like to sink this plan over the depiction of a child riding on a crosswalk. Honestly, the crankiness in this comment’s section is just unbelievable at times.

posted by: ADAK on June 24, 2017 11:44pm Can’t wait for the bike lanes. As someone who doesn’t own a car, and lives in Westville, I take the bus or Uber to get downtown. Walking is too far, and I cannot afford a car. Also, the bus routes to Westville are scarce at night… I also find it hard to believe residents along the route won’t appreciate the added pedestrian benefits and traffic calming this will provide. There are major schools along this route, and this is not just plans for bikelanes, but instead to re-examine how traffic flows in this area. This will connect neighborhoods that may seem segregated, and bring new people from downtown in and out of the West side of the city to destinations like Edgewood Park, Westville Village, and whatever business people wish to detour to on either Chapel or Whalley. I think it’s going to create some great energy.

posted by: New Haven Urbanism I’ve said it before, but I guess I’ll say it again. The current lane widths, and configuration of parking and driving lanes along Edgewood Avenue has a design capacity to accommodate and average of 20,000 vehicles per day. However, only around 4,400 cars actually use Edgewood Avenue on a daily basis. What should be done in response to this fact? A) Do nothing. Keep it exactly the way it is - speeding, double parking, 100% for automobile - forever and ever. Also, the State is broke, so we shouldn’t spend any money on anything ever again.

B) Do something. Well what are the options? Parking and travel lane can be reduced and reconfigured to accommodate a number of things, like: 1) Turn parallel on-street parking into perpendicular parking spaces. Think Norton Street between Whalley Avenue and Goffe Street. It would more than double the amount of on-street parking and make it easier to park, though visibility is an issue.

2) Create a dedicated bus-only lane for the Q-bus. That might reduce travel times, improve safety for riders exiting and entering buses, and encourage more ridership.

3) Widen sidewalks and planting strips.

Or 4) Create a protected two-way cycle track along the entire length of Edgewood Avenue through half a dozen neighborhoods and by half a dozen schools serving all ages. What’s so bad about deciding to do SOMETHING with Edgewood Avenue and having that something be dedicated cycling infrastructure? Sure, doing nothing is an option, or other types of investments, but why not bike lanes? Let’s also not forget that a substantial piece - arguably the most important and central part - of the Edgewood Avenue project is making sidewalk intersections and crossings safe, ADA accessible, and clearly marked and signalized. The bike lanes are just a little paint, plastic tubes, and traffic signals, the project is really about upgrading sidewalk and crossing facilities to be ADA compliant for the most vulnerable street users.

posted by: robn on June 26, 2017 1:14pm JH, Car parkers have a hard time pulling out of diagonal and perpedicular parking because of poor visibility. That means a potential of crashing into another car or cyclist.

posted by: New Haven Urbanism Robn,

Agreed. I also suspect that the State’s Community Connectivity Program, which is funding this project, wouldn’t see perpendicular parking as an appropriate use of the grant. Those “options” were more hypothetical then actual suggestions.