Did you have turkey, stuffing and all the trimmings on Thanksgiving? A friend said she thought my family would of had roasted duck. I have eaten duck; what does it taste like? Chicken.
While duck or turkey or tofurkey would have worked for me, I had to eat crow – crow sure ain’t chicken. A couple of months ago I wrote about the newly built bike lanes on West Hundred Roadthe title of my introduction to the paper that week was called “Great Idea Poor Execution.”
I had my opinion which was welcomed by the naysayers but frowned upon by bikers (you know those healthy people). While I like the idea of trails as biking facilities, I was unhappy with the results of the the Route 10 project. Many told me that they were not happy with the way it was completed. “You can’t see the lines on the road and the center turn lane is too narrow,” they said.
Now that it is 99 percent complete, I have to say it looks pretty good. The lane lines are now wide enough to see and if you are careful like you should be, you can make a safe turn from the center-turn lane.
As my, in the know highways friend said, the driving lanes become safer, too. The lanes are slightly narrower and, with a speed limit of 35 miles-per-hour, the narrower lanes slow traffic making it safer for students that attend the schools along Route. 10.
In the shadow of all the talk, meetings and a final approval of the bikes and trails plan, the bike lanes not only fit the criteria of the plan, it gives riders additional safety. It is also a trial of sorts, testing the concept of serious bike lanes, not only in Chester, but the rest of the county. Yes, there are bike lanes in other parts of the county (think Iron Bridge Road north of the courthouse) but they are not well cared for. Maybe that is the reason that when Iron Bridge Road was widened and improved at the courthouse the bicycle lanes disappeared. So did the idea of sidewalks.
The cleanup of the lane markers over the weekend finished off the project and may make some feel better about it. What should we tackle next? I think we all know, but is there a solution that can stick, just as eating crow can really stick to your rips.
1 Comment
Marc,
Don’t be too quick to “eat that crow” Although Rt.10 looks better and is appreciated, it doesn’t seem to get much use. In the last five(5)? months, I have seen two(2) bikers from the Richmond Bike Race, three(3) boys who got off and onto the sidewalk as soon as possible, and one biker going the wrong way in the lanes, as well as a motor scooter, at night, going the wrong way, as well. I am out on Rt. 10, “ten times a day”, but this is all the use I have seen. There is one limited count by a “bike group”, that shows bike traffic has actually decreased.
I know there are purported to be many advantages brought to a community with “bike lanes” and I hope we reap those. In the meantime, it would make an interesting and exciting story for you to document a trip on your bike from one end of Chester to the other at five (5) PM on a weekday. Wear your helmet and any other protective gear you have.
Thanks for providing a “village paper”.
John Miller