Remembering Amy Dombroski

The last few days have been devastating to the American cycling community.  Cyclocross rider Amy Dombroski died after being involved in a crash with a truck while training in Belgium.  There are any number of articles out there already about her and the crash, but it’s not my place to rehash stuff other people have said.

I didn’t know Amy.  I never met her, and although I may follow professional cycling a little more closely than the average American, I can’t say for certain that I would have remembered her name.  What matters, though, is that she mattered to a great many people, not just in cyclocross, but across the American cycling scene. The outpouring of grief and memories over the last few days from people who knew Amy has been overwhelming.  I’ve been affected by it, and have been struggling to figure out exactly why.  If I didn’t know her, if she wasn’t a household name, why does her death strike such a particular chord.

Death waits for us all, as they say, and the chilling part about Amy’s death is how similar my own could be–and how out of the blue.  We both grew up in Vermont, 20 miles away from each other.  She was a few years younger than me, and much more experienced on a bike.  On Wednesday night I was beating myself up in a cyclocross training race; on Thursday an amazingly popular American cyclocross rider was dead.  I cycle commute to work every day, year-round; and I wonder: how much until my time runs out?

It’s inspiring to see the cycling community come together around a loss of one of our own, and I hope we can all learn to continue on–not as different groups, divided by the width of our tires or the speed with which we feel comfortable, but as people who share a love for two wheels under our own power.  Amy, we’ll all miss you.

Amy Dombroski, by Roxanne King on Flickr.

23rd Street and 2nd Avenue

I stopped bicycle commuting via 2nd Ave N several years ago because I prefered the lower traffic volume and slightly wider street one block south.  Since I now work near the UND end of 2nd Ave N, however, I still get to glance down the street several times a day to see how people are faring.

Observations this fall:

  • Many people on bicycles (and longboards) still use 2nd Ave N west of 23rd Street for commuting to class.
  • Estimate about a 50/50 split between riding on the sidewalk and riding in the street, although if this number is not 50/50, I’d err on the side of more people on bicycles on the sidewalk.
  • Eastbound at 2nd and 23rd, again about half of the people on bicycles continue east on 2nd, and half turn south onto 23rd.
  • I haven’t noticed many (if any) people on bicycles on the wrong side of the street, although people on longboards in this town seem to prefer riding with traffic rather than against it.
  • Many people on bicycles ride as far to the right as possible, including between parked cars when there is a space.
I’ll leave it as an exercise for the reader to come up with improvements for this stretch of road, but I’ll cover them in an upcoming post if you can’t think of any.

Cycling on 2nd Avenue North

I stopped bicycle commuting via 2nd Ave N several years ago because I prefered the lower traffic volume and slightly wider street one block south.  Since I now work near the UND end of 2nd Ave N, however, I still get to glance down the street several times a day to see how people are faring.

Observations this fall:

  • Many people on bicycles (and longboards) still use 2nd Ave N west of 23rd Street for commuting to class.
  • Estimate about a 50/50 split between riding on the sidewalk and riding in the street, although if this number is not 50/50, I’d err on the side of more people on bicycles on the sidewalk.
  • Eastbound at 2nd and 23rd, again about half of the people on bicycles continue east on 2nd, and half turn south onto 23rd.
  • I haven’t noticed many (if any) people on bicycles on the wrong side of the street, although people on longboards in this town seem to prefer riding with traffic rather than against it.
There are a number of issues with people riding bicycles on the sidewalk.  First, it increases the likelihood of conflicts with other sidewalk users–small children, people with strollers, people walking dogs, other people on bicycles–all within a narrow width and at higher speeds than the sidewalks were designed for.  Second, it increases the likelihood of conflicts at intersections–with people in/on vehicles on the street–without a clear right-of-way.  Neither people in cars on the street nor people on bicycles on the sidewalk want to stop.  People on bicycles on the sidewalk are unexpected, especially when entering the intersection from the right, and traveling faster than people in cars are expecting sidewalk traffic to be traveling.
If we can agree that people riding bicycles on the sidewalk isn’t the most optimal scenario, we need to figure out how to change their behavior.  Signs are not likely to help, nor are repeated admonitions.  Until cycling becomes more ingrained in the Grand Forks culture (including correct assessment of risk for different modes of transportation), infrastructure changes seem the most likely way to change the behavior of sidewalk riders. (One issue with infrastructure is that you need support from people to build it, and you can’t get support if people aren’t already riding on existing infrastructure!)
I am assuming two things: that people choose not to ride in the street because of perceived safety concerns, and that, given an alternative (safer-feeling) on-street place to ride that is faster than riding on the sidewalk, they will use it.  Given these assumptions, it seems appropriate to address this section of 2nd Avenue North in conjunction with the new Looking southeast from above 2nd Ave N, just east of Columbia Road.

Smarter, Greener, Leaner helps kids use area transit

This project came to attention because of a Herald letter this morning:

During the past year, a grassroots effort organized by Grand Forks Public Schools, in conjunction with the Grand Forks Park District and Cities Area Transit, identified an unmet need in our community of students, ages 12-18, being unable to afford access to public transportation in order to attend school, work, church and leisure activities.

What the project does (although this isn’t described in the letter) is provide CAT passes for students.  A more detailed explanation is given by the Grand Forks Parks Foundation:

The Smarter, Greener, and Leaner Project (SGLP), whose mission statement is to make youth ages 12-18 Smarter, Greener, and Leaner through the use of public transportation, was born. Kids will become Smarter, because missing school will no longer be an issue due to lack of transportation. Leaner, because students will be able to go to fitness centers (with scholarship help) and participate in other outdoor activities using Cities Area Transit (CAT) transportation. Greener, because they’ll learn touse the bus system rather than drive their own vehicles, reducing emissions and becoming bus patrons past high school.

For more information, contact Garry Harris, Jr at the Grand Forks Parks Foundation.

 

Bicycle and Pedestrian Plan Open House – Sep. 26 at Dakota Harvest

Attention Everyone,

There is going to be an Open House for the Bike and Pedestrian Plan. I attached a flyer of the event and of the Existing and Planned Bikeway Map. I am looking to all of you to help spread the word and attend the event. Support and feedback from both sides of the river is going to be very important of the success and approval of the plan.

Ideas and thoughts of how we can make this more of a success please let me know.

Thank you,
Stephanie Erickson
Planner
Metropolitan Planning Organization
Grand Forks / East Grand Forks

Don’t Fence Me In

Proposed pedestrian fence.  Image from Google Earth.

In this morning’s Herald, an idea reminiscent of New York City in the late 1990s:

The proposed 6-foot-tall aluminum fence would start on the east side of Columbia Road near the street’s intersection with Second Avenue North. From there it would run south and meet with the Columbia overpass wall — a distance of approximately 300 feet.
“The idea is to force (pedestrians) to go down to the crosswalk,” Rich Romness, an engineer with the city, told the City Council’s safety committee Tuesday evening.

Luckily, at least one council member wants to see some hard data.  I think you could guess which one.

Installing a fence follows from the ideas that

  1. Automobiles are paramount, and
  2. Pedestrians need to be protected from themselves.

You might remember a similar idea/plan for University Avenue on UND campus to install barricades to prevent “jaywalking,” proposed for the same reason.  There’s no reason to do this on streets that have a 25 MPH speed limit–something both Columbia Road in this location and University Avenue (20 MPH on that stretch) have in common.

I agree: get some real data.

I Think You Mean “Crash”

One person was injured in a vehicle-bicycle accident in Grand Forks late Monday afternoon. 
The accident occurred about 5:24 p.m. at the intersection of 24th Avenue South and South Washington Street, according to Grand Forks Police Department. 
An unidentified female suffered minor injuries when the bicycle she was riding westbound on 24th Avenue South was struck by a vehicle that was turning from 24th Avenue unto Washington Street, according to the police report. Police said the driver reported not being able to see the bicycle because of the glare of the sun. 
Names of the operators were not immediately available. The accident remains under investigation and no citations have been issued.

It’s currently becoming “proper” to refer to these events as “crashes” rather than “accidents,” because the word “accident” absolves everyone of blame, often before an investigation is completed.

Source

Roundabouts

grab some comments from AV http://topics.areavoices.com/2012/11/27/grand-forks-officials-seek-traffic-signal-at-crash-prone-crossing/
Tyrone FB discussion 11/27 https://www.facebook.com/tyrone.grandstrand/posts/10100393608477545

http://bismarcktribune.com/bakken/north-dakota-s-first-highway-roundabout-working-out-well/article_5c544faa-22db-11e2-bc55-001a4bcf887a.html

http://www.wdaz.com/event/article/id/14023/

http://www.grandforksherald.com/event/article/id/250822/

http://mywheelsareturning.com/map-roundies-in-michigan/

http://citystreetbeat.areavoices.com/2013/09/02/roundabouts-planned-for-grand-forks-streets/#comment-1117