3745 replies to this topic

[Rob Randall]

To be fair, narrowing the street with the addition of the bike lane might have made the crosswalk more viable.

 

On the other hand, are impaired pedestrians going to look both ways for bikes here? On second thought a crosswalk might be a worse idea than it was in 2012.

[Nparker]

I'm just aware of my surroundings when I choose to walk on that side.  It's pretty safe.

Oh it is. I just think it's really ugly and I don't want anyone to think I have a reason to purposely visit that area.

[VicHockeyFan]

 

On the other hand, are impaired pedestrians going to look both ways for bikes here? On second thought a crosswalk might be a worse idea than it was in 2012.

 

Pedstrians have the right-of-way.  It's going to be comical to see the 1% of bikes that will stop at these crosswalks when a pedestrian is waiting to cross.

[Nparker]

Times Colonist 2016: "There's significant interest in the community around the issue of crosswalks", said Brad Dellebuur, the city's assistant director of transportation...

 

Sounds like Brad had a change of heart.

Of course "significant interest" could mean that many people think it's a terrible idea to have a crosswalk here. His statement is completely ambiguous.

[spanky123]

Of course "significant interest" could mean that many people think it's a terrible idea to have a crosswalk here. His statement is completely ambiguous.

 

I have to think that politicians and their staff must really hate the whole internet thing. Remember the good old days when you could just make stuff up as you went along and as long as nobody was standing there with a microphone and recorder then you would never be held accountable for anything you said.

[HB]

Nothing matters anymore the city is in a free fall with a jester running the show.
The publics opinion thoughts and wishes do not matter and that includes the subject of this crosswalk. Who cares.It is..what it is. That is the only constant

[HB]

Well at least if the drug addicts get run over in the crosswalk they will have an avenue to some more drug money without ripping off people robbing stores and general thieving activities.They will now have ICBC and one can do cash injury settlements as soon as they want after an accident and without a lawyer

Edited by HB, 17 February 2017 - 04:46 PM.

[Love the rock]

Problem is without being sarcastic you are asking people who don't always know where they are or who they are to press a button before crossing a road .
They are just as likely to be having an argument
with the lamppost as crossing the street .
You can not use logic with an addict

[Bingo]

Pedestrians have the right-of-way.  It's going to be comical to see the 1% of bikes that will stop at these crosswalks when a pedestrian is waiting to cross.

 

It's a one way street so just make the whole block a crosswalk with a lower speed limit.

Actually the whole idea is an exercise in futility.

[Awaiting Juno]

Yet people everywhere fight for crosswalks and lights to keep children and adults safe sometimes for years without success.
A new candy store goes in across the street bam it's done .
I say it not enough to keep them safe how about a 24hr crossing guard or a closed in run so they don't get hurt going to spend there allowance.

 

Overhead walk - like they do for wild life in national parks. 

[nagel]

Amazing cynicism on this forum about a mid block controlled crossing. Remember you've got hundreds of people moving into the neighbourhood with Bosa as well as several other developments going in nearby. There's also the VCM which has an exit onto Pandora. Increasing the pedestrian options and calming traffic will only be a good thing for the immediate area.

The city and the GVCC will certainly do their best to educate cyclists that these mounted portions of the bikeway are pedestrian crossings where peds have priority. There won't be full compliance; I suspect the % of bikes that will not stop will be about equal to the car driver noncompliance at crosswalks.

[VicHockeyFan]

I think it's also clear these are to mitigate damage to business on the north side that lose parking.  their clients can park opposite and walk across.

[Mike K.]

99.9% of drivers will stop at a crosswalk if it is safe to do so. I know some pedestrians think 2,500 pound cars have a magic InstaStop feature, but real life just doesn't work that way.

I'd say a solid 50% of cyclists will blow red lights and stop signs if they think nobody is watching, let alone stop for pedestrians.

[nagel]

99.9% of drivers will stop at a crosswalk if it is safe to do so. I know some pedestrians think 2,500 pound cars have a magic InstaStop feature, but real life just doesn't work that way.

I'd say a solid 50% of cyclists will blow red lights and stop signs if they think nobody is watching, let alone stop for pedestrians.

Yeah that 99.9 is wildly inaccurate. A lot of drivers don't stop by pretending to not notice peds by looking straight ahead.

[Mike K.]

Pretending not to see, or realizing that a sudden jolting halt could put them and other drivers in danger.

And some literally can't see pedestrians, of course

I got a nice "f*** offfffff..." as I blew past some guy the other day who thought I could stop my 6,000 lb boat in a span of 10 meters. Yeesh.

[nagel]

Pretending not to see, or realizing that a sudden jolting halt could put them and other drivers in danger.

And some literally can't see pedestrians, of course

I got a nice "f*** offfffff..." as I blew past some guy the other day who thought I could stop my 6,000 lb boat in a span of 10 meters. Yeesh.

I think this is why they started putting in blinking controlled crossings. For incompetent drivers who are either going too fast nor not paying attention to pedestrians approaching crossings or waiting to cross.

[sebberry]

I think this is why they started putting in blinking controlled crossings. For incompetent drivers who are either going too fast nor not paying attention to pedestrians approaching crossings or waiting to cross.

 

Of course, the blinking lights are for incompetent drivers.  It's not conceivable in any form that they're for pedestrians who struggle to clearly communicate to drivers that they intend to cross.  The number of times I've stopped to yield to a pedestrian waiting to cross only to have him/her wave me through is crazy.  Then you have the pedestrians who think the entry to a crosswalk is a great place to stop and fiddle with their phone. 

 

If pedestrians made their intentions clear, it would help a lot.

[Mike K.]

Yeah, I've seen that with regularity where folks will just linger at a pedestrian crossing. Really? That's the best place for you to stop?

A pedestrian was struck earlier in the week and is in serious condition. I think it was on Quadra? Dark clothing, sudden jolt out into the street and wham.

[nagel]

Of course, the blinking lights are for incompetent drivers. It's not conceivable in any form that they're for pedestrians who struggle to clearly communicate to drivers that they intend to cross. The number of times I've stopped to yield to a pedestrian waiting to cross only to have him/her wave me through is crazy. Then you have the pedestrians who think the entry to a crosswalk is a great place to stop and fiddle with their phone.

If pedestrians made their intentions clear, it would help a lot.

Yes that's what they're for. If drivers stopped too much there would only be rear ends and not ped casualties. That's not what's happening.

The principle I think is most relevant is you can't see what you're not looking for. If you're watching crossings and the sidewalks for approaching pedestrians you will never have an issue. If you're daydreaming about a 15 pack of Lucky while driving that's were you run into conflicts.

[HB]

http://youtu.be/FHz9CoveurQ

 

Brown coat guy is Distracted not by a phone...

Edited by HB, 18 February 2017 - 10:58 AM.