One of the most harrowing experiences I’ve encountered on a bike was waiting for the light at the intersection of N. 50th St. and Green Lake Way N. It wasn’t concern for my safety so much as it was for my 11 year-old son, who nearly fell off his bike from fright as a motorist leaned on his horn. I couldn’t tell you exactly why the driver decided to honk at us, since, after all, we were in the green bicycle lane; but I suspect it was because the driver wanted to make a last-minute lane change and felt my son was in his way. Honestly, though, I believe there are still motorists out there who don’t know how to use caution when crossing through an occupied bike lane.
I think SDOT has finally caught on to this messy, chaotic intersection because they’re proposing some changes to make it safer to travel to and from Green Lake and the Woodland Park playfields. Here’s a summary of these proposed changes:
The proposal includes installing a new center turn lane, reconfiguring the street to provide one travel lane in each direction with bicycle lanes on both sides of the street, and improving pedestrian crossings. A new stop sign will be installed at West Green Lake Way North. Traffic signal operations at Green lake Way North and North 50th Street will be improved by removing one block of parking on the north side of North 50th Street.
SDOT believes these changes will help reduce speeds and make it safer for walkers and bikers. If you want to learn more about the proposed improvements, come to the open house next Tuesday, August 20, from 6:30 to 7:45 pm at the Green Lake Branch Library (7364 East Green Lake Drive North).
After a couple years evaluating traffic and conditions to Green Lake I bought a bike carrier for my car, drive a mile with bike on back and now I enjoy my bike riding at the lake. No traffic green, lines, dots, walks.. can really decrease the numbe rof cars, trucks, motorcycles which use these streets. Nor can they reduce driver agitation at moe confusing lines and dots and green squiggles.
FINALLY!
Before the car people get their panties in a bunch over the “war on cars”, let me point out that a center turn lane is an amenity for CARS, not bikes. Especially on this street, where the constant merge-and-split of one lane, two lanes, one lane causes endless headaches and near-collisions.
I both drive and cycle on this stretch, one or the other twice a day — it’s my main commute route. Both are hairy. This street is grotesquely over-engineered for cars, and it’s almost impossible to maintain a legal speed because it’s so friggin’ wide. Taking away some of that width might seem counterproductive but it WORKS, it lowers speeds and increases both safety and the perception of safety, which is just as important.
There’s still the unfixable problem of the criss-cross, by which most of the southbound traffic from west of the lake wants to carry on down Stone, and most of the traffic from east of the lake wants to cross to the right lane and proceed to Ballard, but getting a turn lane in the lower stretch and making the bike lane CONTINUOUS AND PERMANENT will be a huge improvement.
What Fnarf said. 🙂
Great news! Good stuff gets done in Mike McGinn’s Seattle.
Nice. I’ve crossed the street here many times and the signals are always frustrating. Also, the lanes driving south from Greenlake onto Stone have always confused me, especially since you have to merge once you’re on Stone. This sounds like a big improvement.
Oh boy, I can’t wait. First the city created total gridlock on 50th and the traffic moved to 45th or drove recklessly through the side streets. Then the city designed a way to create gridlock on 45th so more people began driving recklessly through the side streets. Then the city “fixed” Stone Way and created total gridlock until people stopped driving on it altogether and moved to the side streets. Now with Green Lake Wy N. the city will succeed in totally gridlocking Wallingford. No one will be able to get in or out. Is the city trying to tell us something? Are they trying to keep us in our places?
Be aware that they fixed Stone Way after a Hamilton Middle School student was hit by a car crossing Stone Way, resulting in severe, permanent brain damage. Stone Way is not gridlocked (though I’d agree about 50th during rush hours) AND it’s possible to safely cross it now. All they are trying to keep us from doing is killing each other.