By James Sword, HANC Board
Panhandle Playground: Anne Baskerville from Rec and Park provided an update on the Panhandle Playground renovation plans and the pathways project. There is a delay on pathway repair due to uneven surfaces along the northern path. The playground project is set to have its first public meeting in March, and Anne will check back with us when scheduling has been finalized.
Proposed Bike Lanes on Fell and Oak: Ellen Robinson, a traffic engineer with MTA, reviewed the proposals to date. She assured us that having a proposal prepared does not mean that MTA was committed to the project, but short of a couple of significant routing issues, work would be moving forward on the lanes. Members were startled to learn of a new concept described in the feasibility report as a “high speed bike commuter lane,” especially because these lanes would encounter pedestrian cross-traffic every block along the way.
The engineer said that it would be relatively easy to replace a traffic lane along the Panhandle with a cycle lane along Fell. There were numerous questions and a good discussion. In view of the issues with cars backing into either or both the bike lane and buffer lane, one suggestion was to raise the new bike lane to the level of the Panhandle. This would have cars parking at a curb, and the possible higher bike lane would be more visible.
The engineer said that Oak Street is more problematic, the south side having curb cuts for driveways and parking, and the north side having major issues at Masonic and Stanyan. The possibility of a two-way bike lane on Fell was also discussed, but did not seem to be a serious alternative in the eyes of MTA. There are some issues with road width and traffic would back up west of Stanyan during commute hours.
In general, the group wanted more discussion, greater participation by more neighborhoods, by seniors with limited mobility, by folks with strollers, dogs and / or skateboards, by families using bikes, and on ways to limit bike speed for pedestrian safety (not increase it for a mere half mile). Increasing speed for this short distance would not significantly decrease a bike commuter's travel time, but could be a serious danger to people crossing the street. Increasing use of Page and Hayes, both already designated bike sharrow streets, was mentioned. Nowhere on common bike routes, such as the Wiggle, is there a “freeway for bikes.”
HANC members pointed out that many significant San Francisco neighborhoods, including much of the Haight and Inner Sunset, had not been invited to take the survey. While the engineer had bike counts during rush hour of up to 600 bikes on the Panhandle, she had no data on pedestrian use, nor the entry and exit of bikes from/into streets like Ashbury and Lyon.
Natalie Burdick, a representative of WALKSF, commented on the proposals, and expressed concern for pedestrians at bike crossings, though she said that having a shorter distance to cross either street could help with safety.