I live a few blocks from the Regent/Monroe intersection, and I definitely agree that it needs reworking. It nerve-wracking to bike through there, and it's even worse to cross on foot, especially if you need to cross Regent St. on the east (i.e., hotel) side of Monroe St. A few years ago, the city and the University were about to redesign and rebuild the interesection, and I even went to a few meetings on the subject.
But nothing happened. I guess people couldn't agree on what to do, or the money was used for something else, or whatever. I hope this doesn't turn into one of those legendary Madison projects that gets argued about, and not built, for decades. As for bike boxes... I think one way to increase motorist awareness would be to create more of them. If motorists expected to see bike boxes at certain kinds of intersections, they would learn what to do when they come to one. It would probably also help to paint the pavement a distinctive color inside the boxes -- blue or green, perhaps. ----- Original Message ----- From: "India Rose Viola" <[email protected]> To: "Arthur Ross" <[email protected]> Cc: [email protected] Sent: Wednesday, December 2, 2009 2:20:39 PM Subject: [Bikies] Intersection @ Monroe & Regent Arthur et al, There has recently been a thread on the Bikies Listserve about the intersection at Monroe & Regent Street. To reiterate what I posted to Bikies: I think that this particular intersection NEEDS to be improved for all users, especially cyclists. There should be bike boxes, clearly marked bike lanes for cyclists going straight or turning, and a whole bunch of signage that helps the local and non-local auto drivers be aware that this is an intersection that connects a high-traffic bikeway. I did just put in a request for improvement s at this intersection on the City Website on their "Bikeway Concerns" page. <https://www.cityofmadison.com/reportaProblem/bikeway.cfm> And while we are on the subject, is there a way to help inform people about bike boxes? A spot on the local news, and a mention in various local print news sources might help. From a very unscientific poll, almost noone I know has a clear idea of what bike boxes are or what they are meant to convey. I am hesitant to use them because of this. -India _______________________________________________ Bikies mailing list [email protected] http://lists.danenet.org/listinfo.cgi/bikies-danenet.org _______________________________________________ Bikies mailing list [email protected] http://lists.danenet.org/listinfo.cgi/bikies-danenet.org
