WizardMarks wrote:
we already do. The "rush hour" on Lake St. now goes from 7 a.m. till 7 p.m., with mini-rushes at 9, 10, 11 p.m., midnight, one and two a.m. It's only from about 2:30 a.m. till 6:45 a.m. that the street is "clear", which I define as five or fewer motorized vehicles per red light in each direction.
If that's your definition, then I never travel to work during rush hour. I just don't see it. 7am I'm heading out of Uptown station. About 7:15-7:20 I reach Lake & Chicago. The bus usually makes its two stops there quite easily. Traffic moves well. This has been a consistent observation since I started taking transit a month ago. Similar story on the way home (~5:20).
I had this impression that traffic is snarled for blocks around Lake & Chicago based on other messages. If more than five vehicles is a traffic jam then we certainly will never build our way out with more lanes!
among themselves to have shared parking. Since it is a working street, it's important for people to get in and out. For a few short years, probably, Sears will have adequate parking once it opens. A transit hub is planned for the site as well.
The transit hub should improve traffic flow. Parking needs to be retained and even expanded in the area. Businesses need it. More parking lots is not the answer. As has been said, this destroys the pedestrian atmosphere and reduces density which only makes the retail area less attractive. Underground parking is a good option if we absolutely cannot afford street space, but that's an expensive and unnecessary option in my opinion.
WM: We have 80 ft. of width total. 10 ft. sidewalks; 4 -11 ft. lanes, 2 -8 ft. parking lanes = 80ft. Where we have to put turn lanes, the parking is the only movable usage.
Are turn lanes necessary? Why not prohibit left turns off of Lake all day? Or narrow the street to three lanes plus a dedicated turn lane. One lane can switch directions based on time of day if appropriate.
If you will notice, both Cedar-Riverside and Hennepin-Lake have had several transfigurations of traffic over the years. Making Lagoon and Lake one way streets in Uptown, putting in a turn light at Hennepin and 31st., introducing a transit hub, all those followed Calhoon Square. Still, it's aggravating to drive in the area
What's aggravating to one is the sign of a healthy neighborhood to another. The bus works really well. It's nice to scoot off Lagoon onto Freemont and enter the transit hub from the back. Another option is to take 26th and 28th.
Whatever solution we choose, it will not last 50 years. If it lasts 10 years at Chicago-Lake, I'll be very surprised.
It depends on what the goal is. If the goal is to develop Lake & Chicago as a pleasant place for people to go and shop, then the number of lanes can be held as is or reduced. Other cities have kept their retail corridors to two lanes, sometimes four at the most. Alternate routes with timed traffic signals provide thruways. It works well.
David Greene
Lowry Hill East
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