In order to facilitate bicycle travel between Cornell, Collegetown and downtown Ithaca, the City of Ithaca is considering building a bike lane on the eastbound, or uphill, side of East State Street. The bike lane would extend between the “tuning fork” intersection of East State Street with Seneca Way and Green Street near the Commons and its intersection with Mitchell Street.
The proposal also calls for the relocation of the street’s centerline in order to widen the westbound lane from its present 12 feet to approximately 15 or 16 feet. This would allow bikers to maneuver comfortably at speeds keeping pace with traffic as they go downhill. City Traffic Engineer Tim Logue stated that a bicycle lane along this segment of East State Street would be ideal because it is one of the main streets that connects the downtown area to Route 79. “Not all streets need a designated bike lane,” said Logue, “but given the high volume of traffic that uses East State Street every day, roughly 17,000 or 18,000 cars, it would certainly serve to create a better connection between downtown Ithaca and Cornell.” The City’s engineering department identified East State Street as a good location for the desired bike lane after weighing other geographical options. “Looking at the number of streets that climb East Hill, the best available choices were East State Street or University Avenue,” said Logue. He went on to say that East State Street’s comparatively gentle slope and wide right-of-way were factors in its final selection. The Board of Public Works will tentatively vote on the bike lane proposal on Oct. 10. According to Logue, complications of the project include the source of funding and the need to consolidate parking space on the south side of East State Street. Full article: http://cornellsun.com/node/24452 ____________________________________________________________________________________ Shape Yahoo! in your own image. Join our Network Research Panel today! http://surveylink.yahoo.com/gmrs/yahoo_panel_invite.asp?a=7 _______________________________________________ RSS, archives, subscription & listserv information for: [email protected] http://lists.mutualaid.org/mailman/listinfo/sustainabletompkins free hosting by http://www.mutualaid.org
