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No Red Line over the Longfellow this weekend - and bicyclists will be asked to walk their bikes across
By adamg on Tue, 10/22/2013 - 7:50am
The T will be running buses instead of trains over the Longfellow this weekend as workers get the tracks ready for the extensive repairs planned for the bridge. Also:
Bicyclists will be asked to walk their bikes on the sidewalk across the Longfellow Bridge to ensure the safety of all bridge users. On Saturday, October 26, there will be alternating single lane closures on Memorial Drive eastbound to accommodate work above the roadway. Pedestrian travel will also be temporarily detoured from the eastbound side of Memorial Drive to the westbound side that day.
Also, a little birdie whispers:
I know the Garment District is a little concerned about people getting tripped up getting to their store. Everyone can still get there on the T. They just have to take a bus to do it.
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Comments
The reason bikes are being
The reason bikes are being asked to walk on the sidewalk is to speed bus service, not for safety. That's a fine rationale, and they should just say so.
Buses and bike coexist in 14' lanes (the width of the Longfellow bus lanes) all over the city. No, there's not enough room for buses to pass without encroaching into the oncoming lane. But that's ok, because they can just wait behind the bike until there's enough room to pass.
So a bus full of people << 1 bike rider?
I usually fall somewhat on the side of the pro-bike ranters here on uHub, but your framing of this restriction is just selfishly (and deliberately?) obtuse. Crowded single lane with no side-room, filled to (beyond) capacity with large, ponderous busses - and you think that allowing cyclists to wend and weave among them will not add to the potential for mishap?
Just walk the bike across this weekend, for cripes sake.
I'm not saying they <em
I'm not saying they should allow bikes. I'm just saying the safety rationale doesn't hold water. Bike and buses coexist all over the city in similar situations. Why not on the Longfellow? I mean, I get that buses are a safety risk for bikes. But that risk is considered acceptable elsewhere--why is the Longfellow different? Maybe the point I'm trying to make is too nuanced for the bike vs. car screamathon.
I'm not advocating for them to allow bikes on the bridge this weekend. I think having a dedicated bus lane to replace the trains makes a lot of sense. But it's really an issue of speed rather than safety.
It's not "one bike rider"
...It's thousands of people who depend on bicycles to get where they need to go for work, school, whatever...yes, even on weekends. Just like the people on the red line.
The difference is that cyclists are being asked to extend their journey by 8-10 minutes or go 2-3 miles out of their way to detour, whereas red line riders, if their buses were forced to drive behind a cyclist crossing the bridge, would be inconvenienced WORST POSSIBLE CASE, by about an additional 90 seconds.
That's only if the cop at either entrance doesn't say "hold up, let the bus through first" and then let the cyclist ride by. Or if there's a cyclist but no bus yet (since they won't be using the bridge continuously.)
90 seconds is also based on the assumption busses would be traveling 25-30mph, which is highly unlikely.
http://www.bitsbybike.com/2013/07/MassDOT-bikes-are-toys.html
Efficiency
of mass transit trumps individual bike transit. Simple as that.
yeah?
How would you feel if one day you got to the train station and there were transit cops telling you you're going to have to get off at Park, transfer to the green line, ride out a station, ride back in, and then transfer back onto the red line to continue to Ashmont? Because that's what these idiots are telling cyclists to do - either add a 8-10 minute walk to your probably 10-20 minute trip, or bike about 3 miles out of your way.
ALL they have to do is tell the cyclist "hold up a sec" if there's a bus behind them before they get on the bridge. That's IT.
In case you haven't noticed ...
They are inconveniencing ALL modes of travel here.
This is also NOT permanent - just for the weekend.
If you are on the T, you have to get off a train at Park, crowd surf up to a bus, get on a bus, ride a bus, get off a bus, and board another train to continue.
That isn't convenient.
If you are on a bike, you have to walk or detour.
If you are in a car, you have to detour.
This is the greatest good for the greatest number solution. It isn't a matter of just waiting a few seconds, either - they have to run several buses a minute in each direction to make up for the capacity of the trains.
Cycle advocacy - you are not helping.
(And, for the record, I am a cycling advocate going back many years. I've been riding this bridge to get to work starting over 20 years ago - back when the MDC was still trying to pretend it was limited access and lost lawsuits over trying to ban bikes from it!)
The solution for the
The solution for the frustrated cyclists is to then take the bus! Much faster than walking your bike. It's only temporary, I'm sure you can handle it.
Take your bike ON the bus!
If the bus has a front rack for bikes, go for it.
My husband does this all the time on the express bus.
oh yeah?
Here's a thought: frustrated by your public transit problems? Frustrated in your car in traffic because all those darn bike lanes are "causing congestion"? Can't find anywhere to park because those Hubway stations are "taking up all the car parking"?
Take your bike.
PS:Some people bike because they HAVE to, because they can't AFFORD to take public transit. Everyone thinks "cyclist" = rich white male, but there's a ton of at/near/below-poverty-line riders who rely on their bikes to get where they're going for something less than the cost of a monthly pass. You can buy a bike for about the cost of two months of MBTA service, or less, and probably get that money back if you have to leave town for another job.
Because "public transit" ain't so public - unlike the "public" roads everyone pays for but not per-use, "public" transit users have to pay per-use and everyone else bitches and moans about paying for the system.
If you can't afford a bus
If you can't afford a bus ride for one weekend then how can you afford to live in the city??? Wow!
Longfellow bridge can be slow for bikes
The Longfellow bridge is a bit steep, so it can be rather slow going if the bike or rider isn't entirely up to the challenge.
And anyway, you have to multiply out per person. If a bus has fifty people on it, then 90 seconds per person multiplies out to a total of over an hour.
Short term issue
I ride this bridge to get to work. Right now, there is one car travel lane southbound, and bike lanes for north and south bound.
If you need to run buses two-way, you need all the pavement. And, while we aren't talking "one bike" (this bridge can get as many as 300 or more bikes per hour at peak times), everybody shares in the inconvenience here and cyclists aren't particularly disadvantaged in that situation.
Just over a weekend, not a big deal. If people don't want to walk bikes on the sidewalk, there are other useful bridges in the area. If you are on a bike, a couple extra miles ain't no thing ... maybe 15 extra minutes depending on where you are headed ... and we have plenty of time to plan ahead.
Closed to vehicular traffic
Wouldn't the bridge will be closed to all vehicular traffic in order to facilitate whatever construction activity will be going on?
This specific weekend's work
This specific weekend's work involves the portion of the bridge containing the normal southbound lanes and the red line tracks, so no, the normal northbound side is not affected. The state just decided to ban all non-MBTA traffic to speed up the shuttle buses.
And I believe it will be carrying both directions of bus traffic, so the current bike lanes will not be available - thus the bikes on the sidewalk requirement.
and ... there are a *lot* of
and ... there are a *lot* of busses, watching them leave Park St. station every 45 seconds to a minute really impresses one with the utility of the red line.
Adam, your title says "have"
Adam, your title says "have" but the quote says "ask".
As far as I know, theres no legal mechanism to require walking a bike. Any such signs posted will be yellow - advisory. Correct me if Im wrong, but no ticket can be issued if you bike anyway.
Its like the signs that say "caution, falling rocks". You cant fine someone for not taking caution, or fine the rocks for not falling.
True
Headline changed.
Wrong - MGL Chapter 85
Section 2E states, in part,
As the Longfellow Bridge work is a MassDOT project, it is perfectly legal for a temporary regulation to be enacted that restricts cyclists from using the roadway during weekend bus diversions.
That says nothing about
That says nothing about enforcement of "please dismount".
One can close a road, yes, and ban "persons AND vehicles", yes... but one cannot force cyclists to walk their bikes.
Lane closure = Yes
Road closure = Yes
Asking people to hop, walk their bike, or push their car = No
I believe though that there
I believe though that there is a law requiring you to walk your bike if on a sidewalk, and MassDOT can certainly ban bikes from the road, thereby effectively requiring you to walk your bike.
The legal reasoning is that they can restrict bikes from the road, and you can't bike on the sidewalk, thus you must walk your bike.
the road is closed to ALL wheeled traffic except MBTA buses
No cars. No trucks. No non-MBTA buses. No motorcycles. And no bicycles. I think Adam's original headline was correct.