SFMTA presents daylighting proposal for Fell Street

Traffic Safety on the  Fell Street side of the Panhandle was the topic for the March 20 meeting of the Panhandle Residents Organization. Jeffrey Banks, a traffic planner from SFMTA's Livable Streets presented this slide deck to help explain the benefits of daylighting at multiple intersections and to put the proposal in the context of Fell Street collision data and other safety improvements that have been made to the corridor. The board of the SFMTA will vote on the proposal at an upcoming meeting.

MTA says that Fell and Oak streets can accomodate protected bikeways

Fell and Oak Street along the Panhandle can accommodate protected bikeways, according to the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency. The memorandum by Ellen Robinson, an Associate Engineer with MTA, states that one-way, parking-protected bike lanes could be accommodated on Oak Street and/or Fell Street, which would involve removing one of the four travel lanes while maintaining the width of the existing lanes. Because the road feeds to/from segments with only three traffic lanes, reducing the travel lanes “would have relatively minor consequences in terms of travel delay and traffic operations.”

The cost of the project is increased by creating pedestrian refuge islands and relocating signal poles. With the design proposed, pedestrians traveling across Fell or Oak Street toward the park would get their walk signal and cross over to the refuge islands; then they would check for bikes and cross over to the park when clear. (Because cyclists riding in the protected bikeway would not stop at the signals, it would not be safe to leave the signals where they are, because they would give the pedestrians a walk symbol to cross the width of the entire street, including the bikeway.) Relocating traffic signals costs about $100,000 each. Thus, the low cost estimate for the project, including relocating the signals, is a total of $1,600,000.

The report describes a few concerning issues, such as the exact placement for the bikeway on Oak Street between Stanyan and Shrader (which has a narrow curb-to curb width, and no parking next to the park); and the high volume of left-turning cars from Oak onto northbound Masonic Avenue, which would require a decision between impacting traffic or reducing the quality of the bikeway. Keeping the bikeway next to the park, and replicate the traffic signal configuration at Fell/Masonic (where left-turning cars are held for an arrow), would result in “queues spilling back multiple blocks”; as an alternative, the design proposes to provide a “weave section” for cyclists to move to the right of drivers entering the left-turn pocket, which would mean that cyclists ride between lanes of moving cars for the block from Ashbury to Masonic. 

The report considered the potential for a two-way bicycle facility along Fell Street, with space from removing parking and a travel lane, but did not recommend it; disadvantages included the need to control the bikeway with traffic signals “to facilitate crossing of the protected bike lanes at the six minor streets 'T' intersections,” which reduces the efficiency and attractiveness of the bikeway.  

The MTA report includes this image from Prospect Park, Brooklyn, where a bikeway was installed between parking and a park and traffic signals were relocated

The report notes that the Panhandle multi-use path is a "high demand recreational and utilitarian transportation facility" with 500 bikes and 500 pedestrians per hour at peak times. The North of Panhandle Neighborhood Association reported the results of its survey on the issue, which found "a 72% positive opinion of reallocating one of the four traffic lanes as a parking protected bike lane."

2003 article sheds light on path upgrade

It's been hard to recall exactly when the multi-use path was last rebuilt. Thanks to a local archivist, the answer was recently placed in my hands: it was 2003, and I wrote an article about it for the July/August issue of North Panhandle News.

Highlighted by some bicycle clip-art and accompanied by ads for Car Los and Club Waziema, the article led with a comment about "seven months of stop-and-start construction." (San Francisco public construction projects were as slow 11 years ago as they are now.) The article also references DPT (now MTA), and the recent approval of Fell Street bike lanes. There's an intriguing mention of signage and stencils that would be "designed to steer walkers to the south pathway and cyclists to the north pathways," but that are, mysteriously, "still in development."

Glancing through the rest of the newsletter brings back memories of District 5 Supervisor Matt Gonzalez, Annie Bourdon doing outreach for City CarShare (which then had a fleet of 85 cars), and Leila Fakouri's application to open Madrone Lounge, "primarily an art space."

 

New Park Rules

Two sets of signs were installed in and around the Panhandle this month. 

The first set of signs is directed to those arriving at the park pathways from Oak and Fell Streets. They advise visitors that park hours are 5 a.m. to midnight. The new park hours were codified this year in Park Code 3.21, a change that was approved amid a great deal of controversy. The legislation specifically permitted travel through and across the Panhandle, though that exception is not noted on the signs. 

The second set of signs was installed over the weekend by SFMTA. Although they are much greater in number, they'll mainly be noticed by people parking their vehicles on the park's perimeter. They impose No Parking for vehicles over 22 feet long or 7 feet high, from 12:01 a.m. to 6 a.m., everyday. The "oversize vehicle" rule restrict people's ability to park campers, RVs, and other large vehicles overnight next to the Panhandle. While overnight habitation in vehicles was already prohibited, enforcement was never very effective. The no parking rules for oversize vehicles have been implemented in specific locations around the city, and the Panhandle is part of the second batch of locations.

SF PUC to install rain garden near Panhandle

It will be wet - very wet - in San Francisco, starting sometime next week if the forecasts are right. Some of the rainfall will soaking into the dry earth, but a great amount of it will pour from our roofs and streets, surge into rain gutters, and rush towards our water treatment facilities.

San Francisco's Sewer System Improvement Program aims to build new infrastructure that can infiltrate more water down into the ground, thus shaving off the peak flow. SSIP has plans for the streets east of the Panhandle. On Saturday morning, Raphael Garcia of the SF PUC led about 40 residents, as well as other employees from PUC and SF MTA, on a walking tour of Oak and Fell Streets, starting at the east end of the Panhandle and extending three blocks to Scott Street. At Baker and Oak, just in front of Mt. Zion Baptist Church, a rain garden will be installed in the curbside lane on Oak starting at the northwest corner of the intersection and extending about 16 feet long. The plants in the rain garden will be maintained by the PUC and will be planted with colorful California native plants, chosen for medium stature (not above hip level) and for habitat for creatures like the tiger swallowtail and black phoebe. 

Rather than installing rain gardens directly adjacent to the Panhandle Park, the south side of Oak Street was chosen as a site to optimize the effects and capture a greater flow of water. Other factors taken into consideration were the potential for shading, leaf debris, and impact on tree roots if the city were to implement rain gardens directly next to Panhandle Park. The material that goes beneath the new PUC rain gardens will not just be regular dirt; it'll be "engineered media" that can handle the "urban slobber" coming in with the water flowing from the city streets while supporting the mycorrhizal fungi that begins to filter and clean the water as it percolates down to our ground water, far below the surface.  

Since there are expectations for extensive engineering changes to improve traffic safety at the intersection of Baker and Oak, SF MTA staff on the tour explained that bulbouts will be constructed on the park side of this intersection. 

Construction of the rain gardens is expected to start in early summer 2014.  

Raphael Garcia of PUC speaks at the location of another planned rain garden

Pole arm could be final fix for the Fell/Masonic intersection

A tall pole and arm for a traffic signal were mounted last week at the southwest corner of Fell and Masonic in the Panhandle Park. By extending the traffic light for motor vehicles over the middle of Fell Street, the new signal arm is intended to create more distance between the vehicle signal and the bike signal, and thus reduce the potential for confusion (many times a day, motorists continue to turn left against a red arrow, sometimes because they only see the green light of the bike signal and the green light for vehicles. ABC7 reported on the confusion in May, and reported that 500 tickets/month were produced by the automated enforcement). The Fell/Masonic intersection got the bike signal in September 2008 and it is well-loved for providing path users with a safer way of crossing Masonic. Since the bike signal was installed, numerous small tweaks have been made to the design to improve compliance (for example, installation of the red-light camera, also visible in this photo), and this signal arm may be the biggest and best one yet.

Oak & Fell bikeway proposal unveiled

Today the SF MTA presented a proposal for improvements on Oak and Fell, including bikeways (see previous post). Although the plan does not modify Panhandle pathways, transitions to and from the park could be much improved. Neighborhood concerns about parking removal have led to proposals for angled, head-out (rear-in?) parking on several blocks, including Baker Street from Oak to Fell. The angled parking is proposed for the west side of Baker, directly on the front end of the Panhandle Park, to keep the flow of traffic from the adjacent blocks of Baker in alignment.

Baker at Oak (the upper left is the Panhandle Park). Proposed angled parking appears upper left. Proposed bulbouts would shorten crossing distances. Proposed bikeway appears lower right on south side of Oak. 

Additional blocks of Baker Street (up to Haight St) would also get angled parking on the west side. Baker Street north of the Panhandle already has perpendicular parking to maximize spaces.

Proposed angled parking appeared in orange. 

My concern is that angled parking on Baker Street would make the entrance to the Panhandle less attractive, from the vantage point of anyone traveling along Baker St or approaching from the east. The proposal also represents a missed opportunity; while making this change and the proposed bulbouts, we should also make a coordinated effort to address the overall neglect of the park's eastern edge. The lack of attention to detail (especially on the walkway) makes visits to the edge of the Panhandle utterly unremarkable. 

Walkway on the Panhandle's eastern edge. Asphalt, cement, asphalt, cement.

Santa brought us Masonic traffic safety measures

Park users crossing Masonic on the Oak Street side now benefit from a ladder crosswalk. High-visibility crosswalks are part of the SF MTA's pedestrian safety program, and alert pedestrians and motorists to watch out for conflicts. 

We also got a red-light camera facing the westbound traffic on Fell Street at Masonic. San Francisco's city government began implementing photo enforcement for red-light running 15 years ago. 

Thanks to San Francisco and to the outspoken community leaders who have been demanding safer Masonic crossings.

Panhandle Pathway connections to East and West making news

News this week about changes to the connections for cycling to the east and west of the Panhandle:

To the west, one-way cycle tracks for John F. Kennedy Drive received strong support from Mayor Ed Lee and General Manager Phil Ginsburg and were approved by the Rec and Park Commission on Thursday Oct 20. The Rec and Park Department has been collaborating with SFMTA and conducting public outreach on the project for about a year. This project is important for folks who want to be able to continue their bike ride from the Panhandle Path, and continue west, without having to ride on the open roadway of JFK Ave alongside cars, buses, and trucks.

To the east, a project for Fell and Oak Streets between Scott and Baker has been moving forward under the SFMTA, with Luis Montoya as Project Manager. One-way cycle tracks on these streets could be installed if we either remove a lane of car parking or a travel lane. Montoya started talking with neighbors this summer, and helped us set up public meetings, including one on July 26 held in conjunction with NOPNA that was a forum to discuss how the proposed project might impact the Panhandle Park.

Last week, an SF Examiner story reported that the Haight Ashbury Improvement Association opposes all options under study in the Fell/Oak project. You can click to download HAIA's letter to the SFMTA. NOPNA & other neighborhood groups seem to be informing the community about the issues so that people can provide input and make a better end product. I'll continue to speak out about potential impacts on the already crowded multi-use path and the need for better street-path transitions, especially at Baker Street. I'll post info about what's next for this project as information becomes available. In the meantime, it seems like an opportune moment to let your elected representatives know your thoughts about the proposals and the process.

UPDATE: Luis Montoya from SFMTA replied to an email inquiry. He said that he is working on finalizing the exact time/place of public workshop that will happen in December. He also pointed out that it is too early to identify "one-way cycle tracks" as the only option under consideration for Fell/Oak; the two-way method is also being looked at. Even though the one-way option was chosen for JFK, the two-way configuration may have advantages for this very different project. 

Come learn about potential Oak & Fell bike project next Tuesday

This post contains information I sent to our email list a few days ago, as well as a few minor additions. 


WHAT: A community meeting sponsored by Panhandle Park Stewards and North of Panhandle Neighborhood Association. Meet with staff of the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency and learn about a potential project to improve access for bikes between the Panhandle Park and the Wiggle bike route.

WHEN: Next Tuesday, July 26, starting at 7pm. Meeting expected to last less than one hour. 

WHERE: St Cyprian's Episcopal Church, in the lower level community hall, at the corner of Turk & Lyon. 

Background:  The SF MTA has funding to begin planning and design work along Fell and Oak Street to improve the safety and comfort of bicycling in our neighborhood. Luis Montoya of the Livable Streets Subdivision of the SF MTA is leading the project and initiated this meeting, and wants to meet with everyone concerned. 

I think changes to Oak and Fell would have impacts on the Panhandle Park - including, but not limited to the experience of cycling in the park. See previous posts about local cycling issues on this blog. Volunteers at our recent work day expressed interest in taking part in a meeting to learn about where this project might be headed and to begin to provide input. Panhandle Park Stewards has a practice of volunteer work days in the park, and not of community meetings, so I am happy to team up with NOPNA to arrange this meeting. Luis Montoya has said that there won't be technical details, such as a measurement of impacts, at this meeting, nor will there be any voting on one idea versus another. Those details are further in the future and would be presented at a public meeting, publicized broadly.