Comment by Steltek | Hacker News Reader

Comment by Steltek | Hacker News Reader

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I bike commute in Boston. I avoid a 1 mile stretch of grade separated cycle track because there are so many problems with it, I don't even know where to begin.

- Cars emerging from side streets don't stop at the cycle track so there's a constant T-bone risk.

- Parking (the only parking lane on the road) obscures drivers' vision leading to a high right-hook risk.

- The grade separation disappears at driveways and side streets so you're constantly going up and down like a rollercoaster.

- Because the city plows it and homeowners suck at shoveling their sidewalks, people walk in the cycle track like it's a sidewalk.

- Actually, people walk in the cycle track regardless of the season.

- The "entrance" is marked by a seriously deadly right-hook risk at a Y-shaped fork. And when you're not at risk of getting hooked, there's probably a car blocking the entrance while waiting to turn into traffic.

I mean it is a seriously deranged and broken cycle track. Even with cars road raging, honking, and revenge-cutting-off me, it's better than getting smeared against someone's door panel.

I don't know if you're referring to Beacon Street in Somerville, but...

Even though I actually haven't ridden that way since they built the cycle track, I live in the neighborhood and the cycle track has looked awkward to me since they put it in. Back when I commuted home down Beacon I would bomb down the slight downhill to the Star Market at 25 or so, pretty far out into the "car" lane, because I wanted to be able to see, and have time to react to, any cars attempting to pull out of the side streets.

To the grandparent's point, the cycle track is really only compatible with laid back putt-putting. I think if you were to carry any speed at all, you'd eventually get T-boned by a car pulling out of the many poor-visibility side streets ... or you'd T-bone the car yourself ... with your face.

So if I'm out on a ride (not just going to the store or something) I think I'll avoid the expensive new cycletrack, thank you.

Yes, this is Beacon St in Somerville. If they had just put it on the uphill side, this wouldn't be a problem. Unless you're a pro cyclist or an e-biker, you're not going to match car speeds going uphill. There are far fewer driveways and every single side street is a 100 yard dead end due to the train tracks.

Going downhill (cycle track side), I have no problem keeping up with traffic. During rush hour, I usually end up having to slow down for cars in front, which sucks a lot but that's life.

I'm not sure how expensive this project is (it's still not finished!) but it must be at least a million dollars flushed down the drain. And that's not even mentioning those dumb HAWK lights that will be ripped out because no one knows what to do.

Excellent point, I hadn't put 2 and 2 together (about which side of the street it should have been put on)

It's still a safer alternative to a bike lane on the street with cars and parked cars on your right. You always in the danger zone of getting doored. There are areas where cars are not allowed to park next to the road bike lane which makes a huge difference when riding along driving cars. It's one less thing to worry about and it allows the cyclist to ride on the right side of the lane safely.

Also, while your points are all valid, they also apply to pedestrians. The difference is that a cyclist needs to slow down on each side street or driveway to make sure there's no car coming and many cyclists for some reason think they are in a race.

> some reason think they are in a race.

When you see people out on the sidewalk, most of them are walking ... some of them are jogging ... and some of them are running. I don't think the runners think they are in a race (though they may or may not be training for one.)

Are you talking on the one on Beacon street in Somerville?

Yeah, for some reason this is the sort of situation I think of whenever I hear calls to "fix" our infrastructure so it's more like the Dutch.

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