You can always count on Greg A to tell it like it is đ
"Cms Sgambelluri and Sandberg exclusively represent people in car-bound neighborhoods who oppose any change that prioritizes localized transportation near downtown and campus. Cm Rollo represents a group of people who are explicitly opposed to the very existence of the overwhelming majority of the city (a shocking alignment!), and Cms Sims and Smith simply donât listen"
Column: A better blueprint for Bloomington city council meetings
Better than no bike lanes. But still, meh.
"INDOT wants to add a painted bike lane in both directions from the State Road 46 bypass to where 10th Street intersects with Pete Ellis Drive and Discovery Parkway. Thatâs about a 0.19-mile stretch of the road."
City Limits: Why add bike lanes to S.R. 45? What do users think?
Things I learned on my perambulations today:
19th street is a nice route between Dunn and Walnut. You avoid part of Cherry Hill and there's more space than on the 17th Street Multi-Use Path.
Speaking of that, the MUP is finished all the way to the roundabout. Very nice!
Second flat tire of the year on my bike. Giant piece of wood on the bypass side-path shredded both the tube and tire. Last time was on the bypass as well. Don't bike there if you can help it - all the debris thrown up by the cars going by is deadly.
Listening in on Bike/Ped commission again. Couple of people last time objected to speed humps on Saratoga; the city got lots of emails supporting them though. Morningside Greenway design passes.
Then the Hillside/Olive intersection is being considered. There is definitely a consensus that crossing Hillside on foot or wheel is a pain.
Bloomington City Council Hamstrings Award-Winning Bike Lanes
"Going west, the hill between Dunn and Walnut isn't nearly as much fun. It's a bit of climb, but at least you can focus on pushing the pedals and not losing momentum as you go up. That is, until the new stop signs are implemented. These will force bikes to stop dead, a third of the way up the hill, and stop dead again two thirds of the way up."
#cycling #BloomingtonIN #UrbanPlanning
http://blog.benfulton.net/2023/10/bloomington-city-council-hamstrings.html
Cool decorations. Wonder if they actually drive it?
#BloomingtonIN #halloween
Interesting parking commission discussion on Atwater. It goes from two lanes to three between Park and Faculty, which I never noticed. Should the extra lane be devoted to parking? A bike lane? Or do we wait for a full study of the Atwater corridor?
Descarga Five with a steel drum going there on the right. #jazz #SteelDrum #BloomingtonIN
"This is the first major accident involving an e-scooter this year."
Hey WFIU, how many major accidents have involved cars?
#bancars #BloomingtonIN #scooters
Oh, here we go again. Let's spend two hours on whether we can put a couple of speed bumps on Hawthorne!
Another commenter suggests that speed bumps are a deterrent to bikers. Bike guy tries to explain they can go *around* them. She pivots to complaining about bumpouts.
Now a bunch of people want to public comment. Public comment is closed. Public commenter wants someone to motion to reopen public comment.
Swinging with the Btown Bearcats
#BloomingtonIN #jazz
Watching a crosswalk design city meeting. Plan for Hillside/Olive intersection is crosswalks + a flashing yellow light + a speed indicator. The crowd doesn't think it's enough.
New crosswalk across 17th at the bypass. Won't make the bypass any less terrifying to cross, but it's another option! #BloomingtonIN #cycling
Low temperature in #BloomingtonIN last night was 75 degrees (22C). That is the hottest low I can remember. Even during the worst of summer heatwaves it usually gets down to 65-68 or so. Really bad for the people sleeping rough or without AC. #ClimateDiary
Some notes on the traffic commission meeting:
City's trying to get a grant from the Safe Streets For All people, but the transportation plan doesn't include a "Safe Streets" statement - a couple of people volunteered to work on that.
Responding to a speeding complaint, city wants to add stop signs on Driscoll. These are tiny little streets and it's hard to see how people could speed there 𤨠Motion passes anyway.
@dragondaddy In Bloomington, it's Morgenstern's bookstore. Books of course, but also book clubs, a cafe, live music and wine. #BloomingtonIN
10,000 cars a day average in Bloomington, not only on College and Walnut, but also Tapp, Rogers, 2nd, 10th, and Country Club. I'm not sure who's running this War on Cars, but I would like to speak to the manager.
#WarOnCars #BloomingtonIN #traffic
@TonyStark Read this #WestLafayette #BloomingtonIN College towns can drive the change. #hoosiermast
Residents to rally against closure of Lower Cascades road
"Mayor John Hamilton wants to convert a 0.6-mile stretch of Old State Road 37 to a biker-pedestrian trail, but some members of the public say that would restrict public access to Lower Cascades."
This a weird freakin' hill to die on. A tiny little road on the outskirts of town, who cares? Let's close downtown Kirkwood to car traffic, I say, then you can rally against that!
Police seek driver of pickup that hit bicyclist and left scene on Ind. 48
"Howell and witnesses said the truck was stopped at a red light when the driver accelerated quickly and turned right, hitting Howell as he rode on Ind. 48 headed for the Karst Farm Park trail...police are keeping an eye out for the truck that hit Howell, described as a late-model tan-metallic Ford F-150 pickup. "
Police seek driver of pickup that hit bicyclist and left scene on Ind. 48
Monroe County's Fullerton Pike to be extended over Clear Creek
"The 524-foot structureâwhich will feature a 6-foot median, a 10-foot multi-use path and a 5-foot sidewalkâwill span Clear Creek Trail and the creek itself...the construction project is expected to start after April of 2024, and take until the end of 2025 to be completed."
This will be handy for access to the nearby middle school and library branch.
#BloomingtonIN #UrbanPlanning #BikeLanes
$8M in county bridge bonds OKâd, library sidewalk connections wonât be as late as feared
Haze all over Bloomington today as Canada wildfire smoke covers the area. Temperature coolish, not much sun. Air Quality Index around 205, worst I've seen it #ClimateDiary #bloomingtonIN
#ClimateDiary weather could not be more perfect, low 70's and sunny. Spent a lot of last week indoors due to Canada smoke swirling around. #BloomingtonIN
Time for the design presentation for College and Walnut!
Apparently they had a lot of people saying, "NO BIKES!"
Split into four districts: South, Downtown, North, and Miller Showers
Pine tree concept: Replace one lane with a protected bike lane.
Elm Tree concept: Protected one-way bike lane, two-way car lanes
Sycamore Tree concept: Two-way bike lanes, two-way car lanes
Oak Tree concept: Bike lanes on either side of two-way car lanes
Bloomington, IN hears public input on College and Walnut corridor study
"The study aims to identify improvements needed to ensure safer passage for pedestrians and bikers and make mass transit more efficient while facilitating safe and efficient passage for drivers of cars.
The city has floated the idea of changing the parallel roads to two two-ways, an option suggested in 2018 by contractor Toole Design Group to reduce driving speeds."
City hears public input on College and Walnut corridor study
This is nice. A one-way, one lane road for cars with a two-way bike path next to it. It's only for a few blocks for a connector though. #BloomingtonIN #UrbanPlanning #BikeLanes
City has put up a nice public comment summary on the planned High Street multiuse path. Very much looking forward to this project!
https://bloomington.in.gov/sites/default/files/2023-06/High%20St%20Project%20update%202023-06-07.pdf
Bloomington's Gold Bike-Friendly status renewed for another four years
"Residents there are also heavily involved in promoting safe streets through a traffic calming program that seeks to lower speeds on roads with high bike and pedestrian traffic. In their application, Bloomington indicated 54 percent of their roads have a signed speed limit of 20 MPH or less."
#BloomingtonIN #cycling
https://bikeleague.org/league-of-american-bicyclists-recognizes-45-cities-and-towns-with-new-and-renewing-bicycle-friendly-community-awards/
Summer in #BloomingtonIN
Sent in my feedback on the College/Walnut corridor study #BloomingtonIN #UrbanPlanning
http://blog.benfulton.net/2023/05/college-and-walnut-survey-responses.html?m=1
If you go to Bangkok Thai in Bloomington, order a Busted Knuckle and be sure to fist bump the owner. #BloomingtonIN #ThaiFood
Missed this entirely: Bloomington is requiring its scooter companies to provide 25% sit-down scooters or e-bikes.
"Throttle-powered, seated vehicles are favored by older riders, women, and people with disabilities. Many of these traditionally underrepresented riders prefer seated vehicles because they provide a greater sense of comfort and donât require the need to stand or pedal"
Corridor study for Bloomington's College and Walnut Streets underway
"The adjacent one-way roads are a key north-south connection. But between 100 and 200 crashes happen on the roads every year."
Pretty straightforward that they need to be two-way streets, as was recommended by the consultant the last time this was studied. There's a lot more precedent for that now though.
City Limits: Corridor study for College and Walnut Streets underway
Team Melanzana wins the 2023 Womenâs Little 500 bicycle race for the second year in a row
#cycling #BloomingtonIN #HoosierMast #Little500
https://bloomingtonian.com/2023/04/21/melanzana-wins-the-2023-womens-little-500-bicycle-race/
Bloomington City Council will introduce an ordinance giving themselves veto power over neighborhood resident-led traffic calming programs.
Bloomington had a new stop sign put in to slow drivers down. City narrowed the lanes on that road, expecting drivers to slow down that way, but they didn't. Anyone have any research that shows narrower lanes slows drivers down?
Traffic calming devices to go up on Maxwell between Woodlawn and Henderson this summer. Should make for a nice ride!
#biketooter #TrafficCalming #UrbanPlanning #BloomingtonIN
A Bicycle Tour of Taiwan, in Bloomington
The Cycling Taiwan bicycle tour will begin at the IU Sample Gates on Kirkwood Ave. and end at the Ferguson International Center on Eagleson Ave. Cyclists will stop at four locations along the way, each representing a different region of Taiwan.
Kirkwood is closed to cars for the summer! Yay!
A new regional alliance, Project 46, named for the state highway linking Bartholomew, Brown, and Monroe counties, will attempt to address climate change.
(I think a good first step might be to replace the highway with a passenger train)
From the Kerry Thomson mayoral campaign: "A driving force in..no multiplexes in single-family neighborhoods and only a limited number of duplexes being allowed in these same neighborhoods."
So it sounds like Kerry will be another advocate for rich people in their fancy neighborhoods. That's unfortunate, but at least she hasn't come out as directly opposed to bike infrastructure like Sandberg. Hobson's choice.
Guy on Earth Eats said he started his place because he couldn't find a decent Chablis in town. I wonder if he checked with any of the local wineries đ¤¨
![Small Favors features local ingredients [replay]](https://indianapublicmedia.org/images/eartheats-images/nick-d.jpg)
@markstos slappin people about
https://mark.stosberg.com/ron-smiths-record-on-sidewalk-equity/
A two-way protected bike lane on the north side of 2nd Street from the B-Line to Walker Street is in the works. The bike lane plan is hidden under the title "Modernization and Safety Improvements" so I hope they can do it quick before the NIMBYs notice!
#BloomingtonIN #BikeLanes #UrbanPlanning
West 2nd Street Modernization and Safety Improvements | City of Bloomington, Indiana
Bike/Ped commission met last night. City engineer wanted to add five stop signs across the 7-Line bikeway. Public comment was furious. Commission voted to recommend just one stop sign, on Dunn Street.
Bike repair stations on the IU campus. I had no idea!
Maintenance: Bicycles: Transportation Demand Management: Indiana University
Thought I'd try to make some videos with my Christmas GoPro. Here's my first attempt, a ride down Bloomington's 7-Line on the east side.
#BloomingtonIN #BikeTooter #cycling #GoPro
PizzaX driver cruised up the walking path and parked on the plaza between Ballantine and Jordan 𤨠#PizzaX #BloomingtonIN #IndianaUniversity
"When controlling for every other variable possible, residents who drove more were exposed to less air pollution, and vice versa."
Can attest. I add a couple of extra miles to my bike commute to avoid sucking exhaust on the side path of the 45/46 bypass every day.
(And, of course, biking is fun. But don't tell anybody!)
#cycling #BikeTooter #BloomingtonIN #AirPollution
L.A. residents who drive less are exposed to more air pollution, study finds
Just got an email from the Kerry Thomson campaign touting her accomplishments in blocking the elimination of single-family zoning and building lots of Habitat for Humanity houses. I wonder how far the city had to sprawl to get those built while still making sure the rich people got to keep their fancy plots? #BloomingtonIN #UrbanPlanning #KerryThomson
Bloomington mayor asks city council to consider road closure in Lower Cascades Park. I don't see this happening. It's a nice idea but pretty unpopular; and the park isn't reachable in 15 minutes by foot from...anywhere, really.
#HoosierMast #BloomingtonIN #UrbanPlanning #RoadDiet
Hamilton asks city council to consider road closure in Lower Cascades Park
Sunny and 70 degrees in Bloomington, IN! Two weeks until winter is over!
Thank you, Bloomington City!
In April of 2021, the Bloomington City Council voted unanimously to add nearly 80 âNo Turn on Redâ signs in the downtown and campus areas to increase safety. Both the Bicycle and Pedestrian Safety Commission and the Traffic Commission endorsed the measure, which was taken to protect pedestrians and cyclists, the most vulnerable users of roads, in the areas of heaviest pedestrian and bicycle traffic.
BikingInLA: "Talk about not getting it. Less than a month after People For Bikes named a fully separated Bloomington, Indiana bike lane the 5th best new bike project in the US, a local mayoral candidate wants to redesign it to make it safer for other road users. Because apparently, bikeways are there to protect buses and emergency vehicles, too."
@chronicallydave@masthead.social Full credit to mayoral candidate Susan Sandberg for coming out against bike infrastructure. Hopefully we can get her out of there now.
3 Bloomington mayoral hopefuls speak at first forum
@eyebee In Bloomington, IN it is 60F. Biking without gloves today. We should also be in the middle of winter. #ClimateDiary #BloomingtonIN #HoosierMast
Mayor Hamilton: We're rich. Don't f#@K with us. #BloomingtonIN #upzone
Ordered a Kerry Thomson yard sign a couple of weeks ago. Wonder if I'll get it.
Not sure if Thomson is really going to be on the right side of the density and transportation issues that Bloomington has, but anyone would be better than the horrible Susan Sandberg, and Don Griffin hasn't raised much cash yet.
Bloomington power grab by a bunch of NIMBY's
#BloomingtonIN #HoosierMast #cycling #UrbanPlanning
Referred to committee: Should city council remove member of Bloomingtonâs traffic commission for âposting obscene and inappropriate statementsâŚâ?
Bloomington's 7-line is on this list of the best new bike lanes.
#BloomingtonIN #cycling #BikeLanes #HoosierMast
Bloomington takng feedback on Hawthorne & Weatherstone Greenway
"(The Hawthorne Greenway) is meant to create a safer north-south connection between IUâs campus and the neighborhoods south of Hillside by installing traffic calming structures. The goal is to get people to drive around 15 miles per hour in neighborhoods."
Drop a note to the city if you live around. This is an important part of the Bloomington bike grid.
#HoosierMast #cycling #BloomingtonIN
My neighborhood has a walk score of 4, but I've just realized there is somewhere I can walk to in 15 minutes.
The gas station.
"Mayor John Hamilton on Saturday condemned an apparently racist attack earlier this week near Bloomingtonâs B-Line trail."
You know, they probably could have said it occurred "near 4th Street, a place where drivers often have their cars".
#BloomingtonIN #transit #racism
Bloomington Peace Choir performing at the library #BloomingtonIN #mlk
Very nice trail. I biked out 17th and Vernal to get to it, 17th is under construction but should have a nice bike lane before this time next year. Apparently you can pick up the Heritage trail at the Ellettsville end but I didn't see how to do that.
@chronicallydave A lovely bike route down 7th and Rollo wants to ruin it with stop signs every block. I sure hope he doesn't get reelected.
I can't believe I found out about this just as the storm hits.
"The opening of a newly completed segment of the Karst Farm Greenway in Monroe County.
The 2.67-mile asphalt extension accommodates both pedestrians and cyclists...the project extends the existing 4.5-mile trail north to Highway 46 in Ellettsville. The entire trail now covers approximately 7.3 uninterrupted miles.
"Bicycles, which were purchased by Bloomington attorney Ken Nunn, are given to children for Christmas at the Boys and Girls Club on December 15, 2022 in Bloomington, Ind. Retired Bloomington firefighter Lee Chapman helped organize the giveaway."
(Photo gallery at the link) #cycling #charity #BloomingtonIN #HoosierMast
Not sure what I think about this. This police car is blocking the road so the car on the right can be gotten unstuck by a tow truck. But did they really have to block the bike lane too?
#BikeLanes #BikeLaneUprising #cycling #HoosierMast #BloomingtonIN
Sales were almost definitely not helped by free parking downtown. Setting aside the attraction for drivers of cruising the streets to find that one perfect parking space, and whatever parking meter revenue was given up by the city, there's no telling how many people took advantage of the free parking to let their cars sit and take up space for several hours.
http://blog.benfulton.net/2022/11/the-high-cost-of-free-back-friday.html
Dave Rollo wants to give himself veto power over all biking improvements
"City staff shall present the resolution and report to the Common Council for action. If the resolution is not adopted by the Common Council, the project does not proceed to installation."
#UrbanPlanning #BloomingtonIN #cycling
https://bloomington.in.gov/onboard/meetingFiles/download?meetingFile_id=11083