tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2259595163018451877.post1100407144382995070..comments2023-07-20T10:11:24.691-05:00Comments on Premeditated Living: Just a Little Observation About Street Planningcpa3485http://www.blogger.com/profile/00031439889267356735noreply@blogger.comBlogger8125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2259595163018451877.post-11067333597831649152010-11-30T14:14:19.592-06:002010-11-30T14:14:19.592-06:00Jack,
Our roads here are really pretty good and I ...Jack,<br />Our roads here are really pretty good and I like them. It is just that they seem to be a little too pretty at times. Some day I'll tell the tale of Kellogg Avenue, here in Wichita. A highway through the center of town (east west) that has been receiving inprovements over the past 2 decades, but was much needed well before that time.<br />I cannot pretend to be able to predict future traffic patterns, but in some cases I think I may have much more ability in that area than some of the "planners" we now employ.<br /><br />Jimbocpa3485https://www.blogger.com/profile/00031439889267356735noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2259595163018451877.post-26484447318951222012010-11-30T14:10:57.659-06:002010-11-30T14:10:57.659-06:00Gary,
I appreciate your observations about the roa...Gary,<br />I appreciate your observations about the roads in the USA. You certainly have seen a lot of them. We Kansans are pretty proud of our roads and the state legislature and the Highway lobby seem fairly tight with each other. But recently with state budget issues looming big, the highway fund got raided a bit last year and may again next year. I just wish that they would build things a little more sensibly and economically. Building something like a road at an efficient price seems to have become a thing of the past. <br /><br />Jimcpa3485https://www.blogger.com/profile/00031439889267356735noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2259595163018451877.post-58523494472893786042010-11-30T09:13:38.120-06:002010-11-30T09:13:38.120-06:00Dear CPA3485 (Jimbo):
First of all, many states a...Dear CPA3485 (Jimbo):<br /><br />First of all, many states and cities represented by reptiles in Washington, D.C. screamed their lungs out for stimulus money to be used on local projects with the thought of putting local guys to work. That opens the door... <br /><br />Next, follow the money trail. Repaving, "improving," or widening roads may enhance the value of certain real estate. Find out who on the city council has a vested interest in the improvement of roads adjacent to various properties and you may find some of your answers.<br /><br />Finally, city managers and council people are often miles off on their projections. I can assure you there is nothing more aggravating than to find yourself choked by roads and highways built in the '30's now handling traffic for which they were never designed. This is case all over in New Jersey. <br /><br />I cordially invite you and Gary Frances (who seems like a great guy) to take a leisurely spin through the traffic circle in Flemmington, NJ (at 4:30pm on a Friday afternoon) for a real eye-opener. Leslie (Stiffie) is from Nebraska, and she froze like a deer on an artillery range going into the buzz-saw at Flemmington.<br /><br />So it is a delicate balance to see which highway-improvement stretches are motivated by forward-thinking civic leaders, and which are directed by money-grubbing self-serving political hacks. I think you did the right thing to contest the widening of that road at the town meeting, especially if it entailed the seizure of private proprty (with reimbursement at far less than market value). <br /><br />Fonderst regards,<br />Jack • reep • Toad<br />Twisted RoadsJack Riepehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07531160098262862027noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2259595163018451877.post-18297700780409673722010-11-30T04:33:28.373-06:002010-11-30T04:33:28.373-06:00I am not sure about building new roads in the US, ...I am not sure about building new roads in the US, but from what you had said Jim, that new road isn’t needed or wanted. I can say that in my travels across the US, I very rarely experienced traffic congestion like I see in Europe almost every day. Sure, I saw it in big cities in the US, but apart from that, there was almost none. You road system is very good compared to the rest of the world.<br /><br />I am in a position to comment about the general condition of roads in the US, having just ridden quite a few of them. In some states, interstates are just downright dangerous for bikes and I found that the nearer I was to large cities, the worse the interstate road surfaces are. I didn’t ride much on interstates, but I did see some horrors that could easily catch bikes out – mainly huge cracks that were sometimes wider than narrow bike wheels, but the worse thing was sudden changes on the surface level between lanes, making lane changing especially dangerous. New York and California were the states with the worse interstates that I noticed.<br /><br />Generally, due in part to the Re-Investment Act, the surfaces of most other roads was generally good, with some notable exceptions. I saw some horrible road surfaces in Maine and of course the further north you ride in the US, you are likely to see more tar snakes as the roads are affected by frost, ice and snow.<br /><br />Overall, I would say the quality of US roads is pretty good. Certainly better than in Europe and I think I know why that is. In Europe, most utilities (gas, water, electricity, cable, telephones, sewers) are all underground and that generally means under the roads. That means any work to them means digging up the roads and we suffer from road-works far worse than in the US. Additionally, when they have finished and relay the road surface, the utility companies generally do a poor job of patching the road and it often fails, causing many potholes, which we all know are very dangerous for bikes. In the US, where many utilities are on poles above ground, the extent of potholes is much less, although US citizens have to look at very ugly poles and wires everywhere.<br /><br />I found many roads in the US being re-surfaced. Far more than I expected. Talking to people about this during my tour, they were generally happy that the roads were being improved, but I found many people that were very bitter about the cost of this and the impact on their taxes.<br /><br />Overall, I would say US roads are excellent, with a few notable exceptions. With such a huge country where owning a car is an absolute must, this is not surprising. I do wish that the cars were not as big as they are, as a huge amount of gas is being wasted feeding vehicles with such high consumption rates. Cars got smaller in the US after the previous oil crisis, but then grew in size again as memories of that crisis diminished. I do worry however what the US will do when the oil begins to run out....Gary Francehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05163380727432573785noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2259595163018451877.post-86826925560179140062010-11-29T16:36:50.091-06:002010-11-29T16:36:50.091-06:00Bobskoot,
Your comment about bike lanes stirkes an...Bobskoot,<br />Your comment about bike lanes stirkes another chord. Wichita is not particularly bike friendly compared to other places, but lately they have been trying to do more and have re-painted some stripes on some roads to show bike lanes. In spots, what they have done is just plain wierd.<br /><br />Jimbocpa3485https://www.blogger.com/profile/00031439889267356735noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2259595163018451877.post-32381628475326181222010-11-29T16:35:14.163-06:002010-11-29T16:35:14.163-06:00Howard,
Our streets around here are usually in pre...Howard,<br />Our streets around here are usually in pretty good shape. Extreme weather can cause problems sometimes, but eventually they get things fixed pretty well. It's just that it seems sometimes that they can do with a little less. We have one highway through town that has all sorts of decorations on some of the concrete side walls. Oh, they look cool, but totally unnecessary.<br /><br />Jimcpa3485https://www.blogger.com/profile/00031439889267356735noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2259595163018451877.post-19967216973442099942010-11-29T14:16:12.199-06:002010-11-29T14:16:12.199-06:00cpa3485: Nothing is logical in whatever Governmen...<b>cpa3485:</b> Nothing is logical in whatever Governments decide to do. Don't get me started on bicycle lanes. They have taken over many roads and bridges to make these segregated lanes. During the last snow storm, they have started to clear snow from these deicated lanes too, even though no one rides bicycles in the snow.<br /><br />bob<br /><a href="http://www.wetcoastscootin.blogspot.com" rel="nofollow">Wet Coast Scootin</a>Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05258612401956399482noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2259595163018451877.post-87561721557310432262010-11-29T11:13:52.557-06:002010-11-29T11:13:52.557-06:00Our problem, here, is that the roads we have, aren...Our problem, here, is that the roads we have, aren't being maintained. Most haven't been resurfaced in many years and there is still very little money being budgeted for street maintenance and repair.<br /><br />Tucson has only one freeway around the outskirts of town. The fact that we have only surface streets makes this a good town for scooters, but hitting a pot hole on 10 inch wheels can be quite dangerous.<br /><br />Howard<br />inthedesertscootinHowardhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04274279121160911420noreply@blogger.com