[SDCBC] "Actuarial inevitability" my #(#$&@ !

[JonIsaacs at aol.com]

In a message dated 7/18/07 9:44:38 AM Pacific Daylight Time, 
forester at johnforester.com writes:

> It is standard highway practice, and therefore should be standard Class One 
> Bikeway practice, to notify travellers when they approach conditions that 
> unexpectedly present a danger that is not similar to the typical conditions 
> along the route. The sharp corner sign, with a slow speed notice, probably would 
> be appropriate at this point, and a center line might be appropriate also. 
> 
John et. al.

I agree that proper signage is important...  

I have ridden the path in question several times but have decided that West 
Mission Bay Drive is superior and so it has been a while since I have ridden 
that particular section.  This afternoon was indeed a glorious time to be riding 
a bicycle so I thought I would add a few miles to my normal ride home and 
refresh my memories of exactly what this path is like.

It is not good.  Besides the debris at the north/east entrance, the surface 
is rough, very bad in spots, it is narrow and it has several sections that are 
narrow enough that there may not be enough room for two riders to pass.   The 
section under Grand Ave is particularly bad and this afternoon (6pm) there was 
someone sleeping in the bike path wearing dark clothing, this was quite a 
surprise...  Further south there is the narrow entrance to the section that is 
walled on both sides by a tall chainlink fence.  

The section where the collision happened is actually quite wide with plenty 
of room for people to pass safely if they are riding on their side of the path. 
 I rode most of the path at about 13mph, some of the sections were quite 
rough and required slowing.

>From my point of view, the corner in question was typical of the rest of the 
path.  It is narrow and it requires attention to watch for debris, 
pedestrians, people sleeping, people drinking, narrow awkward sections.   This afternoon 
there was even a "CRIME SCENE, DONT CROSS" Yellow Tape across the path.

So, my original point was that collisions like this are not inevitable, they 
are easily avoided if riders pay attention to the road ahead and adjust their 
speed in accord to conditions ahead.

And too, this path needs serious improvement if it to serve the cycling 
community as a viable alternative to surface roads.  

That's my two cents

Jon





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