08-16-2017, 09:39 AM
Two things I wonder if we could do at trail/road crossings. I don't necessarily like the idea of a signalized crossing, as I'd expect that you'd never get that in a usable way. You'd likely wait far longer than if you'd merely wait for gaps. Maybe a pedestrian crossing-style pushbutton like near fairview park mall? But most importantly by use of only paint and signage: could we put a no-stopping area at and near the crossing? In Toronto, many intersections have that in them, to get cars to not get stuck in an intersection they can't get through, blocking cross-traffic when the signal changes. There are actually good pauses in at least one direction of traffic at places like Union and Weber, but the cars often block any direct path, and even if they leave a tiny gap, it's hard to look right for the other direction's oncoming traffic. It shouldn't be out of the goodness of a driver's heart that, when they are stopped southbound on Weber, they don't block access to the new island, it should be very explicitly drawn for them.
Second weirder infrastructure idea: trail crossing roundabouts. Cars obviously couldn't use them as anything but straight-throughs, but the idea would be to have a small central area, enough to slow down drivers just a bit, but legally speaking, if I'm heading south on the Spur Line Trail and can find a gap to get into the circle after westbound Union traffic opens, the eastbound Union traffic *MUST* yield to me to let me finish my crossing. You could conceivably do it with just signs and paint, but I think I'd want it to be more obvious, and force drivers to slow down a bit more.
Second weirder infrastructure idea: trail crossing roundabouts. Cars obviously couldn't use them as anything but straight-throughs, but the idea would be to have a small central area, enough to slow down drivers just a bit, but legally speaking, if I'm heading south on the Spur Line Trail and can find a gap to get into the circle after westbound Union traffic opens, the eastbound Union traffic *MUST* yield to me to let me finish my crossing. You could conceivably do it with just signs and paint, but I think I'd want it to be more obvious, and force drivers to slow down a bit more.