Fix trail with its future in mind
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The city of Victoria closed the hike and bike trail crossing Oct. 22 on both sides of John Stockbauer Drive. The crossing currently is blocked by orange netting.
Lynn Short, the city's public works director, said the crossing was "temporarily closed" until the city council discusses the options at its meeting today and decides how to proceed.
"The crossing at John Stockbauer Drive was temporarily closed because it was brought up in a city council meeting," Short said.
"They want to make it safer," Short said. "It's a safety issue."
The trail was constructed according to standard engineering specifications for multiple uses, including hiking and biking. The crossings were designed using the Manual of Uniform Control Devices.
Mayor Will Armstrong said the city complied with the rules or standards for such crossings, but the council felt it wasn't enough for safety on that particular street, which carries a lot of traffic at high rates of speed.
Armstrong said the potential for vehicles rear-ending other vehicles is great.
"Other people may have some ideas about what they would want to do. But I can speak for the entire council when I say we're all concerned about the safety."
Armstrong said what he would like to see is a sign that says, "Trail closed to bicycles," and "Cross street at lights."
He said that would add a good 3/8 mile to the trail for walking. On the north side of the closed crossing, Armstrong suggested running the route behind the fenced area owned by the power company and intersecting a sidewalk a block down from where it is now.
"We wouldn't have to buy anything except signage. The flashing warning lights there now should go to the fire stations; they need them," he said. "So no money would have been wasted."
Armstrong said this was only his idea, and more ideas will be shared at the council meeting.
We commend the city for seeking a safer trail at John Stockbauer Drive, and we are confident the council will come up with a good solution.
We also urge the city to figure out this issue because it will come up again as we complete a master trail plan.
The city needs to become a lot friendlier to pedestrians and bicyclists.
This editorial reflects the views of the Victoria Advocate's editorial board.
Comments
No pun intended, and my Native Homies won't mind.
If it bacame a trail to nowhere, I guess you could call it "Victoria's trail of tears".
November 9, 2009 at 7:34 a.m.the east school has plans for a future drive between the hill and the ugly energy substation.
if so then the trail could work off the signal lights and the current blinker lights can go to a railroads crossing somewhere.
then the $300k trail section behind the oil change thingy will become "the trail to no-where".
November 6, 2009 at 5:15 p.m.Well, if the problem at least got the mayor "thinking"; that's something!
Just kidding the mayor, I love "father time".
=P
November 6, 2009 at 4:12 p.m.The previous post is a common sense approach but unfortunately common sense was not considered when the law was passed nor was it considered when this trail crossing was built.
State law dictates that in a marked crosswalk the pedestrian has the right of way once he/she has stepped into the road. Good idea for crosswalks that are at signal controlled intersections (not suppose to turn right against the light when someone is in the crosswalk) but does not work for crosswalks in the middle of a block on a 45 MPH road.
By installing this marked crosswalk in a manner in which the law, in my opinion, was not intended to apply is the problem. The only solution that is going to protect the safety of people is to demolish a portion of the concrete on both sides of Stockbauer and redirect the traffic to a signal controlled intersection.
The solution was presented by the public works department but council decided to "wait" to see what happens when the high school opens. Bad idea and I hope they correct this situation now, not in ten months.
November 6, 2009 at 4:03 p.m.Why not do this... Leave the blinking light at the intersection with the walkway. Place a sign at the trails, intended for the trail users that says "Vehicle traffic has the right of way!" Take all the confusion out of the intersection, let the walkers/riders KNOW who has the right of way there. If people are too stupid to understand that and wait for the car traffic to clear, they don't need to be out alone!
November 6, 2009 at 2:35 p.m.