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autotelica t1_j9cjffs wrote

I admit to riding through some intersections. But never Belvidere and Franklin. Not only is there a lot of traffic there, but it is a super complicated traffic pattern.

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Captain_Tiberius t1_j9d1wkm wrote

Going westbound on Franklin in the bike lane is a nightmare. Car drivers going eastbound and turning left onto Belvidere rarely look for on-coming cyclists, especially when they are trying to beat the light.

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coldblackmaple t1_j9dl60b wrote

It’s horrible. I often cut across Franklin to get on the sidewalk on the south side of the street and cross Belvidere on that side. I know that’s not ideal for several reasons but the alternative sucks too.

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Captain_Tiberius t1_j9dm7e3 wrote

That’s the safest maneuver when Belvidere has greens in both directions. When Franklin has a green and the crosswalk is counting down, the logical and legal westbound bike move is to go straight through the intersection. But you 100% have to bike defensively and assume the cars don’t see you because turning cars rarely yield there.

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PayneTrainSG t1_j9d329w wrote

If this city had a high supply of cash and didn't know what to do with it, one thing I would spend it on would be a bike lane tunnel under Belivdere for the Franklin lanes east of Franklin that pops the lanes out on the Monroe Park side of the street until Monument. I can't imagine riding a bike through that with any considerable speed even on a green light.

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JosefDerArbeiter t1_j9dcdye wrote

Hell yeah. Like the tunnel under Overbrook at Battery Park.

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PayneTrainSG t1_j9dhgf3 wrote

My dream would essentially turn Franklin/Monument into an East-West bike highway that runs from Willow Lawn to Main Street Station. Mixture of tunnels under bigger roads, and 2/3 of secondary streets that intersect it with modal filters and the remainder with bike-priority signal and intersection design.

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JosefDerArbeiter t1_j9djmr5 wrote

Nice. My dream is for some of the region's rail lines to get consolidated into multi use asphalt paths. Imagine the railroad bridge next to the Powhite Parkway bridge having an asphalt path with guard rails giving dedicated trail access from Southside to Scott's Addition/Northside.

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