Walkabout on 10th Avenue, Vancouver

A few of us went for a walkabout along 10th Avenue in Vancouver to see how the City accommodated everything within the constrained, but also very typical 20m right-of-way. As shown above, people were mostly staying on the sidewalk which is encouraging. Read on for some more quick observations.

Bike path provides a good option for motorized wheelchair to pass pedestrians. They mostly stayed on the sidewalk except to overtake.

This small grade change really seems to help differentiate the two spaces, even though immediately adjacent. Surface treatment and pavement makings help too of course, but I think the small curb makes the biggest difference.

Interestingly, in comparison to the above example, when you have asphalt immediately next to and level with the sidewalk, it just looks like a temporary repair rather than a dedicated bike facility. Even some sort of buffer in pavers would help delineate the edge better.

A narrow street can even accept occasional large delivery vehicles, oncoming traffic might have to wait a second or two.

Not everyone obeys the rules though. this person riding their motorized scooter the wrong way... This isn't Amsterdam!

Don’t forget, people need to get on and off the bike path at t-intersections. Some form of letdown should be provided.

These sections are Copenhagenesque. I think ideally there’d be a bit of a buffer between the edge of bike path and roadway, but in constrained conditions with slow vehicles, maybe ok. Better than a painted lane. I worry about awkward passing.

Widening to property line can create grade challenges that require additional works to resolve.

Another unintended use of the bike path if its easy to encroach with a vehicle.

Very subtle rise in the bike path to keep the pedestrian crossing at the same grade.

Bike parking along the route is important too. No point being able to get there and not be able to lock your bike to something isn't going to encourage trips by bike.

Hospital zone signage tells you you’re entering an area a little different than a regular street, hopefully encourages more care.

Letdowns are always an issue on new bike paths and sidewalks. While keeping them at the same grade is preferable, I might favour ambulance patient comfort over pedestrians and cyclists. This is pretty smooth for both, but I'd like to see the same surface treatment carry through the driveway.

Vancouver flickr album updated with images from 10th Avenue https://www.flickr.com/photos/roysymons/albums/72157670312122253 …