Showing posts with label Improvements. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Improvements. Show all posts

Friday, February 13, 2009

Assembly Meeting - 2/3/09

Been to busy to post much but have two questions regarding the testimonies against Spenard Road improvements during the last assembly meeting:

  • How will the businesses suffer after the proposed improvements?
  • What part of 241 accidents since 2004 just between Fireweed and Northern Lights appears to be unbroken?

...and thanks Matt and Maureen for your great testimony, keep up the great work!

Sunday, December 21, 2008

Spenard Road Improvements

Plans for Spenard Road should be applauded. Spenard has evolved into a dangerous thoroughfare due to our planning based only on the almighty automobile. Like many arterials, sidewalks and trails have been reduced in favor of greater traffic flow.

The three lane solution will be a vast improvement to the current high speed four lane scenario which has people weaving and dodging vehicles waiting to turn. The proposed middle lane will consolidate the two inner lanes and allow for queuing space for vehicles crossing Spenard into the opposite lane. Wider sidewalks will improve the safety of pedestrians and provide room for temporary snow storage and help city maintenance crews. I only wish that the new plan included intermittent pedestrian crossings at key locations. Currently pedestrians and cyclists are compelled to jaywalk due to the great distances between traffic signals.

It seems that the character of Spenard Road wants to be different that that of Northern Lights or Benson. Rather than a high speed arterial it should be a focus and amenity for the neighborhoods that define it. I have experienced a lot of changes to Spenard during the last 30 years, both good and bad. The current plan will make it safer for residents and businesses of Spenard; it’s time to heal the wound which slices through the heart of our neighborhood.