After the first round of citizen and business feedback in February, the city has sketched an initial plan for upgrading Riverside Avenue downtown. Between Monroe and Division streets, it wants to cut Riverside down from four lanes to three, add bike lanes, introduce on-street parking, and add bus stations and curb bump-outs for the planned Central City Line high-frequency bus route.
But it's still trying to figure out a few details. Take a survey on the city's website about some of the options for the downtown street at tinyurl.com/riversideupgrade.
There are two options for bike lanes, for example: The city could either put the bike lanes next to the on-street parking — asking cyclists to risk Hot Fuzz-style collisions with opening car doors. Or the city could put in a pricier protected "cycle track." Under that model, bicycles would be able to ride on separate trail, dedicated entirely to cycling, to the right of the curbside parking.
The city's also wondering whether to add angled parking. That takes up more space, eliminating the center turn lane, but would result in more parking spaces. Better yet, it would eliminate the need for parallel parking.
There's one last big decision on the survey: Should the city use traditional curb bump-outs for pedestrians at intersections? Or should it use paint and planters to help protect pedestrians at crosswalks, adding both beauty and flexibility? The survey must be completed by Friday, July 27.
