Just a bike lane? What #fig4all really wants is …

 
It has been an exciting couple of weeks for Figueroa For All (or #fig4all as it is known on Twitter): going after Councilman Gil Cedillo for answers about the delayed North Figueroa Street bike lanes and coming together in solidarity at rides and meetings.

What is clear is bike lanes are not enough for this corridor. The people behind Figueroa For All want a safer street for pedestrians as well. In that spirit, we’ve compiled a (non-definitive) list of intersections missing proper curb ramps and in need of higher quality crosswalks at all four corners on N. Figueroa St.

Curb Ramps (cost of ~$1,500 per ramp):

• Avenue 26
• Amabel
• Avenue 52

Crosswalks (cost of ~$2,500 per continental-style crosswalk):

• Avenue 26
• Avenue 28
• Loreto Street
• Ulysses Street
• West Avenue 37
• East Avenue 43
• Woodside Avenue
• Sycamore Terrace
• South Avenue 54
• North Avenue 54
• Arroyo Glen or Piedmont
• La Prada

The intersection of Avenue 26 and N. Figueroa Street is not just a freeway on-ramp to the 5 South and the 110 North. The MTA’s Cypress Park/Lincoln Heights station is nearby and lots and lots of bus riders board or depart buses at this busy intersection. The LA River Center (and its employees) are close by. The Riverside Drive bridge and LA River bike path will introduce lots of cycling through traffic once their links to Avenue 26 are completed (around 2015). This intersection is currently over-run with single occupant vehicles – and there needs to be more planning and design work done to deal with the anti-human aspects of this important crossroads. Along with crosswalks, perhaps a traffic circle would help keep everyone moving smoothly at reduced speeds.

With some special grant dollars from an MTA Call for Projects we can re-anchor some traffic islands to medians or sidewalks at: Marmion Way/Pasadena Ave adjacent Greayer’s Oak Park; York Blvd. beside the Veterans Memorial and Senior Center; La Prada where the median stops 20′ short of intersection w. N. Figueroa St.

There are some other initiatives that need to go along with the bike lane implementation. Local schools need to be brought into the fold – sidewalks around schools need to be repaired, obstacles (like overgrown private hedges) need to be removed, curb ramps installed, and cultural support for those who walk or bike to school needs to be instituted (along with student, staff, and faculty protected bike parking!).

With proper curb ramps and crosswalks, and coordination around and with local LAUSD schools, Figueroa can become a street that serves all the people living along its length – be they solo car drivers or a mom pushing a stroller to the market.

See anything missing? Go ahead and leave a comment about it. We’ll edit the article to add your ideas and corrections