Bicycling in Bloomington

 Tomorrow I leave for a short vacation, so I won’t be back on the bike (except for my commute home tonight) until Monday. This morning, I did my usual ride - Old 446 but it was both cautious and quick.

Cautious first - a few years ago, I crashed my bike and broke my collarbone on the day before we were scheduled to go on vacation. It was during a period when I was doing more off-road riding. I was testing my skills by riding at the edge of a road that had a curb and trying to keep the bike within a foot of the curb. Going down a hill, I saw an unexpected road hazard (it shouldn’t be unexpected in Bloomington). I swung out to avoid it but quickly remembered that I hadn’t been monitoring the road for approaching cars. I swung back and caught the wheel in a little crack. It caused me to go into the curb and over the handlebars.

I broke my collarbone. I walked home (about .75 mile), and drove a manual transmission car to my doctor’s office. It was challenging to shift without being able to move my arm. But, it’s not nearly as impressive as Tyler Hamilton who rode most of 2003 the Tour de France with a broken collarbone.

So, I rode cautiously today. I waited a little longer before crossing intersections, and I didn’t make any quick decisions. I experienced a very considerate driver today. Travelling west on Moore’s Pike, I needed to turn south on Smith. I kept looking back for a break in traffic but there were many cars behind me. A driver slowed to let me pull across the lane for the left turn. I wonder if he was also a rider who could see what I needed to do.

Quick second - I did the ride in about 45 minutes, which is as fast as I ever ride it. I think it was quick because my legs weren’t tired from a long ride on Sunday. Also, I put air in the tires. I’d guess that I last put air in them in April. Yesterday, I stopped on my ride to work to see if the rear tire was flat because the rim was almost on the road.

My speed was consistently over 18 mph and my HR was in Zone 3 which is about 140 - 150 for me. The ride was essentially 6 - 8 long sprints. The speed was about 2-3 mph faster than my typical ride. I’m already looking forward to getting back on the bike on Monday morning.

Before reading this post, you should read the earlier post on riding on Bloomington streets. In Part 1, I describe street surfaces and conditions. In the addendum to Part 1, I further describe the conditions that lead to the sometimes dangerous streets in Bloomington. In this post, I describe traffic control and traffic patterns.

Traffic Control: The stop signs and traffic lights in Bloomington are not predictable. Caution is needed before crossing any street. At most intersections without traffic lights, one to four corners have stop signs and the number of stop signs is not predictable. After some time in Bloomington, bicyclists and drivers know which streets are signed on each corner so they can anticipate problems.

For the most part, drivers stop but sometimes they miss the signs; often because the signs are hidden by shrubbery. Bicyclists need to be cautious before proceeding through any intersection with stop signs.

Traffic lights are generally triggered by wires below the street surface or by video cameras. However, the main north and south streets - College and Walnut - are completely timed. Some lights are timed during certain hours and triggered at other times.

Bicycles and bicyclists can trigger very few traffic lights. The wires are generally not sensitive enough to have bicycles trigger them. The video cameras don’t see bicyclists.

About a year ago, I complained to the Bloomington Public Works department that a repaving covered a wire that sometimes could trigger a traffic light. I also mentioned a number of places that I am unable to trigger lights. The response was - we can’t do anything about it. Bloomington city government likes to say they are bicycle friendly but their actions are very different.

So, when approaching a traffic light in Bloomington, bicyclist should assume that they won’t be able to get a green light without help from a vehicle to trigger the light. Since there is always a lot of traffic on Bloomington streets, a vehicle usually arrives quickly. If not, and if it’s more than a minute, assume that you won’t get a green light and proceed when safe.

It’s a stupid system but it’s consistent with traffic management in Bloomington.

Traffic Patterns - Again, Bloomington has strange patterns that can create dangerous situations for bicyclists. Very often, streets will, without warning, change into turn lanes. Roadside signs are lightly used, very small, and hidden. Most indicators of lane changes are arrows on the street. Very often, drivers unexpectedly find themselves in lanes that will change direction but the driver didn’t want to change. In these cases, drivers make hasty decisions and bicyclists can be endangered.

A good example is a street that I travel each day on my commute. Travelling south on College Mall Rd, where cars routinely travel 50 mph, about 30 yards before street ends, there’s a hard right turn. It is not until after the turn that drivers can see the traffic light. And, almost without warning, the right line becomes right turn only. Drivers expecting to stay on the street continuing south must quickly change lanes at high speed. There is a small grey sign, well-camouflaged by a grey building, that warns of the lane change. The lane changing at the intersection often looks like a NASCAR race. Instead of a little sign, an urban interstate overhead sign is needed. This stupid traffic design is consistent with other traffic management decisions made by the city.

As a regular cyclist, I know what to expect at that intersection and most others in Bloomington. Cyclists new to town could find themselves in a dangerous situation because of the traffic patterns.

  I had to run a couple mornings this week because of limited time. During the runs, I observed the streets in my neighborhood and a few nearby neighborhoods. The experience reminded me that I did not fully describe the causes of Bloomington’s dirty (and sometimes dangerous) streets in the earlier post.

Much of the problem of dirty streets can be attributed to the local lifestyle.Cigarette filters are a high proportion of the litter on Bloomington streets. Indiana has one of the highest smoking rates in the country and its smokers happily and quickly throw their trash in the streets. I’ve observer smokers throwing cigarette filters on their own property.

Another lifestyle characteristic that creates dirty and often dangerous streets - Bloomington residents deposit their yard waste in the street. Many residents put their grass clippings in the street. While this isn’t particularly dangerous, it can hide hazards. The over-fertilized grass clippings often block drop inlets creating little dams that trap dirt, mud, etc on the streets. The grass clippings cause problems for the local water supply but that’s a different issue.

Perhaps the most dangerous behavior is putting leaves on the street. During the fall, many Bloomington residents rake and blow their leaves into the streets. These leaves sit, sometimes for months, decomposing, blocking water flow during rains, collecting other litter, and generally making the streets even dirtier. The city has an ordinance prohibiting the practice but it’s not enforced.

For bicyclists, this practice causes some serious problems. After rains, the leaves are wet and can be very slippery. The most dangerous problem is that the streets become narrower, often creating one lane (or less) for traffic to flow. In Elm Heights, just south of campus, the streets are already narrow and the leaf piles on the street make it dangerous for bicyclists and cars to pass in opposite directions. On my commute, the streets in Covenanter are sometimes so narrow that one car can’t pass through easily.

The leaf piles cause drivers to make strange decisions and prevent bicyclists from using the right side of the road. When there is one lane (or less), drivers assume they are entitled to the lane, even if they have to cross the center to use it. I’ve often faced drivers who cross the middle and force me off the street because they are avoiding leaves. The fall is a dangerous time for bicyclists in Bloomington.

Bloomington claims to be bicycle-friendly community but its behavior is far different from its words.

In two or three posts, I will describe in some detail the conditions for bicycle riding on Bloomington streets. This is the first post. Later, I will describe the conditions for riding on Monroe County roads.

Bloomington Streets

Street surfaces: In general, the street surfaces are good. Bloomington has mild, short winters, so the freeze/thaw cycles do not create many potholes. And, few potholes are in the area where bicycles normally travel. The major potholes are usually repaired quickly.

The streets have limited alligatoring. Occasionally, the patching is uneven. Through most of the city streets, bicyclists on fat tires can proceed without much concern about potholes and severely uneven surfaces. Those on skinny tires can usually negotiate these problems very easily.

Street debris: Bloomington has very dirty (FILTHY) streets. The right sides of the streets are filled will all sorts of debris - gravel, limbs, glass, stones, mud, litter. Most intersections have gravel. Bicyclists need to continually looking for problems on the street surface.

When I first moved to Bloomington, I mentioned to many people that I was surprised by how dirty the streets were. When travelling, I compared the city streets to Bloomington streets and all others were much clearer with far less debris. Even in more “questionable” areas. Last May, I was in Manhattan for a few days. I noticed again how much cleaner the NYC streets were than those in Bloomington.

Most locals did not agree that the streets are dirty, but few ever see the streets except from their cars. It might be thought that dirty streets are a policy of the local government. It’s certainly not a policy to keep them clean.

Last summer, some local government employees spilled oil on a street near our house. They then covered the spill with gravel and sand but did not remove either. I complained to the city government about it and they denied it. Only after two weeks of “discussing” the issue did they recognize what happened. But, they still didn’t clean it. The oil and gravel are now in the local streams.

In Bloomington, stupidity and incompetence do not disqualify anyone for either elected or appointed positions. I’ll describe some similar issues with city government in other posts about city streets.

For bicyclists, the street conditions mean that riding at the far right of the street can often be hazardous because of the debris. Unfortunately, many inexperienced bicyclists stay too far to the right on the streets to avoid impeding cars. In Bloomington, the street hazards are at least as bad as the problems caused by local drivers and the far right is not necessarily safe.

Sunday, June 3, 2007 - 8 AM - 11:15 AM (approximate)

I rode about 50 miles today. It was 10 more miles than planned but it was faster than expected, so I added a few more miles. The pace for the first 43 miles was about 15.3. I wandered a bit and then warmed down the last 1.5 miles, so the final pace was 15. 

The route was very similar to The Long Ride .  Spicewood, Smith Rd, 45, Boltinghouse, Anderson, up the Forest Rd, Hindustan, cross 37 to Bottom Rd, cross 37 again at Kinser Pike, Rogers St through Bloomington. At the bridge work south of town, I turned into a development; after a few wrong turns, backtracking, I found That Rd. Through Clear Creek, Fairfax, Schacht, Harrell, to Jackson Creek school, home on Sare.

One goal I had for the ride was to keep my HR low and I was successful. My HR going up the hill in the Forest was about 15 beats less than last week. Going up the Hindustan Hill, it never exceeded 125. It rarely exceeded 150.

The Sunday morning rides generally have little traffic and I experienced very little on this ride. I would guess that no more than 15 cars passed me going the same direction. From the time I turned off 45 until I reached 17th St on Kinser Pike, only 3 cars passed me.

During The Long Ride , my daughter and I were able to ride side by side for at least 2/3 of the ride. While Saturday morning generally has more traffic than Sunday, it was not enough to really affect much of the ride.

Friends in other parts of the country tell me how much vehicular traffic affects their rides. At least for rides in the rural parts of Monroe County, the traffic usually affects the rides very minimally.

Sunday morning traffic seems to be mostly people going to church. The “Buicks” pass slowly and cautiously. The SUVs pass quickly and perhaps more dangerously. The “Buicks” tend to be older couples who likely allow enough time to get to church. The SUVs seem to be stupids who are late for church.

The riding for this week is over. I rode Old 446 (flat route) Sunday, Tuesday - Thursday. My HR was steady and I felt rested by Thursday.

I commuted each day. It’s getting hot now, so I’m sweated after the commutes. This morning, I wore biking shorts and a t-shirt and packed dress clothes in my backpack. I had a meeting that required nicer clothes than I wanted to wear on a bike on a hot morning.

The traffic has been very light most of the week. Bloomington, like most college communities, loses a significant portion of the population in the summer. When the students are gone, it’s easier to eat in restaurants, go to movies, shop, etc. It’s also easier to commute and to travel through town on bike.

Tomorrow, I have to go to the BMV. Normally, I would ride to it (about 7 miles) but my wife is going with me. The ride would take me on some streets that are challenging for bicyclists because of traffic. I would have to travel on 2nd Street west of town. It’s narrow, high-speed, and has heavy traffic. There is no alternative route. It’s fun to do those rides occasionally to see how well I can handle them but 2nd Street is not for inexperienced bicyclists.

It’s one of the places in Bloomington that takes brain, brawn, and balls to ride.

Let me describe my morning commute. Of course, it’s the reverse of the evening commute but the conditions are a little different.

• I leave my neighborhood - Spicewood and go north on Sare Rd. Sare Rd has a quick downhill and I usually get 25+ mph on it.
• Then - the narrow, high-speed portion of the ride - about .25 mile where I try to exceed 20 mph because of vehicle traffic.
• Next, a four-lane high speed street. The posted speed limit is 30 mph but cars regularly exceed 50 mph. The right lane is wide, so there’s plenty of room for a bike.
• I need to make a left turn off the street, so as I approach the turn, I continually check behind me for a clear spot. When I find one, I dash across the two lanes to a turn lane.
• Then, through a quiet neighborhood with 2 short uphills.
• Past a shopping center, cross a four-lane street, and into a quiet neighborhood.
• When I leave the neighborhood, I have a short ride through grass, through a parking lot, and then a 50 yd walkway to the bike rack.
• Finish at Eigenmann Hall.

The commute is a little more than three miles. It seems more uphill going to campus than going home. My biggest challenge is to arrive without sweating too much. Many summer mornings, I’m kinda damp when I arrive.