I commuted by walking for three years from Old West Durham to the Franklin Center at the corner of Erwin and Trent, and frequently went to restaurants and Duke offices farther west. Erwin Road was by far the hardest portion of those journeys.
The improvements that would have helped me can still be of great benefit to others. Hope you'll recommend to NCDOT the following:
1) raised pedestrian refuge "islands" in the center of Erwin, especially at the Trent, LaSalle, and Duke Hospital driveway intersections;
2) responsible party to keep sidewalks clear; the large amounts of garbage (whole bags, cardboard boxes, tires, etc.) was not what I would ever have expected but unfortunately common;
3) tighter turning radii to slow down right-turning cars at all intersections especially on southbound Trent Drive, where drivers often maintained too much speed when exiting from 147.
On the plus side, there are some things already in place that NCDOT should ensure are kept: sidewalks on both sides the entire length of the road, curb cuts, high-visibility markings at crosswalks.
It makes zero sense for Erwin Rd to he how it is. It is a lack of skill and imagination on the part of the traffic engineers. The road would be improved 10 fold by putting protected bike lanes on either side. Best part... We wouldn't even have to fight about losing parking! The city of Durham must put its foot down and put its equity money where its environmental mouth is and tell the state DOT what is what and do the road right. More of the status will only succeed in more deaths and injuries,and more pollution.
I drive on Erwin every day and do not actually see a ton of bikes. Outside of morning/afternoon rush hour, traffic is pretty light.
I think a big issue is traffic going much faster than they should be and the road is in terrible condition. Also if you miss one light, you miss subsequent lights, which causes issues with bikes and folks trying to cross the street early without the walk signal and drivers trying to speed up to make a light.
As commenters below have said, while the sidewalk is raised, there’s very little space between road and sidewalk. It’d almost be more beneficial to really examine who is biking in the area and where are they going. If the majority are going to Duke, maybe build a nice pathway to cut over around Anderson on one end and research drive on the other end to go through campus.
Having driven on Erwin daily for years, I just am not able to picture how this feasibility could work with many many right turn-offs. It’s going to cause a mess for bicycles and drivers. People are really aggressive on this road without really any policing.
I commuted by walking for three years from Old West Durham to the Franklin Center at the corner of Erwin and Trent, and frequently went to restaurants and Duke offices farther west. Erwin Road was by far the hardest portion of those journeys.
The improvements that would have helped me can still be of great benefit to others. Hope you'll recommend to NCDOT the following:
1) raised pedestrian refuge "islands" in the center of Erwin, especially at the Trent, LaSalle, and Duke Hospital driveway intersections;
2) responsible party to keep sidewalks clear; the large amounts of garbage (whole bags, cardboard boxes, tires, etc.) was not what I would ever have expected but unfortunately common;
3) tighter turning radii to slow down right-turning cars at all intersections especially on southbound Trent Drive, where drivers often maintained too much speed when exiting from 147.
On the plus side, there are some things already in place that NCDOT should ensure are kept: sidewalks on both sides the entire length of the road, curb cuts, high-visibility markings at crosswalks.
A bike-friendly Erwin Road? Where do I sign up? Who do I call/write to?
I'm a Duke employee and bike-commute daily on Erwin Rd. It takes all the skills I have learned from 20+ years of bike commuting to stay safe on Erwin.
I'm sure that Erwin (and other bike-unfriendly roads that approach campus) are a major barrier to people who might otherwise consider biking to Duke.
It makes zero sense for Erwin Rd to he how it is. It is a lack of skill and imagination on the part of the traffic engineers. The road would be improved 10 fold by putting protected bike lanes on either side. Best part... We wouldn't even have to fight about losing parking! The city of Durham must put its foot down and put its equity money where its environmental mouth is and tell the state DOT what is what and do the road right. More of the status will only succeed in more deaths and injuries,and more pollution.
I drive on Erwin every day and do not actually see a ton of bikes. Outside of morning/afternoon rush hour, traffic is pretty light.
I think a big issue is traffic going much faster than they should be and the road is in terrible condition. Also if you miss one light, you miss subsequent lights, which causes issues with bikes and folks trying to cross the street early without the walk signal and drivers trying to speed up to make a light.
As commenters below have said, while the sidewalk is raised, there’s very little space between road and sidewalk. It’d almost be more beneficial to really examine who is biking in the area and where are they going. If the majority are going to Duke, maybe build a nice pathway to cut over around Anderson on one end and research drive on the other end to go through campus.
Having driven on Erwin daily for years, I just am not able to picture how this feasibility could work with many many right turn-offs. It’s going to cause a mess for bicycles and drivers. People are really aggressive on this road without really any policing.
There is a nice sidewalk,
On both sides!