To build on this a bit, it would be good to know how they view connectivity from areas outside of downtown to downtown via bike infrastructure.
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I think that the greenway needs to be both recreational and alternative transportation infrastructure. To that end, I think that the city should map priority transportation corridors within the context of the greenway and either fill in the gaps where sections are missing, improve crossings of the greenways over high traffic roads, or both.
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The 2020 greenway master plan does this: Capital Area Greenway Master Plan Update
They also plan to classify trails as “oak city”, “scenic”, or “neighborhood”, where the oak city trails are more transportation oriented. They’ve also planned a ton more trails and mapped at-grade crossings. However, improving lighting and hours is an absolute necessity for greenways as transportation, which needs to be evaluated in the future. And the plan itself hasn’t been adopted yet, I believe.
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Lighting was originally included in the typical sections for most of the trails, but it was removed due to “community feedback,” which is… frustrating to say the least.
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It depends on the areas they go through. Generally the greenways and parks are considered closed after dark. Changing that in some places is fine, but some of them also run through nature areas and close to residences. They can’t be brightly lit 24 hours a day.
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I have to imagine there are commercially available motion detected lights for such an application, although the cost and subsequent maintenance would not be ideal. Then again, lower runtime hours on the lights could extend maintenance intervals.
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Somehow we manage to light streets for cars 24 hours a day. 
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And street lights and high powered LED flood lights pierce my house from the neighbors at all hours of the night…
Yeah and you should see all the complaints about that. Street lights have been common for a hundred years or more, but lighting up people’s back yards suddenly across Raleigh to allow for night time bike riders is going to be a harder sell.
My point wasn’t against lighting some greenways, it’s about establishing preferred routes and prioritizing them.
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If we can’t get off grade crossings, we need at least on demand signalling for riders.
You don’t have to light the air, you just need to light the path. This can be done without destroying backyards with light by keep light sources closer to the ground and directed at the path.
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Right but those complaints about street lights go straight into the city’s garbage bin, meanwhile complaints about lighting bike paths got lighting eliminated from the typical sections of even the largest and most urban greenways planned in the city. The city needs to decide whether it wants its greenways to be useful for active commuting or to appease the relatively small number of home owners who live immediately adjacent to urban greenways.
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The lighting possibility isn’t removed yet. There will be an evaluation and an opportunity for public input, I believe. Obviously, we need to advocate for the best lighting we can get, especially for parts of the Greenway useful for transportation.
Also, I live right next to the walnut creek greenway and I would absolutely love some good lighting. A bunch of my neighbors have string and flood lighting around their houses for safety, anyway.
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FYI in case anyone was planning to attend tomorrow’s Council meeting—due to Mayor Baldwin testing positive for COVID-19, it has been moved online.
https://www.newsobserver.com/news/local/article260518622.html#storylink=mainstage_lead
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I really like that question about what rezonings the candidate supported and liked. I would also add,
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“which for profit developers work do you like the most?”
If you can’t find any for profit development that has a redeeming quality…you might not be a good person to guide the city towards the type of development we want. -
“What have you liked about how the affordable housing bond was used, and what would you change?”
I often feel like the things we are actually doing get ignored, and it makes me think people throwing stones don’t have actual better plans.
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I’m all for development and increased density but not at the expense of the few remaining historic buildings we have left. Not necessarily a question but if you could let the candidates know that “Phil” will vote for anyone who takes a hard line on historic preservation, that would be cool. Thanks. fist bump.
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I saw the city council wants to reduce the speed limits all over Raleigh apparently, and make it easier to do so in various areas.
I personally like driving, and driving quickly, so I’m maybe not super excited about this. I also realize this is not a popular opinion on this forum, which is fine.
My question is: wouldn’t it also be helpful to actually enforce the speed limits with cops, instead of assuming a sign will fix the purported issue? I know those No Parking signs and the current speed limit signs work oh-so-well…
Speed limit signs do very little, in my opinion. And there’s a potential bias issue when you enforce limits with cops. I’ve heard DC’s speed cameras are somewhat effective, though I don’t have personal experience with them.
The issue is the design of the streets, more than anything. If a driver feels safe driving at 30/40/50 mph, they will drive at that speed, no matter the speed limit. From NotJustBikes: The Wrong Way to Set Speed Limits [ST06] - YouTube
Or, in text form: Understanding the 85th Percentile Speed
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Right? The effective speed limit on roads like Glenwood and Wade is like 45 because they’re key commuting arteries. I doubt new signs and very very rare speeding tickets for a couple drivers will change that.
I’ve defended speed cameras before here, and I really do think they’re the way to go. It’s not like they’re hidden (there are usually signs warning you of their presence), and they, unlike a human being in a patrol car, have no biases. It’s not like Raleigh cops enforce traffic laws much here anyway. Regularly blows my mind how much more you can get away with here than you can in the Northeast.
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