Submitted by DefibrillatorKink t3_zbh214 in ColumbiaMD
Now to add bike lanes to cedar lane đ„”đ„”đ„”
Comments
Bramblinman t1_iyswp65 wrote
Itâs a huge improvement but crossing Snowden river is still problematic
ladyflyer88 t1_iyu62i9 wrote
I would love to see something down Dobbin, even if it was just to Wegmans. Dobbin scares me.
DefibrillatorKink OP t1_iysx29r wrote
Honest to God don't know how they would fix that road without causing massive congestion and spending tons of money
kaki024 t1_iytfgkj wrote
The only thing I can think of itâs a pedestrian bridge. Snowden is such a wide road the pedestrian signal would take forever
DefibrillatorKink OP t1_iytg4bl wrote
I hope they do something like that. Isn't there a technical school or college on Snowden?
emleh t1_iyr85gy wrote
I really donât understand the utility of this decision. Columbia has tons of pathways, which tend to get you places more quickly than the main roads. Further, most people are biking for pleasure, not to get places like work or the grocery store. A better use of funds would be to improve the bus system. It runs every hour and the mall is the transfer hub. It has been like this for at least 30 years with no improvement.
kaki024 t1_iyrib7h wrote
The big thing for me was the added cross walks and reducing it to one lane of cars. The added left hand turn lanes are a big deal too. Itâs a lot safer to cross that road now. The bike lanes are just a bonus.
BraveRock t1_iytrzk8 wrote
I wish the Little Patuxent Parkway loop had more than one cross walk.
emleh t1_iyrio30 wrote
The county did a huge study and found that many sidewalks were not ADA compliant so I absolutely agree with that being addressed. However, reducing to one lane has increased the congestion, even with the turning lanes.
kaki024 t1_iyriysn wrote
Iâd bet the congestion is less about one lane each way and more due to the fact that people canât go 50mph anymore. I grew up in Sewells Orchard and we knew that you never try to cross Oakland Mills Road because people drive too fast.
DefibrillatorKink OP t1_iyrq1vx wrote
Congestion hasn't really been too much of a problem for me on the new road. I do deliveries in Columbia sometimes during rush hour and only had problems at one light. IMO the two lane design makes me feel cramped when other cars pass by. Cedar Lane has this problem too. Some people still speed, but I've noticed that there is much less of that.
emleh t1_iyrjxwn wrote
People still fly down OM Road! I followed a cop going 55.
DefibrillatorKink OP t1_iyrq73a wrote
Howard County cops don't care about speed lol. I've noticed less speeding though during my deliveries.
emleh t1_iyrqegt wrote
Howard County cops are useless in general. The community police officer where I live is afraid to even patrol the community.
DefibrillatorKink OP t1_iyrqmxf wrote
I've met 7 decent cops out of the 20 plus I've met, so I can believe this.
dirtycrabcakes t1_iysqi2o wrote
There is no âcongestionâ
emleh t1_iysqpkq wrote
Ok
jhopsecrets t1_iys5rhs wrote
I almost got absolutely destroyed on a bike on Oakland mills road. There's not a straight path from Snowden necessarily to the people bridge in Oakland mills to the mall. Oakland Mills road is the fastest route.
emleh t1_iys63bg wrote
From OM Road, there are multiple pathways along it that connect from Owen Brown to OM, where you can get to the bridge. I used to make this trip daily on foot when I was a teen.
jhopsecrets t1_iysyiqg wrote
I used to live next to the movie theater in Snowden and would ride my bike to my parents in Thunder Hill. That fastest route was down OMR.
emleh t1_iysz42s wrote
How long did it take you by bike on OMR?
FineWinePaperCup t1_iyreref wrote
If you build it, they will come.
Thatâs the clichĂ© was to say that what you are saying is how it is now. But the point it to encourage change. Maybe more will bike if there are bike lanes?
emleh t1_iyrezgd wrote
Not likely. Columbia is very car-centric. People donât move to Columbia for bike lanes.
FineWinePaperCup t1_iyrg5ud wrote
I moved to Columbia (from Pasadena) because it was a more bikeable community. But also, maybe people who love here will be encouraged to bike on close errands. Iâm only one anecdote, but living in Wilde lake, I only bike to CVS and Whole Food. Iâm heading to whatever you call the area by busboys and poets in a few minutes, and I want to bike, but rain.
emleh t1_iyrgn5g wrote
I think most people who come to Columbia do so because of the schools and safety. Iâve lived in Columbia almost my whole life and the development has really ruined the vibe and culture of the community. Even with the bike lanes, so many people still bike in the streets outside of the lanes. I just wish Columbia would invest in meaningful things.
vpi6 t1_iyrijnk wrote
> Iâve lived in Columbia almost my whole life and the development has really ruined the vibe and culture of the community.
Lol. You just donât like change. Cultureâs just fine. Kids are running around the neighborhood just like before, fields are full of soccer games every week end, etc.
emleh t1_iyriz1e wrote
Untrue. Iâm open to change but Columbia was not supposed to be a developers dream. When I was a kid, the streets were filled with children. Not so much anymore.
vpi6 t1_iyrkwll wrote
What if I told you Columbia is literally supposed to be a developers dream. From start to finish. Who do you think Rouse was? Lmao.
What would you say to old farmers who said all the development in the 70 and 80s âruined the vibe and culture of the communityâ
Also, the older neighborhoods are increasingly filled with old retirees whose children moved (because they canât afford houses in Columbia because we stopped building housing). Thatâs why there arenât as much kids. Newer places have more kids.
emleh t1_iyrmngc wrote
What if I told you I worked at The Rouse Company during the sale to GGP? It was a huge controversy because Rouse fought for diversity and affordable housing. His family chose to sell to a developer for a pretty hefty price, and Rouseâs vision was abandoned. Additionally, the farms were sold by the landowners. That was their choice. This wasnât some eminent domain kind of situation.
You mentioned the same level of kids, which I refuted, and now you are backing off on that point. I understand the demographics of Columbia because Iâve worked in population health and social services for a long time.
DefibrillatorKink OP t1_iyrqyid wrote
There are tons of kids in HoCo, they just spend their time indoors now. My little cousins usually don't go outside unless it's after school. Screentime is Funtime lol
emleh t1_iyrrdi1 wrote
Thatâs probably true! My kids play indoors all the time. Kids make up about 25% of the population so I guess thatâs significant.
vpi6 t1_iyrqmvv wrote
Do you really think this place would more affordable if nothing more was built? Really?
> Additionally, the farms were sold by the landowners. That was their choice. This wasnât some eminent domain kind of situation.
I used farmers as a proxy for anyone who lived here in the 60s. Donât run away from the point. Why is your idealized Columbia âruiningâ the vibe and culture of their community ok while you complain about development âruiningâ your community.
> You mentioned the same level of kids, which I refuted, and now you are backing off on that point.
Where? Where did you refute the number of kids in a neighborhood? You said there said there arenât as much kids in your area. I said the distribution was to newer developments. And you said nah uh I refuted it. So where is the refutation?
Never mind the link between development and your perceived decline in âcommunity characterâ is pretty nebulous.
Housing is continually blocked in Hoco by people like you who paint Rouse as a Jesus figure. Especially the apartments that would have housed lower income people. Iâm over the cult of Rouse.
emleh t1_iyrqtsy wrote
Thatâs fine. Iâm not here to convince you or change your mind, just provide some insight.
emleh t1_iyrrujz wrote
Also, newer developments arenât Columbia. They are either out parcels or other parts of Howard County (think Clarksville & Elkridge). Columbia is just overpopulated at this point. Development has made that so. There isnât enough infrastructure to support the population.
Appreciate your feedback, though.
emleh t1_iyrn0xs wrote
At the end of the day, the bike lane project has been in the works for over a decade and is championed by the guy who runs Merriweather & bikes for fun. This wasnât about transforming accessibility in Columbia.
DefibrillatorKink OP t1_iyrqd57 wrote
I agree, but I think they add some safety for sure. Also I remember this road being utter cancer to cross when I was younger.
emleh t1_iyrqm83 wrote
Yeah, itâs still not great. Because of the limited visibility due to the hills, itâs not an easy crossing.
DefibrillatorKink OP t1_iyrr8c1 wrote
I will say I was much more cautious driving on the road. Hope that says something, and I hope kids and adults can finally have some peace of mind on that heaping pile of hill called a road.
International_Ad2867 t1_iyt1213 wrote
Yeah so they're redistricting school zones? I heard this from a JHES teacher and there was some law or another that districts plan and avoid allowing children to cross two lane opposing traffick main roads over a certain width, and the added bike lane on Oakland Mills addressed that concern.
I really don't know the specifics, so for now it's just gossip.
i_live_in_maryland t1_iytboah wrote
They finished a new high school (opening this fall) so they had to re-do districts for that. I haven't seen any evidence the school system cares about the safety of walking children.... they recently decided to stop bus service to more kids who live > 1 mile from their school in order to make them walk.
Back in my day... I didn't have to walk over a mile to school because that's fucking ridiculous.
DefibrillatorKink OP t1_iytffgp wrote
The second I was allowed to practice driving I did it, Maryland is horrible for walkability and pedestrian friendly areas. I luckily had good bus stops for school where I lived, but I knew kids who would have to walk half a mile down sidewalk less roads. I'm also not surprised that they are building another school cause I remember atholton being super crowded and annoying. I don't believe they really care tbh.
emleh t1_iyt1p3k wrote
One of the issues they found in their walkability study for the whole county was that they had to bus students to school, who were otherwise in walking distance. This is a huge burden due to lack of drivers. I think itâs a good thing in general but it has been an annoyance for OMR, particularly because few if any cross that street to get to school.
cloudfoo t1_iytcg7n wrote
It's nice... But... They(county?) need to factor in some extra maintenance to clear leaves and debris from the bike lanes to ensure they are safe and usable for a cyclist traveling with speed year round. It's past the peak now but still not ideal.
I've already lost count of number of cyclists still using car lane... Right now I'm choosing to believe it's because they don't want to deal with debris in the more wood covered areas closer to Dobbin.
DefibrillatorKink OP t1_iytdps4 wrote
LMAO I passed by two large tree branches blocking the road today. At least HoCo is quick about cleaning the large hazards out of the way tho
21045Runner t1_iz7at6w wrote
The bike lane is almost unusable in the Fall. All the debris gets blown from the roadway or falls into the bike lane and then itâs a hazard to ride in. Before they âfixedâ Oakland mills road, the vehicle traffic would grind up the leaves and break down the sticks, not so anymore. Much like everything, this was a reasonable plan but in execution it pretty much sucks to ride it.
ConversationNext2821 t1_iyrzag6 wrote
They still need a crosswalk at Loring and Oakland Mills. That has always been a dangerous intersection. So they didnât completely fix OMR.
DefibrillatorKink OP t1_iyszuse wrote
I just want to add, be thankful we don't have the traffic that MoCo does. I've had family members almost die 4 times in the span of 7 months in Silver Spring and Rockville. My brother bikes here and has ZERO issues with too much traffic and idiots. Honestly just glad they're adding it, even if the majority still rely on cars.
rraszews t1_iyuc6ac wrote
I'm glad they added bike lanes but the proportions feel wrong on some parts of the road. Since long stretches in the middle now are basically dead space, I wish they'd narrowed it and left a shoulder on the southbound side
[deleted] t1_izcaqwp wrote
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Mar-Civac t1_iysr969 wrote
As someone that commutes to Gerwig Lane from EC, when the weather is nice and back again at the end of the work day, the bike lanes are an amazing improvement. That used to be the only scary part of my ride going down that road, and now my whole ride is now on CA paths, neighborhood streets, or bike lanes.