Case Date:

9/6/2022

Good Morning, I received the following email message from Frances Elizabeth Sheets <fsheets@iu.edu> dated Fri, Sep 2, 2022 at 12:11 PM To: "martipa@bloomington.in.gov" <martipa@bloomington.in.gov> "To whom it may concern, Let me get right down to business: 7th street is an absolute fucking nightmare. I grew up in Bloomington, and now live close to downtown as I am a student at IU. This means that I navigate 7th street every single day. Let me tell you - this is not an easy task. I recognize and appreciate the effort that the city has put into the new bike lane running from campus to the B-line. As someone who rides a bike/electric scooter to get around, this bike lane is great. However, the bike lane coupled with the removal of stop signs between Indiana and Walnut has caused more problems than it has solved. Problem number 1: Absolutely no one knows when it is their turn to go. Specifically, when crossing 7th on Grant and Dunn, cars rarely (in my experience) yield to cyclists. This means that I have been inches away from being hit by a car multiple times while using the bike lane. There is no signage instructing cars to yield to those in the bike lane or vice versa. This is an immediate safety issue to me, and one that is relatively unavoidable as 7th street is the road I have to use to get to work, class, and back home every day. Since there is no bike lane on 10th street, using it as an alternate route is not a safer option. Problem number 2: Flow of traffic. Because there are no stop signs on 7th the flow of traffic is constantly a struggle. About half of all drivers stop and attempt to let pedestrians/cyclists/other cars either cross or turn. However, this often only happens in one lane, which means cars are regularly slowing, stopping, and then having to speed back up again because lines of traffic in one direction form very quickly. I experienced this literally five minutes before sitting down to write this email: there was a line of traffic waiting to turn from Grant, multiple cars slowing down traffic attempting to yield to those at the Grant stop sign, and myself and other pedestrians/cyclists trying to cross the road. Again, this is a blatant safety issue. Problem number 3: Visibility. This is more of a potential problem. Young trees have been planted along the median between the bike lane and the road. When these trees reach maturity, they will drastically lower visibility between the bike lane and the road, making the problems mentioned above even more dangerous. Since the stop signs were removed around six months ago, I have witnessed AT LEAST six car crashes on 7th between Grant and Dunn alone. I have also witnessed more drivers than I can count accidentally turning into the bike lane instead of onto the road. Pedestrians also walk in the bike lane frequently, and there was even a city-sponsored run/walk where participants were blocking the entire bike lane in front of the IMU. As someone who has both driven and biked along 7th, the removal of stop signs has not helped at all. If anything, it makes people drive unreasonably fast or unreasonably slow. Everyone I have talked to about this issue has agreed with me, so I know I am not alone in my frustration. Please, PLEASE at the very least put more signage in this area. It is quite dangerous, and as a resident of the city, the new design makes me question whether or not those in charge of city planning have actually ever driven downtown. I apologize if my tone comes off as aggressive, but in the past week alone I have almost been hit by four cars when using the bike lane!!" Thanks, Pat Martin

Case Date:

9/6/2022

The 7th street bike lane is terrible. The curb greatly reduces bikes ability to avoid any danger in the bike lane. If a car turns into the bike lane, the biker can't avoid it due to the curb. I much prefer the old setup with bike lanes on each side of the street. I can't believe you wasted so much time and money to make a bike lane that's so much worse than before.

Case Date:

9/9/2022

This grate is directly in the lane a cyclist would use to travel west on Grimes between Henderson and Dunn Street. Last night a cyclist crashed his well-lit bicycle after encountering this grate in the dark road and with a short, barely visible, unmarked curb next to the depressed grate, he crashed his bike and was transported to the hospital by ambulance with severe injuries. The grate should be in the curb OR marked OR raised to the level of the road to improve the safety of cyclists. All cyclists swerve around this grate during the day, and it's a greater hazard at night.

Case Date:

9/15/2022

There are no crosswalks on Rogers St. between 2nd and 3rd streets. This road segment is a large hill, making it difficult to cross safely on foot. I have had many close calls trying to walk or bike across this road segment, which is supposed to be a safe, residential area. Thanks.

Case Date:

9/22/2022

7 Line bike lane blocked by large temporary road sign. This made biking east on 7th St difficult for me and my daughter as we had to get into the wrong bike lane right before the Washington St intersection which was busy at the time.

Case Date:

9/23/2022

Every time I ride on the 7 line, which is every day, there’s some incident where a car almost runs me over. It’s terrifying but I keep riding because it feels worth it. But today, there were four incidents. Every time, I had the right of way. And every time, whoever was driving was completely unaware that there were other people on the road whose lives and needs mattered as much as theirs do. And despite my having the right of way, they all came close to plowing me over because they weren’t looking. Even when they would have clearly seen me riding ahead of them before they came to an intersection to turn. I don’t know if there need to be more signs, or speed bumps, or driver education, or making cars illegal unless you’re disabled. But whatever the case, something major needs to happen if this city is going to be safe for bikers and pedestrians. I am fed up with risking my life every day and trying to adapt to a city that is built around cars and not human bodies. When are we going to prioritize all other modes of transportation over cars, which are deadly machines that emit toxic fumes? Why is there a new parking garage but there’s no way to bike to the east side? I’m tired of feeling like I could be killed at any moment because of some stranger’s lapse in judgment. Also, there’s been broken glass in the 7 line just east of walnut for like 3 days.

Case Date:

9/28/2022

Ever since 4th St re-opend (one lane, then all lanes) people/vehicles are constantly RUNNING the STOP SIGN northbound at 4th & Lincoln. I walk through this intersection at least twice each day. Many just blow through this intersection without even looking. It happened, again, this morning. I was half-day across Lincoln going east. The go-straight lane stopped, but the turn right lane did not even look my way and went ahead and turned right without stopping. The stop signs are clearly visible. What the heck?

Case Date:

10/20/2022

Tent pitched ON YHE SIDEWALK in front of People’s Park this morning. LIs this allowed on a public sidewalk? Please ignore the biking/walking info. Below…accidentally touched that and cannot delete that part of the comment.

Case Date:

10/28/2022

The lack of 4 way stops on 7th near Dunn is a severe hazard, resulting in several accidents. This is an extreme hazard for cyclists. Can someone from the city pedestrian and bicycle commission contact me about it. I would like to add it to the agenda at the next meeting in November.

Case Date:

11/1/2022

The car lanes all along 7th street this morning were completely clear, while the bike lanes were filled with a thick blanket of soggy, slippery leaves. A bike is infinitely more likely than a car to slip on leaves, so why would you prioritize cars and an appearance of tidiness for drivers over the safety of bikers and those around them?