Case Date:

7/26/2022

The newly planted trees are blocking the one way signs between walnut and Indiana

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:

3/28/2023

Large pothole on 7th St. very close to in front of the the street entrance to the LGBTQ+ Culture Center.

Case Date:

4/17/2023

Left on Washington and Lincoln intersection as well. The curb is creating issues because it sticks out to far. Can you please update this And if the vehicle cuts too close vehicle can be caught in the curb. Someone should check police reports and see how often police must do this. Pour gravel inside They need to be filled with concrete because there are weeds in the curb area. Concerned about people falling off of curb area worried about bicyclists falling in. Project feels unfinished

Case Date:

2/12/2024

I live at Park Doral Apartments, 2669 E 7th St. On Monday mornings, the dumpsters are very loudly emptied at 4:00 AM. I think this is a violation of the noice ordinance. Thanks for your help!

Case Date:

11/13/2020

All lights on both blocks between Grant & Indiana Streets were out Friday November 13th.

Case Date:

9/28/2022

At 8:35 this morning, a Centerpoint Energy truck was idling in the bike lane, blocking both lanes so I had to drive in the street, even though there's that big electric sign not far from that spot that says No Parking in the Bike Lane. There was a dude in the front seat reading an ipad or something.

Case Date:

6/13/2023

I noticed that the "ONE WAY" sign on 7th Street to the east of Lincoln is behind a tree. The sign is in the median of the bike lane curb on 7th, and it is pointing an arrow to the north, presumably to tell traffic headed east on 7th that Lincoln is a one way. A small street tree is planted directly in front of the sign, obstructing its view.

Case Date:

3/10/2023

Several green sidewalk/streetlights are out

Case Date:

8/25/2022

Why do City vehicles park in the bike lane instead of the street? Many times while riding my bike on 7th street this year, I have had to ride around City vehicles parked in and blocking the 7Line because the driver was watering trees or something. Firstly, it's much easier for a car to drive around a truck than for a cyclist going up a steep hill and more vulnerable than drivers to have to ride into oncoming traffic or try to squeeze around an enormous truck. Secondly, this sends the signal that the City prioritizes drivers over cyclists. I should hope that's not actually the case, but it feels like it. Why not park in the car lane? Either side would be by the trees that are in the median between the 7Line and the car lanes, and it wouldn't impact the safety of the City workers. But it does impact the safety of people on bikes, who are already at more risk of injury from crashes.