What about that Route 9 survey? Did you take it? Did you like what you saw? I heard mixed feelings - understandably so, but what we need to keep in mind is that our roads were built a long time ago. Our vehicles are now larger, faster, and most families have more than one. 

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If you happened along Route 9 in Dobbs Ferry a few weeks ago, you may have noticed a group of parents and children, hovering around the new crossing light at Route 9 and Clinton/Oak. The below video was captured during our effort to film pedestrians using the light.

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The Jogging Jeweler #40

| Irvington's Old Croton Aqueduct Entrance Upgrade |

Earlier this summer Irvington began work on Main Street through an upgrade of the the Old Croton Aqueduct as it passes through town and past a monument located in front of Main Street School. The OCA once ended at the end of the school's tree-lined parking lot forcing pedestrians and cyclists the pass through the parking lot crossing Main St to continue on their OCA journey. 

 

It looks nice...

• Parking lot is more orderly and bright.
• The sidewalk is nicely paved with bricks.
• Two crosswalks crossing the school's entrance and exit driveways have been repaved with a faux brick patterned as well as repainted.
• A crosswalk from a newly planted grassy path, that one assumes is the new entrance to the OCA was also added.

So what?

•  Paint - The crosswalk crossing Main Street that pedestrians, school children, and cyclist should be using has yet to receive the same beautification. 
• Signage - The OCA does not yet have signs or posts, like those found on Mercy's campus, directing users the appropriate direction. It also seems they have yet to install the yellow diamonds alerting drivers along Main Street of frequent use of the crosswalk in front of this newly re-furbished area. 
• Blind spot - The Main St crosswalk, when used from the retail side of the street, has a massive blind spot caused by parking at the crosswalk's edge. Had a vehicle been parked in the handicap spot, marked by the blue lines on the road, a pedestrian is forced to step off the curb and into oncoming traffic to see. That first parking spot needs to back up and let the crosswalk and its pedestrians breath and be seen. 

The Jogging Jeweler certainly hopes the work for this area is not yet complete and they are awaiting the arrival of paint and signs for pedestrians and the OCA. 

UPDATED - 9/25/17

Did some research. According to the Main Street Streetscape plan (found here - see page 47 specifically) which is dated 9/12/2014 it does appear:

1. a second Main Street crosswalk was (is?) planned on.
2. The existing Main Street crosswalk, as well as this 2nd crosswalk are to match the brick patterned ones in the school's parking lot. 
3. A painted pathway through the South parking lot to mark the OCA's continued path.
4. In the text on page 47 it is recommeneded that signage pointing out pedestrian and cyclist usage as well as linkage to other villages via the OCA would better serve this community gathering space.

The search for a more recent plans as well as contacting local officials are my next steps. 

What can you do?

Do you live in Irvington? Want to help?

• Write an email to the BOT. 
• Talk to your Village Admin. 
• Reach out to the committee in charge of this project. 
• Reach out to your local Safe Routes program leaders. 

Remember when using a crosswalk as a pedestrian or driver - #STOPLOOKWAVE

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The Jogging Jeweler #39

| Stop, Look, Wave - Tanks |

1. Stop - at crosswalks
2. Look - for others
3. Wave - acknowledge & thank

Why???

The Jogging Jeweler has started this apparel based campaign in an effort to raise awareness of the what sharing the road really means.

Last fall our communities speckled the roadsides with lawn signs "Slow Down Rivertowns" - basically homeowners giving a polite fist-shake and holler at speedy drivers passing their homes. However, after raking leaves, moving snow, and weekly mowing few remain, those that do are now part of our day-to-day scenery and most likely ignored.

The bright colors and simple symbols hope to pass along the idea that we are all in this together. That behind the wheel or on foot is active participation in sharing the pathways we all use to go about our daily lives. AND - that saying "thank you" is courteous and will positively reinforce stopping, looking, and waving again and again and again.

Want one?

• Easy - purchase button down below!
• Local & want to pick up? Send me an email and we can arrange a meeting.
• Out of town? Let's ship it!

Where does the money for the shirts go?

To buy more shirts....winter is coming.

For real though - The Jogging Jeweler is not a paid gig. I do it because I give a damn and believe starting conversations about the issues we face as a community leads to ideas, solutions, and a better version of ourselves.

AND REMEMBER - STOP, LOOK, WAVE

 

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The Jogging Jeweler #36

| Where the sidewalks end... Route 9/Hastings Edition |

This past summer my daughter attended the Little Leaf camp on the Andrus on Hudson property located on the southern border of Hastings between the north and south bound lanes of Route 9. Every morning and afternoon for nearly 6 weeks straight we drove to and from camp along Route 9 from Dobbs Ferry into Hastings and onto the Andrus property. After a few drives I began to take notice of the conditions along Route 9...

What did I see?

1. The roadside vegetation on the northbound lanes of Route 9 leans in so far most drivers use a portion of the right hand lane to avoid the plants.  
2. People in business attire running, biking, and on scooters - assuming to the train. 
3. Joggers
4. A person in a wheel chair
5. People walking from town with groceries
6. People in medical attire walking to/from Andrus
7. Bus Stops and riders waiting or walking to/from

Once I saw the guy in the wheel chair planning a run began - he was barely balanced on what appeared to be a sidewalk with two pedestrians trying to walk around him. 

Exactly where the sidewalks ends..

Olinda Avenue.... See the below image and video to understand the path a pedestrian must take when traveling south on the OCA and desires to continue south on Route 9.

This video is a snapshot of 3 of the 5 crossing a pedestrian must use to continue south on Route 9. 

 What happens after Olinda?

Route 9 after Olinda gets a little treacherous - there is a paved path just beyond the curb that appears to be a sidewalk, whether or not it's actually a sidewalk is unknown at this time. This faux sidewalk is uneven, broken, overgrown, and/or blocked a majority of the time. See video below. 

Route 9 splits, the north and south bound lanes go around the Andrus on Hudson property. When the property ends the north and south bound lanes slowly come back together. See image an video below. 

 

This path when taken by a pedestrian requires crossing 4 lanes of traffic. On numerous occasions when dropping off and picking up I have seen Andrus on Hudson staff walking from near by bus stops not to mention that off to the left is church and that the Andrus campus holds a pre-school, senior center, and several summer camps. Lots of people coming and going. Watch the video below to get a better sense of what using this intersection is like. 

The road back...

Route 9 south bound lacks that faux sidewalk leaving pedestrians no choice but to walk at the roads edge or in the grass. There is only one lane of traffic, offering a car's width between pedestrians at the road's edge and moving vehicles. However, there are no crosswalks. This portion of Route 9 also has bus stops that I saw in use while driving to/from camp. See video below. 

What can we do???

• Put these locations on the wiki map that the Route 9 active transportation group is developing. 
• Ask that state legislature to require crosswalks near senior and children facilities as well as bus stops. 
• Note local development projects - ask that those near bus stops, schools, hospitals, libraries, or other public highly frequented destinations by children or elderly adopt a crosswalk - especially in a location where one does not exist or needs updating. 
• Slow down when entering this location

 

 

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The Jogging Jeweler

|Rivertowns Enterprise Article|

Two weeks ago The Jogging Jeweler graced the pages of the local Rivertowns paper - The Rivertowns Enterprise. 

This article discussed one of the latest initiatives from the Dobbs Ferry Chamber of Commerce, a non-for-profit organization that began in August of 2015 and has grown intoa group of nearly 80 members. Becoming the President in May of 2016, I began with addressing the echoing issues from our members - parking, traffic, & safety. 

What is The Fast Five?

The Fast Five are five items of low hanging fruit that the Chamber narrowed down in various meetings with members and other local community groups. Our overall goal was to pick items that were easy for the Village to target in terms of budget, time, and visibility (meaning residents and visitors alike would see the improvements.)

Feedback on Fast 5

Overall the feedback has remained positive on the Fast Five. There have been 3-4 complaints regarding the test period for extending the meters - that is, complaints without sound reasoning as to why it is not a good idea. The test period is suggested for 6-8 months in the hopes that we can at least capture two different seasons. This test period does not have to be 7 days/week, it could just be Thurs, Fri, & Sat. It's an effort towards making the parking we have more efficient. Maybe it'll improve parking for local businesses - maybe it won't, but if we don't start trying there will be no data regarding the efficiency of our parking spaces. 

What Happens Next?

The Chamber is currently waiting to hear back from the BOT. The BOT has asked the traffic commission to review our list of suggestions. Hopefully, a presentation from the Chamber regarding the Fast Five will be on an upcoming agenda. 

THANK YOUs

A HUGE hug of appreciation for all those that participated in making this effort come to fruition. It took months, endless meetings, lots of editing, and ultimately led me to start this blog. Even if 3 of 5 are addressed it is a win and progress!

#stoplookwave & #route9

Look for these hashtags used in social media posts. Feel free to use #route9  on posts, pictures, or comments about Route 9. And steal #stoplookwave for posts, pictures, or comments that will help raise the awareness of sharing responsibility as pedestrians and as drivers at our crosswalks. We all need to STOP, LOOK, & WAVE before crossing, it will provide acknowledgement of being seen and show gratitude. 

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Last week two meetings regarding Route 9 took place, one on Thursday evening in Hastings, and another Saturday afternoon in Tarrytown, I attended the Thursday meeting.

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