The Jogging Jeweler

|TONIGHT - Route 9 Meeting |

A quick blog post to remind everyone that tonight in the first Route 9 Design plan meeting. Details listed below...

Want to know more?

What if I can not attend?

• Email me your comments, suggestions, and concerns! thejoggingjeweler@gmail.com
• Email the #route9 Project directly: info@route9active.org
• Attend THIS Sat 6/17, 1PM - 3PM - Warner Library
  121 North Broadway, Tarrytown, NY 10591
• Follow their Facebook page
• Tune into The Jogging Jeweler Facebook Page TONIGHT for LIVE updates!

The Jogging Jeweler

|NEW POV for Dobbs Ferry Crosswalks |

This blog's readers amaze me!! Another reader sent in imagery of what crosswalks could look like in Dobbs Ferry. See images below - I'll discuss each as we go. 

Location: Route 9 in front of Dobbs Ferry High School (DFHS)

Problems:

1. Multi-lane Route 9 offers pedestrians no safe haven when crossing
2. Multi-lane Route 9 promotes higher speeds by drivers, they think it is a road - when actually it is a street coming through our villages. 
3. Drop-Off/ Pick-Up at DFHS causes traffic flow problems and pedestrian safety issues.
4. Crosswalk locations are ill-placed and not enough.

Solutions:

1. Add turn lanes.
2. Add pedestrian refuge islands.
3. Re-direct traffic flow in front of DFHS.
4. More, better placed crosswalks.

Tackling the OCA

Location: Route 9 in Dobbs Ferry where the OCA crosses

Problems:

1. Multi-lane Route 9 offers pedestrians no safe haven when crossing
2. Multi-lane Route 9 promotes higher speeds by drivers, they think it is a road - when actually it is a street coming through our villages. 
3. Crosswalk location is ill-placed and not enough.
4. Coming from Hastings, the OCA is not visible, putting pedestrians at risk.

Solutions:

1. Add pedestrian refuge islands.
2. Extend curbs to reduce speeds & shorten distance crossed by pedestrians
3. More, better placed crosswalks.
4. Add blinking pedestrian crossing signal to indicate pedestrian usage.

Location: Elm where the OCA crosses

Problems:

1. OCA can not be seen by drivers.
2. No crosswalk.
3. Pedestrians can not see drivers & vice versa.

Solutions:

1. Extend curbs to narrow road & slow drivers.
2. Add a crosswalk.
3. Extended curbs allow pedestrians visibility to oncoming traffic & drivers can see pedestrians.

Main St Area

Birds-Eye View of Elm Crosswalks

Street preview

Location: Elm St & Main St

Problems:

1. No crosswalk.
2. Pedestrians can not see drivers & vice versa.

Solutions:

1. Add a crosswalk.
2. Extend curbs to shorten crossing distance.
3. Extended curbs allow pedestrians visibility to oncoming traffic & drivers can see pedestrians.

 An Overview of Needed Crosswalks

To demonstrate the entirety of all the crosswalks needed in the downtown area of Dobbs Ferry the following images demonstrate the locations crosswalks should be placed for optimal safety and higher levels of visibility of pedestrians. 

Cedar Street 

North End of Main Street + OCA crossings

South End of Main Street + OCA Crossings

All together now...

What can we do?

• See something you like?? ....talk about it! Share it on Facebook! Write the BOT, Mayor, Rivertowns Enterprise!
• Visualize....Convenient + Safe = More people walking = Village & local businesses thriving! So, before "Those pesky crosswalks take up parking"  which I've heard a few (dozen) times...Realize some of our parking spaces are over-sized and can be slightly reduced to invest in the safety of our residents (think cute, small children) crossing the streets. 
• About Route 9... COME to the meetings on June 15th & June 17th
• Wave... If a driver has stopped a short little hand raise to acknowledge & give thanks.

The Jogging Jeweler

| Rt 9 Public Meeting Details |

Sidenote: HAPPY GLOBAL RUNNING DAY! :-)

I'll be out this afternoon celebrating Running Day.

PS - I love the honks, waves, and cheers, it makes pushing my faithful sidekick (who weighs 45lbs these days) much easier! Just stay safe!!

The more important news...

Nelson Nygaard, transportation engineers, will attend the Route 9 meetings on June 15th & 17th. They will present a brief introduction to the project and then provide an open and informal setting for the sharing of ideas. They plan to staff four stations for attendees to provide input, ideas, comments, and suggestions. There will also be choices that people can make to articulate their preferences. These stations will have an illustration board to post notes and stickers. 

What can we do?

• Come prepared - Bring notes on problems & solutions.
• Participate - This is your opportunity to provide input on a state road! Carpe diem!
• Be Open - Expect different experiences, perspectives, and knowledge - there could be many solutions or combinations that solve a problem.
• Ask Questions - Bring your thinking caps, engage with people from other villages, and ask them questions. 

Frequent Comments to The Jogging Jeweler

• Did you hear another pedestrian got hit?
• I made comments to the village about Broadway but the replied it's a state road.
• OMG - Broadway is AWFUL!
• I don't let my kids walk around Dobbs, unless they can get there on the OCA. 

The Jogging Jeweler has complied a list (by village/town) for residents to consider in their own research, problem solving, and to raise awareness among more members of our community. Within each list I will provide the blog numbers that photographic or video footage can be found demonstrating the problems.

Save the Date:

   Thursday, June 15
   7:00 pm - 9:00 pm
   Hastings Community Center
   44 Main Street, Hastings on Hudson, NY 10706

   Saturday, June 17
   1:00 pm - 3:00 pm
   Warner Library
   121 North Broadway, Tarrytown, NY 10591

The Jogging Jeweler

| Ardsley 1st Edition - No Sidewalk Saw Mill River Rd |

Notice anything....There is no sidewalk.

Yes, you still see snow on the side of the road because I've got a backlog of videos I need to write about.

A reader asked that I run down Ogden - I did. Then across the Saw Mill and into Ardsley via the South County Trailway. The only way to get back into Dobbs Ferry from Ardsley is to run over the bridge, which can not be accessed from the Trailway and requires running on Saw Mill River Road. 

There are no sidewalks on either side of this road that is under some pretty heavy construction. Screenshot below is an image of the South County Trailway in Ardsley. 

With the development of the Danforth Apartments along the Saw Milll River Parkway, pedestrians have limited access to Ardsley, their options being

Whether there is a sidewalk allowing for pedestrians from the North end of Ardsley into the village is not a course I have ran, yet. Based on Google Map images there do not appear to be sidewalks leading from the trail towards Starbucks.

What does this mean?

Well - either the Danforth apartments are attracting some adventurous pedestrians 

- or  -

there will be more vehicles on the roads of Ardsley - Just. Like. Every. Other. Rivertown. 

Our villages and residents need to accept and acknowledge that our roads were built at a time when most households were lucky to have 1 car. Now, many households have 2 or more, depending on how many teenagers they have. If you take the number of existing households, multiple that by 2 - that's double what our roads were built for - whenever they were actually built.

Now add in the new developments every Rivertown has and while were at it, add in the dramatic increase in popularity of cycling - our roads are being shared by a larger population than ever before. 

What can we do?

Maintain the sidewalks you have, so they feel and look accessible to all pedestrians...

• Trim trees, so people don't need to duck
• Keep shrubs & bushes pruned, sidewalk space is limited enough
• Shovel the snow, sweep the leaves
• Fix the broken - elderly stumble & trip, runners leap, & strollers knock those babes around
• Don't have a sidewalk? Help the neighbor that does, ever heard "it takes a village" 

Speak up - Complaining about developments and traffic is not motivation for getting solutions. Write letters to motivate actions that allow for town dwelling pedestrians to feel that choosing to walk within our villages is convenient, safe, healthy, and beautiful. 

This video demonstrates a first for The Jogging Jeweler - prior to this video I had never crossed the Saw Mill River Parkway at Lawrence Street. Crossing at this location posed no immediate problems however in my time standing there I did observe a few things.