The "Carmageddon" that didn't happen in the NYT

I had to check the spelling on "Carmageddon" before typing it. What a ridiculous concept. And that's basically what Timothy Egan writes today in the Sunday Review section of the New York Times.

If you ignored the talk about Carmageddon, a 10 mile stretch of the 405 freeway in LA was closed last weekend because a bridge had to be demolished. Everyone thought it would be a disaster, and it was not. This reinforces that Jane Jacobs-New Urbanist theory that traffic is not like water. Really, it's more like some sort of element with a very short half-life, because if a freeway is closed or eliminated, huge portions of it just disappear.

Now can we get working on the NY-198 downgrade so the people of Buffalo can have Delaware Park back?

WBFO on Sprawl (again)

I feel that Buffalo News Columnist Bruce Andriatch is starting to get it on sprawl. Unlike last year's conversation, he must have picked up Suburban Nation or something similar. His last commentary on WBFO talked about Transit Road and how the car traffic will never end. Additionally he said that complaining about it is futile because at 8 or 9 lanes, not much can be done.

I would suggest he or anyone else looking to avoid such traffic move to the CIty. Then you can just walk or bike through traffic. And what can you find on Transit Road that you can't find on Elmwood? Don't ask me. I haven't been to Transit in at least five years.

Outer Harbor Bike Trails

I have to say it is nice being able to go to the Outer Harbor and get to places you couldn't in the past. The problem is there is no connectivity. Even in places where it seems like it would be easy. For example, as you can see in the map below, courtesy mapmyride.com, there is a nice path along the water that ends near the site of the former Pier Restaurant. Its driveway is still there, but the path ends at the driveway and you have to carry your bike over some boulders to get onto the driveway and back to the main path.

There is also a short spur along the City Ship Canal, but this also ends awkwardly without a good connection back to the main path. It does, however, provide excellent views of the Pillsbury Elevator, the canal, and the neighboring railroad tracks.

The problem here is partly NY-5. The Common Council unanimously recommended its replacement with a boulevard. So did other organizations such as the Congress for New Urbanism and Buffalo Niagara Riverkeeper. At the same time, this lack of access will keep this area from ever being developed, which is good for people who like nature, like myself. The area between the Coast Guard Station and the Small Boat Harbor includes small forests and meadows. It's almost like an extension of Tifft Farm . At the end of the day, this might be the best use of this part of the waterfront.