Why is there parking on Fifth and Forbes through Uptown? (Oakland: apartment, shops)

[ferraris]

Originally Posted by pman

parking is also a useful way to buffer pedestrians from street traffic so they don't feel like they are walking on the side of a highway...BRT notwithstanding. I tend to like the idea of two lanes on one street with center island platforms but this would require buses to run in opposite lanes than normal and might be too expensive versus curbside pickup. we shall see.

Something like the railing along the bus lane on Fifth in Oakland could be installed to help with that. Or even something like the flower pots along Ft. Pitt Blvd.

[pman]

Originally Posted by ferrarisnowday

Something like the railing along the bus lane on Fifth in Oakland could be installed to help with that. Or even something like the flower pots along Ft. Pitt Blvd.

parking is more effective since it literally adds space between the cars and the pedestrians...and it usually has its fans. a compromise might be to eliminate parking only during peak hours. usually people who live somewhere (or own a business) support the parking while people who drive through do not.

[ferraris]

Originally Posted by pman

parking is more effective since it literally adds space between the cars and the pedestrians...and it usually has its fans. a compromise might be to eliminate parking only during peak hours. usually people who live somewhere (or own a business) support the parking while people who drive through do not.

Eliminating it during rush hour like a lot of the downtown streets do would probably be quite effective.

A row of parked cars will offer more protection in crash probably, but I think in terms of just general feel, it's not much different to have a railing or cement divider. And it's certainly a lot nicer to have flower pots or trees.

[BrianTH]

Another alternative to parking lanes for car/pedestrian separation is bike lanes.

[Drover]

Originally Posted by Bong477

Can we get rid of parking on beechwood between 376 and the waterfront too? thanks.

Originally Posted by robrobrob

That would make way too much sense.

Most of those houses have driveways too so parking really isn't needed. However, backing out would be a nightmare.

Is traffic that bad on that stretch of Beechwood? And quite a lot of houses along that stretch don't have driveways, so where would those people put their cars?

[pman]

Originally Posted by ferrarisnowday

Eliminating it during rush hour like a lot of the downtown streets do would probably be quite effective.

A row of parked cars will offer more protection in crash probably, but I think in terms of just general feel, it's not much different to have a railing or cement divider. And it's certainly a lot nicer to have flower pots or trees.

a cement divider is usually a poor fit for a city street though and would probably contribute, rather than detract from, the feeling of walking alongside a highway. landscaping is nice, and can be used in addition to parking/bike lanes, etc. Frequently, what is needed at rush hour isn't necessarily what is needed at nights or on weekends. I would imagine part of the goal is to redevelop this area into something more than a highway between downtown and oakland.

[WestLibertyAve]

Most of the traffic you're experiencing on Fifth right now is due to all of the ramp and bridge closures on the Crosstown. People who would normally use the Boulevard to get to the Liberty Bridge now use Fifth. Then there are people who use Center Ave to get to the Liberty Bridge (like me), and we also get funneled onto Fifth now due to the Center Ave bridge closure over 579.

Aside from nights with events at Consol or Duquesne, traffic usually flows pretty freely down Fifth into the city. I blame most of the recent traffic woes on the construction, hopefully it gets better soon.

[Impala26]

Originally Posted by Bong477

Can we get rid of parking on beechwood between 376 and the waterfront too? thanks.

The Beechwood Blvd./Browns Hill/Hazelwood Ave. intersection is an absolute MESS. If I had the free reign to do so, I'd recenter that intersection right about where the Sunoco gas station is. The problem is that you have so many local arterial roads converging in one place (two directions of Beechwood, Browns Hill, Hazelwood, and Murray and Greenfield by way of Hazelwood. I can't say how many times I've ridden through the intersection that I've seen or been on a bus that runs the light there.

[I_Like_Spam]

Originally Posted by ferrarisnowday

Yesteray, while The Batman was ruining my commute, I noticed just how much space parked cares take up on Fifth and Forbes in uptown. Removing parking on those streets could easily allow for another lane or two to be added along these roads, which are quite prone to rush hour traffic. Hopefully the commission studying rapid bus transit between downtown and Oakland will come to a similar conclusion and add a bus lane.

There are plenty of businesses and residences uptown that need that parking. And if the area revitalizes, they'll even be more need for the people to have spaces to park their transportation.

[SteelCityRising]

Originally Posted by Drover

And quite a lot of houses along that stretch don't have driveways, so where would those people put their cars?

Don't you know those people should have known what a congested free-for-all their artery would have become once the Waterfront was developed before they bought their homes there? If you think parking is bad there try crossing the street. I will be adjacent to the pedestrian crossing sign trying to step into traffic only to have to wait usually 5-10 minutes to get a decent enough break in traffic to safely cross.