Plans Revised for Bike Lanes on Farmington Avenue in West Hartford
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Farmington Avenue, between Wardwell Road and Mountain Road, is being resurfaced. Photo credit: Ronni Newton
The Town of West Hartford is repaving Farmington Avenue, and has revised plans that initially called for the elimination of on-street parking on a stretch of the roadway.
Revised configuration of Farmington Avenue. Courtesy of Town of West Hartford Engineering Division
By Ronni Newton
The Town of West Hartford’s Engineering Division has made some modifications to a plan for a section of Farmington Avenue that is in the process of being being repaved, and while there will still be bike lanes on both sides of the roadway, on-street parking will be maintained.
A plan released several days ago announced that the stretch of Farmington Avenue, from Mountain Road to Wardwell Road was being resurfaced, with removal of the brick pavers in the center. That initial plan called for the addition of a 12-foot-wide two-way left turn lane in the center of the roadway, between Cadwell Street and Wardwell, 10-foot-wide travel lanes in each direction, and a 4.5-foot-wide bike lane in each direction, with a paved buffer painted on the roadway of 1.5 feet separating the bike lane from the travel lanes. On-street parking was to have been eliminated.
“Several residents contacted the town to express concerns with the proposed plan, as it would have resulted in the loss of the on-street parking,” Town Engineer Greg Sommer said Thursday in an email. “Based on the feedback a revised cross section has been developed (see image above) which includes 7-foot-wide parking lanes, 5-foot-wide bike lanes, and 10-foot-wide travel lanes in both directions.”
The revisions, which have been shared with stakeholders, are believed to be a reasonable compromise, Sommer said, and remain consistent with the goals of the Complete Streets policy adopted by the Town Council in 2015 which specified Farmington Avenue as one of the town’s bicycle routes.
Any questions can be directed to Sommer at [email protected] or 860-561-7543.
Farmington Avenue looking west at Wardwell Road. Resurfacing of the stretch of roadway between Wardwell and Mountain Road has started. Photo credit: Ronni Newton
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Get ready. This idea is already in place on North Main and will soon be implemented on Moutain and Trout Brook.
[…] West Hartford announced that it would be adding a paint-only bike lane to Farmington Avenue between Cadwell Street and Wardwell. Because someone complained about where their landscaper would park — JFC, WeHa, way to be a caricature — there would no longer be a 1.5 foot paint buffer between the bicycle lane and traffic. The bike lane gains half a foot, but loses a foot of space overall. And still, there’s no barriers. And because we know how landscapers, delivery drivers, etc. seem to ignore paint, I can say confidently that this bike lane is going to be yet another joke unless the town cops aggressively ticket and tow. And why would they? […]