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Some Bicycling Notes
Oct. 7th, 2008 12:01 amThe Trouble with Public Trails. One of the troubles that I'm having with my current exploration of public biking and multiuse trails is that no one seems very interested in keeping information on them up to date.
For example, the Bay Trail maps seem pretty decent, but at the same time I'm aware that they haven't uploaded any copies of their newsletter for two years and so I'd have to guess that's the last time their online maps were updated too. At a minimum, I now know that they don't draw the connected Richmond Greenway correctly (as they still mark the western half as under construction and don't even show the temporary eastern half that's in use).
Similarly, I couldn't find anything on the current state of the Richmond Greenway when I looked last weekend at the City of Richmond web site. Nor have I found anything on a new path that's going through Emeryville down by our co-lo (though I perhaps could if I knew the name to look for).
(Ironically, Christopher pointed out this path to me this afternoon when we had to go down to the co-lo to rescue a machine, a few hours after I wrote the paragraph above.)
I've even seen discrepancies concerning the venerable old Ohlone Greenway, which has apparently had some new construction on the Berkeley side and a new "Gateway Park" at the El Cerrito end, all over the last few years.
Part of the problem is that there seems to be a lot of Greenway and public trail construction going on right now, as governments have increasingly decided it's a good use of old Railroad right-of-ways that have been given up. So, it's constantly changing. But the rest of the problem is that governments haven't gotten very good about putting useful information online, nor is anyone doing a good job of consolidating the information.
I'm hoping the 511 Bike Mapper will eventually doing the job. Right now, however, it's clunky, it's unlabeled, and it doesn't show the designated cut-throughs for things like the Bay Trail.
(When muddling over the poor collection of this information, I wondered if there was an opportunity to create a new web site on the topic, but the problem is that the information is very hard to come by, making it a time-consuming proposition without a way for users to enter the info themselves on the bike paths. Still, with user input there might indeed be an opportunity.)
A Problem with Our House. One of the reasons that I haven't done much bike-riding since I moved into our current house is that it hasn't felt particularly conducive to riding--it's too far from all the trails.
When Kimberly & I lived in north Berkeley, it was pretty easy to get over to the Ohlone Greenway. Likewise, we could just cut straight down the hill, and we really wouldn't hit any busy streets.
Contrariwise, in our south Berkeley house, we've got city on every side. Most of the busiest streets in Berkeley lie between us and just about anything. Granted, I can get down to Oakland with some alacrity, but I have to ride Telegraph to do so. Where it doesn't have bike lanes, it's a pretty crappy street to ride (and where it does, it's still pretty so-so).
I'm starting to resolve this problem. I'm pretty happy with the route I've taken down to the Bay Trail overpass these last couple of weeks. Similarly, I could probably get up to the Ohlone Greenway easier if I cut through campus rather than riding through downtown.
And I'm starting to believe it might be an opportunity: if all the bike trails are equidistant, it's easier to ride any of them, and might even encourage me to hop on BART to try some of the further away trails (which will be a requirement, in any case, when I start heading further away along the Bay Trail).
Bay Trail v. Ohlone Greenway. One of the things that really caught my eye on Sunday when I rode both the Bay Trail and the Ohlone Greenway is how different the culture of the two trails are.
The Bay Trail is full of people who seem to be enjoying themselves. They'll make eye contact with you as you pass and nod or smile. There are often people walking and enjoying the sights and even the bicycles go slower.
In contrast, the Ohlone Greenway is all about getting places. Almost no one makes eye contact with you, and there are at least as many joggers (who are largely absent from the Bay Trail) as there are walkers.
Now part of that is the differences between the trails. The Bay Trail is definitely scenic and beautiful, while the Ohlone Greenway is just a pleasant, hidden corridor near the BART tracks. I'd expect the other part is location. The Greenway is really an artery running from Berkeley through Albany and El Cerrito to the edge of Richmond, whereas the Bay Trail is a bit more out of the way and thus less likely to be used as a transit (though I've read stories of people who ride it to work).
It's just an interesting difference between two multiuse paths in the same area.
Bay Trail Still to Do. As I said on Sunday, I've now done the Bay Trail from the Richmond Marina Bay down to the Emeryville Marina. However I didn't go off and ride every side trail (usually out into the parks along the Bay). Here's the trails in the area that I didn't explore: the trails out on the Berkeley Marina, particular the circle of real trail around Cesar Chavez park; the actual Albany Bulb (though the trails out there suck); the trail around Point Isabel; the inland trail past the Richmond Marina Bay; and the last few hundred yards of the Richmond Marina Bay Trail.
For the connected trails, I'd like to investigate the trail that apparently drops down from just short of El Cerrito BART toward the Bay; the new Gateway park at the end of the Ohlone Greenway; the trail around the Berkeley Aquatic Park; the new section of the Ohlone Greenway between Delaware and University; and the (I expect, rather brief) trails in Emeryville down by our co-lo.
For example, the Bay Trail maps seem pretty decent, but at the same time I'm aware that they haven't uploaded any copies of their newsletter for two years and so I'd have to guess that's the last time their online maps were updated too. At a minimum, I now know that they don't draw the connected Richmond Greenway correctly (as they still mark the western half as under construction and don't even show the temporary eastern half that's in use).
Similarly, I couldn't find anything on the current state of the Richmond Greenway when I looked last weekend at the City of Richmond web site. Nor have I found anything on a new path that's going through Emeryville down by our co-lo (though I perhaps could if I knew the name to look for).
(Ironically, Christopher pointed out this path to me this afternoon when we had to go down to the co-lo to rescue a machine, a few hours after I wrote the paragraph above.)
I've even seen discrepancies concerning the venerable old Ohlone Greenway, which has apparently had some new construction on the Berkeley side and a new "Gateway Park" at the El Cerrito end, all over the last few years.
Part of the problem is that there seems to be a lot of Greenway and public trail construction going on right now, as governments have increasingly decided it's a good use of old Railroad right-of-ways that have been given up. So, it's constantly changing. But the rest of the problem is that governments haven't gotten very good about putting useful information online, nor is anyone doing a good job of consolidating the information.
I'm hoping the 511 Bike Mapper will eventually doing the job. Right now, however, it's clunky, it's unlabeled, and it doesn't show the designated cut-throughs for things like the Bay Trail.
(When muddling over the poor collection of this information, I wondered if there was an opportunity to create a new web site on the topic, but the problem is that the information is very hard to come by, making it a time-consuming proposition without a way for users to enter the info themselves on the bike paths. Still, with user input there might indeed be an opportunity.)
A Problem with Our House. One of the reasons that I haven't done much bike-riding since I moved into our current house is that it hasn't felt particularly conducive to riding--it's too far from all the trails.
When Kimberly & I lived in north Berkeley, it was pretty easy to get over to the Ohlone Greenway. Likewise, we could just cut straight down the hill, and we really wouldn't hit any busy streets.
Contrariwise, in our south Berkeley house, we've got city on every side. Most of the busiest streets in Berkeley lie between us and just about anything. Granted, I can get down to Oakland with some alacrity, but I have to ride Telegraph to do so. Where it doesn't have bike lanes, it's a pretty crappy street to ride (and where it does, it's still pretty so-so).
I'm starting to resolve this problem. I'm pretty happy with the route I've taken down to the Bay Trail overpass these last couple of weeks. Similarly, I could probably get up to the Ohlone Greenway easier if I cut through campus rather than riding through downtown.
And I'm starting to believe it might be an opportunity: if all the bike trails are equidistant, it's easier to ride any of them, and might even encourage me to hop on BART to try some of the further away trails (which will be a requirement, in any case, when I start heading further away along the Bay Trail).
Bay Trail v. Ohlone Greenway. One of the things that really caught my eye on Sunday when I rode both the Bay Trail and the Ohlone Greenway is how different the culture of the two trails are.
The Bay Trail is full of people who seem to be enjoying themselves. They'll make eye contact with you as you pass and nod or smile. There are often people walking and enjoying the sights and even the bicycles go slower.
In contrast, the Ohlone Greenway is all about getting places. Almost no one makes eye contact with you, and there are at least as many joggers (who are largely absent from the Bay Trail) as there are walkers.
Now part of that is the differences between the trails. The Bay Trail is definitely scenic and beautiful, while the Ohlone Greenway is just a pleasant, hidden corridor near the BART tracks. I'd expect the other part is location. The Greenway is really an artery running from Berkeley through Albany and El Cerrito to the edge of Richmond, whereas the Bay Trail is a bit more out of the way and thus less likely to be used as a transit (though I've read stories of people who ride it to work).
It's just an interesting difference between two multiuse paths in the same area.
Bay Trail Still to Do. As I said on Sunday, I've now done the Bay Trail from the Richmond Marina Bay down to the Emeryville Marina. However I didn't go off and ride every side trail (usually out into the parks along the Bay). Here's the trails in the area that I didn't explore: the trails out on the Berkeley Marina, particular the circle of real trail around Cesar Chavez park; the actual Albany Bulb (though the trails out there suck); the trail around Point Isabel; the inland trail past the Richmond Marina Bay; and the last few hundred yards of the Richmond Marina Bay Trail.
For the connected trails, I'd like to investigate the trail that apparently drops down from just short of El Cerrito BART toward the Bay; the new Gateway park at the end of the Ohlone Greenway; the trail around the Berkeley Aquatic Park; the new section of the Ohlone Greenway between Delaware and University; and the (I expect, rather brief) trails in Emeryville down by our co-lo.