No.
My point is to stick to the bike lane. Don't weave in and out.
Nice try, but not good enough.
Jurkovec big time
- Thread starter tetonpanther
- Start date
My point is to stick to the bike lane. Don't weave in and out.
Nice try, but not good enough.
pittdan77
Athletic Director
If I'm going to have to watch this thread bob up and down the message board for a few more weeks, i might as well contribute to the insanity. I have lived in a big city, small towns, and I currently live in a very rural farming community. I've also visited most of the cities and a lot of the backwaters in this country, and I'm not talking about the cleaned up tourist areas, because of work.
I find that every area has it's good and bad but there are a ton of misconceptions about living in the country. My favorite is, "I love the country for it's peace and quiet." No idea where this misconception came from but you have to go really deep into the wild or wait for the middle of a big snow storm to come close to "peace and quiet". If you like loud engines, gun shots, and hum of a lawnmower firing up on Easter morning, you'd love it here.
Fresh air is cool but you don't get much of it. Between the cow manure being spread everywhere, everyone's obsession with burning, and the constant spraying of chemicals, you don't really get to throw open your windows very often. This year the dryness also has a giant dust cloud following every piece of farm equipment through their field so there's a fine powder on everything.
You hate bike lanes? Riding a bike on a country road has to be one of the more dangerous things you'll do, especially if you like to dress up in tight shorts and wear your Greg Lamond, 7-11 throwback shirt. Dress like a Mennonite and they're more apt to give you some space. Even walking on a country road can be an adventure. Cool side note, most people who live "in town" in central PA don't walk on the sidewalks. They walk in the street. Altoona especially. Have never understood that.
Fresh water is cool but most communities don't recommend you drink from your well or even the small community system. I guess if you spread enough cow crap and chemicals, it eventually makes it into the groundwater. Then again, most of the septic systems don't work correctly so they make you get it pumped every three years so that the guy who pumps it can spread it on a field near his house. Yes, that is legal and it happens.
Crime? That probably blew my mind the most. "Country folk look out for each other" is a load of crap. You might be able to leave some stuff sit outside and it won't get stolen right away but it will happen eventually. Probably the most shocking is how crime against women and children is treated as a personal issue. "It's none of our business that the preacher beats his wife." That's in quotes because someone actually said it to me. Also only applies to serious things. If you talk to someone you're not married to a the Dollar General or "just aren't acting right", you'll be all of the gossip for the next week or so. I grew up just outside of Pittsburgh and never really saw a lot of crime but within a year and a half of moving here, I could draw a one mile circle around my house and account for a murder, several burglaries, and a rape. Only the murder was ever prosecuted. The rape was treated as a family matter (stereotypes aren't that far off), and everyone "knew" who was breaking into houses but I guess nobody thought the police should be involved. For the amount of gun ownership and bravado about owning them, it's kind of surprising.
Terrible internet in most places, no cell service at home. You can avoid people directly and they won't really let an outsider get too familiar anyway. I like that part. I enjoy the woods and the mountains so that's pretty cool. No traffic unless you get behind a loaded "honey wagon", tractor, or buggy. I don't pay much in taxes but I don't really get any public services. It's twenty minutes for a Trooper to show up and the local VFD is an interesting collection of personalities that sometimes don't answer calls. I can get plenty of fresh produce but and I never drive past a gas station without thinking about whether I'll be okay until I drive by it again. I make it sound a lot like that movie "Funny Farm" but it's not that far off.
Anyway, Jurkovec was never coming to Pitt but that won't stop the media from dragging Narduzzi over it.
I find that every area has it's good and bad but there are a ton of misconceptions about living in the country. My favorite is, "I love the country for it's peace and quiet." No idea where this misconception came from but you have to go really deep into the wild or wait for the middle of a big snow storm to come close to "peace and quiet". If you like loud engines, gun shots, and hum of a lawnmower firing up on Easter morning, you'd love it here.
Fresh air is cool but you don't get much of it. Between the cow manure being spread everywhere, everyone's obsession with burning, and the constant spraying of chemicals, you don't really get to throw open your windows very often. This year the dryness also has a giant dust cloud following every piece of farm equipment through their field so there's a fine powder on everything.
You hate bike lanes? Riding a bike on a country road has to be one of the more dangerous things you'll do, especially if you like to dress up in tight shorts and wear your Greg Lamond, 7-11 throwback shirt. Dress like a Mennonite and they're more apt to give you some space. Even walking on a country road can be an adventure. Cool side note, most people who live "in town" in central PA don't walk on the sidewalks. They walk in the street. Altoona especially. Have never understood that.
Fresh water is cool but most communities don't recommend you drink from your well or even the small community system. I guess if you spread enough cow crap and chemicals, it eventually makes it into the groundwater. Then again, most of the septic systems don't work correctly so they make you get it pumped every three years so that the guy who pumps it can spread it on a field near his house. Yes, that is legal and it happens.
Crime? That probably blew my mind the most. "Country folk look out for each other" is a load of crap. You might be able to leave some stuff sit outside and it won't get stolen right away but it will happen eventually. Probably the most shocking is how crime against women and children is treated as a personal issue. "It's none of our business that the preacher beats his wife." That's in quotes because someone actually said it to me. Also only applies to serious things. If you talk to someone you're not married to a the Dollar General or "just aren't acting right", you'll be all of the gossip for the next week or so. I grew up just outside of Pittsburgh and never really saw a lot of crime but within a year and a half of moving here, I could draw a one mile circle around my house and account for a murder, several burglaries, and a rape. Only the murder was ever prosecuted. The rape was treated as a family matter (stereotypes aren't that far off), and everyone "knew" who was breaking into houses but I guess nobody thought the police should be involved. For the amount of gun ownership and bravado about owning them, it's kind of surprising.
Terrible internet in most places, no cell service at home. You can avoid people directly and they won't really let an outsider get too familiar anyway. I like that part. I enjoy the woods and the mountains so that's pretty cool. No traffic unless you get behind a loaded "honey wagon", tractor, or buggy. I don't pay much in taxes but I don't really get any public services. It's twenty minutes for a Trooper to show up and the local VFD is an interesting collection of personalities that sometimes don't answer calls. I can get plenty of fresh produce but and I never drive past a gas station without thinking about whether I'll be okay until I drive by it again. I make it sound a lot like that movie "Funny Farm" but it's not that far off.
Anyway, Jurkovec was never coming to Pitt but that won't stop the media from dragging Narduzzi over it.
Oh, I agree - if there is a bike lane. So I assumed that you’re in favor of adding them to reduce the need for that type of riding.
Of course Boston College is not in Boston. It is in Newton about 6-8 mile out of the city. More a suburban neighborhood.
pittdan77
Athletic Director
While technically correct, it's roughly just as far from the Cathedral to Heinz Field.
You guys are missing the underlying impetus for the bike lanes /pedestrian lanes trend across the country. It isn;t because of tree-hugging local officials. It's because of federal DOT funding flowing to every state specifically for use to construct non-motorized vehicular infrastructure. It's "use it or lose it" money so as a local politico you are a fool not to utilize it.
Like bike lanes, hate 'em, or don't care one way or the other--like me--the federal government is responsible for this nationwide trend.
It ain't South Boston, I'll grant you that.
But it is the city. Just a really nice part of the city.
LOL...you're going to talk about delayed justice or no justice at all for people that have done obvious, egregious crimes? Anyone assaulting someone eating dinner deserves punishment, but let's not just stop there, shall we?
Also west view from downtown -which is a better analogy
Except chestnut hill is way smaller than west view
To your point, 2 summers ago I flew into Savannah and then drove to the beach in South Carolina. Bike lanes everywhere, in the city and on state roads along the way. Folks here who complain about them in Pittsburgh mostly seem to be folks who complain about everything in the city, because it is the home of Democrats.
I don’t have a problem with them in areas like Savannah and the south, I just don’t know if the weather here really supports bikes replacing cars to a large extent. More recreational trials makes a lot of sense tho.
The latest urban transportation concept is called “complete streets,” which envisions streets accommodating all forms of mobility - cars, buses, pedestrians, bicycles, wheelchairs. The point is to provide options and let people make choices that work for them. Weather and topography are obviously factors in this, but those who can take advantage of these options will do so.
I hope they do because more cars off the road is better for everyone. I just don’t know if bikes will make a significant difference in Pittsburgh. I really wish we could have figured out mass transit but that’s another conversation.
Excellent. Just one question: Do veggies fertilized with septic refuse qualify as organic?
Are you seriously comparing warm, sunny, flat, and 1 river to the north Savannah to cold, hilly, overcast, 3 rivers every direction Pittsburgh? The only thing similar between the 2 cities is that both are old towns. Fact of the matter is the bike lanes in Pittsburgh eat up infrastructure for cars because they don't move the needle at all of an alternate form of transportation. I am not an expert of Savannah (vacation in Hilton Head every year and been to Savannah twice) but maybe bike lanes move the needle there so it reduces cars. But to compare the two is apples and oranges.
pittdan77
Athletic Director
A very relevant argument. They work in downtown, the Strip, Oakland, North Side, Morningside, etc, etc. But if you (evidently) can’t ride a bike up a hill then there is no sense having them.
You have to have a really, really broad definition of the word "work" to believe that to be true.
The Penn Avenue lane downtown averages over 400 trips per day. Since they have been put in there has been a drop in number of accidents along that corridor and a dramatic decrease in those involving pedestrians as that area. So no, you really don’t.
But... waaaah you can’t drive both ways anymore.
So right around 17 trips per hour. Or one every approximately 3-1/2 minutes. And that's one of the raging successes.
Thanks for proving my point.
I don’t know the usage numbers for Oakland but anecdotally they don’t seem to be used very much.
Yes it is. Jurkovec is a big proponent of bike riding.
I can't understand how people listen to that stupid station and those ridiculous hosts. It's horrible.
As if any number was going to change the mind of some yokel that thinks it is funny to joke about hitting bikers in a bike lane.
Get some help bud because more bike lanes are coming.
I don’t know if your question is anything but rhetorical, but I’m sure they are lower in the winter. By law of averages, I’m sure they are also higher in the summer.
I think that folks are missing the main point about bike lanes, which is that they are put in place to make bicycling safer. Safety is the main objective, and one result of safer riding is that people will be more likely to use bikes. But bike lanes provide a safer space for cyclists, just like sidewalks provide a safer space for pedestrians. And curb cuts at intersections provide a safer option for wheelchairs.
Actually something could have changed my mind. But unfortunately for you, the facts were on my side. And then you stated the facts and proved me right, somehow without actually realizing it. So yeah, I'd say that someone here does need some help. If you look in the mirror you'll see what he looks like.
There are some places that bike lanes make sense. There are other places that they most certainly do not. The fact that you used as a success story one of the places where they absolutely do not and then proceeded to show that they didn't isn't my fault. But I guess I can understand after you realized what you did why you might be a little irked.
No you view the facts as supporting your point. People say no one uses bike lanes. I told you the counters on Penn clock over 400 trips a day. What number would you say would convince you that they are justified? If you expect bike traffic to equal car traffic then of course you see that as a low number.
I don’t mind arguing that with you and I don’t mind if you think me wrong. But the fact is that the lanes are here. I have had run-ins with road rage drivers while riding and lanes minimize that stuff. So yeah moronic comments about hitting cyclists do irk me.
The cathedral is about 4 miles from Heinz Field. Regent Square to Heinz would be more accurate.
Having lived in both rural America and city America- this is a great take.
It's wonderful when your oxy addicted neighbors in rural america starts collecting money for every cause known to man then steal from everyone's house while doing it. Lol. That is a true story.
And Phil looks OK. It will be interesting to see if that big target is still standing after the Dline hits him a few times.
I’m curious about how this thread went from Jurkovec to bike lanes. Not curious enough to go back and read the whole thing.
To be fair, I only viewed the fact that supported my point because you posted it.
I'm not sure what number would convince me that a bike lane was justified, but on a street like Penn Avenue it would have to be more than one cyclist every three or four minutes. A lot more, in fact. On the other hand, the number of riders could be a lot less than that on the roads in Schenley Park and it wouldn't matter, because those roads should have bike lanes on them.
So let's turn the question around. If you think that one rider every 3-1/2 minutes on Penn Avenue is a raging success, just how low would that number have to be for you to think that yeah, maybe that wasn't the best idea ever?
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