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The Jogging Jeweler

The Jogging Jeweler #11

The Jogging Jeweler #11

The Jogging Jeweler

| 1st Hastings-On-Hudson Edition |

Running along Broadway, to Hastings-On-Hudson went better than other runs thus far. Our route had sidewalks, crosswalks, good sight lines for seeing traffic which means few blind spots. This route was chosen as warmer weather melted the snow and the OCA was too muddy for this stroller pushing momma. However - the run was not necessarily smoother.

 The Jogging Jeweler 2.19 Hastings on Hudson, Curb

Problem: Hastings-On-Hudson has curbs... lots of curbs. The photo demonstrates at least six, including ones coming in and out of the local high school - what happened to being handicap accessible? I caught seven in my footage, however knowing what the Old Croton Aqueduct is like through Hastings [think bigger curbs] I speculate there may be more curbs that were not captured in this footage. 

Solution: According to Complete Streets -

Streets that are truly “complete” provide all of us with a choice of mobility options. They allow everyone to travel to and from work, school, and other destinations with the same level of safety and convenience, whether or not they have mobility, vision, or cognitive disabilities.

Complete Streets also help people who are coping with temporary disabilities as well as those pushing strollers, pulling wheeled luggage, or managing large packages. Complete Streets policies provide flexibility to transportation professionals and give them room to be creative in developing solutions that promote accessible travel. Operating under a policy can prompt a deeper analysis and encourage them to work with community members with disabilities.

In roadway design, Complete Streets means attention to details at intersections, such as installing curb ramps, audible or tactile signals for blind pedestrians, and/or providing longer crossing times; along pedestrian routes by providing smooth sidewalks free of obstacles...

 

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The Jogging Jeweler #9

The Jogging Jeweler #9

In this series of videos, we capture Broadway for what it is to pedestrians  - an obstacle course - one that requires weaving in and out of large trees, holes, telephone poles, with curb-less sidewalks so narrow that a stroller does not fit. Not to mention the portion of sidewalk in such dis-repair that the curb looks like crumbling cookie and has begun to eat away at the sidewalk itself.

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The Jogging Jeweler #10

The Jogging Jeweler #10

The Jogging Jeweler

| Crossing Broadway 2.18 |

The crosswalk at the corner of Clinton/Oak & Broadway in Dobbs Ferry, NY has its issues. Traffic coming from multiple directions, a blind hill, vehicles that park illegally, drivers going around vehicles stopped for pedestrians - a lot going on for pedestrians and drivers.

Problem: Before I am even at the crosswalk there is already a pedestrian waiting to cross. By the time I arrive SIX vehicles have passed, vehicle number 7 stops to allow us to cross, however vehicle number 8 does not seem to be slowing down in time to stop. The vehicle does eventually stop, however this is a frequent scene at this particular intersection.

 The Jogging Jeweler, Broadway and Clinton/Oak Crosswalk, Car parked illegally, blocking pedestrian view

Problem: Vehicles park illegally, blocking a pedestrians view of oncoming traffic. Shortened distances of line of sight cause pedestrians to inch further into the intersection to see and result in not having enough time to see and cross safely.

Suggested Solution(s):

  1. Enforcement of crosswalks, parking, stop signs, and "don't block the box" at this intersection.
  2. A flashing light for pedestrians to push when they're crossing.
  3. Moving the crosswalk, in line with the front of South Church, so pedestrians & vehicles can see each other better.
  4. A turn lane for vehicles turning left onto Clinton or Right onto Oak
  5. Oak being one way, down to Main St., to eliminate the left and/or right turns off of Oak St.
  6. A street light on the corner of Oak and Broadway, this portion of the intersection is impossible to see at night.

 

 

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The Jogging Jeweler #8

The Jogging Jeweler #8

The question was - Which crosswalk in Dobbs Ferry have you used and had vehicles not stop for you? It took people a matter of 20 seconds to answer and so far the results are as shown above.

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The Jogging Jeweler #7

The Jogging Jeweler #7

The Jogging Jeweler

| Mercy College |

Monday night I had the opportunity to speak with a Political Science class at Mercy College. I met an adjunct professor while attending a Rotary Club meeting. I was hoping the Mercy Rotaract could help the Chamber of Commerce create a survey or perhaps open a line of communication with Mercy students about their experiences as drivers, pedestrians, and residents in Dobbs Ferry. When I began discussing this he asked instead that I come speak to his students as he found my approach to the parking, traffic, and pedestrian safety issues to be impactful and a real-life scenario in which his students could learn from.

Take-aways from Mercy Students:

  1. The Old Croton Aqueduct is dark and in-usable to them in the evenings. This hints at a few things -  (a) they likely aren’t walking into town in the evenings, whether it is to visit local restaurants, cafes, stores, or friends which (b) it likely means they’re driving and parking on our streets. (c) They tried walking the OCA, it didn’t go well, but the interest to walk at night is there - so (d) if hypothetical solar powered lights were added, the path would likely get used by them, reducing traffic and parked cars in DF. 
  2. They acknowledged that there are even distracted and speeding drivers on their campus. Meaning that they understand the impact of having the ever-living life scared out of you by drivers not obeying the law. Which is important beucase it means they’re in touch with our reality. 
  3. They know just as little about Dobbs residents, as we know about them. This is not good and definitely needs to change. Mercy College is one of the largest non-profit properties in our community, we should know more of what they are doing, what events they are hosting, and how they want to help our community. The students overall were positive, had great questions, answers, and suggestions to how we as a community could solve the problems of pedestrian safety.

(Photo Credit: Nadia Fante)

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The Jogging Jeweler #6

The Jogging Jeweler #6

On today's run we witness what is a frequent sighting in the Rivertowns - pedestrians frantically crossing Broadway because it lacks crosswalks or has long wait times, as well as a rolling stop at the intersection of Cedar & Main St.

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The Jogging Jeweler #5

The Jogging Jeweler #5

8 cars passed without stopping as I inched further and further out into the road. The 9th car finally stopped to let me cross. This is the intersection of Broadway and Clinton/Oak in Dobbs Ferry.

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The Jogging Jeweler #4

The Jogging Jeweler #4

Overly excited to try out the GoPro that has been lent to me for this project, I went on my first trial run and was able to capture some good examples of pedestrian safety issues. See what I was able to capture on my trial run!

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The Jogging Jeweler #3

The Jogging Jeweler #3

I used to not run in the winter at all. To be clear, I strongly dislike all things winter. I eventually had a child, and to maintain my sanity found overcoming my long rooted hatred of winter running was needed for survival. Read more for how I win at winter running.

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The Jogging Jeweler #2

The Jogging Jeweler #2

The Rivertowns are based along the hillside of the Hudson River with sharp, blind turns, steeply graded hills, and many distracted and speedy drivers. In addition to my local experiences as a runner, I live along a major roadway with my jewelry studio facing a dangerous intersection that puts pedestrians and motorists lives at peril daily. And I’ve had enough.

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