Parking lane is not defined on eastbound Memorial Avenue between old Euclid Church and Langhorne Road intersection

[partytax]

https://www.openstreetmap.org/#map=19/37.40722/-79.16447

Since a lane is not defined, cars speed like they're on a highway when no cars are parked on the south side of the road. In effect it is a ~16 foot lane going east. This leads to cars parking on the grass strip by the road or completely on the sidewalk to avoid collisions with speeding cars. By parking like this, they are widening the effective lane and increasing speeding further. It's a vicious cycle.

Painting a parking lane would designate an area for parking and an area for driving, reducing the design speed of the eastbound lane.

[partytax]

Reported to Citizens First Information Center

ATTN Public Works:

On Memorial Avenue between 2212 and 2200 before Langhorne Road, the eastbound lane is excessively wide. When no cars are parked streetside, it spans ~21 feet. When cars _are_ parked there, the driving lane still spans 13 feet, and frequently wider because cars park on the grass strip and on top of the sidewalk. This is wider than the lanes of most interstate highways, and encourages motorists to speed like they are on an interstate highway. Walking along the south side of Memorial Avenue here is a loud, harrowing experience, and based on the condition of adjacent properties, it seems that only the most desperate Lynchburgers with no other option choose to live here.

Please paint a generous parking lane here to calm traffic and give residents the peace of mind that they can safely park their vehicles in the road [rather than on top of the sidewalk]. I'd also like a reference number with which I can refer to this request in the future. For your reference, this is Lynchburg Road Issue #73. Thank you for your consideration.

Nathan

[partytax]

Received confirmation from Citizens First Information Center:

Good morning,
This has been reported to Public Works as work request #23-010796.  If you have any questions please call us at 434-856-2489.  Thank you.

​​​​​​

Sherilyn Simpson  

Senior Customer Service Representative 

City of Lynchburg  

Communications & Public Engagement  

Citizens First Info Center 

900 Church Street, Lynchburg, VA 24504  

Office 434-856-2489| Fax 434-847-1723 

www.lynchburgva.gov  

Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | YouTube  

From: Nathan Wyand <me@nathanwyand.com>
Sent: Monday, October 30, 2023 7:07 PM
To: Citizens First <citizensfirst@lynchburgva.gov>
Subject: Eastbound lane of Memorial Avenue before Langhorne Road intersection is dangerously wide

CAUTION: External Sender

ATTN Public Works:

On Memorial Avenue between 2212 and 2200 before Langhorne Road, the eastbound lane is excessively wide. When no cars are parked streetside, it spans ~21 feet. When cars _are_ parked there, the driving lane still spans 13 feet, and frequently wider because cars park on the grass strip and on top of the sidewalk. This is wider than the lanes of most interstate highways, and encourages motorists to speed like they are on an interstate highway. Walking along the south side of Memorial Avenue here is a loud, harrowing experience, and based on the condition of adjacent properties, it seems that only the most desperate Lynchburgers with no other option choose to live here.

Please paint a generous parking lane here to calm traffic and give residents the peace of mind that they can safely park their vehicles in the road [rather than on top of the sidewalk]. I'd also like a reference number with which I can refer to this request in the future. For your reference, this is Lynchburg Road Issue #73. Thank you for your consideration.

Nathan

[partytax]

Responded to Citizens First to request an update:

Please provide an update on work request #23-010796. I noticed that public works installed a sign forbidding parking from the area in question to Stuart street, but that does not solve the problem of motorists feeling they must park on the curb/sidewalk and the problem of the driving lane being excessively wide. Thank you in advance for your time!

Nathan

On 10/31/23 09:09, Simpson, Sherilyn wrote:
> Good morning,
> This has been reported to Public Works as work request #23-010796.  If you have any questions please call us at 434-856-2489.  Thank you.
>
> ​​​​​​
>
> Sherilyn Simpson  
>
> Senior Customer Service Representative 
>
>   
>
> City of Lynchburg  
>
> Communications & Public Engagement  
>
> Citizens First Info Center 
>
> 900 Church Street, Lynchburg, VA 24504  
>
> Office 434-856-2489| Fax 434-847-1723 
>
> www.lynchburgva.gov  
>
> Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | YouTube  
>
>   
>
>
> From: Nathan Wyand <me@nathanwyand.com>
> Sent: Monday, October 30, 2023 7:07 PM
> To: Citizens First <citizensfirst@lynchburgva.gov>
> Subject: Eastbound lane of Memorial Avenue before Langhorne Road intersection is dangerously wide
>  
> CAUTION: External Sender
>
> ATTN Public Works:
>
> On Memorial Avenue between 2212 and 2200 before Langhorne Road, the eastbound lane is excessively wide. When no cars are parked streetside, it spans ~21 feet. When cars _are_ parked there, the driving lane still spans 13 feet, and frequently wider because cars park on the grass strip and on top of the sidewalk. This is wider than the lanes of most interstate highways, and encourages motorists to speed like they are on an interstate highway. Walking along the south side of Memorial Avenue here is a loud, harrowing experience, and based on the condition of adjacent properties, it seems that only the most desperate Lynchburgers with no other option choose to live here.
>
> Please paint a generous parking lane here to calm traffic and give residents the peace of mind that they can safely park their vehicles in the road [rather than on top of the sidewalk]. I'd also like a reference number with which I can refer to this request in the future. For your reference, this is Lynchburg Road Issue #73. Thank you for your consideration.
>
> Nathan

[partytax]

Received response from traffic engineer indicating that the city cannot afford to mark parking lanes. Essentially a WONTFIX for the time being:

Good morning,

In looking at this request our transportation engineer Ryan Roberts commented:

There is City on street parking provided for residents 2208 through 2202 Memorial Avenue who have no driveway access off of Memorial Ave. Memorial Avenue was designed in the 1970’s for  four 10.5’ lanes, typical of the time. With the growing demand for on street parking, the southern side became one lane from Park Ave. to Stuart St. The City policy is to leave on street parking locations unmarked. Parking stall type markings or edge lines if placed all over the City, would tax the City resources with ongoing maintenance costs for that type of refreshing schedule. It is against the City code to park on City sidewalks and to do so, is also an enforceable violation. The existing enforceable speed limit is 30mph. The Crash history at this location indicates that there are no safety issues.  

If you have further questions you may reach him at 434-455-3945.  Thank you.

[partytax]

As this is a current WONTFIX from the city, perhaps we should design some inexpensive bumpouts (instead of paint) to define the parking lane better.

[partytax]

Nothing has been done on this so far, and cars still park way up on grass strip

[partytax]

No developments. Changing to PROPOSAL.