Ayres Knowledge Center Implement Intersection and Bike Lane Game Changers | Page 7

THE CHALLENGE: The project involved the need to extend
bike lanes along an urban arterial. Bike lanes had been placed on a
segment of this arterial through an adjacent business district a few years
earlier. Pedestrian crossing improvements were also needed at two
school crossings.
provided a direct connection between the elementary school on the
north end of the project and middle and high schools on the south end
of the project.
THE SOLUTION: Modify the existing street segment based on
a bicycle/pedestrian safety study through the addition of a continuous
bike lane designed within the existing street curb-to-curb cross-section.
The bike lanes provided a compatible extension of the recently installed
bike lanes to the east on this corridor. This provided connectivity
through the municipality and a way for bicyclists to reach an existing
parkway trail.
An early step in the project was the gathering of existing aerial
photography and topographic surveys, as well as data on curb radius,
utilities, right-of-way, pavement markings, traffic control signage, bus
stops, school crossings, and intersection grades wherever improved curb
ramps were to be constructed. Pavement restoration was completed to
make subsequent bike lane designs more visible, and drainage grates
near bike lanes were adjusted to ensure they are bicycle-safe and avoid
trapping or diverting bicycle wheels.
Sixteen blocks of bike lanes were designed with bicycle lane symbols
and arrows (two per block). Bike lanes were dashed (3-foot line, 9-foot
gap) through minor-street intersections. Bicycle and parking regulatory
signs also were recommended. A four-block segment was treated with
sharrow pavement markings. The design includes new crosswalks,
curb bump-outs, and curb ramp modifications at one intersection,
and Rectangular Rapid Flashing Beacons (RRFBs) were installed at two
intersections.
The improvements were designed for West North Avenue between
Wauwatosa Avenue and Menomonee River Parkway and on Wauwatosa
Avenue between West North Avenue and Milwaukee Avenue in
Wauwatosa, Wisconsin. The bike lane design on Wauwatosa Avenue
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