The Franklin Corridor is one of the most heavily used bike routes from east to west in the central Bend area. Planning for the Franklin Corridor Project is nearly completed and the city is hosting a final online open house through January 7th. Be sure to respond!
The Franklin Corridor will not fix the underpass but will do some other really nice things. The city is asking for input on how to reconfigure the Franklin Ave and 3rd St intersection. And it could be improved by adding raised crossings at the side streets.
The Underpass
We’ve known for about three years that the underpass of the parkway and the railroad on Franklin will not be widened. The cost would be about the same or more than the Hawthorne Overpass which will be built two blocks to the north. Some improvements planned to the underpass include:
- Improved sightlines into the underpass sidewalks
- Widened exits from the underpass so people on bikes can get out of traffic before the steep uphill sections
- Improved lighting inside the underpass
- Improved fencing/railings between the underpass sidewalks and traffic lanes
- Closing the sidewalk inside the underpass leading up to the parkway
What we like
- Reducing the number of traffic lanes between the underpass and 3rd St will calm traffic, especially the traffic “racing” west from the stoplight before the lanes merge into the underpass
- Raised bike lanes are protected from traffic making everyone safer
- Much better crosswalks across Franklin
Franklin and 3rd St Intersection
Three options for the Franklin and 3rd St intersection are proposed. We prefer Option 2 because:
- It keeps people walking and on bikes separated at the intersection as they are on the rest of the corridor. Mixing them at the intersection where the most chance for conflict occurs is not a good idea.
- It eliminates the right turn lanes which often make drivers over confident that they can make a right turn without conflict–at the time and place where people walking and riding may be crossing in front of them.
Raised Crossings of Local Streets
Although we love the raised bike lanes along Franklin Ave, they could be easily improved by adding raised crossings at the side streets: Harriman, Hill, 1st, 2nd, 4th, and 5th, 6th, and 7th. This would make the sidewalks and bike lanes along Franklin safer and more comfortable and would slow traffic entering the adjacent neighborhoods. See our article about Raised Local Intersections for all the details.