The Observation Deck

Leaders from Lakewood, Cleveland, Cuyahoga County, and the Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority break ground on the new Clifton Boulevard Enhancement Project, dubbed the West Shore Express.

The West Shore Express will operate every 10 minutes along Clifton Boulevard, with dedicated bus lanes. The buses will be a Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) system, similar to the HealthLine along Euclid Avenue in Cleveland. (David Lay/The Lakewood Observer)

wow, what have we become when our elected leaders have gotten so soft they can't even break ground at a ground breaking ceremony? Really? they gave them a box of topsoil. Does the cost of this project include the ceremonial shovels that I'm sure our taxpayer dollars will now pay to have nicely mounted on a plaque that commemorates the day they doubled our commute times downtown?

and yes, I'm a little bitter about this. Clifton and the West Shoreway is the ONLY unspoiled commute in the city. So, here comes the crew to jump right in with their "if it ain't broken, try to fix it" mentality. What's the gameplan? to make it easier for everyone to be late for work?

If you want a rapid transit, why not extend the red line alongside, above, or in replacement of the current rail line right down the center of the city.

Plan B: Encase the west shoreway and build over top to extend Ohio City to the lake. effectively making the shoreway a tunnel from Edgewater park to the Westinghouse turn. Beach access granted, no interuption to traffic flow, and hey, then the city could save it's pathetic effort to put up the snow fence (that only assures a bigger snow drift in the right hand lane) every winter.

Can you please save this picture to put up on the billboard that will read "Stuck in Traffic? Thank these people."

it sounds like they are essentially just tearing up the street and then repaving. jackhammers or picks would be more appropriate than a token box of dirt and shovels.
if they want a designated bus lane, make it no parking on one side of Clifton for the westward route. and no parking on one side of Lake Road or Detroit or Franklin for the eastward route. People can walk one extra block or two. This may require slight repainting of the lanes and the posting of No-Parking Signs and basic Map Signs.

This isn't new information but I was reminded of what a great deal this was for Cleveland as I drove back to Lakewood from downtown today. They are getting sidewalk to sidewalk replacements on Clifton Blvd. The new curbs on the south side look fantastic.

It is unfortunate we didn't negotiate a better deal. Now when folks drive west from downtown they will notice not only more snow on Clifton but a drastic difference in the curb conditions when they cross into our city.

There always used to be a noticeable difference between Cleveland and Lakewood at 117th but now it is the opposite of what it used to be...

http://www.riderta.com/majorprojects/cliftonblvd

Project scope -- Lakewood

New bus stations or bus stops will be built at 10 eastbound locations -- West Clifton, Granger, Westlake, Summit, Warren, Belle, Bunts, Nicholson, Cove and Fry.
New bus stations or bus stops will be built at 9 westbound locations -- Webb, Granger, Cranford, Summit, Cook, Belle, Nicholson, Cove and Fry.
Each new station and stop will have a new concrete bus pad within the curb lane.
Curb lanes will be signed to designate a bus-only status during peak hours.
Project scope -- Cleveland

Build new bus stations or bus stops at 6 eastbound locations -- Baltic Road, West Blvd., W. 104, W. 110, W. 115 and W. 117.
Build new bus stations or bus stop at 5 westbound locations -- West Blvd., W. 104, W. 110, W.115 and W. 117.
Repave the entire roadway, including new concrete bus pads at stations and stops within the curb lanes.
Include trees and landscaping in new median.
Widen the road by one foot in each direction, so curbs and gutters can be installed.
Re-build driveway aprons along Clifton Blvd.
Add signage and pavement markings to the curb lanes to designate the peak hours when the lanes are bus-only.
From West 115 to West 117, add additional streetscape enhancements -- masonry planters, sidewalk pavers and new pedestrian lighting.
Replace traffic signals with mast arms from West 115 to Baltic.

At the Mayor's meeting at Deagan's I was told that we have limited police resources for radar and speed enforcement. How in the world are we going to enforce this?

Unfortunately I believe this is will be obeyed just as much as the signs that say 35mph...

Ryan Salo wrote:At the Mayor's meeting at Deagan's I was told that we have limited police resources for radar and speed enforcement. How in the world are we going to enforce this?

Unfortunately I believe this is will be obeyed just as much as the signs that say 35mph...

bus lane only.jpg

Ryan, one might ask, how will RTA enforce this. This is something I agree with Bill Call on. Why are
we ticketing Lakewood residents so that Rocky River, Bay, Avon residents can get through Lakewood
faster and faster.

Why are we rolling over for RTA, again? Because of the community circulator? Their Drunk Bus?
Better access for school kids and seniors. NOPE!

I wonder who paid for the damn signs?

.

Jim,

I agree with you and Bill. I have had cars towed that were out just minutes past the ban just so outsiders could speed past my house.

I called the police department and spoke with the officer on duty and he didn't even know that there was going to be a bus only lane...

How do we let outside groups do such damage to our city...

OK... so possibly stupid question here: Who can/did decide that there is a bus only lane? Lakewood? RTA? County? If a local officer didn't know about this, is it just RTA throwing up signs because they want to? Is there an ordinance to back this up or not? Just how is it decided what signage - and what rules - are where?

This is going to make driving up to the high school for morning marching band practice so fun. It's already frustrating to try to get onto Clifton in the morning but now everyone will be smushed into 2 lanes, I am not happy. I can't exactly take Detroit since it is incredibly slow. Not happy at all.

I called the transit police this morning and after being on hold for a while I was told that they would be enforcing this once the project is complete. I asked what they meant by enforcing and they said that on the healthline they warn and release drivers.

Should be interesting.

RTA not only plans to ticket Lakewood residents for driving down Clifton but will implement a traffic disrupter system that will keep the Clifton traffic lights green for extra minutes. This will make crossing Clifton even more dangerous.

Perhaps Lakewood Police can start ticketing RTA buses when they exceed the 35 MPH speed limit.

Because RTA has such a bad safety record it might be a good idea to limit bus speed to 25 MPH.

Regionalism at work. Disrupt entire neighborhoods in Lakewood so the resident of Avon Lake can race through town just a little faster.

There was a brief discussion on this topic at the Lincoln Elementary Architectural Community Meeting last night. Some attendees were concerned about the bus lane’s impact on the proposed student drop off at the new building. An authority on the subject said that RTA was in discussion with the city but that the lane plan was not finalized. Perhaps someone “jumped the gun” in posting the signs?

How does limiting traffic to two lanes help residents of Avon Lake or Rocky River get downtown faster? If anything it will make traffic along Clifton slower, and perhaps even force more commuters to I-90.

That said, what an idiotic idea!

Mike Coleman wrote:How does limiting traffic to two lanes help residents of Avon Lake or Rocky River get downtown faster? If anything it will make traffic along Clifton slower, and perhaps even force more commuters to I-90.

That said, what an idiotic idea!

Good point.

That said, then what is the purpose of the dedicated lane? It might make bus traffic a little faster but like you pointed out it will make driving a car in Lakewood more difficult.

Meg Ostrowski wrote:An authority on the subject said that RTA was in discussion with the city but that the lane plan was not finalized. Perhaps someone “jumped the gun” in posting the signs?

Meg,

Thank you for sharing.

I seem to recall that City Hall was pleading ignorance when RTA forced our elementary kids to walk in the traffic to and from school.

How many times can City Hall plead ignorance when it comes to its relationship with ____________ (insert RTA for this discussion)?

Matt