Incomplete Bike Path Missing from Hinkle Roundabout Discussion
April 19, 2021
After repeated online discussion and concern raised regarding the roundabout at Hinkle and Mimosa, the roundabout is up for discussion on some upcoming agendas. This week and next, concerns about the Hinkle roundabout at Mimosa is being discussed in the Traffic Safety Commission (4/19), Mobility Committee (4/21), and City Council (4/27) meetings.
The staff presentation slides for the upcoming meetings list the existing concerns about the Hinkle Roundabout as:
Roundabouts can be confusing for anyone not familiar;
Emergency vehicles need to be able to drive over the roundabout;
The visibility of this roundabout at night is poor.
One glaring omission from the list of concerns is what many of you have mentioned: the bike lane still leads to a ramp that abruptly ends in dirt or grass.
The roundabout was not originally in the plans for Hinkle, which likely created much of the budgetary and right-of-way issues that resulted in the disconnected bike route. Budgets and right-of-way are generally determined prior to any public feedback on designs.
North American roundabouts typically provide people on bicycles with two options: less experienced riders can ride on a path on the outer edge of the roundabout, while more experienced riders can travel in the roundabout itself. While it appears that attempts were made to design the roundabout in the typical North American way, it seems that it was not closely analyzed whether there was enough space to accommodate both motorized and non-motorized road users in the available space. As usual, it was the people traveling outside of a car who were left with incomplete infrastructure.
In addition to addressing the concerns for people traveling through the roundabout in a car, we also need to address the concerns of people who need to travel through the roundabout on foot, by bicycle, or by other mobility device. Considering the needs and safety of non-motorized traffic is necessary if we ever hope to reduce car dependency.
