June 28, 2007
SFist Photo: Deathtrap Intersection at Fell and Masonic
Another vehicle vs. bike incident in the crosswalk on Masonic at Fell. The driver of the pickup and the cyclist on the right probably should have cleared out of the intersection before starting with the phone calls, but oh well.
The San Francisco Bicycle Coalition and Walk SF held a news conference a few days ago concerning this intersection in the Golden Gate Park Panhandle. Is this crosswalk part of a Class 1 Bike Path? Is that a good thing? Do injured people get static from insurance companies for not walking their bikes across the crosswalk? They do. Do cyclists routinely cross this intersection against the 15-second countdown light flashing at them in red lights? They do, probably because it only takes them a few seconds to get across.
Our conclusion is that this intersection is a mess, despite some of the recent ameliorative improvements. We welcome increased attention to safety for peds and bikers at this location.
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You have to be really familiar with this intersection while driving to avoid killing someone. When turning left off Fell onto Masonic, you need to look down and up the panhandle bike path to make sure someone on a bike isn't going to come flying through the crosswalk.
The cyclists need to much more aware of how different this intersection is than most others.
I think a red turn arrow when the pedestrians have the light and a green turn arrow with the pedestrians having red would be a big improvement at this intersection. It's very difficult for drivers turning onto Masonic to see the eastbound peds and bikes behind them, and because the turn is so wide most motorists just speed through it without looking anyway.
This intersection is a frickin' mess. Cars haul ass up Fell and bikers are haulin’ ass up and down the pan handle completely oblivious that their paths will meet in the middle of the street. To be fair, typically it’s the cars that are more oblivious given that they are making a 90 degree turn onto Masonic. None the less you throw in cell phones, conversations between cyclists and distracted drivers and you have a recipe for disaster. It is so common to see collisions there it is not even funny. I live in the area and every time I cross that intersection I have my head on a swivel looking over my shoulder at the drivers on Fell. Like I said most of the time the cars are at fault but its not to say I haven’t seen my fair share of potential Darwin Award winners on bikes trying to make the light. Something needs to be done there and both drivers and bikers/pedestrians will have to make some sort of accommodation for a solution.
The solution here, like many similar ones around the city, is blindingly obvious. Ban parking on Fell at least a half block before the intersection. Then approaching drivers can at least see if there is a bike or ped about to cross (the view is usually blocked by a some smelly hippie's RV). Then time the lights so bikes and peds have at least 20 seconds with no traffic from either direction. Finally, put up some better goddam street lighting. When I'm driving at night, bikes and peds just seem to come from nowhere out of the shadows, and when I'm crossing on foot I have no confidence the drivers can see me. Plus better lighting will cut down on the pooping, which is always good.
make the death monsters tunnel under
I wonder, is it legal to ride your bike when going across a crosswalk? Or are you supposed to walk your bike when crossing?
I know that someone or the city put these "look" notations on the pavement at 6th and Geary; and even at some Las Vegas crosswalks, they have animated roaming "eyes" in blue color on the crosswalk signal that informs crossers to look both ways before and while crossing six lanes.
Maybe the city should install large signs at each corner of the crosswalks that clearly notes that a flashing red hand means, DON'T CROSS if you haven't started.
Also, the DMV manual says that the law doesn't protect pedestrians that "dart" across the crosswalk. So wouldn't riding your bike at a faster pace than "normal" walking speed on a crosswalk be considered "darting?" And would it be better to encourage bikers to just walk their bike or bike slower?
in an ideal world, the intersection should be grade separated; however, a quick solution is to create a dedicated light for pedestrians and bike riders at that intersection. It doesn't have to be long, maybe 10 seconds?
Market and Octavia should have the same 10 second bicycle light for Market street
I live on Central just east of this 'section - I bike across it all the time. The "walk" light is on for about 5 seconds before the light turns green - so peds & bikes get a head start - usually enough time to get out in the intersection so cars have a clear view of what's in the crosswalk. I haven't found it to be too bad of a crossing, if everyone just looks out - but I've found the worst happens when westbound Masonic traffic backs up across fell and then the light changes - then you have crosswalk blocking cars and turning cars and pedestrian and bike soup. That's when it gets dangerous and cars start valuing the honks of horns over the rights & safety of peeps & velos.
I think it's cute when the kiddies on their little bikes ride on the sidewalk. Then they get noisy and demand to be treated like adults. Then they disregard the rules and get hit by cars. Then they get all sad.
and oh yeah those kiddies are all hipster 30 nothings..
One more time, for clarity: it's not a "sidewalk" it's a "multi-use path".
I just discovered the "hide guest comments" bit and it makes things so much more civilized around here.
A separate light for bikes is just a good idea. With clear signs to bikes and autos advising them that they are really really stupid if they run the wrong light.
Ooh, Jas, thanks for pointing that out.
What about a tunnel for the multi-use path and a no-crossing barrier? Traffic could keep moving for both autos and multi-users. I'm sure I'm not thinking of something.
I've never had a problem there and I've biked through it countless times, but I've also never tried to play chicken with the light.
Ahh.. but you're missing half of the conversation when you hide guest comments.
If you're interested in pedestrian safety beyond typing in comments on this blog, consider joining Walk San Francisco http://www.walksf.org
I've lived on the panhandle for 6 years and ride my bike, walk my dogs, and walk with my toddler all the time through this intersection. I've been nearly hit probably about 10 times. Statistically, that's not that high, but 1 out of XXXXX is too high. Oh, and it's not just at Fell-to-Masonic, it's also a problem on the pedestrian side on Oak.
Left turn arrows and no parking for a block or so before the intercections should work (didn't they used to ban parking for about 200 yds before?) This is probably the best solution.
It's definitely better now that they have the pedestrian/bike light come on before the auto traffic light, but I think its only a second or two.
Being aware of others and one's surroundings also helps.
A tunnel for peds/bikes could work, but probaby too $$.
I like the idea of banning parking. Less obstructions of views ... less opportunities for groups of criminals to sit in the car and wait for a victim to mug ... less parking spots for drug deals to occur.
Yes... take away some parking, please.
This intersection is really scary by from different aspects by foot, bike, motorcycle and car, and I have done them all, but mostly by foot or motorcycle.
Bike only people will flame, but the odd person in most situations is the one on the fancy roadbike going full tilt. At rush hour (about 18 hours a day), a bike on the path can actually be going faster than the cars, and motorcycles, on Fell Street.
On my motorcycle turning left from Fell onto Masonic: The scary thing is that you will be at a stop, foot down, in full eye contact with a jogger using the crosswalk, everything cool, now its your turn, when suddenly a bike rushes through, coming your direction from behind you on the panhandle path.
Is there a bike equivalent to speed bumps, so the racers must slow down to merely jogging speed from their warp factor each side of the Masonic intersection?
On foot: crossing the panhandle on the Masonic or on any of the cross paths, you need to be very careful crossing not Fell or Oak (well, you do) but the bike path parallel to Fell. A very fast bike can be silent and invisible with all thats going on.
And don't even try to cross Fell on the west side of Masonic. With a green light, the lemmings turning right onto Fell, heading towards the Sunset, wouldn't bother to stop if they hit you.
The main problem is that bikes and joggers going with the flow of traffic can't see the cars turning from behind them, and the cars have a hard time seeing the bikers. There are already two trails that loop the north and south ends of the panhandle. The north one should be made one-way eastbound, and the south one should be widened to allow bicycles and be made one-way westbound, with a lane for bikers and a lane for walkers on each trail (which would reduce another danger on that multi-use trail, which is that bikers are constantly having to go around slower pedestrians, bringing them into the oncoming bike lane.
Oh, and they need to make the third lane on Masonic going south after Fell, a Bus lane. Douchebags use that to cut the line then try and merge back into traffic before they plough into the first parked car up the hill. Hate that. But please feel free to follow me to my house when I don't yield to you. Then please shout at me as I emerge from my garage. Then please make idle threats about suing me. Please continue to do these things because they really are acts that you can look back on with pride in later life.
Angry much, fizzandpop? Try a high speed road bike!
i friggin' hate that when people get into minor collisions, no loss of life or limb, etc.. and don't get the FUCK out of the way...
screw you all and go to hell for thinking you are so important that you cannot step the fuck out of our way!
has anyone else noticed a very disturbing trend with all these assholes on bikes and intersections. they wait at the side with a red and creep into the intersection while our light is just turning yellow, presuming we will stop before it's even a stale yellow for them to run the light they had as red.
what the fuck!!!!
why are you assholes so goddamn arrogant to think you can break every law in the book?????
if the one that did this to me on sunset blvd a month or so ago when i was doing 35 mph and he made me brake so hard my passenger almost got sick, fuck you asshole! i should have killed you on purpose!
IMHO, I think this is one of the worst intersections in SF, up there with the ones that are managed by the state (van ness and grove). I run up and down fell street almost every day and avoid the panhandle because of this intersection (I run on the other side or up Hayes). I don't know what the solution is, but i don't think it's a bikes/peds vs. cars problem; It's just bad design and traffic planning. We can work this out people.
Bicyclists seem to think that riding on the sidewalk or in a crosswalk turns them into pedestrians, with all rights associated. It does not. They are a vehicle when they are riding, just as I am on my motorcycle.
It is a dangerous intersection.
"westbound Masonic traffic" ??? Jas - Masonic is a north-south street.
I disagree with you on moving out of traffic. That is me in that photo on the phone I was the one hit by the truck. You stay right where you are until the cops come along in case the driver wants to change his story.