Update: Added link to our flickr stream that contains more pictures of Yucca St.
A few weeks ago, we posted a bikeway project update that provided a list of projects that our department is currently working on. That list included bike lanes, bike paths, and Bicycle Friendly Streets (BFS) that are currently in design. One of those BFS facilities is Yucca St, a local street that parallels one of the busiest, and perhaps most iconic boulevards in the city – Hollywood Blvd. Since Yucca St. is slated to become one of the city’s first BFS facilities, we thought it would be good to do a post exploring the existing facilities and detail what’s to come in the not too distant future.
An Ideal Bicycle Friendly Street
Yucca is a calm, primarily residential street for 2/3 of a mile between Highland Ave. and Cahuenga Blvd. The street abuts high density residential (lots of apartment buildings and condos), a public park (with soccer field, playground, and basketball court), and some ancillary commercial at its eastern end towards Cahuenga Blvd.
One of the reasons why Yucca St. has such low vehicle traffic volumes (a big plus for Bicycle Friendly Streets) is because of three existing and strategically placed traffic diverters at Las Palmas Ave, Cherokee Ave, Whitley Ave. Because of the existing diverters, Yucca was an ideal candidate to test our new diverter design that allows for bicycles to pass through, while prohibiting vehicle through movements. Yucca St. BFS will also connect with existing facilities including the Yucca St. sharrowed bike route (continuing eastward towards Vine) and Cahuenga Blvd. bike lanes (continuing northwards towards the Hollywood Bowl).
Bicycle Crossing Islands
Our engineers have sought to improve the aforementioned intersections by reconstructing the existing diverters to allow for bicycles to pass through. The concept intersections are based on designs from the National Association of City Transportation Officials (NACTO) Urban Bikeway Design Guide, and from our very own L.A. City Bike Plan’s Technical Design Handbook (TDH). The treatments will include central concrete islands to prohibit through vehicle traffic and may include ladder crosswalks (to improve pedestrian crossings).
Sharrows, Wayfinding, and more!
In addition to the bicycle crossing islands, Yucca will also be getting sharrows (shared lane markings – SLM), wayfinding signage, as well as new street signs that will identify the street as a BFS facility.
Your Thoughts
We’d love to hear your thoughts and ideas on Yucca St. BFS. What destinations would you like to see listed on wayfinding signs? Let us know in the comments section below!
And what if people want to do things along Hollywood Blvd? They should walk their bikes? (Even new concepts from Portland are moving away from the Neighbourhood Greenways towards real infrastructure on busy streets that have shops and other attractions).
I don’t think it’s either/or – but both. We should do quieter bike-friendly-streets (aka bike-boulevards aka neighborhood-greenways) and also fix our bigger arterial streets so that they’re safe and convenient for cycling. This project doesn’t require anyone to walk her bike on Hollywood Blvd.
Portland has a strong network that has varying types of facilities. That can work well here too.
“(Even new concepts from Portland are moving away from the Neighbourhood Greenways towards real infrastructure on busy streets that have shops and other attractions).”
Cool, got links?
I would think that having clearly marked crosswalks (ladder or otherwise) would be a standard treatment as part of any bicycle boulevard design.
Will there be any landscaping on the crossing islands?
Hi Evan,
The ladder crosswalks are in our current design concept, however a landscaped crossing island is not.
That’s kind of unfortunate, I think. I would imagine that neighbors would appreciate some landscaping rather than plain concrete barriers. I know that it creates additional costs.
Evan: landscaping is not out of the question. Once our design progresses, it will be presented to the community and there may be an opportunity to integrate landscaping if feasible and if the community is willing to take on maintenance.
thanks for clarifying Tim.
Portland doesn’t have much in the way of bike lanes on commercial streets. Outside of downtown their bicycle network relies mostly on bicycle boulevards. The streetcar era commercial streets like Hawthorne, Belmont, Division etc. are more bicycle friendly than LA’s nasty streets but the vast majority of people use the parallel boulevards to get close to their destination and then ride a short distance on the bike lane free commercial street, or get on the sidewalk. This is not the best solution but it is an important first step and it is what accompanied the rapid growth in the bicycle mode share over the past decade. The more photogenic, blogfriendly bicycle facilities are relatively recent additions and aren’t that common. Most people aren’t going to go from not riding to riding on second rate on-street bike lanes overnight. Think of it as a city’s training wheels.
Awesome news.
Do you know if there are any plans for any bike improvements on Pico Avenue between Motor and Avenue of the Stars?
For people living in Venice / West L.A. / Culver City and Working in Century City / Beverly Hills (or vice versa), Motor is a very convenient street, but Pico can be pretty scary, especially if you’re trying to make a left turn onto Avenue of the Stars or Century Park East.
This would be a pretty small infrastructure change, as it’s only a couple of blocks, but it would make things much easier for cyclists.
John: were you thinking of any specific types of improvements? That section of Pico is a tough spot. It’s on the Bike Plan, designated for future bike lanes, but it’s not on the 5 year implementation plan. This makes it a longer-term segment to tackle and given the heavy volume of traffic on Pico at that location, it may be best to allow for further build-out of other parts of the bikeway network first to gather some momentum and let this section of Pico be a true gap closure when the time comes. In the meantime, I’d like to hear your thoughts on any other treatments which you think could make for a more comfortable connection here.
Howabout just going the extra step and turning Yucca into a ‘complete street’? You can widen sidewalks, and landscaping, and generally make it a more desirable place.
Doesn’t anyone one think it’s an ugly design? Also barricading off the intersections just makes it confusing to drivers.
I ride my bike all over downtown Hollywood, maybe coexisting bike lanes with traffic and and a law that encourages drivers to be aware of, rather than ignore bicyclists.
Hi Allen,
Yucca St. already has diverters at those very same intersections. Our concept will update the diverter’s design by providing bicycle crossing islands. If anything, we feel that the new diverters will add more clarity for drivers because they will know to expect bicycles at those intersections.
[…] from the recent Feel My Legs, I’m a Racer hill climbing stage race. LADOT wants your input on how to make Yucca Street bicycle friendly. The Real Rydaz are hosting a ride through South L.A. on July 1st, even if money and Metro is […]
[…] poised to become one of the city’s first “Bicycle Friendly Streets,” according to the LADOT Bike Blog. Yucca was chosen as a good place to start since it’s mostly residential and certainly less […]
[…] Yucca Street the Next “Bicycle Friendly Street” (LADOT Bike Blog) […]
As at “widening Yucca,” in my neighborhood, you can not. The apartments that have been built and are being built are not required to have a setback. It is two lanes only. And because of all of the clubbing on that goes on Hollwyood Boulevard on the western end of Yucca, between Vine and Highland, cars have broken down what is there in the panic to find ‘free’ parking on the streets. I have watched limousines, cars full of kids and even cops illegally turn and go around the pitiful barricades. You should see what we have at Cherokee, Whitley and Las Palmas. The design is a vast improvement over the iron cables that have been left poking up after cars have crashed through them. This is still a neighborhood, even though it is one block north of Hollywood Boulevard. There is a community center where kids are coming and going. This is aesthetically better for the community, it also is better for bicyclists, and it helps safety in the area. My only concern is that cars will still roll over the barricades if they are not high enough. Historically, this has been a drug corridor. Trying to upgrade the area will be very helpful. It is not just about a bike path. It is a solution to several problems at once. Three or four birds with one stone.
[…] allowing for bicycles to pass through. The new bicycle friendly traffic diverters are part of the Yucca St. Bicycle Friendly Street (BFS) project, that aims to create an attractive, calm, and safe street for bicyclists. Yucca St. is slated to […]
[…] allowing for bicycles to pass through. The new bicycle friendly traffic diverters are part of the Yucca St. Bicycle Friendly Street (BFS) project, that aims to create an attractive, calm, and safe street for bicyclists. Yucca St. is slated to […]
[…] writes to remind me that LA does actually have a bike boulevard, aka bicycle friendly street on Yucca Street in Hollywood, though it doesn’t actually connect to […]