Mind the Gap, Season Two!

Last Spring, in an effort to get leaders to think about the biggest impediment to bikeability in our community – the lack of connectivity and coherence in our bike network – we organized our first annual Mind the Gap vote campaign.

We took a look at the bike network and identified ten obvious gaps that, if filled, would have huge connectivity benefits for cyclists of all ages and abilities. 2022’s clear winner was #10: Elmwood Avenue from the City line to 12 Corners in Brighton. We presented Monroe County DOT with the following certificate and copied in County Legislators, State Senators, State Assembly Members and Brighton Officials. It seems to have done some good: It was announced yesterday that the plan for an upcoming resurfacing project later this year will implement a 4:3 conversion “road diet” (single lane traffic with a center turning lane), along with bike lanes in both directions. This will be the first time bike lanes will be installed on a road under the jurisdiction of Monroe County!

Now it’s time for 2023’s voting campaign! Some nominations from last year remain. But many of them are new and came from you, the voters!

We want your vote! Take a look below at the nominated locations and tell us which THREE gaps you think are the most important to fill.

Think we missed something? We’ll have a fill-in-the-blank that will help us with nominations for future years’ contests.

The gap that receives the most votes will be declared the winner! Reconnect Rochester will give this segment special attention in our advocacy efforts. We’ll approach the municipality with our community support evidence in hand to help make the case that this is a crucial gap to fill.

In deciding which locations to nominate, we looked for places that  have somewhat comfortable biking on each end with a relatively short, awkward or uncomfortable gap in the middle, that if filled in with comfortable bike infrastructure, would  have a positive impact for a great number of riders.

Without further ado, we present to you the nominees for the 2023 Mind the Gap award:

1. EAST MAIN STREET BETWEEN UNION AND GOODMAN

Rochester boasts three cycletracks at the moment: Elmwood, Union Street and East Main from Goodman to Culver. Many people want to see the latter two connected. There are conventional bike lanes on East Main between Union and Goodman, but much more for this corridor was envisioned during the 2015 E. Main & Market District Plan. Unfortunately it puttered out. East Main is very wide and with so many traffic lanes, motorist speeds are incredibly fast, making the bike lanes intimidating to ride in. Plus, blockages in the bike lanes are routine, either from parked cars or signage and cones put out by the Auditorium Theatre. Though installing a new cycletrack is outside the realm of feasibility, this stretch, which is only 6/10 of a mile, is a great candidate for a road diet and some protected bike lanes. Easy, transformative fix. Jurisdiction: City of Rochester

2. EMPIRE BOULEVARD

It’s one of the most common complaints we receive: Cyclists east of Irondequoit Bay are completely cut off from the City. It’s actually quite possible to bike through Penfield to Webster comfortably via a series of neighborhoods. But traversing Irondequoit Creek by bike is very unpleasant, whether by Empire, Browncroft, or Blossom. There’s probably the most space for bike accommodations on Empire, where separation would definitely be necessary from that fast moving traffic. How about a cycletrack? Jurisdiction: NYS DOT

3. RIDGEWAY AVE 

If you haven’t biked the new Eastman Trail and 390 Trail extension yet, we highly recommend it! Greece and Rochester are now connected via a network of trails and comfortable Bike Boulevards through Maplewood. But there’s an uncomfortable gap on Ridgeway between Lily Street and Mt Read, where the Eastman Trail starts. We understand that the City envisioned a second phase of the Eastman Trail but that effort has stalled. At the very minimum, cyclists would benefit from bike lanes on Ridgeway along this half-mile stretch. Jurisdiction: City of Rochester

4. SCOTTSVILLE ROAD TO THE GREENWAY

For over a century, Rochester cyclists have reveled in biking around Genesee Valley Park and its environs. Many riders these days drive to the Genesee Valley Sports Complex on Elmwood, park their car and bike around. Heading southwest on the Genesee Valley Greenway is a treat. You’ll pass the Rochester Fire Academy, where you might see firefighters practicing their skills on old planes. But to reach the newly resurfaced portion of the Greenway, you have to bike on Scottsville and Ballantyne Roads for a bit. There is a separated shoulder on the southbound side of Scottsville Road, but it disappears at the railroad tracks. If it continued south and west on Ballantyne and was available in both directions, or if a trail paralleled the tracks west so cyclists didn’t have to bike on Ballantyne at all, the Greenway would be much more accessible. Jurisdiction: NYS DOT

5. THE APPROACH TO MONROE COMMUNITY COLLEGE

Monroe Community College, our area’s largest institute of learning, is very uncomfortable to get to by bike. Though bike lanes have been installed on East Henrietta Road from Westfall south to 390, the bridge over 390 is quite scary. Students, faculty and staff approaching MCC from the north deserve a more comfortable approach. Jurisdiction: NYS DOT

6. CROSSING 104 INTO IRONDEQUOIT

The easiest way to cross Route 104 by bike is via the El Camino Trail. But another low-stress route is needed between Rochester and Irondequoit. Goodman and Culver are not friendly for cyclists. We see two options: Monroe County DOT  makes the 104 underpass on Culver more bike-friendly, or the Town of Irondequoit explores this great trail idea put forth by Jack Rinaldo last year. Such a trail would only need to be half a mile long (!) and it would be transformative. Jurisdiction: Monroe Co. DOT / Town of Irondequoit

7. BROOKS AVE TO THE AIRPORT

Unlike many airports, Rochester’s isn’t terribly far from downtown. The Frederick Douglass Greater Rochester International Airport is quite bikeable since it’s right next to the Erie Canal Trail and a stone’s throw from the Genesee Riverway Trail. The main entrance is also just half a mile from the 19th Ward’s comfortable Bike Boulevards. We think Brooks Avenue is the perfect candidate for a road diet and bike infrastructure to make the ride to the airport a seamless one. Jurisdiction: NYS DOT and City of Rochester

8. PITTSFORD CONNECTION TO EAST ROCHESTER

This might be fanciful since the separation of these streets was intentional, but if Brightford Heights Road, Linden Oaks, and Gleason Circle were connected in Pittsford, East Rochester could be quite accessible by bike (anyone up for some Pinball? 😉). The 490 foot bridge from Allen Creek Elementary allows you to go over 490 without biking on Linden Ave, which can be scary. From there, the ride would be a breeze. Jurisdiction: Town of Pittsford

9. GENESEE RIVERWAY TRAIL AT DRIVING PARK AVE

Just as the Genesee River is the heart of Rochester, so is the Genesee Riverway Trail the heart of the City’s bike network. Since it’s not seamless and currently requires you to bike on St. Paul, it’s not comfortable for all yet. But we’re proud to report the City is receiving funding for a plan to complete a seamless Genesee Riverway Trail north of downtown. In the meantime, we’d like to see the intimidating crosswalk on Driving Park Ave addressed with a Rectangular Rapid Flashing Beacon (RRFB), or better yet, a raised crosswalk. Motorist speeds are fast and as a cyclist or pedestrian, crossing here shouldn’t take the courage that it does today. Jurisdiction: City of Rochester

10. JEFFERSON ROAD TO MARKETPLACE MALL

Did you know there’s a comfortable, fun, scenic Bicycle Superhighway between the University of Rochester and RIT? Check out the Lehigh Valley Trail’s north branch! The former railroad bed gets you south to Brighton Henrietta Town Line Road, which curves and becomes John Street next to RIT (where Barnes & Noble and Lovin’ Cup are). At that point, the trail becomes a separated cycle path on the west side of John Street all the way to Bailey Road, where the comfort ends. Presently, this trail is the least stressful way to bike from Rochester to Henrietta, home to many job opportunities. But to get to those destinations, one must contend with Jefferson Road, which is a scary place to be on two wheels. Jefferson Road is being recommended for the proposed Countywide Active Transportation Network, so perhaps someday we could see changes to this corridor. The changes we’d like to see are narrower travel lanes, which could make space for buffered bike lanes between the trail and Marketplace Mall (one mile!). Jurisdiction: NYS DOT

So, what do you think?

Note: You might notice we didn’t nominate the Genesee Riverway Trail through downtown. The City is well aware of this obvious gap and through the ROC The Riverway initiative, is addressing it segment-by-segment as funding becomes available. (Someday we will have a seamless riverway trail through downtown!)

p.s. Here are some other promising bike connection developments if you’re interested:

• Things are looking good for a road diet on Monroe Avenue to 12 Corners in 2024.
• We know how popular the idea is of extending the Union Street cycletrack north to the Public Market. But since Union is so skinny and there isn’t space north of Main Street, we understand the City is considering extending the cycletrack northwest as part of the Inner Loop North project, and perhaps having a high-comfort bike connection on Scio to the Public Market.
• West Main Street is getting resurfaced in the not-too-distant future and we expect a road diet and buffered or protected bike lanes will be part of the plan.