Lined with trendy restaurants, beloved neighborhood businesses, and a handful of historic monuments, the stretch of Sunset Boulevard between Echo Park and East Hollywood is one of the most recognizable corridors in Los Angeles.
It could also become a prime bike corridor.
A campaign called Sunset4All seeks to reconfigure the street’s traffic and parking lanes to insulate cyclists and scooter riders from passing cars and trucks. would run from Douglas Street (near Dodger Stadium) to Fountain Avenue.
“People see bike lanes as a recreational amenity, as opposed to a transportation amenity,” says Silver Lake resident Terence Heuston, who writes a blog called LA Bike Dad, and is one of the Sunset4All organizers. “This is [about] the ability to connect 100,000 people with our rail system and to attract business in a place that’s already extraordinarily parking constrained.”
Painted bike lanes already run down each side of Sunset, but they don’t have any barriers to protect cyclists.
Heuston says that’s more likely to make casual riders feel uncomfortable using the thoroughfare, which connects multiple neighborhoods and commercial districts to Hollywood and Downtown LA
Under the Sunset4All proposal, protected lanes would also be installed on a small segment of Santa Monica Boulevard, allowing riders to access the Vermont/Santa Monica subway station.
Because the corridor is listed on the high injury network—a database of streets where people are frequently injured or killed in traffic collisions—it’s already in line for infrastructure upgrades through LA’s Vision Zero program, a campaign to end traffic deaths by 2025.
These safety improvements could include many different measures, including new traffic signals or curb extensions to shorten the distance pedestrians must walk in the street when crossing.
LA’s transportation department has installed or reconfigured bike lanes on other streets targeted for safety improvements, but not all of them. Plans for a “road diet” on Temple Street that would have included new bike lanes and a center turn lane (in place of one lane now reserved for motor vehicles) were shelved last year in favor of smaller infrastructure changes.
Those pushing for the Sunset4All project stress that the proposal is not a road diet, and is not focused on slowing the speeds of cars through lane removal. The project would reconfigure parking zones on one side of the street, but would leave the boulevard’s five traffic lanes in place.
That could potentially make the project an easier sell for neighborhood residents and those who frequently drive the corridor. Road diets can reduce crashes by up to 47 percent, according to the Federal Highway Administration. But reducing the amount of street usable by cars doesn’t always go over well with drivers.
As planned, the project would require removal of some parking spots—though most would remain. Heuston says that for businesses on the corridor, the benefits of more bike travel in the area could outweigh the loss of those spaces.
“We’re forcing people to drive here,” he says. “We should be able to find a sustainable way to make these trips.”
The campaign for protected bike lanes on Sunset began more than a year ago. The volunteer group pushing for the project has met with twice with the transportation department and detailed its proposal at a CicLAvia open streets festival earlier this month. Organizer Derrick Paul says more than 350 people signed on as supporters of the project during the event.
Tony Arranaga, a spokesperson for City Councilmember Mitch O’Farrell tells Curbed that council staffers have met with organizers of the proposal and are awaiting further research on the concept.
“The project would need significant support from local businesses and residential stakeholders before anything could move into the next phase, which would include cost budgeting and identifying funding,” he writes in an email.
It’s just a proposal at this point, but it represents a sincere effort by community members to take part—and even take the lead—in the city’s efforts to make its streets greener and less deadly.
“Sunset really is the center of these neighborhoods,” Paul says. “You can make this a space that’s more welcoming and more comfortable for those who aren’t driving. I think that would change the dynamic—you already have all these businesses, but they’re cut off from [one another] by what’s basically a highway.”
Comments
This would be amazing! Riding on Sunset is scary. That sudden stop of the bike lane approaching East Hollywood is daunting, I always hold my breath when I get there. Sunset is a perfect street for a protected bike lane.
By astroland on 08.26.19 4:07pm
Amazing to breathe in all of the exhaust from the congestion. LA should ban all high polluting cars like Paris.
By Constituents on 08.26.19 4:32pm
I ride my bike there all the time, and you have to be REALLY aggressive and confident in claiming your space. Lots of stopped Ubers/Buses/Trucks in the bike land, start/stop parking, people opening their doors into the lane. Half the time, I’m taking a full traffic lane instead of the bike lane because it is so dangerous. Lots of people aren’t comfortable with that.
Bike lanes shouldn’t only be for lunatics like me. They should be safe for families, for older citizens, children, or bike N00bs.
By Greyvagabond on 08.26.19 4:33pm
Legally you’re not supposed to take the entire lane unless you’re in danger of something on the right, and it doesn’t sound like you are. I agree that there are a lot of a-hole drivers but that doesn’t mean you should be one too. I’ve never ‘taken’ a whole lane as a cyclist and never will.
By Ach Dav on 08.26.19 8:01pm
You’ve never taken the lane and you ride a bike in city traffic?
Where do you ride when the lane is quite narrow and there’s no bike lane… sandwiched in the door zone or the gutter where cars will be tempted to pass too closely and clip your handlebars? Yikes!
Where do you stop at a red light when there’s no bike lane? Staying to the far right would blocks motorists trying to turn right on red… seems logical to stop in the middle of the through lane, with all the cars (and then ride back over to right once the light turns and you’re nearing the other side of the intersection.)
How do you turn left on a mult-lane street like Sunset? Don’t you merge to the left turn pocket by taking the lanes (when there’s a little break in traffic?)
There’s a multitude of reason when it’s safer (and legal) to take the lane. But yeah, obviously if there’s plenty of room to ride on the right and let faster moving traffic go by, that would be the courteous (and smart) call. Unfortunately, LA has very little bike infrastructure to make that a reasonable option.
This project would seem to help (though I’m curious the feasibility of people opening their car doors on the driver side when they park, with the highway traffic speeds you see on Sunset today.) Seems like the street should be engineered for much lower top speeds… 25mph is plenty for such a bustling corridor.
By corner soul on 08.27.19 9:23am
Never. I’m 55 and have never ‘taken’ the lane because I think it’s rude and possibly more dangerous.
If there’s room for a car to turn right I move ahead enough so they can turn but not in front of the car next to me. Logical to get in front of the car at a red light? Why not get in line with the rest of the cars instead of going to the front of the line? I’ve thanked cyclists for moving over to the left and letting us car drivers turn right at a red light. Actually car drivers aren’t any better at moving over to the left in a lane (if there’s room to do so) so that those behind them can turn right on a red.
If I can safely get over without impeding car traffic I do, otherwise I go across the street and wait for that light.
The opening car door is something I’m always looking out for. It’s just something you have to do when riding a bike. You want to ride and sight see then get on a side road. A motorcycle class taken as a teenager taught us that ‘we’ had to look out for ourselves because the car driver most likely will not. When riding a bike I’m constantly scanning the parked cars side mirrors and front seat to see if someone might open their door.
By Ach Dav on 08.27.19 1:28pm
Well yeah, get in line behind the car in front of you… I’m not saying to cut in line. Just that there’s times you absolutely need to take the lane for your own personal safety. It’s usually a temporary thing (until there’s enough room to safely move aside and let cars pass.)
By corner soul on 08.27.19 3:10pm
@greyvagabond literally says:
By wake6830 on 08.27.19 11:44am
This is a bad comment and you should feel bad.
By Greyvagabond on 08.27.19 12:29pm
Are you referring to my comment’s, if so which comment?
By Ach Dav on 08.27.19 1:29pm
Yes, your comment. I’ll let you figure out why it is bad.
By Greyvagabond on 08.27.19 1:44pm
Don’t care enough about your feelings, but I’m feeling pretty good!
By Ach Dav on 08.27.19 2:18pm
Last year one of my classmates was being a nice guy and riding in the door impact zone on his way to orientation. Someone getting out of their car bumped him with their door and he fell into the traffic lane where he was hit. He never started his grad-school program because of the traumatic brain injury he sustained. Taking up a full lane prevents accidents when their is no space cushion. In my experience, it is angry drivers who will put you in danger on purpose that you have to worry about. In LA people think that roads are for cars. I sometimes wish we had Amish people here to break them of their entitled attitude.
By CurbedRob on 08.27.19 12:44pm
Sorry to hear that about your friends injury, hope he gets better.
Yes, many angry drivers and bad drivers.
By Ach Dav on 08.27.19 1:33pm
They should widen major East<→West streets by eliminating street parking on Sunset, Santa Monica, Wilshire, Pico, Hollywood.
I don’t understand the logic when there is a bus-only lane on Wilshire and there are parking spaces in Koreatown on Wilshire taking this bus lane.
By Ivan III on 08.26.19 4:10pm
The Wilshire bus lane is only at rush hour. The rest of the time it is available for parking.
Businesses would rebel if there were no street parking on those streets. It isn’t so easy to take that away.
By LA Denizen on 08.26.19 4:22pm
Businesses should build parking for their clients, not use public roads which are crowded there.
By Ivan III on 08.26.19 9:56pm
Build parking in Silverlake — that’s hillarious!
By MartyinLA on 08.28.19 11:00am
best way to do it is to swap the bike lanes and parking spaces. NYC did this in many places and works well, and cost effective.
By Andrew John on 08.26.19 4:23pm
It might be harder to do, but another option is making on bi-directional, protected bike land and shift everything over one lane. Sometimes just having a critical mass of bikes helps, and for some reason it, to my mind, makes the whole thing look more "normal."
By Greyvagabond on 08.26.19 4:32pm
This is very much needed. Plus sidewalks along this stretch need to be widened in places, and yes, traffic needs to be slowed. This has become a destination strip for people looking to shop and eat, and it’s ridiculous that traffic is flying by at 50 mph inches from people. In addition to a spur on Santa Monica to the Red Line, the bike lane and sidewalks on Griffith Park Blvd should be widened as well, all the way to Hyperion.
By JSpence on 08.26.19 4:25pm
Griffith Park Blvd is a super wide street so the bike lanes could be widened but why bother? I used to live on that street and ride my bike on it every day. Its the safest bike lane anywhere because of the street width. As for the sidewalks, why go to the expense of widening them when few pedestrians us it? I’d rather the money go to a higher priority safety measure. GPB used to be a super traffic intense artery years ago but stop signs were added every few blocks so traffic was redirected to Hyperion.
By MartyinLA on 08.28.19 11:07am
I was on Sunset in Echo park this past weekend and traffic was insane. Knowing that this proposal leaves car lanes alone and focuses on the already painted bike-lanes, I’m all for it. I know finding parking anywhere around that area is a nightmare so maybe the city can find an empty lot or two, designate them as parking lots and remove all the parking lanes on Sunset.
By subaruwrx on 08.26.19 4:34pm
I think the plan is to just move the existing bike lanes inboard of the existing parking. So the bikes are safe from moving traffic, but nobody really loses parking (other than a few spots here or there, probably for other related safety improvements.
No sure why they didn’t just do that in the first place!
By Greyvagabond on 08.26.19 4:39pm
The best thing that came from the Venice Blvd Road Diet is that everyone now knows to put a stop to these things before they get any momentum. The local residents managed to keep this bad policy away from Vista del Mar, 6th Street and Temple, and hopefully the business owners and more well-informed residents in this neighborhood will do the same here.
"Heuston says that for businesses on the corridor, the benefits of more bike travel in the area could outweigh the loss of those spaces." You should ask the (former) business owners on Venice Blvd. what the road diet did to their businesses. It’s not only about a loss of parking, but the fact that it becomes a pain in the ass to travel to the area so people just stop going there.
By LADude on 08.26.19 4:46pm