What the public thinks of Franklin Boulevard today

Bike access is for the most avid/daring cyclists, but is sometimes necessary to connect travel points. It is a key gateway to river path access at Patterson, Onyx, and Walnut but you would not know it from a design/user experience. Multiple lanes encourage speeding and make driving stressful for maneuvering into lanes for upcoming turns and allowing for business access. It is terrible for pedestrians. I provided input on the “Walnut Station” intersection improvements over a decade ago and am dismayed at the delay in action. That intersection needs to prioritize peds/bikes/transit users and set the tone for drivers entering from the east that Franklin is a street for everybody and is not a freeway. The UO needs to adopt a student education program to de-California-ize their driving habits and learn to “chill out, share the road, destress, and breathe.” Happy/positive signage along Franklin to that effect would help too.

In its current form, Franklin Boulevard is fundamentally not conducive to being a safe, truly multimodal street. It’s too wide, cars drive too fast, with pedestrian unfriendly sidewalks. Getting from point A to point B along Franklin presumes you are driving.

I’m supportive of the changes proposed for Franklin. I live 4 blocks from Franklin and there is incessant traffic noise. It’s a ‘track meet’ when I’m not driving on it, and it’s ‘too annoying with all the lights’ when I am driving on it. Classic George Carlin bit, but true for me. I think the changes will slow down speeds, yet maintain steady throughput. I want all of our city streets to be narrow and treed. Frankly, I want all cars to go away as soon as possible.

I would love to see changes that encourage other modes of transportation besides cars. I live within 2 miles of my office but biking or walking on Franklin is enough to discourage me from using those modes of transportation.

So much opportunity for safety and access improvements, which would make the road more enjoyable for all users, including cars and busses. In the current configuration, Franklin is loud, fast, and unpleasant for those not in a car. When I drive it, it’s unpleasant because I worry that I can’t see pedestrians or cyclists. I would prefer if the driving surface were fewer lanes, there was dedicated infrastructure for peds and cyclists, and clearly marked crosswalks with responsive lights.

With the continued growth of off campus housing occurring we have the opportunity to really create safe and accessible routes through town. Let’s use this opportunity to really grow our town in a safe way that promotes multiple forms of transportation.

Franklin is auto-centric while other forms of transportation are secondary. Crossing Franklin can definitely be a challenge at times for pedestrians. While most of my trips down Franklin are by car and without issue, making the street into something that’s more friendly to other forms of transportation seems like a good idea.

It is a main road for cars. Other modes of transportation use it as well. But if you pretend that it won’t be a major road like it is now, all you will do is cause traffic. Balance with other modes is key but let’s not pretend that it doesn’t rain most of the year and people drive when it is raining. Summer is when most people bike places. Don’t change the roads away from car use for bike use part of the year.

It’s a main thoroughfare so it’s going to be busy. Enforcing a speed limit would be great. Roundabouts – don’t do it. Look at European ideas on how to satisfy car, bus, pedestrian needs.

There’s no bike lanes! Moving from one side of the road to the other is scary and unsafe! The sidewalks are too narrow to safely have a cyclist pass a walker! The cars parked on the side of the road block the view of cars driving of pedestrians! The parked cars block the view of pedestrians and cyclists who will want to cross crosswalks! The businesses along the road are difficult and unenjoyable to access! There’s a sign outside the 959 thats pointed at the sidewalk and says something to the effect of ‘Pedestrians – watch for cars exiting the parking lot’. Which is BullShit. I have a right to be on that damn sidewalk. It’s the CARS that need to watch for ME. Franklin is a road made by carbrains, for carbrains. In the year of our lord 2023, surely the city of Eugene, acclaimed as a bike and pedestrian accessible city, can do better. As far as on engagement, I’m not entirely sure how? Where is this being discussed?

I support the goals of both Vision Zero and CFEC. I have no opinion about traffic circles nor the locations of turns off of Franklin. I am most concerned with creating a safe and attractive thoroughfare with clear delineations between cars and non-motorized user paths as well as trees for much-needed shade.

This is an arterial street for traffic in Eugene. It’s should be made more accessible but cars still need to get through quickly

From being a gravel road to a major thorough fare it has seen some changes over the years, none recently. Some of the pavement going east, left lane needs attention. Sharing with bikes and mopeds is probably needed. The EMX seems to be working well on Franklin. Safety is good I believe. I have not seen many cars speeding on this road, there are some, generally feel safe.

I am excited to see Franklin Blvd transform into a safe multi-modal corridor!

I think Franklin boulevard has issues regarding accessibility for disabilities and other non car related ways of travel.

This space feels like it’s been forgotten, and is waiting for someone, anyone to come up with a plan. It feels now like there’s NO PLAN. Pedestrian centered plans will CHANGE how people use the space, especially UO students and faculty/staff.

There is so much potential for this space to be special for the residents of Eugene and the students of the University of Oregon! Please don’t shy away from making it TRULY pedestrian centric. We need protected bike lanes, roundabouts, quality pedestrian crossings, many more trees and green spaces, etc. Thanks for doing this work!!

Turn it into pedestrian only and move the thoroughfare somewhere else. It’s already congested and dangerous enough- don’t add delays.

I am excited about the idea to add more round-a-bouts to Franklin Blvd. I like the two round-a-bouts in Glenwood and I think they would improve traffic flow closer to campus. Making left turns off of Franklin on Villard St and Orchard street when going West Bound feel very dangerous. Particularly Orchard St – I avoid this left turn at all costs. The traffic in the Market of Choice and Hiron’s parking lot is also very uncomfortable. It is unclear if there are one ways and the visibility is poor especially when the sun is setting. I would like to see more trees on Franklin to improve the walking experience. I believe that the sidewalks and bike lanes could be made safer. I do NOT feel safe biking on Franklin, which is a real shame because there are so many PeaceHealth bike facilities in that area. The stores are so set back on Franklin making them feel inaccessible to pedestrians. This should be changed to promote more UO student foot traffic at local stores.

Auto and pedestrian crashes are a serious issue. Pedestrian connectivity along corridor is a problem. Bike system is mainly non-existent. Need more frequent EmX including double tract. Safer pedestrian and bike crossings. Make Franklin better for all users.

Franklin is currently a terrible road. It’s unpleasant, loud and dangerous. It prioritizes cars at the expense of people and even motorist suffer because of its high speeds and dangerous driving.

I wish the street was slower and had more biking/walking options as well as more trees and less concrete for a better sense of place. If these things were achieved, development of a better district could happen as opposed to just focusing on maximum care throughput.

The transportation infrastructure should be designed for the expected future land use density and travel patterns; not today’s.

Franklin is not a complete street. It lacks facilities for bicycling and dedicates too much space to travel lanes for automobiles.

Planned changes will enhance safety and comfort for all travelers.