What the public thinks of Franklin Boulevard today

I bike across Franklin everyday and consistently see people speed and run red lights. There needs to be better pedestrian and bike crossings and overall accommodation for car alternative transportation. Also it is the Main Street of Fairmount and should aesthetically reflect the neighborhood identity.

Synchronize the traffic lights. The light at Agate interferes with the flow of traffic.Too many drivers speed to “make the light” Scares / harms pedestrians, bike riders, other non-drivers.

Franklin Boulevard is very dangerous to pedestrians and cyclists. The sight lines from turning lanes, the speed of traffic, the number of lanes, the fact that people tend to drive well over the speed limit regularly, the confusing nature of the turning lanes onto side streets… I can’t even list all the ways is currently unsafe to those who are not inside a vehicle. Even though I have never been hit while walking, it has come very close a number of times and that is also traumatizing. I would never consider riding a bike or or other mobility device on Franklin because that is a death wish. I think the city’s plans are good, and that roundabouts are not as scary as people think they are!

As a bicycle commuter, I do not feel safe on Franklin Blvd currently. The overgrown bushes and closeness to fast-moving traffic result in Franklin being an area of anxiety for me that I really try to avoid as much as I can on my bike to and from work.

Franklin is like most of Eugene except people drive a bit faster. Eugene away from the river path is a terrible city to ride a bike safely. There are so many problems that could be addressed: Bike boxes, cushions between cars and bikes, education for motorists (all me how)…. just to name a few.

Because there aren’t much housings around, it’s not generally a safe place. Cars are high speed and it’s not safe to bike in those narrow lanes. I also wish there were more trees around, and better sidewalks.

Franklin Boulevard seems extremely unsafe for bikers and pedestrians. Visibility is low and cars drive fast, due to the multiple lanes going in both directions.

I recently tried to ride my bike from South Eugene to an event out in Glenwood. I had to cross the highway where it divides, with no crosswalk or light. I had to walk across a bridge on a narrow sidewalk next to fast traffic. And then I had to repeat that to return. I know there is a bike path on the other side, but couldn’t figure out how to access it from the south side of town. Also, it doesn’t go as far as I needed.

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.

Walking on Franklin near UO is awful, it seems outdated and pretty scary. The sidewalks are narrow as if they are original yet the roadbed used by cars has increased…so that the cars are inches from you and moving fast…a space buffer between pedestrians and the cars would be great. There are many community-wide evening events at the UO (i.e. Nordic Film series in the winter) where parking after hours in Franklin parking lots is permitted; As such more lighting would be great in the parking lots, and along the sidewalks used to get on campus, and along the cement footpaths on campus from the buildings to the sidewalks on Franklin.

People just drive too darned fast. Slow down traffic! There are plenty of alternative bike routes so it is easy to avoid Franklin on bike. Roundabouts are great IF people understand how to use them. The bike situation at the roundabout in Springfield near Riverbend Hospital is pretty bad.

I’d love a bike lane/tunnel crossing Franklin going from the river to campus so you wouldn’t have to ride on Franklin itself which is very dangerous in every way for cyclists. Turn signals are short, traffic going fast, lots of it, many lights, complex bike lanes.

It is completely car-oriented. It’s a massive barrier for Eugene residents south of the river to access the amenities on the river and the bike paths to the east and west. Most of the sidewalks are designed to encourage cars to proceed across them at high speeds at driveways without checking for pedestrians.

The few times I’ve walked along this road, rather than take the bus and leave the area as soon as I could, it’s been anxiety-inducing. The cars travel at high speeds, small sidewalks place you right next to traffic, and frequent driveway cuts constantly direct automobiles over the top of what little pedestrian space there is. I feel perpetually on guard, and for good reason. As a result, the area is highly unpleasant, something not helped by excessive parking lots that break up pedestrian access to the buildings. Waiting for the bus next to all the noise and pollution is somewhat less unpleasant from the station, though being sandwiched in a median between 4-6 lanes of high speed traffic for sometimes as much as 15 minutes does little for my sanity. I would never bike here. We desperately need to change the area to accommodate people, rather than cars. I just heard of this project, and I want to do everything I can to see it through to the end.

Franklin is currently one of the most unfriendly & unsafe streets in Eugene in terms of pedestrian, biking or using businesses. And this is an area where there is a significant number of students walking and biking. I currently choose not to utilize businesses in this area because of the noise & lack of accessibility. Improvements would increase my interest in utilizing businesses in this part of town. Additionally it is important that access by pedestrians & alternative forms of transportation be improved, that the speed of traffic be reduced, access to transportation systems be improved upon. I believe the both the public process around re-development on Franklin and the recommendations/ outcomes are good ones. I’m also concerned that delays will result in the loss of federal funding.

Speed and feeder streets make for a very unsafe experience for all. Drivers have become very aggressive and inpatient. The city has many car only thoroughfares.

Too fast, narrow and winding.

Drivers can go very fast and there isn’t always close walkways or paths for bikers, depending on which part of Franklin. I’ve been hit trying to cross the road on Franklin in 2009.

It’s an ugly welcome to the city/university district. vehicles drive way too fast despite there being pedestrians nearby/crossing it all the time. drivers treat it is an extension of the freeway and/or simply as a thoroughfare to get past as quickly as possible. it’s not a pleasant experience for those who are not in a vehicle…. and even when driving, it’s hard because of the confusing signage, awkward intersections and chaos of UO campus being on both sides of the roadway.

Franklin boulevard does not feel safe crossing as a pedestrian, the width of the street combined with the time allotted for crossing and cars waiting to turn through cross walks. The road is very load, when waiting to cross the street having a conversation is difficult. Cars travel too fast and run the red light at Onyx frequently. Traveling west on franklin as a biker or pedestrian is challenging because the sidewalk width narrows at several locations which doesn’t accommodate both modes of transit.

Never feels safe. walkway too close to busy, loud and fast cars. cars speed and one even ran a red light, in front of people crossing the street. takes forever to cross the street. so loud.

Transforming Franklin into a walkable street will greatly alter to area for the better. If it slows car traffic, so be it. The pedestrian friendly alternative will create better, safer routes and attract more to businesses. Most people have no interest in eating outside on Franklin- it’s ugly, loud, busy, not human scaled.

The current overall safety in my opinion is fairly low. Bike accessibility is very poor. There is a bike lane on the south side of the street that starts at E 13th and Franklin Blvd, and extends to Walnut St. I have used this bike before, but always seem to end up riding on the sidewalk when possible because of how unsafe I feel with cars speeding past me at well over 35 mph. I would like to also note that I do not see many cyclists on Franklin Boulevard at all, due to its poor street design and narrow bike lanes. All of my friends who walk and bike to school from 2125 Franklin Blvd (Walnut St and Franklin Blvd) cross over Franklin and continue walking towards E 15 ave instead of walking down Franklin. Another problem is that the sidewalks are very bare and narrow and close to the road. Any small movement from a car on Franklin Blvd could be deadly to a pedestrian.

I’ll be living on Franklin and really am worried about the noise and safety, so those are what I am most concerned about. It always seems so dangerous with everything moving so fast so close to the sidewalks, and I really don’t trust the barely-existent bike lanes. The EmX is creepy, too, so I don’t take it a lot.

I often see cars run red lights while crossing Franklin Blvd to get to UO campus on my bike. The length of the lights and width of the street seem to encourage people to gun it in their cars.