The protected intersection in Mizner park is not a real protected intersection. It’s a demonstration project. Since becoming a Vision Zero City in 2022, Boca Raton has worked to move forward in mobility. This has come from the constant advocacy and pushing by council members Drucker, Wigder, Nachlas and the city’s Citizen Pedestrian and Bike Board chaired by Holli Sutton and vice chair Howard Greenberg.
If an idea is no good, you want to find out right away.
A specific area of progress made by those efforts, has been the allocation of budget/personnel to the City of Boca Raton’s traffic department to do “Demonstration Projects” or “Demos”. These projects are done quickly versus the traditional 5-10 year planning/construction cycles. Demo projects, are prototype changes using “quick build” materials that can be removed as if nothing happened (see Vision Zero Demonstration Projects Do’s and Dont’s for more). After a few weeks of use, measurements and collecting feedback, a demo project is removed and a decision is made to move forward with a permanent implementation, or not. If an idea is no good, you find out right away.
The demo project at Mizner Park needs significant changes when made permanent if it is to provide the safety benefits of a real protected intersection. I explain why below. At the end of this article, is a link where you can request a BocaFirst Advocate survey about the project. After reading this article, go try out the intersection, take the survey, and make your voice heard.
It does however simulate the idea of one. But, it is not a real protected intersection. The final design needs to reconstruct the corners.
The strategic nature of the Mizner Park Protected Intersection
The demonstration project intersection is at NE 2nd St and Mizner Blvd which is located adjacent to a planned hotel that will soon replace the Post Office/Plaza. Both streets have unprotected bike lanes and the intersection is a transition point between urban and single family zones. It’s one of three strategic intersections that makeup the NE 2nd St corridor from City Hall to the intracoastal.
The route strategically connects the Memorial Park/Government Center/Brightline and downtown. If someday, Federal and Dixie should somehow also sport protected intersections or pedestrian bridges, and you add the Palmetto Park Road treatment that the Workshop 344 visionaries developed, then boom. You have a mobility friendly downtown zone and not just a street.
What is a real protected intersection
The project going on right now attempts to show the idea of a protected intersection without actually building one. Here’s a two minute video2 that shows a real protected intersection. It was done in a city half the size of Boca Raton.
Why Boca’s demo is not a real protected intersection
Protected intersections, like protected bike lanes, save lives. They do this by continuing the protection into the intersection so as to separate cyclists from cars with concrete curbs, better visibility to cars and distance from conflicts.
To achieve the safety of a protected intersection, the design needs to have these four elements1:
- Corner Refuge Islands
- Forward Stop Bars
- Setback Bicycle Crossings
- Bicycle Friendly Signal Phasing
The cornerstone of a real protected intersection are the reconstructed corners that make “corner refuge islands” from which the other features follow.
The Protected Intersection Demonstration Project at Mizner Park does not implement corner islands, forward stop bars or bicycle friendly signal phasing. Implementing these missing elements will require reconstructing the corners of the intersection.
Corner refuge islands make a protected path for through-cyclists while also allowing right-turning cyclists to continue without stopping. For left-turning cyclists, the corner islands and setback crossings provide a protected perimeter path with convenient signal controls on the islands. Additionally, the corner islands have forward stop bars to help prevent right hook and left hook crashes all without impacting vehicle flow. These are missing from the Mizner Park project.
It does however simulate the idea of “Setback Crossings” that distance ped/bike crossings from cars. For an in-depth look at the demo project and videos of it in action, see the article “Protected Intersection Comes to Boca“. Incomplete or fake protected intersections have been tried in other cities. While they are good for PR, they are not any safer.
Summary
The Protected Intersection Demonstration Project at Mizner Park does not implement:
- corner islands
- forward stop bars
- bicycle friendly signal phasing
Implementing these missing elements will require reconstructing the corners of the intersection. With a hotel coming to the intersection in the next few years, the City of Boca Raton is wise to get ahead of the dangers the infrastructure poses. Fortunately, in this case, the city has elbow room with adjacent land. According to the Palm Beach property appraiser map, the northwest and southwest adjacent properties are owned by the city/CRA. And, with cooperation by the southeast corner property owner, a little of its parking lot space will go a long way towards keeping everyone safe. Three protected intersection corners are better than none.
protected intersection demo project (outlined in blue).
What you can do
Try out the intersection as a motorist, cyclist and/or pedestrian. Then request a survey. All responses will be presented to the Citizens Ped/Bike Advisory Board and given to the traffic department. Let’s go!
REFERENCES
1 Protected Intersections for Bicyclists – protectedintersections.com
2 How to Use a Protected Intersection
Related Articles:
Real Protected Intersection vs Demonstration.
