There have been several letters in the Redmond Reporter critical of the rechanneling of 166th Avenue Northeast.  I, for one, very much like the change, for these reasons:

1. The bike lanes make it vastly safer to ride a bike up and down this street.  Previously, a bike rider had to choose between illegally riding on the sidewalk or risking life and limb out in the regular lanes. I use these lanes to commute to work every day.

2. The center turn lane makes it much easier to make a left turn onto 166th. Previously, I had to wait for a window in the traffic going in both directions, which can take frustratingly long. Now, I can pull into the center lane and afterward merge into the regular lane.

3. The barriers are necessary to prevent people from illegally driving several blocks down the turn lane, which would nullify the turn lane’s usefulness.

Thanks, Redmond Planning Department, for this improvement!

Jeff Duzak, Redmond